Boston University 2011 Offseason

[Rover]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

they spend 100% of the salary cap every year, period.

Next....

Why doesn't it surprise me you're a fan of Jacobs? I'd get into why teams like Pittsburgh and Detroit manage to have teams full of stars (and Stanley Cup winners) while the Bruins don't but somehow I think that would be a waste of time on you so I'll skip it.

Regarding Warsofsky, some people are reading too much into this. What our personal opinion of individual B's defensmen is isn't as relevant as Warso's own situation. For the goal of making the pros, the situation on the Bruins was about as good as he could hope for to make the leap. He wouldn't have any chance to crack the starting lineup on a lot of teams. However, for his purposes the timing of his leap to the pros was about as good as it was ever going to get for him, so you make the jump. Its entirely possible the front office and coaching staff turns over in the near future also, meaning the people willing to entertain the possibility of him joining the team might not be around much longer. All in all, Warso made the best decision available to him IMHO. That's a different criteria than "why would he leave BU if he doesn't have a guaranteed roster spot on the B's" - which seems to be the threshold some of you are holding him to.

 

[Federal League]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Why doesn't it surprise me you're a fan of Jacobs? I'd get into why teams like Pittsburgh and Detroit manage to have teams full of stars (and Stanley Cup winners) while the Bruins don't but somehow I think that would be a waste of time on you so I'll skip it.

It doesn't matter if you're a fan of Jacobs or not. The fact is that every NHL team has the same salary floor and the same salary cap, and they need to spend within that designated range. Every team must spend between $43 million and $59 million this season. The Bruins were on the high end of that range this season and actually had to do quite a bit to trim salary (like trading Sturm, Sobotka and Hunwick, for instance). So when you say they're being cheap, you are in fact wrong. I'll be the first person to criticize Jacobs for the way he's run the B's (ask BU Hammer or reBlur how I feel about him), but to say the B's have been cheap since the implementation of the salary cap is patently false.

As for the Pens and Wings being "full of stars"... well, they're not. The B's obviously don't have anyone on the level of a Crosby, Malkin, Datsyuk or Zetterberg, but they're every bit as deep as either of those teams. And I'd say Chara certainly qualifies as a star, as does Savard when he's healthy. No team is "full of stars" because (yep, you guessed it) there's a salary cap.

Regarding Warsofsky, some people are reading too much into this. What our personal opinion of individual B's defensmen is isn't as relevant as Warso's own situation. For the goal of making the pros, the situation on the Bruins was about as good as he could hope for to make the leap. He wouldn't have any chance to crack the starting lineup on a lot of teams. However, for his purposes the timing of his leap to the pros was about as good as it was ever going to get for him, so you make the jump. Its entirely possible the front office and coaching staff turns over in the near future also, meaning the people willing to entertain the possibility of him joining the team might not be around much longer. All in all, Warso made the best decision available to him IMHO. That's a different criteria than "why would he leave BU if he doesn't have a guaranteed roster spot on the B's" - which seems to be the threshold some of you are holding him to.

I'm not arguing that Warsofsky made a bad decision or anything like that. I'm just pointing out that he has virtually no chance of cracking the B's top six defensemen next season. You and Ruikka Task can continue with your misguided belief that Chara is the only NHL-caliber d-man on the B's and that the rest of them are bums, but 99% of people who pay attention to the B's and actually watch the games know that is completely untrue. Thomas and Chara are not the only two reasons the B's were the second-best defensive team in the NHL. Believe it or not, all those other guys contributed to that. I know, shocking that it takes more than two players to be a great defensive team. The B's have, at worst, four good to very good d-men coming back next year and a fifth who is average at worst.

 

[Rover]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

It doesn't matter if you're a fan of Jacobs or not. The fact is that every NHL team has the same salary floor and the same salary cap, and they need to spend within that designated range. Every team must spend between $43 million and $59 million this season. The Bruins were on the high end of that range this season and actually had to do quite a bit to trim salary (like trading Sturm, Sobotka and Hunwick, for instance). So when you say they're being cheap, you are in fact wrong. I'll be the first person to criticize Jacobs for the way he's run the B's (ask BU Hammer or reBlur how I feel about him), but to say the B's have been cheap since the implementation of the salary cap is patently false.

