Every July, various team owners and GM's, despite their better judgment, lustily rush out to sign whatever slab of UFA meat they can catch to the biggest, longest contract that they possibly can afford.
Salary inflation? Dimishing returns? Chemistry concerns? Cap issues? Those factors mean little when a fairly good player is on the free agent market, and a bevy of other teams are vying for the same player.
So, which of these unrestricted free agent players have actually been a good investment thus far?
Chris Drury - 2007 salary of $7.1 mil (28GP 6-13-19 -2) Despite the fact that Drury has never proven himself to be more than a pretty good second liner, the Rangers decided to fork over superstar money without a second thought. I wouldn't say Drury's production has been disappointing, given that it's in line with previous totals of his, it's just that Drury is definitely overpaid for the type of player he is.
Scott Gomez - 2007 salary of $10mil (28GP 5-16-21) Gomez is definitely one of the better playmakers in the league, but has always had consistency and coachability issues. Again, the Rangers forked over large amounts of money for somebody who is not a superstar (he had only 60 points last season), and they aren't getting rewarded for their investment. Gomez just doesn't have the same chemistry with Jagr that Michael Nylander had, and will probably never live up to his huge contract.
Of course, it's always easy to pick on the Ranger$, so let's look at some other squads.
From a fantasy hockey perspective, Chris Clark of the Washington Capitals was one of those quality depth guys at forward -- someone who knew how to cash in on the offensive opportunities created by playing on the top line, to the tune of 30 goals and 54 points last season. Depending on the scoring of the fantasy league, Clark was ranked higher as a right winger than players like Glen Murray, Brian Gionta and Alexei Kovalev.
The Capitals made some significant additions to their offense during the off-season, which made me wonder if the captain would return to play with Alexander Ovechkin this season. So I asked him during media day several days ago what his role might be:
"Things are a lot different this year. It all depends on how things happen at camp. In camp, you never know what's going to happen. If we're a championship team or a playoff team, back-up goalie is fine with me. As long as we're winning."
Clark is expected to start the season skating with center Boyd Gordon and left wing Matt Pettinger. Although their primary responsibility will be to shut down the opposing team's best offensive players, Hanlon hopes the trio also will chip in with 50 or more goals, which would put them among the league's elite checking units.
The lineup change can be read several ways. Foremost for Clark, it likely means an end to the consecutive career offensive years he's had and, potentially, a decrease in his 16 power-play points from last season. But, as El-Bashir points out, Clark could be relocated to one of the top two lines should either Tomas Fleischmann or Nicklas Backstrom falter. More importantly for Washington, the move signals a quality depth at forward the franchise hasn't seen in years -- depth that has players like Ottawa's Jason Spezza calling the Capitals a dark horse in the Eastern Conference.
Although it's one year too late -- and what former NHL player is going to give up a fishing trip for this? -- the Florida Panthers will celebrate their Cinderella run to the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals this weekend. Panthers alumni like John Vanbiesbrouck, Ray Sheppard and Bill Lindsay will join the majority of the players (sans schedule-conflicted Rob Niedermayer and Robert Svehla) who led Florida to the Finals in only the third year of the franchise, before being swept away by the Colorado Avalanche. There's a golf tournament, player appearances and an exhibition game at BankAtlantic Center on Saturday that will give hockey fans something they've long dreamed about: another chance to witness the majestic skating of Terry Carkner on NHL ice.
In 1995-96, they finished third in their division (41-31-10, 92 points) and fourth in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, then beat in the Bruins 4 games to 1 in a seven-game series, the Flyers 4-2 and the Penguins 4-3 before losing to the Avalanche in four games in the finals.
Right winger Scott Mellanby killed a rat in the dressing room with his stick minutes before the home opener that season, then scored two goals that night, prompting Vanbiesbrouck to declare Mellanby's feat a "Rat Trick." Throwing plastic rats on the ice after goals soon became a phenomenon.
"We accomplished some pretty lofty things with a group of guys who were considered mediocre players at the time," Lindsay said.
"Mediocre players at the time?" Has history been that kind to Johan Garpenlov and Jody Hull? Florida Panthers fans have every right to celebrate this unexpected season of meteoric success, lest they fall deeper into the depressing reality that their franchise is now known more for losing Roberto Luongo and failing to make the playoffs in the Southeast Division than plastic rodents. But for the rest of us, this weekend begs the question:
Are the Florida Panthers the most mediocre Stanley Cup finalist of the last 25 years?
"On Sunday, July 1, 2007, Kevin Lowe, Oilers general manager, and Mr. Mike Gillis, certified agent for Michael Nylander, negotiated and agreed to a multi-year NHL Standard Players Contract, starting in 2007-08. Mr. Gillis confirmed same to the Oilers in writing," the Oilers' statement read Tuesday.
"The Oilers then proceeded with preparations to announce Mr. Nylander's contract agreement on July 2, and concurrently continued with the process of negotiating with other free agents based upon Mr. Nylander being an important roster ingredient for the future.
"However, while the Oilers were expecting the returned signed agreements from Mr. Nylander and Mr. Gillis, the Oilers discovered through public announcements made mid-afternoon on July 2, that Mr. Nylander had subsequently entered into a long-term contract with the Capitals.
Wow! I can't remember the last time something like THIS happened in the NHL. Agents don't usually bait-and-switch quite that blatently.
Without knowing the contents of the document the Oilers received, we can't quite tell if Nylander's agent agreed to an actual contract, or agreed that the money was satisfactory. I'm sure we'll find out more in the near future as this soap opera gets juicier.
I'm also sure that the NHL will 'fix' the ordeal by forcing Nylander's contract with the Capitals to stand, by hook and by crook. There is no way that Bettman will allow Nylander to go to the Oilers, nor would the Oilers want an unhappy camper on their hands.
How much is the NHL gonna pay to get out of this one?
So upset at whatever transpired when the Washington Capitals announced they'd signed the free agent to a four year deal yesterday afternoon, Edmonton Oilers GM Kevin Lowe was said to be so livid he refused to talk about it, even to a Sun Media reporter parked outside the team officies for two hours.
Lowe, who was left at the altar on the floor headed to the trade registration desk after believing he had a deal done at the NHL Entry Draft in Columbus, remains unsuccessful after two days of the free agent frenzy.
Did the Oilers have a deal in the works for Nylander, only to have the Caps sweep the centerman from right under their noses with a last-minute deal? Was this simply the media blowing their wad too early? Whatever the case may be, the Oilers have caught absolutely no fish from the free agent pond.
Every July, various team owners and GM's, despite their better judgment, lustily rush out to sign whatever slab of UFA meat they can catch to the biggest, longest contract that they possibly can afford. 
From a fantasy hockey perspective, 
This Michael Nylander 
When the Oilers 
