Flurry of activity today. First there's the announcement out of Ottawa that the Sens have forced Muckler to abdicate his throne for Murray. Then there's the bombshell trade and sign by Philly/Nashville involving Timonen and Hartnell.
The Sens decision to boot Muckler is rather baffling considering the level of success the organization has enjoyed during his reign. This may be, however, a move with an eye to the future since Muckler ain't no spring chicken...it's also been suggested elsewhere that The Senators wanted to retain the services of Bryan Murray, who potentially could have been coaxed to another Franchise with the promise of becoming a GM. All that in view, here's the real question to consider: would Muckler have been fired had the Senators won the cup this year? I'm guessing, no.
Timonen and Hartnell for (Nashville's) first round draft pick - talk about a ballsy move by a rookie GM, Holmgren is definitely making his presence felt in Philly. He's effectively turned a hobbled-former-superstar in Forsberg into Hartnell, Timonen, Parent and Upshall. Regardless if you think the resultant salary figures for Scotty and Kimmo are inflated (they are - 25.2M for and 37.8M for 6 years, respectively) that's still mighty impressive. From a Nashville perspective it's a bitter pill, but that was the risk inherent in obtaining Forsberg for a play-off push. At least they were able to win back their first round pick for a couple of pieces they were going to lose for nothing this summer anyways.
From a Calgary perspective, this trade means two things: 1.) Timonen's erasure from the UFA lists decreases the supply of good blueliners in the summer, meaning the demand for the likes of Hammer and Stuart probably just jumped with the concurrent jump in their price-tag as well. Not good. 2.) Hartnell, whom I considered one of the top candidates to fill the 2nd line RWer hole is out of play. Walker and Johnson, the two other guys I suggested awhile back, are still available, but they certainly aren't players of Hartnell's quality.
Speaking of the Flames, word from the radio is Sutter has signed Brent Krahn, Carsen Germyn and Warren Peters to new contracts. The Krahn signing is fairly surprising to me, especially with all the burgeoning goalie prospects Calgary has lined up behind him. My guess is McElhinney is tabbed to make the leap to the big this season and Krahn is being kept around as a veteran presence for the farm. The same sentiment applies to both Germyn and Peters as well: good AHL who can provide leadership and stability for the kids down in Quad Cities.