As for the Pens and Wings being "full of stars"... well, they're not. The B's obviously don't have anyone on the level of a Crosby, Malkin, Datsyuk or Zetterberg, but they're every bit as deep as either of those teams. And I'd say Chara certainly qualifies as a star, as does Savard when he's healthy. No team is "full of stars" because (yep, you guessed it) there's a salary cap.



I'm not arguing that Warsofsky made a bad decision or anything like that. I'm just pointing out that he has virtually no chance of cracking the B's top six defensemen next season. You and Ruikka Task can continue with your misguided belief that Chara is the only NHL-caliber d-man on the B's and that the rest of them are bums, but 99% of people who pay attention to the B's and actually watch the games know that is completely untrue. Thomas and Chara are not the only two reasons the B's were the second-best defensive team in the NHL. Believe it or not, all those other guys contributed to that. I know, shocking that it takes more than two players to be a great defensive team. The B's have, at worst, four good to very good d-men coming back next year and a fifth who is average at worst.

Federal, no offense but *** are you talking about with the Bruins being as deep as the Pens or the Wings? You've got to be kidding me. I'll respect your opinion but let that statement of yours speak for itself. Yikes. Tell me, to you discount...you know..Stanley Cup victories when you do your analysis?

Regarding the salary cap, what you and Hokydad are missing is that if you sign a guy long term its his average salary that counts against the cap each year, hence you can actually be paying him more money now when he's good, but take the chance that you'll have to buy him out further down the road. The B's have only Chara and the most likely soon to be retired Savard signed long term. Okay with Chara but given that Savard will most likely never be the player he once was (the fact that you consider him to still be a "star when he's healthy" is frankly ludicrious. Its a terrible thing what happened to him but why not expect Eric Lindros to join the team too while you're at it) means the B's could do things contract wise to improve the team, but choose not to (the Kessel situation comes to mind).

Regarding Warso clearly the kid banged your girlfriend or something because your obsession with him not making the B's is a little odd since we all should be rooting for BU kids to make the big show. As I'll say once more for your benefit and then leave this particular subject, he made the right choice for himself IMHO and has a better than average shot to jump into one of the roster spots for the team that has his rights next year. We'll have to agree to disagree on the B's D being as solid 1-6 as some of the all time great NHL teams in history.

 

[Hokydad]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Why doesn't it surprise me you're a fan of Jacobs? I'd get into why teams like Pittsburgh and Detroit manage to have teams full of stars (and Stanley Cup winners) while the Bruins don't but somehow I think that would be a waste of time on you so I'll skip it.

Regarding Warsofsky, some people are reading too much into this. What our personal opinion of individual B's defensmen is isn't as relevant as Warso's own situation. For the goal of making the pros, the situation on the Bruins was about as good as he could hope for to make the leap. He wouldn't have any chance to crack the starting lineup on a lot of teams. However, for his purposes the timing of his leap to the pros was about as good as it was ever going to get for him, so you make the jump. Its entirely possible the front office and coaching staff turns over in the near future also, meaning the people willing to entertain the possibility of him joining the team might not be around much longer. All in all, Warso made the best decision available to him IMHO. That's a different criteria than "why would he leave BU if he doesn't have a guaranteed roster spot on the B's" - which seems to be the threshold some of you are holding him to.

Do you have any idea what you are talking about? You said, "Ummm, did you know the Bruins have the cheapest owner in all of sports, and if he got the chance to swap out an expensive free agent for a cheaper alternative"

The NHL has a salary cap, the Bruins spend 100% of the cap, every single dime they can on salary. Your point makes no sense and is stupid./ there is nothing to debate about it. This is not the 70's Harry Sinden led Bruins. You can say whatever you want and not debate whatever you want but at the end of the day, you made a morons statement that has zero basis.

Not 1 signing has anything to do with Jacobs making more money. maybe save some room for other players etc but zero to do with jacobs bottom line.

