The Esks a disgrace to the City of Edmonton

It was bad enough the Esks got greedy, and sold the team for the high price tag. Never mind community ownership [City of Moose Jaw and Prince Albert refused to sell their team to the Oilers in the WHL despite being offered 5M - plenty of goodwill coming from the Oilers]

Of course the Esks used some of that money to support high salaries of guys like Ricky Ray, Davis Sanchez, Kelly Wiltshire, Joe Montford, and other guys they acquired during that off-season. '

"PCL may have not liked the situation, but they could not legally force the Trappers to move. Travel was not as huge as people made it to be. There are plenty of teams along the pacific coast the Trappers played against. Meanwhile, nobody in New Orleans is complaining about their PCL team's traveling.

The Esks are fully to blame why Edmonton has a lower class ball league team right now. How have the Crackercats done anyways? Did they get any press?

But now?

http://www.edmontonsun.com/Sports/Es...65356-sun.html

Plans to replace the natural grass with field turf.

Since when has Commonwealth been owned by the Eskimos?

Now they can punt away annual rugby touraments, as well as
jeopordizing Edmonton's chances to ever host international soccer matches and tournaments
(Team Canada men's and women's, Women's 2011 World Cup, annual international friendlies, u19, women's, World cup qualifying matches) again. FIFA approves field turf, but they don't encourage it. I doubt Edmonton lands soccer games here if they convert to field turf. But yeah, let's spend 6-7M on changing the seat colours. Great management

Taken from another board:
"FIFA (and I'm sure the IRU has a similar rule for rugby) has a rule that no official matches can be played on a field with markings for other sports, or something like that. If we were to get FieldTurf, the football markings would be stitched in - thus preventing Edmonton from hosting ANY of these games (wouldn't be worth the hassle to unstitch everything just for one game or one day)."

The Lowe down

It's never to early to think about the future. The future being, July 2007.

Sykora's contract ends. So does Smyth's. Ditto for Tjarnqvist and Staios

Fact: We're not going to be able to sign all these guys.

Unload one of the larger salaries if possible (Pisani, Moreau), and re-sign Sykora for a slight raise 3.3-3.5M for a 3-4 year deal.

I like Pisani and all, but I cannot emphasize enough what a stupid contract that was. He's simply not a 2.5M player. Worse thing, is it's a 4 years in length.

People will argue that we would not have made the cup if not for Pisani, so re-signing him at 1.1M in January would have been a mistake, as he would lost the motivation.

My response: If a guy can only get motivated by money, then you don't keep him on the team, or you try to find other ways to motivate him....and what exactly is Pisani's motivation right now?

If that were the case,shouldn't the Oilers be signing everyone to 1 year deals?

I stand by my opinion that it was a brutal contract that will hurt chances to sign other guys, unless traded.

Hey, one bad contract isn't the end of the world. Multiple bad contracts collectively hurts a team financially.

Moreau's contract was pretty bad as well, although not to the same extent as you know he's a tough as nails type of guy who will take any pain to help the team win hockey games.

Hopefully Lowe doesn't get strike 3 with Staios. Rumours are going on a 3 or 4 year deal is in the works.

Nothing more than 2 years IMO is appropriate at 2.5M. There won't be teams lining up to sign him at 3.0M so it makes little sense for paying him a premium at this point.

Why should the Oilers give in for Staios's wants?

Lowe should do what is in the best interests of the organization.

Or let him test UFA. Just because he gets there,doesn't mean he will get the 2.5-3.0M.

Guys like Samsanov, Dvorak, Peca didn't get as much as they anticipated (and short term deals as well).

There is a cap in the new NHL. Teams just won't be able to throw money (see JP Dumont). It's a zero sum game. If someone wants to take on a bad contract on Staios, let them.

I'd really want Lowe to show some guts this time around. He has yet to go to arbitration with a player, and not let a player he wanted back (other than Spacek) to test UFA markets...the premium paid for signing a player prior to July 1 can be excessive.

Lowe missed the boat with poor contracts in the past (Cross, Conklin, Cleary, etc.) Let's hope it's not the same old song this time around.

You have to have a good balance. You should not always give in to the players wants, especially if these said guys can be replaced for much less. Guys like Dean McCammond, Radek Dvorak, etc are all solid bottom 6 players that can be signed for dirt cheap on the UFA market.

Guys like Sykora, Smyth, cannot.

Potential UFA's will go. In our case, we'd lose our leading point scorer on the team because of the poor contracts given to guys like Pisani, Moreau, and possibly Staios.

Or worse, we'll lose the heart of the team in Ryan Smyth.

Then again, who am I to complain about giving 32 year old's 3 or 4 year deals, with decent prospects (Gilbert, Chorney, Peckham, etc) coming up.

Mind you, Lowe should be given some well deserved credit.

The Pronger deal was robbery. Spacek deal was decent.

Peca deal was a gamble, but paid off in the playoffs.

Roloson trade was solid.

The rental deals were probably only to make the playoffs, as this team was just fighting to make the playoffs. Missing the playoffs last year would hurt the team's bottom line in the future (missing playoffs for 2 years in a row). The Cup was not expected, but Lowe did his job in making the playoffs.

