Only Time Will Tell

The Bluejackets, Penguins, and Oilers have all started the initial free agent period of the new CBA making some blockbuster moves. What separates these 3 teams from some of the other teams making a splash in free agency like LA, Philly, and Chicago is that these teams were crying poverty before the lockout.

Either these teams are now confident that they will be able to now make money in the new econimic landscape or they are walking off a cliff into salary mismanagement oblivion. While no one can guess if the the salary cap figure for next season will go up or down, the possibility that it could move down makes it hard to compute some the longer term deals teams have been signing players too. Most egregious is the Blue Jackets signing of Rick Nash to a 5 year 27 million dollar deal. Under the new CBA, this is the salary Hari Kiri the Islanders commited when signing locker room cancer Alexei Yahin. If Nash continues his Henri Richard Trophy winning performance of the 2003-2004 season and builds on that, Doug MacLean will look a genius. If not the good citizens of Columbus will have a hockey team that is saddled with a player that is using up 1/8 of the salary cap and not living up to expectations.

This behavior is risky. It offers instant gratification for the fans while disregarding long term concerns of the frachise. I love it. More GM's should be looking at short-term gains when their job security is already tenuous. If you are going to field a bad team anyways, at least give the impression you are trying to get better by taking a salary cap risk by signing a Sergei Gonchar or Paul Kariya. The beauty of the Kariya signing is that it is only for two years. If Kariya tanks in his first season, no big deal. He's gone in a year. The salary cap risk is kept to a minimum by the shortness of the deal and Kariya gets a chance to increase his value for a young exciting team.

Darcy Reiger tried to make the big deal but he was a couple years early when he traded for Drury in 2003. At the time he Sabres needed a deal to show fans they were serious about being competitive. The results were mixed. They need that type of roster move again to bring back the fans soured by the lockout. At this time of year, anything short of a blockbuster trade or a ten game winning streak will fail to draw media or fan attention away from the Buffalo Bills. It is a common adage that Sabres season doesn't start until January, when the Bills are done. The Sabres can't afford a half season of interest.