 

[Hokydad]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Fed, you are arguing with a fool. B's cap out highest.

B's have 11 guys making over 3 million, Pitt has 10 , Red Wings have 8.

Pitt finshed with 106 points, Detroit 104, B's 103.

B's went 2-1-1 vs pitt.


http://www.nhlnumbers.com/teams

 

[Federal League]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Federal, no offense but *** are you talking about with the Bruins being as deep as the Pens or the Wings? You've got to be kidding me. I'll respect your opinion but let that statement of yours speak for itself. Yikes. Tell me, to you discount...you know..Stanley Cup victories when you do your analysis?

Regarding the salary cap, what you and Hokydad are missing is that if you sign a guy long term its his average salary that counts against the cap each year, hence you can actually be paying him more money now when he's good, but take the chance that you'll have to buy him out further down the road. The B's have only Chara and the most likely soon to be retired Savard signed long term. Okay with Chara but given that Savard will most likely never be the player he once was (the fact that you consider him to still be a "star when he's healthy" is frankly ludicrious. Its a terrible thing what happened to him but why not expect Eric Lindros to join the team too while you're at it) means the B's could do things contract wise to improve the team, but choose not to (the Kessel situation comes to mind).

Regarding Warso clearly the kid banged your girlfriend or something because your obsession with him not making the B's is a little odd since we all should be rooting for BU kids to make the big show. As I'll say once more for your benefit and then leave this particular subject, he made the right choice for himself IMHO and has a better than average shot to jump into one of the roster spots for the team that has his rights next year. We'll have to agree to disagree on the B's D being as solid 1-6 as some of the all time great NHL teams in history.

During the regular season, the B's had 8 40-point scorers and 13 20-point scorers. The Pens had 4 and 12. The Wings had 7 and 14. That's what I'm talking about. I'm not sure how else to define depth. I don't recall ever saying the B's have been as successful as the Pens and Wings in the last 5-10 years. I was talking about this season. If you wanna get into why the B's haven't been as successful as those teams in the playoffs, that's a completely different discussion that I don't think is all that relevant to what we're discussing right now.

For the record, I don't expect Savard to ever be the same, and I wouldn't be surprised if he never plays another NHL game. But he was most certainly a star before Cooke's cheap shot. What happened to him is completely out of the B's control and in no way reflects poorly on Jacobs or anyone else (besides Cooke and the NHL). There was no reason to believe signing him to an extension wasn't going to work out.

Not sure why you're complaining about the Kessel trade. That was a phenomenal trade in every way.

I never said the B's defense was one of the greatest units in NHL history, just one of the best in the game right now. Nice use of hyperbole, though.

 

[Ruikka Task]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Are we talking about Warsofsky? Or Nick Lidstrom?

Let's not get carried away comparing Warsofsky to Lidstrom but come on, Warsofsky's numbers and history paint a pretty impressive story, he was a superstar at world juniors for crying out loud. Don't think the Bruins will take his performances against top talent lightly.

He is built for the NHL, and if a guy like Gerber Baby Food can get a full time gig in the NHL out of the box (as mediocre as he has been playing) then so can Warsofsky.

 

[Red Cloud]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Fed, you are arguing with a fool.

Odd, he seems to be ON your side.

(I'm defending Rover? Yes. And I just punched myself in the face because of it)

 

[joegrav]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

During the regular season, the B's had 8 40-point scorers and 13 20-point scorers. The Pens had 4 and 12. The Wings had 7 and 14. That's what I'm talking about. I'm not sure how else to define depth. I don't recall ever saying the B's have been as successful as the Pens and Wings in the last 5-10 years. I was talking about this season. If you wanna get into why the B's haven't been as successful as those teams in the playoffs, that's a completely different discussion that I don't think is all that relevant to what we're discussing right now.

For the record, I don't expect Savard to ever be the same, and I wouldn't be surprised if he never plays another NHL game. But he was most certainly a star before Cooke's cheap shot. What happened to him is completely out of the B's control and in no way reflects poorly on Jacobs or anyone else (besides Cooke and the NHL). There was no reason to believe signing him to an extension wasn't going to work out.

