OTF Classic

As I wrote about a month ago , I decided to jump upon a short-term opportunity and set up a "hot topic" website for the 2012 NHL Trade Deadline. NHLFakeTrades.com was inspired by a column by Eric Duhatschek of the Globe & Mail, who looked at the frenzy with which hockey fans jump on even the sketchiest of information about potential hockey trades, and wondered if some cash could be made by simply and forthrightly writing about fictitious trade scenarios. This meshed nicely with an exercise I went through a few years ago to create a Random Trade Generator, so in the course of a few hours I went ahead and registered the domain, set up a WordPress site using ( as I do at Hockey Gear HQ ) the wonderful Genesis framework with the News theme , and freshened up the Trade Generator for 2012. So how did it do, in terms of traffic, revenue, and accuracy of the trade projections? Let's take a look...

Nashville Predators GM David Poile finally made the big trade today to clear up a logjam on defense, by trading Marek Zidlicky to the Minnesota Wild for prospect Ryan Jones and a 2nd round pick in 2009. Legions of Preds fans will be cheering this move, as #3 was often derided by some fans for coughing up the puck at inopportune times and not being a physical blueliner like fan-favorite Shea Weber . I've been a big fan of the other transactions the team has swung over the past few months, and I know I've been as vocal as any calling for Poile to open up opportunities for Kevin Klein and Ville Koistinen to get regular playing time this season, but I have to say that at first blush, I don't like this deal. Zidlicky is a legitimate #1 power play quarterback, a valuable asset in today's NHL, and I'm betting that after Brian Campbell gets his ridiculous free agent contract, the teams that miss out would be eager to trade for a player of roughly similar ability with...

So the NHL Trading Deadline did indeed turn out to be a chaotic swap meet, just as everyone had hoped for, with 23 deals ranging from the banal to the blockbuster, including a Marian Hossa trade that has Pittsburgh pushing hard for a postseason run this spring. To many local fans' disappointment, the Nashville Predators pretty much stood pat on this manic day of flesh peddling, obtaining only Jan Hlavac , a former 2nd-round pick who hasn't had a productive NHL season since 2000-1 with the New York Rangers. Out of the 30 NHL teams, only Boston, Edmonton and Calgary abstained from making a deal. UPDATE : It looks like the Preds also picked up Brandon Bochenksi from Anaheim for the ever-popular "future considerations." Personally, I was disappointed to see the Philadelphia Flyers land Vinny Prospal for a defense prospect and a conditional 2009 pick (2nd or 3rd round). I thought that Prospal would make an excellent addition to the Predators' lineup, although obv...

Well, we can truly say the NHL's Trade Deadline extravaganza is now underway, as the Carolina Hurricanes have sent defenseman Mike Commodore and winger Cory Stillman to Ottawa, in exchange for Joe Corvo and Patrick Eaves. While Corvo should make a nice fixture on the Carolina blue line for quite some time, Eaves, Commodore and Stillman all have contracts expiring this summer, a clear case of Ottawa loading up on short-term present value (a scorer and steady defense) at the expense of giving up a good young defenseman who's still signed for two more seasons. "The board is set... the pieces are moving..." The question now is whether other general managers around the league will start making deals as well, since the "Top Six Forward" market just got a little bit smaller. For someone like Nashville Predators GM David Poile, who is presumably shopping at the lower end of that market (as opposed to swinging for the home runs like Marian Hossa), Stillman would h...

Nashville Predators GM David Poile seems to be following my plans perfectly so far. On Tuesday I wrote that in order to assemble the best squad possible for the league minimum salary of roughly $33 million, he'd need to concentrate on re-signing his role players for minimal sums and trade Tomas Vokoun and his $5.3 million salary in order to clear up room to either retain Paul Kariya or add another difference-maker up front via free agency. Step One: Jerred Smithson retained for $1 million over 2 years, CHECK Step Two: Qualifying offers made to an assortment of Restricted Free Agents , CHECK Step Three: Tomas Vokoun traded to Florida for draft picks, CHECK You're completely relaxed, Mr. Poile, now listen closely... Now let's focus on the remaining steps: Step Four: Make an offer to Paul Kariya for somewhere close to what he made last year ($4.5 million) Step Five: Hire a stats-savvy blogger as a consultant to the team for future endeavors such as this. I think you...

TSN is reporting that the Nashville Predators have traded the rights to captain Kimmo Timonen and winger Scott Hartnell, both upcoming free agents, to the Philadelphia Flyers for a first-round pick (the one they sent to Philly for renting Peter Forsberg this spring). With the ownership picture still cloudy, GM David Poile apparently knew he wouldn't be able to re-sign either of these players, considered by most to be two of the most attractive free agents on the market. Instead, Poile gets a 1st-round draft pick back, and the Flyers lock up two quality players (both agreed to six-year deals worth a combined $10.5 million/year with Philly). While of course, the initial reaction is that this is a sign of a " Major League "-style dismantling of the club in order to break the lease and move the team out of town, it is worth considering the possiblity that this is a case of Poile getting something out of a situation he wasn't going to successfully work through anyway. A...

So much for the thinking that the salary cap would prohibit teams from making trades during the season, eh? Yet again, NHL general managers have thrilled fans across the continent today with their Bacchanalian festival of talent-swapping that, for roughly half the league, provides a fresh optimism for the stretch drive not unlike when teams break training camp at the start of the season. Obviously, the volume of analysis and coverage is immense, and there are many spots along the blogroll at right where you can get in-depth, comprehensive breakdowns for all the trades (for starters, consult Spector , Mirtle , Kukla , and just click your way around). For the moment, I thought I'd take a look at things from the perspective of the Nashville Predators, and how the deadline deals affect their standing vis-a-vis their rivals in the Western Conference... DETROIT: While the acquisition of Todd Bertuzzi raised the most eyebrows, the Jason Williams-for-Kyle Calder trade is what should re...

As we consider possible player moves leading up to the trade deadline, I thought I'd take a look at how some of these prospective pickups have performed against likely playoff opponents. In other words, given a slate of veteran forwards who have been cited in various trade rumors, how many points per game are they racking up against top teams, as opposed to the rest of the league? Such results might provide some insight that makes them more or less attractive to the "buyers" who hope to contend for a Cup this spring. For this exercise, I'm focusing on the Western Conference. I took a sample of six forwards from teams currently out of the playoffs, who are going to be unrestricted free agents after the season. I then went through their current statistics, and game-by-game logs, to determine their points-per-game production against each of the current Western Conference playoff teams, leaving the remainder in an "Other" category, representing what they...