Black Friday notes: Niclas Bergfors on unconditional waivers
by Dirk Hoag on Nov 25, 2011 9:59 AM EST
in Nashville Predators News
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PrintHeading out to battle the hordes getting started on their holiday shopping? Just make sure to read up on your hockey notes first, which start off with news that Niclas Bergfors may be really on his way out of town, now...
Black Friday 2011 Sales & Deals for Hockey Fans & Players | Hockey Gear HQ
Black Friday 2011 is upon us, and for hockey players & fans, here are 4 great deals & sales to save money on jerseys, sticks, skates, memorabilia, and more!
Nashville Predators News
ICE CHIPS - TSN
According to TSN, the Preds have placed Niclas Bergfors on unconditional waivers. The best guess here is that once he passes through (and there's little reason to believe anyone would claim him when they already had that chance earlier this week), he'll head off to Europe.
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This could be super exciting - after Weber & Suter, the Nashville D has been a train wreck, and I'm very interested to see what Roman Josi can do.
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R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
This could be super exciting – after Weber & Suter, the Nashville D has been a train wreck, and I’m very interested to see what Roman Josi can do.
And Nashvillians agree.
grumpy insurance adjuster. hockey connoisseur. t-shirt addict. nerd.
that’s why $7 million for 7 years is a very risky gamble. Individual goaltending performance tends to vary widely from year to year.
Duh. Of course it’s a gamble. Any long-term contract is a gamble, much less one of this size. But sometimes you have to take the risk. Would you rather have waited until after July 1 to see if we could sign any of these guys for a lower cost? Not signing him carried just as many risks, especially considering that this contract was not signed in a vacuum.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
I would rather have gone with a short-term deal
Managing Editor of On the Forecheck, SB Nation's blog covering the Nashville Predators, and founder of Hockey Gear HQ, a site devoted to helping you save on hockey equipment, accessories, and NHL apparel.
So would I, but Poile had to play the cards he was dealt.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
I remember not so long ago when many were killing the Flyers for paying Bryzgalov so much $$$ for a long contract (he had really good numbers prior to signing that deal as well). My how times change. :p
Considering that we have an offense that isn’t very good at puck possession and a D that lacks depth at the moment (even after all those draft picks, oh my!), we really have to have a Rinne type in goal. That we’ve set the team up this way is the troubling part.
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 2:44 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I’m not saying that the Rinne contract is a fantastic deal, you understand. I’m saying that I get why Poile did it and took this risk rather than that other risk.
The Bryz deal is very risky, but we’re talking about waiting a week after the season is over to see what happens. On the other hand, if Poile had waited until free agency, he’d have given up several months of stability with no guarantee of a better contract. And stability is a bargaining chip for two very important players right now. And probably other players as well.
What this all comes down to for me is that Dirk keeps saying the same thing over and over. Goaltending performance varies so the contract is risky. Okay. That’s true, and we’ve all admitted it. But this contract wasn’t signed in a vacuum. If you want to analyze it, analyze the whole context and not just $$ per stat.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
I don’t disagree with you here, as I was one who thought Rinne would command big $$$ on the UFA market, it’s just that we’ve set our team up in a way that we’re Columbus without an all-star goalie between the pipes for us. That’s the troubling aspect in all of this.
I can’t really fault the Flyers for finally trying to solve their goaltending issues with the Bryzgalov signing either. Granted, they can score goals by the boatload and don’t need the type of goaltending we do, but it was an understandable move on their part considering what happened to them in the playoffs last season with the 3 headed goalie monster they had.
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 4:14 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I don’t blame them at all for signing Bryz. I don’t think he’s a bad choice by any means. But I do wonder if they’d have gotten a better deal if they’d waited a few days. Not that there was (or is) a whole lot of predictability about the free agent goalie market.
I know your opinion on the rumblings that are coming out of the team about spending, but I’m willing to allow for a little bit of hope in that area. How we’ve been built in the past may—may—not be how we’re built in the future. We can only wait to see what happens now.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
Always said in that falsetto. :)
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
Speaking of goalies, Hiller just got yanked after giving up 3 quick goals in the 3rd period to the Hawks. Really don’t think Hiller has recovered from his health issues.
On the flip side, when you have scoring ability like the Hawks have, you’re never out of a game.
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 6:12 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I’m not sure about Hiller either. Which makes me kind of sad, since he was so good before whatever it was that happened happened.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
Prayers going up for Coach Peterson and his family.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
REALLY excited to see how Roman Josi does!
Sounds like this should be an excellent move. We have needed another, more offensive, defenseman for a while now (IMO), and it seems like Josi could be the man to help us out! Excited for Saturday!
Best of luck to Brent Peterson in his surgery. He’s an absolutely fantastic guy, and I hope he comes out still going strong!
Hands go uuppp..... AND THEY STAY THERE!
-nashvillepredators-
Question on Bergfors status.
If a team claims him under the “unconditional waivers” status, is that essentially the same as a re-entry waiver pickup? And if he clears waivers again and goes to play in Europe, are we off the hook for his contract?
As for watching players vs. using stats, I’ll take the observations of a well trained eye over some metrics anyday of the week. IIRC, some used stats to conclude that Bergfors was a good pickup for us. ;)
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 2:51 PM EST via mobile reply actions
From what I gathered from when Mathias Ritola went thru unconditional waivers a few weeks ago, any team can buy his contract for $125 and the waiving team is off the hook. Whether he’s picked up or not the waiving team and the player are severing their relationship. (In other words, we’re not on the hook for any of his contract like in a buy-out.)
That’s at least what I understood at the time.
R.I.P. Belak, Rypien, Boogaard, Lokomotiv.
Part Predator, part Lightning.
"Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." - Albert Einstein
This is good news, because with the Isles getting rid of half of Comeau’s salary now, our #30 payroll spot is in jeopordy. :D
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 4:17 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
From the 51 year old backup article:
Any trepidation he had was likely mitigated by the fact that Minnesota’s opponent was Nashville, meaning there would probably only be six or seven shots directed his way.
Ooph.
Ouch!
Defense keeps you in games........offense wins them!
by Grizzledbear on Nov 25, 2011 4:15 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
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