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NHL Players Vote Dion Phaneuf Most Overrated

Jan 12

Posted by Matt in News | 1 Comment

Dion Phaneuf was voted most overrated hockey player by his NHL peers

Dion Phaneuf was voted most overrated hockey player by his NHL peers

In a recent poll conducted by Sports Illustrated, 161 NHL players voted on the most overrated player in hockey. After the feedback was tallied, it turns out Dion Phaneuf is considered by the majority to be the most overrated. His stats look great so far this season as Phaneuf has tallied 7 goals and 21 assists for 28 points in only 42 games. The heavy hitter could be benefiting from playing alongside the likes of Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul, however, both of whom are currently in the top 5 in NHL scoring. This is the first season since his breakout year in 2007-08 that Phaneuf has lived up to any of the hype he had early in his career.

Despite his good numbers this season, Phaneuf’s peers clearly don’t think he is deserving of any hype. Dominant defensive players can play against the opponent’s top offensive talent night in and night out, shut them down consistently, and show up as an additional offensive threat on the blue line as well. Nick Lidstrom and Shea Weber would be great examples, and both are having tremendous seasons once again. While they have maintained solid plus/minus numbers, Phaneuf has struggled in recent seasons to be a consistent plus player. His offensive numbers are great again, but until he can turn up his defensive game as well, his NHL peers will look down on him for being overrated.

Coming in at number two on the overrated list, which is becoming less and less of a surprise as time goes on, is Alexander Ovechkin. After being a perennial 50 goal scoring threat, Ovechkin has faded in the past two seasons and is only on pace for 34 goals in 2011-12.

Third on the list is Montreal Canadian’s center Scott Gomez. I think we can all agree with this assessment. While his name isn’t mentioned much anymore, his cap hit of roughly $7.36 million from 2007 to 2014 makes him highly overpaid. Gomez is currently on the shelf with a nagging groin injury and has 4 assists in 13 games played this season.

Behind Gomez, and fourth on the SI list is Roberto Luongo. His inability to capture a Stanley Cup may have landed him high on the list. However, it could also be that Luongo is nothing more than a good goalie on a great team. Many teams now are employing average goaltenders at a low cap hit, in order to make the most of the rest of their roster. They’re also seeing a lot of success by doing it. The Canucks, however, continue to pay big bucks for Luongo’s services.

Rounding out the top five is Dany Heatley. Since being traded from Ottawa, we’ve watched Heatley’s stock sink. His first year in San Jose was solid with Joe Thornton centering him. Beyond that, Heatley began falling apart. He’s on pace for less than 60 points this season with Minnesota.

The rest of the most overrated players in the NHL fall in line as follows:

6. Ilya Kovalchuk
7. Vincent Lecavalier
8. Jay Bouwmeester
9. Ryan Kesler
10. Mike Komisarek
11. Chris Pronger
12. Jarome Iginla
13. Alexander Semin
14. Olli Jokinen
15. Ed Jovanovski

How accurate do you think the NHL players were? If it were your list, who would you have voted most overrated?

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Jarome Iginla shootout goal against Columbus

Dec 28

Posted by Chris in Media | No Comments

Calgary Flames forward Jarome Iginla put together a rather slick string of fakes and dekes last night against Columbus Blue Jackets goalie Steve Mason before netting the eventual winner and the only goal of the shootout. The Flames won the game 2-1 and continued their impressive streak. The team has now won four in a row and are tied with the Nashville Predators with 40 points on the season, although the Flames still find themselves outside of the playoff picture thanks to tiebreakers. Iginla also netted the only goal of the game for Calgary. The move itself is pretty slick, although not as incredible as the Patrick Kane deke from a few weeks back. Check out Iginla’s move below:

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Jarome Iginla trade makes sense for Flames

Dec 2

Posted by Chris in News | No Comments

In 14 years with the Calgary Flames, Jarome Iginla has only been to the Stanley Cup Finals once. That was also the only time he has been a part of a Flames team that advanced beyond the Conference Semi-Finals. Despite being a consistent scorer, the Flames have continually failed to provide Iginla with the proper supporting cast to make a legitimate run at the Stanley Cup. At 34-years-old, Iginla is on pace for one of his worst statistical seasons and the Flames will likely miss the playoffs for a third straight year. It’s time that the Flames do their star player a favor and trade him to a contender.

