Ten Terrible Ways to End Unemployment: #10
by birky on Sep 5, 2011 11:01 AM EDT
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PrintThe weather is starting to change; the days are getting just a little bit shorter; the leaves will be turning before you know it. Just another offseason in the books. But before the Toronto Maple Leafs begin the march towards their first Stanley Cup Playoffs appearance since 2004, we wanted to take a look back at the summer that was and who came out with the shortest straw. Starting today, we'll be counting down the ten worst deals of the summer. If you read closely, you just might discover a pattern...
#10 - Carolina Hurricanes sign Alexei Ponikarovsky - July 1st, 2011
We know, we know....this one is a bit of a reach. The Carolina Hurricanes are locked in a fight to bankruptcy the death with the Calgary Flames over who can acquire the most former Leafs. We're still not sure why, although it may have to do with the fact that both teams have little money to spend or enjoy mediocrity. I have to hand it to Jim Rutherford, though. Why not spend what little money you have on players who helped Paul Maurice to a sterling 76-66-22 record in Toronto? And who could discount all of those playoff appearances? Right?
Not that Ponikarovsky is a terrible hockey player. In fact, he barely missed five consecutive 20 goal seasons while a member of the Leafs. It's just that the big Russian has been a borderline NHL player since leaving the friendly confines of the Air Canada Center. Poni has just 7 goals in 77 games since being traded to Pittsburgh for Luca Caputi in 2010. Never a player to log big minutes (he only once averaged over 17 minutes per game in a season), he's now on the downside of 30 and struggled to stay in the Kings lineup last winter. The Kings, a team that was desperate for wingers with size. And who could forget the penalties? Oh god. I've never seen a player with such a penchant for taking as many holding or interference calls 200 feet from the Leafs net as Poni had.
We hope for Ponikarovsky's sake that there's still some left in the tank. He was a loyal Leaf who happened to have been a part of a terrible Leafs squad. But would you have been happy if the Leafs had thrown $1.5 million at his agent? We didn't think so.
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Is this really the 10th worst?
A 1-year deal for 1.5M? I thought Florida alone signed 10 worse contracts than this…
I've been looking at the sky
Does that mean we get to read 10 separate posts that all say “goodness, why would anyone want to sign this many ex-leafs”? Because that might get a little old by, say, post 6.
Someone needs some time in the gulag.
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by PPP on Sep 5, 2011 1:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Is tha a Russian gulag or a Ukrainian one? Cos I thought Poni was from The Ukraine.
No. Not even in the face of Armageddon. Never compromise.
by article1 on Sep 5, 2011 2:24 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
oh boy, if Wan Ihite could have looked into the future, he definitely wouldn’t have liked the signing that came in at #9.
by gettingcozywithsarkozy on Sep 6, 2011 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions
Given the current wingers we have, I don’t think Ponikarovsky would have added much to our lineup, but I think he’s on a pretty reasonable contract at $1.5 million, and he definitely fills a need that the Canes have.
The plural of "anecdote" is not "data".
Internet Champ. I'm on Twitter too! - draglikepull
Question...
Is it about time to start worrying about us not re-signing Schenn yet. I was told to wait until Labour day…
Also Doughty and Bogosian haven’t signed either. Isn’t it weird that 3 of the top 5 picks in the ’08 draft all defensemen who made their teams right away are all missing a contract
Yes. He is Marchand’s agent too. He seems to have a reputation for being a very good agent, so I wouldn’t look for any discounts for any of his clients.
Crazy would be NOT overanalyzing everything.
Lebda-free since July 3.
by nhlcheapshot on Sep 5, 2011 12:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Don Meehan is a dick.
Move along. Nothing to see here...
by Van Ryn's Neurologist on Sep 5, 2011 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
That’s probably why he’s very good at his job and has been around for fucking ever.
Crazy would be NOT overanalyzing everything.
Lebda-free since July 3.
by nhlcheapshot on Sep 5, 2011 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions
Bingo
Pension Plan Puppets: A Toronto Maple Leafs blog and a group therapy session.
Like reading thoughts confined to 140 characters? I'm on Twitter too.
by PPP on Sep 5, 2011 1:28 PM EDT up reply actions
The problem with agents is that, because they take a cut of the contract, they’re not just negotiating on behalf of the player, they’re negotiating on behalf of themself. And while players can get all sorts of things other than money out of a contract (chance to win, good city to live in, NTC, etc.), the agent doesn’t get anything except money, so an agent has no incentive to make any concessions on the dollar value of a contract. Given how little an agent does for a player during 95% of his career, players could save themselves a lot of money, and probably get better deals, if they just hired a lawyer during contract negotiation time.
The plural of "anecdote" is not "data".
Internet Champ. I'm on Twitter too! - draglikepull
You mean a lawyer who wanted a percentage of the contract for helping them sign it? Like an agent?
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by BCapp on Sep 5, 2011 5:31 PM EDT up reply actions 5 recs
No, a lawyer who would negotiate the contract on the basis of a set fee, rather than a cut of the contract.
The plural of "anecdote" is not "data".
Internet Champ. I'm on Twitter too! - draglikepull
I guess this is going to be a list of ex Leafs, because Poni’s contract is no big deal. Off the top of my head, without consulting the internets:
Florida gives Kopecky 4yrs @4m cap
Florida gives Fleischmann 4yrs @4m cap
Florida gives Jovanoski 4yrs @4.5m cap (35+)
Chicago gives Jamal Meyers a contract for some reason
Buffalo gives Leino (who scored 19 goals playing on the sheltered scoring line) 6yrs 4.5m cap
Philly gives Bryz the Liberty Bell
Rangers give Scott Gomez Chris Drury Brad Richards 9yrs
Rangers give Michael Rupp a few years @1.5m cap
So thats eight. Like I said, I think I get it, you are doing a list of ex Leafs. Still, some stupid contracts this summer. Jamal Meyers really pisses me off because Chicago should be contending and he doesnt help. Veteran in the room? Who have 3 gold medals, a silver, and one guy with 3 finals appearances. They would have been better off with Joey Crabb.
