The Illegal Curve Hockey Show airs today from 9am to 11am on TSN Radio 1290. Tune in to hear Drew, Richard and Ezra talk about the week in Winnipeg Jets news as well as the latest news around the NHL.
Today’s guests are Mike Heika (@MikeHeika) of the Dallas Morning News and Adam Proteau (@Proteautype) of the Hockey News.
The Winnipeg Jets were active yesterday in the news department, evaluation development camp concluded, Kyle Wellwood (UFA) and Paul Postma (RFA) both signed new contracts.
Winnipeg Jets Papers
Winnipeg Free Press: Redmond might be most NHL-ready. If the Jets have as many injuries on defense as they did last season, Redmond is a name that is moving up the depth charts. Last year Redmond ranked 9th on our top ten Jets prospects. We’ll have to wait and see where he ranks on scouting correspondent Kyle Kosior’s (@ICKyleK) 2012 list.
Winnipeg Free Press: Imprecise, inexact analysis. Ed Tait takes his best shot at evaluating what he saw at development camp this week. Projecting how prospects will perform at the NHL level is exactly an “inexact science” often the “can’t miss” prospects don’t live up to expectations and the prospects with no expectations put on them exceed them by miles.
Winnipeg Sun: Jets prospect Trouba itching to lay a hit. Props to Jimmy Roy for trying to prevent injuries, he’s right, the last thing you want to see is anyone going home with a concussion or a broken bone in a development camp.
Winnipeg Sun: Jets GM’s message to prospects: “When your opportunity comes, be ready”. Reminds me of a speech I heard a few weeks ago on NBC’s America’s Got Talent by judge Howard Stern. Each of the prospects has a chance at success in a career many can only dream of. It’s up to them to put their best effort forward and make the most of the opportunity.
Winnipeg Free Press: Wellwood ‘comfortable’ with one-year deal from Jets. Congratultaions to Kyle Wellwood for cashing in on his career season. According to the article, Wellwood is trying to up the ante for next season, saying it all comes down to his fitness level.
“”It comes down to my fitness level,” said Wellwood. “Claude used me really well last year, but he couldn’t use me more because I wasn’t as productive when he tried to increase my minutes… I’d get tired. For me, having a healthy offseason here (he had an appendectomy last offseason) and getting in really good shape I should be able to play more minutes and handle it.””
Winnipeg Sun: Jets bringing back Wellwood. For one year at $1.6 million it’s a bargain for the fifth leading point getter on last year’s team.
Tucked into the Free Press and Sun articles is the news that the Jets agreed to terms with RFA defenseman Paul Postma. Postma spent most of last season with the St. John’s IceCaps, he made the All-Star team and ranked second on the team in points with 44 in 56 games.
Postma contract is a one-year, one-way deal for $550,000 #NHLJets
— Ken Wiebe (@WiebeSunSports) July 13, 2012
The one way deal indicates that Postma will be given a shot at training camp to make the club. If the Jets were to send him down to the AHL, he would have to pass through waivers. IceCaps Head Coach Keith McCambridge appeared on the Illegal Curve Hockey Show during the IceCaps playoff run and indicated that “The Postman” had made strides in his defensive play.
Currently the defensive corps looks like this
Byfuglien – Enstrom
Stuart – Bogosian
Hainsey – Clitsome
In the mix: Paul Postma, Arturs Kulda, Brett Festerling, Derek Meech, Zach Redmond.
Expect to hear more on the topic on today’s Illegal Curve Hockey Show.
If you remember, Paul Postma scored the first Winnipeg Jets goal of the exhibition season.
CBA News
SI.com: Report: Details on NHL’s opening proposal to players in new CBA talks. Ren Lavoie (@RenLavoieRDS) reported that the NHL proposed to the players the following:
1. Reduce players hockey related revenues from 45% from 57%.
2. Players must have ten seasons in the NHL before becoming a UFA.
3. Contracts are limited to five years.
4. No more salary arbitration
5. Entry level contracts will becomes five years instead of three.
If we have NHL training camps open in mid-Sept, I’ll eat the first three pages of the Official Guide and Record Book.
— Jim Matheson (@NHLbyMatty) July 14, 2012
(In case you needed more reasons to hope that the NHL and NHLPA can come to an agreement quickly)
Sportsnet.ca: The NHL’s split personality. Executive Director of the NHLPA Donald Fehr had this to say about salary rollbacks:
“I think what most people representing employees would think of salary rollbacks, what I’m sure you would think about salary rollbacks if they were coming to you. You don’t have to be a genius to figure out what that is… I certainly assume that the owners would intend to comply with all the contracts they’ve signed.”
Please just wake me up when this labour dispute is over…it sounds like this might be going on for a while.
Player News
NHL.com: Luongo eliminated at the World Series of Poker. He placed 634th out of 6,600, earning $19,227 on top of his $10,000 buy in. As Larry David would say, “pretty, pretty good“.