I'm just not willing to call him a genius that some people seem to think he is. The objective view is that this team barely made the playoffs last year, until the 81st game. Missed them 2 out of the 3 previous years. Lowe has made a couple of poor moves IMO that will hurt us next summer. So is it wrong to show concern if he's about to make another likely poor move giving Staios the rumoured 3-4 year deal? at over 2.5M?

Game 4 thoughts: Colorado

4-3 win.

1) Tjarnqvist has been a great surprise. 27:36 ice time, +2, excellent on the PK.

2) http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreport...7/ES020070.HTM

The third line has to step it up.

Moreau, Stoll both -2 (although Moreau played well).

When's Reasoner going to be promoted?

3) Brad Winchester tracker: 1:58 ice time. I really hope Mikhnov breaks in the lineup soon

4) One extra save per game? A little more than that tonight. Give me more of these, "over the hill, 37 year old career backups" anyday.

5) Hemsky was probably the best offensive player out there. Really liked the way he drove to the net in the first period, going one on one. Didn't score, but good to know he didn't circle at the perimeter. Nice assist on Sykora's goal

6) Smid is playing well. MacT trusted him in the final 5 minutes on the ice. Finished with 15 minutes, and an E rating

7) When does Markannen draw in? Hopefully Monday. I'm going to the Tuesday game.

Add your own thoughts/assertions

Post game thoughts: Game 3, San Jose

The team really loves to tease their fans, don't they? 6-4 win.

Let's roll:

1) The team didn't play all that bad in the first two periods. Shots explain it all.

2) Thornton = MVP. What a difference he has been to the San Jose sharks. Conversely, Nabakov has always been an overrated goalie who can't put it together.

3) Pisani should step up his play. He'll come around, he always starts slow

4) I'd like to see Reasoner take the 3rd line center spot. He played on the 3rd line a few shifts, and I'd just feel more comfortable 5 on 5 (hence, a true shutdown line) with him there with Moreau and Pisani. Of course that means Stoll drops down to the 4th line - but what can you do? The goal is to win hockey games, not design roster spots based on salary. He was also the only guy to finish with a minus rating

5) Defence played well, but were running around too much. Smith needs to step it up. Greene is developing soundly (+2 today). Smid played nearly 15 minutes, while going +2.

6) Disclipine. Correct it MacT.

7) Hemsky - drive to the net you pansy. Had a semi-breakaway, and always circles at the perimeter. Heck of a player though. The type of guy that still ends up on the scoresheet, and a plus 2 rating despite somewhat of a poor game

8) Winchester - baby steps. 3:01 ice time today, +1

9) shift chart

http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreport...7/ES020053.HTM

10) Example of inferiority complex

http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthread.php?t=31448

11) Does anything really be need to said re: Smyth?

Heartland of hockey

37 Edmonton and metro area players currently play in the NHL. Take off Shawn Belle, S. Neidermayer, and Rene Borque off that list, leaves with a respectable 34.

Hockey mad city indeed

Current Edmonton's metro area players

NIEDERMAYER, SCOTT (D) (although raised in BC)

GEOFF SANDERSON (LW) (born in NWT, raised in Edmonton)

SHAWN BELLE (D)

FERENCE, ANDREW (D)

IGINLA, JAROME (R)

LANGKOW, DAYMOND (C)

LUNDMARK, JAMIE (C)

MCLENNAN, JAMIE (G)

PHANEUF, DION (D)

COMMODORE, MIKE (D)

WARD, CAM (G) (born in Saskatoon, raised in Edmonton)

WHITNEY, RAY (L)

BOURQUE, RENE (L) - born, but raised in La La Biche, Alberta

KEITH, MATT (R)

CHIMERA, JASON (L)

GOERTZEN, STEVEN (R)

SYDOR, DARRYL (D)

BARNES, STU (C)

LUPUL, JOFFREY (R)

PISANI, FERNANDO (R)

BOUWMEESTER, JAY (D)

SOURAY, SHELDON (D)

FIDDLER, VERNON (C)

NICHOL, SCOTT (C)

MATVICHUK, RICHARD (D)

BETTS, BLAIR (C)

COMRIE, MIKE (C)

MORRIS, DEREK (D)

NASH, TYSON (L)

REINPRECHT, STEVEN (C)

CHRISTENSEN, ERIK (C)

SMITH, MARK (C)

STEVENSON, GRANT (C)

ONDRUS, BENJAMIN (R)

SMITH, NATHAN (C)

PETTINGER, MATT (L)

SUTHERBY, BRIAN (C)

Game 1: Edmonton 3, Calgary 1

1) Our "37 year old career backup" seems to still have it....

2) Hemsky - seems to have matured this year

3) Sykora - Liked this signing from the get-go. I retract my comments on calling out Lowe for not signing a more expensive Samsanov.

4) I think the defence will be fine. MAB looked great out there. I was most pleased with Matt Greene - solid passing, hard working, error-free hockey. Smid had a nice NHL debut. Staios broke up a few nice plays.

5) I love the fact our PP changed to 4 and 5 forwards

6) Smyth had a quiet night. He'll rebound. That's the luxery of having 4 solid lines - if a line can't get it going, there's depth

7) Was Stoll playing the tough minutes today? That line fared pretty well.

8) Thorenson is a great story - working his way on to the team. He had a solid debut.

9) On the other hand, Kiprusoft kept it from being a 5-1 game.

10) A 2 game mini-series would shut up some of the clowns at Calgarypuck. Good grief, read some of those comments and excuses in their game thread.