End of season report card (long)

C is met my expectations. So greater than that would be exceeded my expectations, etc. etc.

Management
Babcock: C-
I don't have a problem with his system or his coaching style, and I'm not a huge believer in the coach-as-motivator/babysitter theory, but the team's consistent failure to properly prepare or care reflects poorly on him.

Murray: C-
I still believe in him, but twice this season he was made to look foolish; both Kariya and Lowe played him against their own ends and won. He recovered nicely (we thought) from the Kariya debacle but he seemed stunned and immobile after failing to get Comrie. We were all but done by the time the Skoula deal came along. I was very disappointed in the utter lack of activity at the deadline and even if he still believes in this "core", what happened was ultimately a tacit approval of the team's conduct to that point. So far he's saying the right things (http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-ducks5apr05,1,3930958.story?coll=la-headlines-sports) ("Obviously, we need a couple changes," Murray said. "We have to get a more hard-nosed, gritty kind of guy than we have at the present. We want that next year.") but he has something to prove.

Players
Fedorov: C
I bet you all thought I'd give him an F, right? No. I expected half-hearted play and pseudo-heroics, and he delivered on both counts. I never really got a true appreciation for how amazingly talented he is until I saw him play on a nightly basis, and that makes his loafing all the more frustrating. If we can get a friend or a brother of his here such that he cares what happens on the ice, I'm all for it. Otherwise, I'd like to see him gone and the money spent more wisely.
Prospal: B-
I like him. He skates like my grandma, but he's still more effective than 90% of his teammates on the forecheck. His passes were excellent - he's probably the second-best passer the franchise has ever seen. The inordinate adjustment time and the 3 prolonged slumps really hurt, especially while no one else was producing.

Sykora: D
I expected much better of Pete this season. His goal total fell by 11 despite playing with Fedorov, and after a while he stopped shooting unless he was in perfect position and instead hid in a corner or passed to a teammate. He's our sniper and he let everyone down with his timid play.

Rucchin: F
Awful. Maybe it was the captaincy or maybe it was the endless injuries, but whatever it was, it cut our heart out. Despite the static goal production, this was easily Rucchin's worst pro season. Maybe he should spend the offseason in a hyperbaric chamber or go to group therapy sessions with Jiggy, because we need him, and he needs help. He said a lot of the right things (http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-ducks5apr05,1,3930958.story?coll=la-headlines-sports) ("Maybe we thought as players we would be better than we really are," Rucchin said. "I don't believe that's the case. We got a lot of talent on this team. We have to be a lot more prepared and work at it to make it happen. You can't expect things to happen on their own.") but no one was listening, because he wasn't listening to himself.

Lupul: A
I never expect much from rookies, but Joffrey did a great job. He was miles better than the reports - mostly negative - we heard from the haters at the draft. He was feisty, he was a decent skater, he had tremendous vision and decent creativity, and tons of confidence. He needs to work on his strength and his shot and he could be a legit top 6 player. His positioning is already very good.

McDonald: B-
I didn't really think Mac would have much of an impact at all. I thought he'd fade away like a lot of smallish players with promise. He came back strong and was our best player early. He hit a wall and never rebounded. I still have high hopes for him because of his skill and his work ethic, but his size makes him a huge question mark, especially on a team that's looking to get bigger.

Neidermayer: A
He looked an awful lot like Leclerc out there, except for his foot speed which is much better. He's still pretty docile, but I expected 3rd-line type play from him and instead we got a top-6 performance. I'm looking forward to seeing if the 1st-round pick in him is re-emerging. He could be very valuable.

Havelid: F
A Rucchinesque fall from grace. He was dependable and reliable and offensively dangerous last season, and he turned into a power play specialist that was a huge liability at even strength. I'll have to check, but I think his -28 is a franchise record. At any rate, hopefully Popovic will be so good at camp that either Havelid is gone or is motivated to play at his previous level, because he was nothing but bad this season.