The problem with trading a player like Iginla involves how that move will impact his legacy in Calgary. Although not drafted by the Flames, Iginla played his first NHL game in a Flames sweater and has been with the club ever since. The fans adore Iginla thanks to his hard work ethic, his on-ice production and his humble nature. It probably doesn’t hurt that he will throw down the gloves for a good scrap every once in a while either. Needless to say, the thought of trading Iginla is viewed as a sacrileges act among the Calgary faithful.

But at some point, as a fan or as a general manager, you need to weigh the importance of building a winner versus keeping your star athlete. The payback on Iginla should certainly help the Flames begin building a winning franchise. After so many seasons where they just weren’t good enough, the Flames need to make the necessary moves to get themselves over the hump and begin seriously competing with the big guns in the West.

Besides, the Flames will have 12 free agents at the end of this season including Olli Jokinen, Scott Hannan, David Moss, Lee Stempniak and Cory Sarich. This season may provide the best time for Calgary to begin the rebuilding process as they can trade away a good number of players for draft picks and prospects and begin building for the future. Unfortunately, if that does happen, Calgary may be looking at a rebuilding process that could take a few seasons before they are truly a contender. Iginla is only signed through next season, but does he really want to go waste a valuable season at the end of his career with a rebuilding franchise?

The problem, as with almost any trade of a significant player, is finding a competitive team who can absorb his salary. And Iginla’s $7 million cap hit certainly doesn’t make that easy. Perhaps a team like the Nashville Predators could make a run at Iginla. The team needs more offense and a move of that caliber would be telling that the team is serious about building a winner, possibly providing incentive for free agents Shea Weber and Ryan Suter to stick around for longer. The Carolina Hurricanes have roughly $13 million in available cap space and would probably love to get their hands on a veteran scorer like Iginla.

Don’t count out a team like the Detroit Red Wings either. The Wings have roughly $5.5 million in available cap space and it’s been rumored that they would love to bring another scorer into their top-six. If Iginla becomes available, he could be a target for the Wings.

According to reports from Hockey Night in Canada, Iginla hasn’t outright asked for a trade, but he has stated that he is beginning to think about life with a team besides the Calgary Flames. That’s a huge step for someone who has been with the team for the better part of 14 years. With the amount of pending free agents in Calgary at season’s end, the Flames need to seriously consider selling assets and moving into rebuilding mode. Although Iginla’s contract doesn’t expire until the end of next season, moving him this year makes sense for the club and for Iginla himself.

What do you think? Should the Flames trade Iginla this season? Share your thoughts with us by leaving a comment or by visiting our Facebook page to join the discussion!

 

 

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2011-12 NHL Season Preview: Calgary Flames

Sep 22

Posted by Eddie in Season Previews | No Comments

Key Offseason Losses: Robyn Regehr, Fredrik Modin, Ales Kotalik

Key Offseason Addition: Chris Butler

Last Season Ranking: 10th in the West

Look for Alex Tanguay to crack the 70-point plateau for Calgary this season.

Offense: The Flames got off to a poor start at the beginning of the season. The first half was deadful, they weren’t winning games and they weren’t scoring goals. They were able to find fire the second half where they averaged 3.42 goals per game over the final 47 games of the season. That was when GM Darryl Sutter was fired and Jay Feaster was brought in. Had they been scoring at that clip over the entire season, they would have led the league in scoring. They return every player from the top four lines, with the only addition being 26-year-old prospect Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond.

