Steve Montador will be taking his Steve Butabi act to the Buffalo Sabres for the next two years

Extremely eventful opening day of NHL free agency on July 1. The Bruins kicked the tires on Marian Hossa, but found him to be too pricey despite an affordable $5.3 million cap hit that the Chicago Blackhawks will now take on for the next 12 years. The Hawks can buy out Hossa toward the end of a deal that is extremely front-loaded and will certainly have some cap reckoning with Jonathan Toews, Pat Kane and Duncan Keith all looking to get signed over the next two years.

Despite all of that being said, I’m giving full marks to Dale Tallon for being bold with this move and eschewing the conservative mantra that many GMs believe is prudent with a “market correction” on tap. Judging by the money being tossed around on Day One of free agency, I’m not seeing much of a market correction.

Here’s a few signings that have already concluded today with some analysis on the moves. The Bruins aren’t expected to make a splash on Wednesday, but one never can tell with Peter Chiarelli and Co. at the controls:

Marian Hossa (signed by the Chicago Blackhawks, 12 years and $62.4 million, $5.3 million cap hit) — As stated above, the cap hit really isn’t all that bad for Hossa, but a dozen years for a 30-year-old player is a commitment with a Capital C. It’s a bold move that could really pay off for Chicago GM Dale Tallon and a Blackhawks team that proved they were close to Cup-worthy last season. It would be nice to see this kind of “damn the torpedoes” boldness by the Bruins brain trust from time-to-time, and perhaps there is still time with names like Martin Havlat and Dany Heatley still in play.

Mike Knuble (signed by the Washington Capitals, two years for $5.6 million, $2.8 million cap hit) — My favorite signing of the day. Knuble is a big, punishing, immovable inside presence that does all of the dirty work around the net — a skill that Washington was sorely lacking last season — and is one of the all-time great dressing room guys. This writer’s favorite Bruin to deal with during his time with Boston, he’ll be a difference-maker with a talented Capitals team and the cap hit is extremely friendly.

Steve Montador (signed by the Buffalo Sabres, two years at $3.1 million, $1.55 million cap hit) — Montador was the first member of last year’s Bruins team to sign with another NHL team. The Sabres must have seen something they liked with Montador, or are a big fan of the intangibles/toughness that he undoubtedly brings to the table. Wasn’t all that impressive in his time with the Bruins, and really got exposed in the playoffs as a defenseman prone to bad decision-making/turnovers when the pressure was turned up and the ice time was raised. 

Hal Gill (signed with the Montreal Canadiens, two years and $4.5 million, a $2.25 million cap hit) — Big towering Hal has become the butt of many jokes due to his less-than-breathtaking skating speed and meager offensive skill set, but he’s a big stopper in the defensive end. The Massachusetts-born Gill will certainly be a useful piece for the Habs, and will surely become another Public Enemy No. 1 in Boston next season as a hometown boy going the Chris Nilan route. The Gill signing is somewhat modest and understandable, but trading for an enormous, unwieldy contract in Scott Gomez and then throwing big money at Jaroslav Spacek isn’t all that promising of a start to GM Bob Gainey’s offseason plan.

David Booth (resigned with Florida Panthers for six years and $25.5 million, a $4.25 cap hit) — This is the best comparable signing to Phil Kessel, but the B’s wingers career numbers and pedigree are both better than Booth. This is exactly what agent Wade Arnott and Kessel wanted to see in this age of “market correction” talk because it will embolden their camp to hold out for something between this and $5 million annually. Kessel was a higher draft pick and has more career goals in the same three-year period that both the RFA Bruins forward and Booth have been playing in the NHL.

7 Comments for “NHL Free agent signing rundown on July 1”

1. Chico on the north shore Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 5:19 pm

   Hey Haggs,
   Nice work. I have to say that after perusing the message boards on a few sites that Bruins fans haven’t learned their lesson. Why is everyone (except for a handful) clammoring for the Bruins just to do something, when the smart move is to wait and make smart calculated decisions instead of reactionary ego-driven decisions? That was the old regime and Chiarelli has been great at that type of decision making. Did everyone forget where the bruins were just three years ago? Look at what Gainey’s doing in MTL. Is that what people want? I don’t get it. Anyway, I hope they keep kessel and hope that this years loss to carolina is akin to the sox loss to the yanks in 03.

   Chico

2. Luke Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 5:23 pm

   “The Gill signing is somewhat modest and understandable, but trading for an enormous, unwieldy contract in Scott Gomez and then throwing big money at Jaroslav Spacek isn’t all that promising of a start to GM Bob Gainey’s offseason plan”

   Agreed but thats better then Chiarelli so far, as far as im concerned and with the exception of the good/great Krejci signing, PC is amongst the worst Salary Cap managers in the NHL.

   Had numerous chances to trade Glen Murray and he declined

   Traded an expiring Shean Donovan contract for 3 years and 6+ million with Peter Shaefer Thats a $2million cap hit right there with those 2

   Took on a 10 million salary cap albatross with Manny Fernandez

   Overpayed around $1 million each in my opinion for Sturm, Wideman, and Thomas

3. Chico on the north shore Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 5:33 pm

   See what I mean Haggs? Luke is a prime example of what I’m talking about. To quote a former basketball coach in Boston, “the negativity in this town sucks!”

   What do you think Haggs.

   Chico

4. Luke Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 7:01 pm

   Sorry Chico, next time I will wave the pom poms and rubber stamp everything this organization does like you do. Sorry to interrupt your happy time.

5. Joe Haggerty Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 7:04 pm

   I think the truth is somewhere in between. Signing Bitz was a no-brainer and I like the Begin signing. He provides the fourth line with an edge that they didn’t always have last year with nice guys like Stephane Yelle and P.J. Axelsson skating on those lines.

   Didn’t like the Thomas signing (too long a term and too much money), but see nothing wrong with the Wideman and Sturm contracts given when they were signed. I give Chiarelli full marks for helping steer the team to this point — with some admitted mistakes — but this summer and next season will define how good a hockey GM he is.

   –Haggs

6. Roland Says:
   July 1st, 2009 at 9:22 pm

   Kessel should have been signed by now. It isn’t like the Bruins have many goal scorers. Is Byron Bitz going to score 40 goals? Not!
   Why is GM Peter C dicking around?

7. PJP Says:
   July 2nd, 2009 at 5:05 pm

   Hallelujah.. the hockey gods have answered my prayers!! No more Montador !!! amen.

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