Skoula: B
He was a shrinking violet early on, but he seemed to blossom into the guy that had everyone so excited in Denver a few seasons ago. If he keeps hitting and rushing like he did in the last 10 games here, he'll be our #1 guy before long.

Pahlsson: B
He gave me the great defensive play that I expected and added some grinder-type forechecking. He keeps showing flashes of offensive brilliance but I doubt he has it in him to break out in that regard. Still, his faceoffs and his overall play make him a great 3rd liner who's able to stand in for an injured player in the top 6 when needed.

Krog: C-
Honestly I didn't expect a hell of a lot from Krog, and that's pretty much what he did. He went through the same two-month long slump as the rest of the team without bringing anything to the table other than faceoff ability, which he's good at. He's a good 4th liner, that's all.

Chistov: F
Brutal. Slower and dumber than last season, Stan lost confidence in his shot quickly and finally began firing the puck in inappropriate situations, seemingly totally baffled. His stint in the minors didn't (and probably couldn't) undo the damage, and we can only hope that this season motivates the little guy to come back strong. He is supremely talented, but it doesn't really matter.

Vishnevski: B+
Vish had a mild breakout season. He looked to be all but finished in Anaheim after last year, but came back willing to work his way back in, which he did. He's in the process of discovering how to combine offense and aggression in a sensible defensive package, and it worked pretty well for him as the season went on. He had some hiccups, but overall was greatly improved. He's starting to show why he was a first round pick.

Ozolinsh: C
He was horrendous early, a big part of the turnover machine that was the Anaheim defense. Later on, and after his injury, he was back to normal (as we know him): a rushing, somewhat risky, but smart defenseman who is surprisingly physical. I still have pretty high hopes for him in terms of chemistry with Fedorov. His transition ability helped us tremendously after he returned, even as our apathetic play squashed our playoff hopes.

Salei: B
This was probably Salei's best season. He's always been an up-and-down guy...to me he always gives the impression that he's over his head. I don't think he's able to think the game very well, he just reacts. That's fine, he's pretty good at it, but it does lead to the occasional boneheaded play. And a ton of stick and obstruction infractions. He needs to paired with a smarter defenseman with him, so he can be the mostly-reliable #4 guy he's built to be. Yeah he has a cannon shot, but it hits the net once a millenium.

Schastlivy: C
Didn't get much of a read on him. Talented, but so what? He's not a guy that can make things happen himself and we have enough leeches. I don't care if I ever see him again.

Carney: D
Keith's late-season recovery saves him from an F. His poor play was the second-biggest reason for our collapse IMO. He never recovered from the early injury and could never rest because everyone else was so awful. I'm sure we'll exercise his option and I know I'm happy about that. Keith's been stellar since coming here and I'm happy to give him a mulligan for this season.

Kunitz: INCOMPLETE
At first he looked lost, and then he looked pretty darn good, frankly. He lost out to Severson who is much more physical and strong, but Chris has potential to be a nice 3rd liner. We have about 6 zillion of those, though.

Leclerc: D
Injured again, always letting us down. He looked okay when he came back. Our grittiest player is too fragile for his own style of play. The way he announced that he wasn't coming back, combined with quotes from Murray and Babcock which made it seem like the doctors felt he was good to go, still irks me. He quit on the team. I'd be okay with shopping him around.

Ward: C-
He was horrible early, like all our defensemen. He never really got a chance to clear his name in that regard since Burnett had his spot on the 4th line, so I think he suffers a little unfairly in his defensive reputation. Regardless, he's an expendable player who doesn't bring anything unique or necessary.

Severson: A
Our first-ever effective gritty player! Karpa was a huge liability, and Grimson only caught one in twelve of his targets. Cam has a teeny bit of offensive ability too, making him an ideal 4th liner. Our best one IMO. I enjoyed virtually all his shifts.