While he isn’t new, the Flames return Daymond Langkow, who played four games last season when he suffered a neck injury and missed most of the season. He could be a fantasy sleeper as he didn’t play last season and could slip into a later round. Expect him to score between 30-35 points on the third line. Jarome Iginla and Alex Tanguay will be expected to carry most of the scoring load. The big question is how much will the captain have in the tank? His contract ends in two years, and expect him to look elsewhere for a championship should he not get back to the Stanley Cup final before 2013.

They don’t have  a lot of speed due to the aging vets on the forward lines but will be able to play an uptempo style with Curtis Glencross and Rene Bourque on the wing of the second and third line. X-factor players who we should see good things out of this season include Olli Jokinen, David Moss, and Mikael Backlund. In addition to Letourneau-Leblond, look for Paul Byron to have a chance to make the team and see playing time this season.

Defense: If there is anything that will keep the Flames from playing past April 7, it will be there defense. Because they traded away top defenseman Robyn Regehr, there are big shoes and a lot of playing time up for grabs in all three phases of the game. The top defender is now Jay Bouwmeester, but he hasn’t met expectations in regards to his offensive production. Having the ability to move the puck when the team plays an uptempo style is necessary and the offensive will be generated through Bouwmeester. Also look for contributions from newly promoted Mark Giordano, as well as Chris Butler and Anton Babchuk.

Keeping the other team from scoring will be key for the team, as they were fifth in goals against two years ago, but ballooned up to 19th last season.

Goaltending: Miikka Kiprusoff is the alpha and omega when it comes to goaltending for Calgary. Just like I wrote last season, they had to get him a quality backup. They have appeared to do that with Henrik Karlsson. Kipper played and started a post-lockout low 71 games last season but it isn’t much of a drop when he has played between 73 and 76 games since the lockout. They probably can’t afford to have him start between 69-70 games because the rest of the team isn’t strong but I would like to see that if possible. Karlsson is still young but expect him to get between 10-12 starts. Leyland Irving is penciled in as the third goalie should Kiprusoff or Karlsson suffer an injury.

HWB Playoff Prediction: Not playoff bound. They are essentially the same team as last year. Calgary wasn’t able to bring in any additional talent because they have pretty much spent at the ceiling since the lockout. The bad part is they have spent it on bad contracts and it has taken this long for Feaster to manage it properly to have the space to add players. Should Calgary be in the playoff chase come the trade deadline, expect them to be a buyer.


 

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How Would You Build Your Team?

Oct 7

Posted by Eddie in Fantasy, Round Table | 6 Comments

Every hockey fan will go through this discussion. “If I were to build my own team, I would have (insert player names here).” Well it got Hockey World Blog thinking, “Build a team with 1 forward, 1 defenseman, and 1 goalie, who would you pick?”

Eddie:

Forward: Pavel Datsyuk

If I were to build my team, I would keep it young in terms of age and experience, but I’d throw in a few guys in that 30-35-year-old range to provide leadership on and off the ice. Datsyuk is one of those players who can score a highlight reel goal every time he touches the puck. At age 31, Datsyuk has won two Stanley Cups and was a finalist for the Heart Trophy this past season. On my team, he would be that perfect combination of experience and offensive threat. Not to mention he’s a great two-way player as he won the last two Selke Trophies.

Defenseman: Mike Green

Mike Green has the perfect combination of scoring and defensive presense for a young player.

Mike Green has the perfect combination of scoring and defensive presence for a young player.

What a first-round draft the Capitals had in 2004. With the No. 1 overall pick, they take Alexander Ovechkin. And at No. 29 they take a young defenseman in Mike Green. They are amongst the best forward-defenseman combinations in the league. Both can light the lamp at anytime. What I like about Green is  that he’s grown into a much better player the last two seasons. Last year he scored 31 goals. That’s an insane amount for a defenseman. But what attracts me to him is his +/- rating. His +24 rating was tied for fifth in the league last season.

