Guerilla Tactics: Let's make a deal

Well, the blog-o-sphere has been a bit quiet on the trade talk of late. Mainly because we are all resigned to the reality of Sutter's unpredictability. However, I have some things I want to get off my chest regarding this topic:





Things that we think know:

1. Forsberg is not available.
2. Jokinen is available.
3. Vermette and Corvo are available.
4. Sundin and Kaberle are available.
5. Prospal is available.
6. Tanguay is not available.
7. The great Cujo experiment proved that our D is brutal. We need D.
   

The Forsberg sweepstakes are in full effect but CGY has been ruled out as a destination. Philly, Ottawa, and (shudder) Vancouver might be realistic landing strips for his services. God help the Flames if Foppa joins Naslund (his BFF). We're so fucked if that happens.

Jokinen would be a welcome addition to the Flames roster thus filling the terrible hole at center TSN thinks we have. Problem, his price will be steep. Florida's needs are too uh . . . needy.

Vermette and Corvo. Well well well. It's not a shock Murray is looking for bodies unless you inhabit the cozy space beneath a rock. With Heatley and Alfie on the sidelines the Sens can't get shit going. Murray needs a forward with a nose for the net. CGY needs a defenseman. I could stomach Juice for Corvo. Vermette would be a nice addition for Lombo as well. This has potential for the Sens and CGY.

Sundin - Kaberle. Even when the Flames were shellacked by Edmonton I was relieved to recall that the Leafs stink even more. Sundin - Kaberle would be awesome additions to the Calgary lineup. To bad we'd end up selling the farm to get them. With Fletcher at the helm, Mats and Kaberle aren't leaving for anything less than heaven and most of hell.

Prospal could be a useful rental heading into the cup. Dude can score. Doesn't really solve the issue of our D being thin.

Ideal Scenario #1: Foppa heads to the Sens. Murray has ~2.7M in space so he could get Forsberg for cash. Let's say for some reason this fails and he needs to clear some cap room. Send Corvo and Vermette to Calgary where Sutter (we also have ~2.7M in room) has to drop some dead weight (Warrener, Preems, etc). Boom. Everyone is happy. Mostly.

Ideal Scenario #2: Sutter wrangles Prospal out of Tampa for a bag of pucks. Juice for Corvo straight up. Not likely, I know.

Less Ideal Scenario #3: Boyd-Eriksson for Corvo-Vermette. I'd hate to lose Boyd but this might be ok.

Less than ideal scenarios include anything involving a trade with Tangs and/or Lombo. Period.

Guerilla Tactics: Hypothetically Speaking.

Due to the vulgarities of reality, things have been a wee bit slow at GSN headquarters. Never fear dear reader, we are not dead, we are merely resting.

At the start of this exercise, I never really appreciated the depth of the NHL blogosphere. Now, I cherish it with a wild and reckless abandon. Many of the NHL blogging community contribute to a tree of knowledge, so tasty and ripe, I laugh at the average color commentator. Sadly, I do not contribute as effectively as my counterparts so I aim to pick the fruits of their labour and ensure they get even more exposure. Today is a classic example.

Today I wanted to discuss a hypothetical situation regarding the tenure of Mike Keenan. I can say with authority, fiveholefanatics and penguinBuzz have kicked my ass soundly with their co-posting adventure of Flames-Pens trading. But Back to Keenan for a moment. A local news publication, known fondly as 'Metro', had a column done by Marty York claiming that Keenan's time at the helm of the Flames may be coming to a close. Marty has a knack for breaking stories (according to his metro profile) . . . in the CFL so I can't really back the guy up here (anyone can break a story if they wildly predict every outcome). However, were the Flames to ditch Iron Mike, who would take the reins? I could only hope Sutter would make a return to the bench but I highly doubt it. Playfair wouldn't step up which leaves one distinct possibility, Wayne Gretzky. HA, kidding of course.

The BoA had a phenomenal post on Wednesday regarding mainstream media and blogs. I would advise reading it. Clearly the 'staff' here at the GSN are not journalists nor do we adhere to strict journalistic principles but Andy has me thinking about the quality of our content. For that, I am in his debt.

That folks, ends this weeks installment of Guerilla Tactics. We now return to our regularly scheduled sarcasm, misspelling, and poor grammar related to things NHL.

This Week in Guerrilla Tactics: Cap Management

Kipper is SIGNED

This isn't much of a scoop, you can read about it here, here, here, here, here, and here. Maybe there too.
Point being, Miikka Kiprusoff (damn that is hard to spell) is a Calgary Flame for the foreseeable future. I haven't parsed the details of the contract but it is front weighted and roughly in the area of 5.8 million per year which is excellent compared to Luongo's 6.75M/yr. There is a sense of excitement in Calgary as the core of the team has been solidified, Iggy, Regs and the Kipper. But the bad news is Phaneuf, the Juice and Lanks are heading into RFA/UFA territory at the end of this season. Phaneuf is especially concerning given the Edmonton Oiler's Offer sheet tactics of late. Not to mention the guy is playing well and deserves a huge raise. While signing the kipper at 5.8M is a wicked deal, I doubt Sutter got any sleep given what lies ahead. As a general note this would be a really good year for the Flames to try and win the cup while they have such a stellar roster. I'm just saying . . .

UPDATE:
Sharp Eyed Shaun points to this blasphemous article: Not Everyone Happy with the Kipper Deal.
Like any article produced in the center of the universe (toronto) it's a bit short on fact, references, sources or any content worth digesting. Anyhow, I will hit the high points:

1. Leland Irving is apparently not happy because he will have to 'beat out' Kipper for a spot on the team. Of course, no one in TO called Leyland, they just assume he's upset. By the way HE'S 19! He's the future! Do the bloody math, goalies are good from 28-35 . . . .
2. If we can trust this POS article (which sources NOTHING) we can assume that Kipper's deal is front loaded leaving plenty of cap room towards the end of his deal.
3. You know who else probably isn't happy about this deal? Brian Burke. Because he was most certainly screwed out of getting a goalie . . . oh wait, he doesn't give a shit.
4. Jeremy Roenick was upset by this deal because it further highlights his complete lack of value to any NHL team.

* Updated to reflect my idiocy regarding the Cap, the cap will be 5.8M per year despite what Kipper's payout actually is. Thank you loyal GSN readers for enlightening me.

This Week In Guerilla Tactics: Avs Best Offence is Flames Defence

I have borrowed this picture from TSN and the fine crew at Getty Images. Get used to, I will do this alot.

Ok. Let's talk tactics. The Flames get up 4-0 in the first period and look to be steaming to a stellar road trip result. Enter the Av's Ryan Smyth aka Captain Garbage Goal. Now, that being said a goal is a goal is a goal but Smyth makes even the most formidable defense look like trunk monkeys. As evidenced by last night. Ryan orchestrated Regs, Aucoin, and Erikson scoring on Kipper and that is no trivial feat. Period 1 was stellar. Period 2 was a collective train wreck. Dave has yet to comment but watch OpenIceHits for his thoughts.

What was good:

• Dion Phaneuf's wicked goal
• Iggy getting three points
• Kipper making some decent saves

What Stank:

• The exploitation of our Defense by Smyth
• Theodore getting between the pipes to steal the win from Budaj

So basically the Flames need to remember the killer instinct. When you're opponent is down, simply step in their neck until the 60 minutes is up. Constant, relentless, and unyielding pressure. Strangely, despite blowing a 4 goal lead I am optimistic about the season.