Here are a couple of things I’ve been thinking about while awaiting the release of the 2010-11 NHL schedule at noon:
I cannot stress enough that these are sheer thoughts out of my own mind and not at all a reflection of anything I’ve been told by sources or front-office types. These are not rumors, just my random ideas.
•I Tweeted about this last night and the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. The Bruins want to deal Tim Thomas ($5 million for the next three years) and add scoring, Philadelphia has to deal Jeff Carter ($5 million cap hit next year) to make room in order to upgrade its goaltending and sign Dan Hamhuis, and Florida wants to deal Nathan Horton ($4 million cap hit for next three years) and add a top-line center. Does this just make too much sense for these three teams to get something done.
Even if Philly would rather have Tomas Vokoun ($5.7 million cap hit for next season) instead of Thomas, the Panthers could throw their veteran puck-stopper into the deal and could use Thomas to tutor prospect Jacob Markstrom in his first season in North America. Maybe Boston could take back Scott Clemmensen as part of the package to back up Tuukka Rask. Maybe you get the No. 3 pick involved, maybe not. Maybe other players, picks or prospects. It seems like these three teams should be able to figure it all out.
•Yesterday I analyzed a few potential landing spots for Thomas. Barring the above-mentioned three-way scenario, I really like the idea of Boston getting something done with the Islanders. Isles general manager Garth Snow has shown a willingness to trade down in the draft in recent years, and a swap involving Thomas and the No. 15 pick for a package including the No. 5 pick seems to make sense to me. The Bruins could take back Dwayne Roloson as Rask’s backup and Isles head coach Scott Gordon could reunite with Thomas. Gordon knows Boston’s prospects as well as anyone no longer in the organization, so maybe he’d want a Vladimir Sobotka or Matt Hunwick to add to his young team. The Bruins could use the cap savings to improve the offense via another trade or free agency.
Now I go back to waiting to find out what I’ll be doing and where I’ll be doing it this winter.
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I don’t understand why Bruins fans think the team will be able to move Thomas. He’s old and coming off hip surgery. He’s due a ton of money in the next couple of years. Detroit has demonstrated that you can be a dominant team in the NHL with strong defensemen and centers and adequate goaltending. Chicago rode that model to the Stanley Cup this year. Philly rode it to the finals. All of the teams with bona-fide #1 goalies disappointed in the playoffs. I think the only way Boston is able to move Thomas is if it accepts a crummy contract in return, something I am sure that Chiarelli doesn’t want to do.
That said, getting rid of Thomas right now is not necessarily the thing Boston should do right now. There is no guarantee that Rask will remain a quality NHL level starter (see, e.g. Steve Mason). Thomas must not be happy with his performance this year, and he wants to start, so he has incentive to work hard and play well. If he can rediscover his form, they have two solid goalies and Thomas retains his trade value. If he can’t, they should bury his contract in the minors or negotiate a buy out.
Bottom line, this Thomas extension looks like a bad deal, and few teams will want to give away anything valuable for him. If the B’s want Horton, they’ll have to part ways with a roster player or two and one of their top round picks. If they want Carter, the 15, or maybe the 2, would have to be on the table.