So you're probably wondering....Jeff....your Mr. Sports Knowledge and all (appreciate you noticing)....and as a south Florida resident....what are your thoughts on the whole Roberto Luongo trade in hockey?
Well, I'm glad you asked me that question, because there may be as many as 1 or 2 of you who actually care...so screw the masses, I'm going to do a little hockey commentary!
Bottom line here is that Roberto--or should I say--Roberto's AGENT (scumbag) tried one too many times to stick his hand in the old piggy bank. My sources tell me (cough, cough....the internet) that late last Saturday, the day before the NHL draft, that the Panthers and Roberto had basically agreed in principal to a new deal that would make both sides happy. So then, Roberto's agent....Claude something-or-other...goes to Roberto and says:
"Ya know...we're giving them a lot of stuff here. Let me go back and make a demand for a little more money, just to see if they'll cough it up."
Lawyers. UGH.
So Florida Panthers G.M. Mike Keenan, who's not exactly Mr. Popularity within the local hockey community here, sort of throws his hands up in there air and decides that he's pretty much had enough. And in Mike's defense (wow--that hurts!), Roberto was coming off as just a bit of a diva....I need this guarantee, I need this special thing....all of this for, as the hockey websites have consistently reminded us....a terrific young goalie, maybe the best young goalie in the world---who has been in a grand total of ZERO NHL playoff games. So Keenan pulls the trigger with Vancouver and gets, in return, defenseman Bryan Allen, a former #1 pick and probably a lst line but no worse than a 2nd line d-man.....Alex Auld, a young goalie who had his first significant playing time this season after an injury to the Canucks regular goalie and managed to finish with a winning record of around 34-30 (which was pretty much what Luongo's record was) and finally....and the key to the deal, lst line center Todd Bertuzzi. Now Todd had a well publicized incident from a couple of years back where he pretty much blindsided this guy from Colorado named Steve Moore and ended up being prosecuted for it in a criminal court of law. Last year was his first year back since the incident, and he had (for him) a relatively disappointing year with 71 points. I say for him, because if he had that total with the Panthers, trust me...we'd do cartwheels. Anyway, the whole key to the trade is how Bertuzzi adjusts to the trade. If he refocuses himself and his career in south Florida, where the media spotlight won't be 1/10th of what it is in Canada, he could really turn it around and end up being the huge, physical center that the Panthers have never really had....he's mean, wicked and nasty around the net and consistently scores points and looks out for his teammates. That said, there were also rumors that he was a bit of a headache in the lockerroom for the Canucks--head coach Jacques Martin and captain Olli Jokkinen need to nip that in the bud, and hopefully the presence of veteran leadership like Joe Nieuwyndyk will also help. Its pretty much expected that Luongo will do well in Vancouver--under the microscope of course and with that new contract he just signed (the one that ultimately will be less based on Canadian taxes and the fact that in Florida he paid no state income tax---HELLLOOOOO!!)---and I think that Allen will be as solid as expected while Auld will continue to develop in goal...although perhaps not as spectacularly as Luongo.....the key to the whole deal is Bertuzzi. He needs to come in with his head on straight and ready to be the player that he was two years ago, when he scored 100 points.
Later,
Jeff
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