Burnett: D
An abject failure as an enforcer and a big minus in terms of putting us a man short, he showed some effective forechecking late in the season. To me this would have warranted more ice time since our big guys were such duds in that regard, but he never got it and I wouldn't weep over his departure.

Holmqvist: C+
Two-goal game against the Kings gets him a +. He seems physically willing, but like most of our guys, not so physically able. He has little offensive ability and is nothing special overall in our system. A real dud of a first-rounder.

Martensson: A-
I liked Martensson. I thought he was smart and pretty effective offensively for such a small guy. I think he could put up Knutsen-ish numbers over a full season, but with our glut of mid-to-low-level talent it doesn't seem like he'll ever get the chance.

Giguere: F
Jiggy, not Jesus, is the reason for the season. He was plain old bad for the first two-thirds of the year. Even given our horrible D, our lackluster offense, and our halfassed transition, a GAA similar to last season's might have held us in it enough to be a true motivator at the end when enough guys finally seemed ready to go. Jiggy let us all down and should rightly take the lion's share of the blame. The quote about how he was playing for money is a real pisser. I want to like him, especially after all he's done the previous three seasons, but he lost a lot of respect from me this year.

Smirnov: F
Starting to look like another wasted 1st rounder. Ineffective in two seasons in Anaheim, they had to convert him to defense in order for him to crack the weak depth chart in Cincy. He's at a crossroads.

Gerber: A
Once again he does everything that's asked of him. He had about two bad games as the strain of being the starter got to him after a long string of games, but he was steady and consistently excellent. I hate to lose him but he's an expendable asset with Bryz in the wings and we need trading chips.

Simpson: D
Captain? Steady? What? He was awful. Nothing redeeming. He was too slow and too not mobile to use his bulk effectively, and he still didn't clear the damn crease! He was a great fighter. And now he's gone. Bye, Todd.

Sauer: F
Terrible. He was bad last regular season and worse this one. He was great in the postseason, so maybe he's one of those guys that steps up when the pressure's on, good for him. Here in Anaheim, though, we don't have the depth to cover for losers who only play well sometimes, as we've seen. Skoula, who only brought a modest change, was still a huge upgrade. Good riddance, Sauer.

Hope I didn't forget anyone.

Well done. I was gonna do one of these again but you beat me to it. I agree with most of it and what I didn't was too insignificant to post.

i'll add my input once i get home tonight.. i liked it though.. thanks for the read..

Well done. I was gonna do one of these again but you beat me to it. I agree with most of it and what I didn't was too insignificant to post.

I feel exactly the same way. Nice job Boogs.

I would give Pahslon an A, and Lupul a B (given their resective roles) but other than I feel almost exactly the same way.

Thanks for the comments. Does anyone who disagrees have something to say?

I disagree about Sykora, he deserves an F. The only goals he scored were either when we were down alot or up alot. I recall one important goal all season, he was by far the biggest disappointment on the team.

I think the players tuned Babcock out, so that means we either need to fire Babcock or get some new blood. I like Babcock his coaching philosophies have translated into winning. he gets a D

I can't really fault Bryan Murray for anything, he went out and got the parts necessary to build a winner, not getting Comrie probably turned out for the better since we have about the 6th or 7th pick. I trust him to make the propor changes.

McDonald deserves a D for going nearly 40 games without a goal.

Yeah, I have a slight disagreement. I think it's rather unfair to give someone a D (Carney) or F (Rucchin) if/when their subpar performances are due to injury.

I can't really fault Bryan Murray for anything, he went out and got the parts necessary to build a winner, not getting Comrie probably turned out for the better since we have about the 6th or 7th pick. I trust him to make the propor changes.



we have the 9th pick.

For some reason I actually agree with almost all of your grades.

Good call on Skoula and Vish with a B and B+...I think we should be optimistic about the future of our D.

Its disapointing that we have have numerous former first rounders who may not turn out to be impact players...Holmqvist,Smirnov,Chistov...thats Gauthiers fault...

