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06/24/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For a few weeks during the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs, some folks were calling Dustin Byfuglien the best power forward in the NHL.
It's unlikely Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman agreed entirely with that sentiment, since he opted to trade Byfuglien to Atlanta in a blockbuster deal early Thursday morning.
Byfuglien, along with defenseman Brent Sopel and forwards Ben Eager and Akim Aliu, were dealt to the Thrashers for Atlanta's first round pick (24th overall) in this weekend's NHL Entry Draft, the 54th pick, and forwards Marty Reasoner, Jeremy Morin, and Joey Crabb.
This trade has just about everything to do with Chicago's salary cap situation. Byfuglien is scheduled to make $3 million this season in the final year of his contract and the Blackhawks obviously did not feel they could afford to re-sign the bulky winger next year. Also, with the draft picks they gave up, we can also infer that Atlanta has every intention of keeping Byfuglien around long-term.
The Blackhawks already have devoted loads of money to players like Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Brian Campbell and others, so it makes sense they decided to trade Byfuglien now because they must believe his value will never be higher than it as at present.
But, the fact that the deal makes fiscal sense for the Blackhawks doesn't necessarily mean that Chicago won't wind up regretting this trade. After all, we are just weeks removed from a solid performance by Byfuglien in the Stanley Cup Finals, which ended with the Hawks celebrating their first title in 49 years.
Byfuglien tallied six points (3 goals, 3 assists) in six games against Philadelphia in the Cup Finals and, as the series wore on, he was able to turn the tables on the Flyers and especially defenseman Chris Pronger.
A 6-foot-4, 257-pound Minnesota native, Byfuglien is a unique talent in the NHL. He is the heaviest player in the league, but also has a great deal of offensive talent and tremendously soft hands for a big man. His offensive skill was obviously a key factor in Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville's decision to skate Byfuglien on the top line with Toews and Kane for most of the playoffs.
The Thrashers, meanwhile, opted to give up quite a bit to land this package from Chicago and may have been more than a little swayed by Byfuglien's ability to draw fans to Philips Arena. The Thrashers were 28th in the NHL in average attendance last year and needed to add some recognizable faces to try and offset the loss of former Atlanta superstar Ilya Kovalchuk, who was dealt before last season's trade deadline.
The addition of Byfuglien and Eager also should make Atlanta a much more physical team and the acquisition of Sopel will add some solid depth to the blue line.
Atlanta is just hoping Byfuglien can continue producing the way he did in the playoffs, where he recorded 11 goals and 16 points in 22 games. However, he has never scored 20 goals or recorded 40 points in a season and Byfuglien is coming off a year in which he tallied just 17 goals and 17 assists in 82 games. The 25-year-old certainly has shown flashes of dominance throughout his career with Chicago, but he'll need to be a more consistent point-producer to justify this trade for Atlanta.
In the end, this could not have been a trade that the Blackhawks were dying to pull off, but simply a move that needed to be made. Of course, Byfuglien became a very popular player in Chicago and fans are generally not receptive to salary dumps, but Bowman understands the Blackhawks need to improve their cap health. Trading a guy with one year left on his contract that you won't be able to re-sign is a good way to start that process. It won't hurt that the Blackhawks also gained a few draft picks and an intriguing prospect like Morin to boot.
This is just one of many difficult decisions Bowman will have to make in order to maintain the defending champions' status as viable Cup contenders. Still, the moves are unlikely to change Chicago's probable position as the top pick to win the West, and possibly a repeat Cup winner.
Byfuglien is a nice weapon to have, but ultimately he was deemed not as essential to the Blackhawks' future success as Toews, Kane and company. Hard to argue with that line of thinking.
HENRIK HAS A HART
A few months back when the finalist for the NHL Awards were announced, I voiced my support for Vancouver forward Henrik Sedin as my pick for the Hart Trophy. Guess I can tell the truth now, that I didn't believe Sedin would actually win the league's MVP award given that his competition was Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. I still believed he deserved it, though, and so did the Pro Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) members who voted on the Hart Memorial Trophy.
Sedin's Hart win was the biggest surprise of NHL Awards night, and the voting reflected what a close race it was. Sedin garnered 894 voting points compared to 834 for Ovechkin, making it the closest vote since Jose Theodore defeated Jarome Iginla for the Hart in 2002.
Sedin led the NHL in points during the 2009-10 campaign, but that's not what impressed me the most about his season. Henrik, who of course plays on the same line for the Canucks with his identical twin brother Daniel, has always been known as the playmaker, while Daniel has generally taken care of the goal scoring.
However, when Daniel missed 18 games with a broken foot in October and November, Henrik showed there is more to his game than nifty passing. Henrik notched 10 goals and eight assists during his brother's absence, becoming the goal-scorer Vancouver needed with Daniel out of the lineup.
It was that ability to alter his game in such a dramatic way that set Henrik apart from the pack this year in my estimation. Sure, he's not as deadly an offensive player as Ovechkin or Crosby, but Henrik showed an uncanny ability to adjust when his team needed production from him the most. Obviously, the players thought differently, as Ovechkin won the Ted Lindsay Award, which is the league's other MVP Award and chosen by the NHLPA.
<< Dredge, Whiteford share lead in Germany
Munich, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bradley Dredge and Peter Whiteford both
fired eight-under 64s Thursday to share the lead after the opening round of
the BMW International Open.
Dredge is a two-time winner on the European Tour, while
<< RSL hosts San Jose as MLS kicks back into gear
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake hosts the San Jose Earthquakes at
Rio Tinto Stadium on Friday night as Major League Soccer kicks back into
action this weekend.
The league has been on a break since June 10 because of th
<< Eastern Washington to play at Qwest Field
Cheney, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eastern Washington's FCS football program will
play at Qwest Field in Seattle for the second straight season when it meets
Division II power Central Washington in the second version of the "Showdown on
the Sound" o
<< Spain faces elimination in group finale vs. Chile
Pretoria, South Africa (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Friday's Group H finale for both
Chile and Spain has the potential to be an attractive affair with both teams
possessing plenty of offensive flair.
But it also could represent the final game
Nadal, Murray, Soderling reach third round at Big W >>
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former champion Rafael Nadal, heavy
British crowd favorite Andy Murray and French Open runner-up Robin Soderling
highlighted some of the second-round winners at Wimbledon, which enjoyed its
first visit
Bruins extend D Boychuk >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins have signed defenseman
Johnny Boychuk to a two-year contract extension.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Boychuk recorded five goals and 10 assists in 51 games this past season
Thrashers tab Ramsay next head coach >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers are expected to name
Craig Ramsay their next head coach at a 4 p.m. press conference Thursday.
Ramsay was an assistant coach for Boston the last three seasons and previously
served a
Kings extend GM Lombardi, head coach Murray >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings have announced two-
year contract extensions for a large contingent of its front office personnel,
including president and general manager Dean Lombardi and head coach Terry
Murray.
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
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