Not sure why you're complaining about the Kessel trade. That was a phenomenal trade in every way.

I never said the B's defense was one of the greatest units in NHL history, just one of the best in the game right now. Nice use of hyperbole, though.

Great post. The Bruins have a way to go to be real Stanley Cup contenders imo, but that's not a reflection on ownership right now. There's no doubt that they have great scoring depth, which is the way Chiarelli decided to build the team. The playoff results will be a referendum on whether that approach has worked - but either way, the GM and coach have been given the tools (and freedom from interference) to succeed.

 

[Ruikka Task]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

the Kessel situation comes to mind).

With all due respect the Bruins came out of the Kessel situation looking like pretty darn good.

 

[Rover]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Now I understand the kind of people who keep buying Bruins tickets year after year despite all the failures. As we've highjacked this thread a little, I'll try to bring it home.

1) Scoring depth - Putting a threshold on # of 20 point scorers is irrelevant. What matters is do you have a bunch of guys you can count on to score when needed (like in the playoffs). I mention several so that opposing teams can't just focus on one player (depth). Answer for Pittsburgh and the Wings - yes. Proof: playoff victories leading up to and into a Stanley Cup. Bruins - not so much. BTW, any mention of Crosby and Malkin missing time this year or were you going to blow over that one in your expert analysis?

2) Playoffs vs regular season. Maybe I missed something, but which one is more important? I always thought the playoffs, but that's just me. If a team consistantly has good regular seasons but flames out in the playoffs due to the way their built, that's a failure. Who cares what they did in the regular season if the end result is almost 40 years of falling short? Geesh.

3) Ownership/GM/bottom line. Anybody who thinks Jacobs have given the B's management free reign is stark raving stupid. Suddenly after 30 years he's changed his stripes? Based on what? I'm real curious where all this optimism is coming from, because it sounds a lot like the attitude before game 4 vs the Flyers in last year's playoffs, and we know how the rest of that turned out.

4) Kessel - no offense, but how did that trade "work out" for the Bruins? They got the #2 pick in the draft but refuse to suit him up. Seguin's better on the bench that Kessel is on the ice? I'm going to go out on a limb and disagree with that one. Perhaps you're basing all this on potential, and there's nothing wrong with that, but until they actually let Seguin take the ice on a regular basis advantage Leafs.

5) So, Bruins have top defense in league, top goalie and top level scoring depth. So.....who's predicting a Stanley Cup this year?

Bottom line is, while I appreciate the dedication of Bruins fans, deep down you guys already know how this is going to turn out.

 

[Federal League]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Why even bother being a "fan" if you're always gonna be pessimistic and expect the worst? That can't possibly be enjoyable. Excuse me for looking at the positives and being optimistic about the future. As far as this Bruins discussion goes, I'm done. I've made my point. It's not worth arguing with you any more because you completely ignore all reason and logic.

 

[Hokydad]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

You are 100% wrong on point number 3. yes, he does give them free reign to spend what they want and they 100% spend every dime they can. If not, please call the NHL and tell them to stop putting out reports that say otherwise. You are wrong.

10, 20, 30 years ago, Jacobs was a fool and cared about making 10 million a year and not the team. His past greed is a fact, just is the fact that they spend every dime they can today

 

[Ruikka Task]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

So, Bruins have top defense in league, top goalie and top level scoring depth. So.....who's predicting a Stanley Cup this year?

I have long predicted a Stanley Cup for the Bs this year, especially given how they have played in their last several games. In addition to all the things you noted above best goalie best defense excellent depth you can't discount their heart, look at how they've played since going down 0-2 to Montreal I would say that any team facing the Bruins will have their work cut out for them. And the Blackhawks have make the Canucks look human they are the only team that I think can really hang with the Bruins given how deep the Bruins are and they might be packing for the ski slopes tonight.

 

[Hokydad]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Why even bother being a "fan" if you're always gonna be pessimistic and expect the worst? That can't possibly be enjoyable. Excuse me for looking at the positives and being optimistic about the future. As far as this Bruins discussion goes, I'm done. I've made my point. It's not worth arguing with you any more because you completely ignore all reason and logic.