Murray is 1 for 1 in drafting first rounders...Lupul :banana: ...too soon to tell with Getzlaf and Perry but both look to have bright futures...2004 first rounder-a future top pairing defensmen???

Chistov was a good pick. One bad year doesn't make a career. He should do well next year. Anyways, Gauthier could've done worse (Svitov).

But yeah, picking Smirnov when Frolov was available, and picking Holmqvist when Morrow was availavle were big mistakes.

Overall the average is 2.58 or about C-/D+.

I would give Rucchin a D. Below average overall, but a) he's injured. b) He did score 20 goals.

I'd give Pahlsson an A.

An A for Severson is a bit much. I would give him a B.

I would give Fedorov a B-. He didn't deliver in the leadership department, but he was our top scorer, and arguably our best overall forward.

Lupul I would give a B+. He was good. But not "A" material. If he were a finalist for the Calder, he'd get an A.

Neidermayer didn't play enough to get an A. 'A' players (top six players) need to play more than 55 games.

Lupul gets a B. Good shot. Needs to get heavier.

I would've given Vish an A. He was the most consistent dman and played the least minutes next to Ward. If Babcock has brains, he'll offer him up big minutes next year. I just don't think he has a place though, with all these other dudes that the coach like more ahead of him.

Sykora F. He was what, 4th or 5th in the league in shots? WTF? Thanks for wasting all those rushes on your classic 'stop at the blue line and take a slap shot' play... :banghead:

Other than that, I pretty much agree.

By the way... Is it just me, or every time (this last season) Burnette started to look good, he would do something horribly stupid?

7:00 pk. Thanks JERRET!!! (why is it pronounced this way?)

You both need to remember that I graded the players based on what I expected from them. There was no curve, hence a C for Fedorov despite an above average offensive season on a terrible offensive team.

On the record for worst +/- for Havelid: maybe, maybe not. Travis Green had a -29, but only -10 of that was in Anaheim. The other -19 he piled up in New York, so who knows.

Babcock C, Nothing gelled together at the same time for a long time. Minor injuries to lots of KEY players adds up to terrible play on the ice. Means we don't have the same talent depth like the Kings.

Henning/Maclean B, PK ranked 12th overall and PP at 7th overall.

Allaire A-, to have an avg Sv % to be .912 from a dismal JS beginning... you gotta give him lots of credit!

Murray A, He gave the org necessary pieces. Still amazed we got Fedorov and Prospal... Nieds and Ozo were injured many games, but proved of worth to this team as CORE players. Perry nearly landed us Comrie. Maybe it was just bad luck, but i'm glad Murray didn't pull any triggers come deadline b/c of rash judgement. He's thinking long term. I like that.

Fedorov B, I've watched him many a nights at the Pond and WOW! He back checks like crazy! Defensively, I'm impressed. Offensively... to put it mildly, this season reminded me of his play during the playoffs last year-- he tried everything he could, but sadly his team couldn't get on the same page as him. Oh yeah... Sykora, Lupul, Rooch nor Prospal were Feds fav shooter... it's Ozo. Surprisingly, they were on the same page.

Prospal B+, for $2.5 mil salary and being our 2nd leading scorer with 55 points. That aint too shabby, now. He's got a lot of finesse, but not a lot of finishers on the team that can expect his passes. ( grrrr... Rooch missed lots of opportunities from Vinny!!! )

Lupul B, He's good. Timid at times. I dunno... after seeing his first NHL season game vs the Stars... he hasn't lived up to that game in the many games he's played thereafter. He was the talk of the town in that game, but afterwards it left me wondering, " where did that intensity go? " " where's that mean checking like in the DAllas game? " I'm still wondering where. LoL

Pahlsson A+, He is god! LoL He's all out on every shift and PENALTY KILL!
And he's just a third line player!!! Wished we had more of his energy on our top two lines more often.