Goalie: Steve Mason

 In looking for a goalie, I want someone young who can be my franchise goalie, in the way that Chris Osgood was for Detroit and Martin Brodeur was for New Jersey. Living in the Central Division, I got to see a lot of the Blue Jackets and Steve Mason. He helped guide a team that was once the laughing stock of the NHL to a playoff birth last season. His 10 shutouts was the most in the league last season. If Columbus can get a couple more quality defenseman in front of him Mason can rise to one of the best goalies in the league.

EB:

Forward: Jarome Iginla

The boy can score, set up plays, fight and can even do commericals! Iginla is a class act, both on and off the ice. He is an ambassador for Kidsport Calgary which which donates $2,000 for every goal he scores. The money aides disadvantaged families by purchasing equipment as well as registration fees. He also supports many other causes through time and money, ranging from hockey diversity initiative to literacy programs. Sure you are widely known for the work you display on the ice, but to have a franchise player, you want someone well rounded both on and off the ice.

Jonathan Ericsson finishes a hit and already has eyes back on the play.

Jonathan Ericsson finishes a hit and already has eyes back on the play.

Defense: Jonathan Ericsson

Perhaps my biased Wings fan is showing, but Ericsson is going to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame one day. Currently under Nicklas Lidstrom’s leadership as a defenseman, I expect nothing but great things to come from this kid and would be more than willing to put a franchise with him at the center. The 6’4″ 206 lb. hard hitting and shooting player is a treat to watch at his young age. His agility and coordination improves daily it seems, with the natural unteachable poise of play that he possesses, and willingness to drop the gloves when he needs to.

Goalie: Jonas Gustavsson

Any player with the nickname “The Monster” is bound to gain attention. Coming into his first year and already with the media following would only mean $$$ for the owner. Fans would come far and wide just to get a glimpse of his enormous size only to be matched by his enormous talent. With the feeling that he alone could defeat a team with his quick reflexes, you could only imagine that he increases your chances of making playoffs as well as the possibility of getting some cups.

 

Chris:

Forward: Alexander Ovechkin

Give me a goal-scorer like Alexander Ovechkin any day of the week to build my offensive program around. This guy can score from his knees, while he’s diving, forward or backward. He is one of the most dynamic forwards in the NHL right now because of his speed, skating ability and his capacity to shoot mid-stride and catch both goalies and defenders off guard. Ovechkin has topped the 50-goal plateau three times in his four NHL seasons, only missing out on 50 by four goals in 2006-07. Plus Ovechkin is young. At just 23 years of age, this sniper has a long NHL career ahead of him.

Defenseman: Dion Phaneuf

If I get one player to build my defensive core around, I want a guy like Dion Phaneuf standing on my blue line. At 6’3 and 214 pounds, this guy is big, scary, and mean. He plays physical and is no stranger to throwing a few bone-crunching checks. His physical style of play has landed him with 90 penalty minutes or more in each of his four NHL seasons, topping out at 182 PIM during the 2007-2008 season. Phaneuf has an offensive prowess, too. In 323 NHL games, Phaneuf has accumulated 206 points, including 141 helpers. At the tender age of 24, Phaneuf has all the makings of a star blue liner.

Goalie: Ryan Miller

For a starting goalie, I like Ryan Miller. While he may not be cozying up to any goaltender records anytime soon, this is a guy who is solid between the pipes and gives you a chance to win every night. While he isn’t a tender young pup anymore at the age of 29, he definitely still has several quality years left in him to backstop a team to the Cup. Miller sports a career goals against average of 2.66 and a save percentage of 0.910. Not every team can draft a Marty Brodeur or Roberto Luongo, but Miller will make the saves he’s supposed to and probably stop a few that he shouldn’t. If nothing else, he will give you a chance to win night in and night out.

 

Matt:

Forward: Alex Ovechkin

Alexander Ovechkin is a scoring machine, plain and simple. As time goes on, however, he is solidifying himself as a more responsible defensive player as well. In fact, Alex finished his 2009 playoff campaign with a +10 rating in 14 games played. He is evolving into a terrific leader, and a player who wants nothing more than to win the Stanley Cup.