You are correct...


I can only guess that if Savard and Krejci and Sturm had all not gotten hurt, very late in the season, the B's at the very least would have lost in the Stanley Cup finals. They were up 3-0 to Philly until Krejci was knocked out.

They had another very good season this year, with over 100 points, with injuries again to Savard etc.

They are up 3-2 to Montreal and have played 3 great games, a blast to watch, in a row.

I could care less about the past, same foolish bs we had to listen to about the pats and red sox.

Take Eeyore and go away

 

[Nick Papagiorgio]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Let's not get carried away comparing Warsofsky to Lidstrom but come on, Warsofsky's numbers and history paint a pretty impressive story, he was a superstar at world juniors for crying out loud. Don't think the Bruins will take his performances against top talent lightly.

He is built for the NHL, and if a guy like Gerber Baby Food can get a full time gig in the NHL out of the box (as mediocre as he has been playing) then so can Warsofsky.

I don't even know where to start. Total bass-ackwards post.

First of all, way to miss the point. I thought even the dopiest of fansies would figure it out. I wasn't comparing him to Lidstrom. My point is he is nowhere near that level and his chances of making the B's next year (and perhaps ever) are slim. He is as "built for the NHL" at the defense position as a golf cart is built for a demolition derby.

And please, Gerbe has been playing quite well lately, not "mediocre". He's scored 17 goals since Jan 1st, 10 of which came after March 13th (that's 10 in a 20-game span).

 

[Rover]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Why even bother being a "fan" if you're always gonna be pessimistic and expect the worst? That can't possibly be enjoyable. Excuse me for looking at the positives and being optimistic about the future. As far as this Bruins discussion goes, I'm done. I've made my point. It's not worth arguing with you any more because you completely ignore all reason and logic.

I'm not a "fan" of the Bruins until the owner either sells the team or dies. If they had a situation like the Blackhawks, where a bad owner was succeeded by his son who turned things around, I'd be all for that as I have nothing against Charlie Jacobs and doubt he has any real authority to do anything his father doesn't want him to do. I'll come back when the owner is gone. However, one can't ignore the team's history of choking. As far as pessimism goes, I'm far less pessimistic about better run teams such as the Celtics for example, but don't wish to turn this into a discussion about them. Amusing though that a team that hasn't won a Cup in 38 years going on 39, and who committed one of the biggest collapses in sports history with the same players as now just last year, and I'm the one not listening to logic or reason.

RT, thank you for taking a public stand on the B's chances. While I personally disagree, time will tell.

 

[slurpees]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

 

[defkit]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Let's not get carried away comparing Warsofsky to Lidstrom but come on, Warsofsky's numbers and history paint a pretty impressive story, he was a superstar at world juniors for crying out loud.

I watched every game of the WJC that year, and there is no way anyone could say with a straight face that Warsofsky was a superstar. In fact, I felt that he was a little bit exposed in some of the key games - he had some giveaways, at least a couple of which led to goals. He was at bst the 4th best d-man on the team, possibly 5th. Trust me I wanted him to be a star, but he most certainly was not.

 

[FiveHole12]

Re: Boston University 2011 Offseason

Life has gotten in the way of posting as much as I would like to but I would probably be called a Parker supporter. Parker's tough style of coaching may not be right for some but it's just his style and it has produced not just a national championship recently but a dominant one.

Dominant at what, come from behind wins? BU had a horseshoe up their arse in the '09 NCAA's.

Warsofsky would fit in so well with the Bruins whoever said it is right, after Chara they are pretty thin and he could certainly take a big time role in a D spot at some point next year and make a big difference for the Bs.

he made the right choice for himself IMHO and has a better than average shot to jump into one of the roster spots for the team that has his rights next year.

What has changed in a few months? No argument on what was the best decision for him, but Warso couldn't play D against BC. How the hell is he going to do it against NHL'ers?

Have you two been making frequent visits to the pharmacy or were you born into this dream world?