Krog B, I don't know how you can rate him lower? He's a third/fourth liner that excells at FACEOFFS. He's got some speed, some offensive skill and actually forechecks and checks! Now repeat after me... he's a third/fourth liner. Do you really expect THAT much more than he already does? FO's are a big deal considering at times we score off of FO's.

Vish A+, From last year, he has far exceeded my expectations. Can you honestly say he'd be one of our top defensemen who produces consistently from his performance last year??? He's supposed to be a stay-at-home d-man, but he's been able to contribute offensive as well this year.

Ozo INC, He missed too many games. And his few games back from returning from injury aren't top form games for him. BTW, at the beginning of the season talking about turnovers... everyone knows it's Ozo blueline partner that should be watching his back. but then again, that's when Carney was injured and out of the line-up.

LeClerc INC, injury-riddle... but did well when on the ice. having a couple of extra months this off-season should help. recall, we were in the playoffs last year and so his surgery and recovery had to be pushed back. LoL

Burnett B, IMO, anyhow. What do you expect from him? To score? LoL You're expecting too much then. He's just doing his job per coach. Can't fault him for that.

JS Before all star break: F!!!
After all-star break: B+, after a dismal start and to end up with a .914 save pct, I'd have to say that's pretty impressive.



BTW, Kudos on your grading. I enjoyed reading all of them. = ) You pretty much nailed everyone, although, i did have some differences on some. Maybe i'm just a bit optomistic. LoL Good job on the list!

Maybe i'm just a bit optomistic.

Just a bit. Worst season ever and the only guy who gets less than a B is the coach. Not too big on accountablity, are you?

Thanks for the comments. Does anyone who disagrees have something to say?

I would give Pahlsson an A if we are speaking in terms of expectations. I'm not sure what everyone else expected from him but I expected decent D, good PK and no offense....he gave me excellent D, the best PK skills on the team and chipped in some offensively. I can recall about 3 times off the top of my head where his back checking on a 2 on 1 saved a goal. Not that it matters much now, but at the time it made him god.

I think Lupul and Severson should be B's...

All the other grades I agree with, thus like I said my comments were pretty inconsequential in terms of critiquing your report card.

Murray A, He gave the org necessary pieces.

Murray deserves a D, he did absolutely nothing to save the season. He didn't even try after Comrie blew up in his face. When Edmonton adds Petr Nedved and the Ducks do zip, that's a problem.


Krog B, I don't know how you can rate him lower? He's a third/fourth liner that excells at FACEOFFS.

Krog is a C at best, since faceoff ability is the over rated and it's all he's got. Just consider that we led the league in faceoff percentage and 1) they couldn't score to save their lives and 2) they missed the playoffs. It obviously it doesn't make that much difference.


Vish A+, From last year, he has far exceeded my expectations.

All hail Vish, he's become an adequate defenseman after almost pissing his career away. I don't see much reason to get excited about that. He's still a #4 or #5 caliber guy, but I guess that is better than being the healthy scratch... I'd give him a B for that.

Murray deserves a D, he did absolutely nothing to save the season. He didn't even try after Comrie blew up in his face. When Edmonton adds Petr Nedved and the Ducks do zip, that's a problem.



Nedved wouldn't have helped our situation.

Nedved wouldn't have helped our situation.

Completely missing the point that Murray did nothing while other teams tried to get better for this season or for next.

The season was too late to save at the deadline. Getting Skoula for Sauer was a shrewd move for next season. Comrie wouldn't have saved the Ducks. We would had traded Corey Perry and the #9 pick for Comrie and that would definitely be overpaying.

what was jiggy's quote about money?

The season was too late to save at the deadline.

I agree. Instead, Murray should have traded another vet (Salei, Havelid, Gerber, etc) to improve for next season. He didn't. Simpson was an OK trade, but I've seen nothing from Schastlivy to show he's better than the 14 marginal 3rd line forwards we already had. We needed a defensive prospect or a pick to use to get one.

Getting Skoula for Sauer was a shrewd move for next season.