Defense: Mike Green

Does this guy not just remind you of Bobby Orr a little bit? At least in terms of his skating and scoring? If there is another defenseman to crack the 100 point barrier anytime soon, my money is on Mike Green. Last season he had 31 goals and another 42 helpers, for 73 points on the season, in only his third full year in the NHL. He is young, he is talented, and he will win a Norris Trophy and a Stanley Cup before his career is over.

Goalie: Roberto Luongo

They say that goalies tend to reach their peak performance level a bit later in their career than most other players. Well, if that’s the case, at 30 years young, Roberto Luongo is a guy you want on your squad. He has proven himself as a guy who can handle a heavy workload, playing more than 70 games in four of the past five seasons. Along with that, he’s posted a .919 save percentage throughout his career. As the current captain of the Vancouver Canucks, you know the man has tremendous leadership ability, and that is vital to the construction of any team.

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Calgary Flames

Sep 22

Posted by Eddie in Season Previews | 2 Comments

If Jarome Iginla wants to hold the Clarence Campbell Bowl again, he might have to do it in a different uniform.

If Jarome Iginla wants to hold the Clarence Campbell Bowl again, he might have to do it in a different uniform.

The Calgary coaching carousel took another spin for the fourth time in five seasons at the end of another disappointing 2009 season. Out was Mike Keenan, and Brent Sutter is in. Sutter coached New Jersey last season, but resigned to be closer to his home in Red Deer, Alberta. That retirement/resignation didn’t last long when his brother Darryl, the GM of the Flames, came calling with an opening behind the bench.

The coaching Sutter has the task of guiding the team to its first playoff series victory since they went to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2004. The Flames have advanced past round once (in 2004) since winning the Stanley Cup in 1989. For those scoring at home, it means they have been eliminated after the first round in 10 of the 11 years they have made the playoffs since 1989.

The issue the Flames have isn’t talent, but it’s getting that talent to perform more consistently when it mattered. On defense, they have one of the most physical units in the league with heavy hitters Jay Bouwmeester, Dion Phaneuf, and Robyn Regehr. The defensive unit needs to keep its physical presence at the level it’s been, but not allow 248 goals like it did last season. The defense should be better because Sutter coaches a more defensive system in comparison to Keenan. The one positive the blue liners had last season was their 83.4 percent penalty killing rate, good for fourth in the league.

Up front, Jarome Iginla is still the workhorse of the offensive attack. He’s played 81 or more games in five of the last seven seasons. His goals went down to 35 from 50 in comparison to the 2008 season. But his points did increase from 48 to 54. The big problem was his plus-minus rating. In 2008 he tied a career-high rating of +27, but in the same number of games last season he was a disappointing -2. That has to change if he wants to advance past the first round of the playoffs for the second time in his career.

The X-factors the Flames will have is who will replace the 82 points Mike Camalleri had last season. Counted upon to create more offense will be Olli Jokinen, Daymond Langkow, Craig Conroy, and Phaneuf. All four must score between 55-60 points to make up for the lost scoring. Younger players who have to contribute a little more than last season will be Rene Borque, David Moss. Both are expected to reach the 45-50 point plateau.

In goal, the Flames must have goaltending help for Mikka Kiprusoff. Kiprusoff has played 74 or more games each of the last four seasons. He has a lot of mileage in the goal crease, which has led to a significant decrease in performance in the playoffs. Each of the last two seasons, his GAA has increased by over .5 in the playoffs vs. the regular season. Backup Curtis McElhinney has to improve his 1-6-1 record last season and record some more wins to keep Kiprusoff fresher for the playoffs. In addition the defense has to perform the same in front of McElhinney as it does in front of Kiprusoff as it saved its worse performances for when the backup was in goal.

Like every season, the Flames have the potential to contend for the division title. If the defense and goaltending starts the season hot, they can fight for one of the top-three seeds in the west. Most likely, they will likely fall to the third-sixth seed. The challenge however, is if Sutter can put together a playoff run and earn the respect of the team in the locker room.

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