Nashville Predators sign Wade Belak to one-year contract
by Dirk Hoag on Apr 29, 2010 5:23 PM EDT
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PrintFrom the Nashville Predators:
Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has signed forward Wade Belak to a one-year, $575,000 contract.
Belak, 33 (7/3/76), suited up for 39 Predators games in 2009-10, posting a pair of assists and 58 penalty minutes. Since being acquired on American Thanksgiving 2008, the Saskatoon, Sask., has racked up four assists and 112 penalty minutes in 77 games with Nashville. Quebec's first choice (12th overall) in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft, Belak has played in 534 career NHL games for five teams (Colorado, Calgary, Toronto, Florida and Nashville) since 1996-97, notching 33 points (8g-25a) and 1,245 penalty minutes.
The 6-5, 222-pounder also co-hosts the Blackstone Hockey Night radio show on 104.5 The Zone during the season, and has also gained popularity for his "Wade's World" segment on Nashville's FOX Sports Tennessee broadcasts.
So what do you think, Predators fans? Does the team still need a heavyweight enforcer?
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Why.....
why…..
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by Aditya T (smashville) on Apr 29, 2010 5:35 PM EDT reply actions
I like Wade....a lot
And if it weren’t for the clubs financial limitations, I think even the more critical Preds fans would embrace him for his “most-want to-have-a-beer-with” worthiness. But isn’t $575K a lot for this club to pay for locker room morale. Hell he had 58 penalty minutes and probably didn’t touch the puck 58 times all season. More power to him, but I hope he can improve on his 2-5-3 fight card to make those PIM worth it.
I have to agree Aditya
Why!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. seriously, is there something there i’m not seeing!!!! i’m far from an expert on hockey, but i do not see what he brings to this team on the ice…..he seems to be a nice guy, and i love Wades world, but i just don’t get it…
well, there’s a guy in my section who has a new third jersey with Belak’s name on it, so at least he’s happy.
not to knock the guy...
but who would honestly chose a Belak jersey? Maybe he likes fights? with the wealth of other star players to have a jersey of, you choose Belak?
I kinda respect that, now that I think about it. haha
My daughter has a Belak 3rd jersey too...
She thinks he’s the greatest (and the hottest eye roll) of all the Preds. As long as it doesn’t mess with our being able to sign Hornqvist to a long term deal, I personally think he’s great and I’m glad to see we kept him around.
by TitanPredBearFan on Apr 29, 2010 10:27 PM EDT up reply actions
IDIOTIC
im not against an enforcer but on our budget he has to do more. good money for a consistent scratch. plus hes no help against the burrows of the world. he only seems interested in boogard, shelly, brashear types.
Come on, Everybody!
Sing along:
“There’s always room on our team for a gooooooon…”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUb0C0iI_GE&feature=related
"Get to the Choppa!"
well... why not?
we seem to have young goal scorers on the way. so if they pan out we may not need loads of money to buy one. and his presence may keep weber and toots from having to fill the fighting role, keeping the more valuable players on the ice and out of the box.
uh, ok, so we're keeping Wade.. that settles that conversation.
I’ve heard Trotz refer to Wade’s “intangibles” several times, and he is obviously well liked by his team mates. He’s funny and the fans like him. He KO’d Donald Brashear, and man was that sweet. Maybe this isn’t as surprising as it seems? Or is it? Is this a good move?…. I really don’t know.
"Looks like Ellis used a pork chop to comb his hair after his haircut" (Tweet from Jordin Tootoo) Go Preds! (and Bruins)
by hockeydekefreak on Apr 29, 2010 7:21 PM EDT reply actions
Stupid....
Wade is terrible. He’s been scratched more times than a lottery ticket and I have more ice in my drink than he’s seen in his career
by GordyGoHard on Apr 29, 2010 8:08 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
this is a GOOD thing...
The role and need for an “enforcer” may be on the decline, but it’s not gone. I for one am glad to see Tootoo changing his role to be geared more towards offensive production, and without Wade, when we face teams like Minnesota (w/ Boogy), Calgary (w/ McG), St. Louis (w/ DJK and Cam J.), etc, we’d have no one available to take the heat that they are guaranteed to bring.
More importantly, this guy has a real locker room presence. Trotz has spoken about the team being closer knit than ever this year, and I really believe Belak has a lot to do with it. He’s a veteran guy with an awesome sense of humor, and the team obviously appreciates the mentality he brings — on and off the ice. The Preds’ chemistry as a team is one of their biggest reasons for their success, and the coaching staff obviously believes Wade is an important part of that, even when he’s scratched for half the games.
Did he have a bunch of knockouts this year like in the past? No. But for a contract at 1 year under $600k, it’s something no one should be upset about.
oh definetely. have to be able to keep up with those teams that didnt make the playoffs….
by GordyGoHard on Apr 29, 2010 10:35 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I’m not saying we don’t need acquisitions in other areas this off-season, too, but don’t pretend that “playoff teams” don’t also carry similar guys:
LA: Ivanans (61gp, 0pts)
Phoenix: Bissonnette (41gp)
San Jose: Staubitz (47gp), Shelley before trade
Pitt: Godard (45gp)
NJ: Salvador (79gp but only 14pts), Clarkson (46gp).
And, again, the off-ice contributions are what the coaching staff have raved about, so they obviously know something is there worth keeping.
by Broadwaybully on Apr 30, 2010 9:59 AM EDT up reply actions
One point that I definitely give Belak credit for is working hard even when he isn’t playing. At the morning skate, the guys who aren’t playing that night usually stay afterwards and work with the coaches. I stuck around for one such session a couple months ago, and the guy hustles his tail off – and when you’ve got a rookie or two who is also getting scratched for a particular game, that’s an area where Belak can help show those guys what it takes to be a successful pro.
I can see why they’d want to keep that presence around, and at that salary, it’s not like he’s pushing anybody else out.
More fun than a stick to the face!
On the Forecheck is SB Nation's blog covering the Nashville Predators.
$75,000 less than last year.
I wasn’t aware that he had any impact in the locker room, so I guess that’s a bonus. It may not be the most PC thing to have an “enforcer” on the ice. Still he has a place, and it’s better than having Weber, or heavens forbid, Wilson, trying to make a point. The price is right. I point to Brashear, for the Rangers. 1.4 mil this year and next, 36 gp, 1 assist, 73 PIM’s. Plus more Wade’s World.
by jerseypredsfan on Apr 30, 2010 11:39 PM EDT up reply actions
Team Chemistry?
I know that supposedly it was a real “tight knit” group this year…for which I’m grateful, but I’d rather they have someone in the locker room who inspires the “Killer instinct” into the group.
Summer training...
…maybe he’ll be working on his 2-way skills over the summer. We’ve seen Tootoo this year really cut some of the penalty crap and put that energy into an energetic forecheck. It’s plausible that Trotz has a plan to remake Belak.
He’s a big boy, would we not all appreciate him more if he parked himself in front of the net and screened for a lower line?
These ideas are fairly far-out, but it was a little curious to me that they signed him so quickly. There might be some potential seen in practice that we don’t get to see.
In Poyle we trust.
NHL 10 for XBox 360 is like paying $60 for bipolar disorder...
Go Predators!!!
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