No love for Erik “4.5M/4 years” “I scored 30 goals once 5 seasons ago” Cole?
Crazy would be NOT overanalyzing everything.
Lebda-free since July 3.
by nhlcheapshot on Sep 5, 2011 12:45 PM EDT up reply actions
I guess this is going to be a list of ex Leafs
someone gets it
Pension Plan Puppets
I hope YouTube comes down to film this.
Oh, I think you’ll find one of these last you really like.
Pension Plan Puppets: A Toronto Maple Leafs blog and a group therapy session.
Like reading thoughts confined to 140 characters? I'm on Twitter too.
by PPP on Sep 5, 2011 1:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Finally, before I leave for the day, its relevant and it must be said:
FUCK
ARTUS
IRBE
That is all.
by samspade on Sep 5, 2011 12:40 PM EDT reply actions 5 recs
Wish I could Rec a comment from the sbnation app
Sometimes it seems this cycle never ends, we slide from top to bottom then we turn and climb again.
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by Chris Stoikoff on Sep 5, 2011 1:31 PM EDT via iPhone app up reply actions
He kept us from a Finals appearance we truly deserved (though I still think Detroit probably woulda shitkicked us, but you never know…), and also in 1994, was very close to keeping us from the Conference Finals.
In conclusion: FUCK. ARTURS. IRBE.
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Leaf fan for life! (No, really. They gave me a no-trade clause when I was born.)
by FiftyMissionCap on Sep 5, 2011 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions
I’m gonna throw in a Fuck Martin Gelinas here as well.
by Self Destructive Zones on Sep 5, 2011 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions
So Poile, about Weber and Suter
WORD to yo Momma
by ThickSkinnedAlive on Sep 5, 2011 1:17 PM EDT reply actions 3 recs
That is some tie on Poile. Makes me wonder what sort of bar bet he lost.
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He uses it to confuse and disorientate players or GMs when dealing…. Burke has his tie done up, sleeves down and jacket on – Fully protected!
"There's been four different Cup winners the last four years, and I got one of them (Anaheim) and it was a fighting team. We're playing it that way regardless." - B. Burke, Toronto Maple Leafs GM
He looks like he is wearing his old fat suit too
WORD to yo Momma
by ThickSkinnedAlive on Sep 5, 2011 3:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Poile kinda looks like the cigarette smoking man from the X-Files.
by Self Destructive Zones on Sep 5, 2011 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions
I thought the same thing. That guy is a spook!
by gettingcozywithsarkozy on Sep 6, 2011 10:00 AM EDT up reply actions
I know this is partly in jest, but Poni is a very legit checking forward, which many teams need.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
I believe in next year.
Is he still good defensively? I think it’ll be a bounce back year for Poni.
Pension Plan Puppets: A Toronto Maple Leafs blog and a group therapy session.
Like reading thoughts confined to 140 characters? I'm on Twitter too.
by PPP on Sep 5, 2011 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions
Stats say he’s pretty competent. Sometimes they’re misleading (see Rolston), but I don’t see Poni as having been carried by anyone in particular.
Red Line Station and @RedArmyLine, featuring coverage of the most frustrating team in the NHL
I believe in next year.
by red army line on Sep 5, 2011 11:24 PM EDT up reply actions
I always found him to be a terrible shooter
His 5% shooting percentage with the Pens and the Kings is bound to come back up, but I always felt he missed the net a whole lot. Is there some way to calculate missed shots? I feel like Poni missed an inordinate amount of chances, and Steve and I went through this a while back.
He’s not particularly quick, either. Yeah, he’s a big man, but I can think of a number of others – Phaneuf, for example – that certainly skate better.
I’m not exactly sure why, but I never really liked Poni.
Not followin' @JPNikota on Twitter? Oh, you better believe that's a paddlin'.
For me, he'll always be lumped in with the Matt Stajan-type mediocrity
Not really fast or talented enough to be a top-six winger on a good team, but not enough of a reliable physical presence to be a mucker. Either of them are serviceable third liners, with the ability to step up into the second line role if need be.
Not followin' @JPNikota on Twitter? Oh, you better believe that's a paddlin'.
I actually liked Poni, despite his stupid penalties and errant shot. Very adequate as a 2nd/3rd line winger, not a bad result for a 4th round pick.
I’d love to see his missed shot tally though, he’s gotta be top 10 in the league. My initial reaction when he was traded was “oh no, who’s going to miss high and wide now??”. Enter Phaneuf.
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Info is available on Behind The Net in the Player Shooting section.
This past season Ponikarovsky had 83 shots on net and 27 missed shots at 5 vs 5, so 24.5% of his attempts missed. Comparisons to other players on his team:
Dustin Brown – 167 / 76 / 31.2%
Anze Kopitar – 156 / 62 / 28.4%
Ryan Smyth – 154 / 61 / 28.3%
So it looks like Poni was actually pretty good about getting shots on net relative to some of the other top 6 forwards on his team. For comparison, here are Poni’s stats from the previous 2 seasons:
2009/10 – 154 / 70 / 31.2%
2008/09 – 148 / 66 / 30.8%
So he does seem to have done worse hitting the net as a Leaf, but his numbers don’t look unusually bad on the basis of this very small sample size of players.
The plural of "anecdote" is not "data".
Internet Champ. I'm on Twitter too! - draglikepull
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