I'd give him a lot more credit for this deal if he'd have done it 2 months earlier. Would have helped cover for Ozo's injury and gotten rid of Sauer's poor play sooner. Too little, too late.

Comrie wouldn't have saved the Ducks. We would had traded Corey Perry and the #9 pick for Comrie and that would definitely be overpaying.

How does this change the fact that Murray did nothing to save the Ducks? He didn't get Comrie or anyone else better for the Ducks than Comrie.

Lance Ward as the Ducks 6th defenseman was down right sad. Burnett on the team just sad any way you look at it. Severson, the ONLY physical forward on the 3rd/4th lines. These are all problems Murray allowed to happen and did nothing about.

I don't want excuses about injuries, or budgets, or CBA's. I want to see my team in the playoffs.

I have to believe that Gerber was being shopped but just didn't get enough of a return to justify a trade in season. I'm sure he can net some value back this offseason. IMO if Gerber wasn't going to return someone who could impact the team enough to propel a playoff run, then it was best that BM waited on that deal. Havelid would get a worse return than Gerber coming off such an awful year and I would prefer to keep Salei eventually as a 2nd pairing D-man as we improve the backline. Without knowing what was available to him I don't think I can fault BM for standing still here.

I have to believe that Gerber was being shopped but just didn't get enough of a return to justify a trade in season. I'm sure he can net some value back this offseason. IMO if Gerber wasn't going to return someone who could impact the team enough to propel a playoff run, then it was best that BM waited on that deal. Havelid would get a worse return than Gerber coming off such an awful year and I would prefer to keep Salei eventually as a 2nd pairing D-man as we improve the backline. Without knowing what was available to him I don't think I can fault BM for standing still here.

True enough, I don't know what Murray was shopping or getting in the way of offers. With that said, why would Gerber's trade value change between now and summer. It won't, unless it goes down as the waiver draft gets closer. Havelid is a case of addition by subtraction... getting him off the team is the important thing.

As for Salei, it all depends on what Vish, Skoula, and Popovic are capable of as well as how successful BM could be at getting a UFA defenseman this summer. I don't mind keeping him around at all, but his inconsistancy is a problem on this team. Either the rest of the defense has to be good enough to cover for it or he needs to be upgraded. He'd certainly get the best return of the players I consider expendable on the team.

Carney - Skoula
Ozolinsh - Vishnevski
<X> - Popovic
<Y>

I could live with that defense corp on opening day (if there is one). There are UFA's and plenty of forward prospects to trade for X and Y . Filling in the depth behind this 7 would be critical though. One injury could still kill us just like it did this season. Trading Salei could have been, and still is, a good way to get that depth.

according to this source (http://www.geocities.com/floridapanthers2000/free2004.html), Chris Armstrong will return to Europe for next season

With that said, why would Gerber's trade value change between now and summer. It won't, unless it goes down as the waiver draft gets closer

It changes from the deadline until the offseason especially with teams like Toronto who have goaltending situations that are either ending their run, injury riddled or both. ie) If Belfour's injury creeps back in during the playoffs and their run ends abruptly, Gerber's value increases to them moreso than probably what they were willing to give up at the deadline as merely insurance for him.

It changes from the deadline until the offseason especially with teams like Toronto who have goaltending situations that are either ending their run, injury riddled or both

By the same token teams like the Ducks with 3 goalies will need to move one. I don't know the sitaution is Tampa, I'm just tossing out a name, but if a guy like Grahame became available he's a wash with Gerber in my book. In the summer more teams will need a keeper but more will be there to choose from.

Completely missing the point that Murray did nothing while other teams tried to get better for this season or for next.

it was too late...that loss vs Pittsburgh was the team telling Murray not to make a deadline deal to help the team...

it was too late...that loss vs Pittsburgh was the team telling Murray not to make a deadline deal to help the team...

We knew at Christmas that the team needed a change.

We knew at Christmas that the team needed a change.

Not to put some blame on Murray would just be blind to the fact that the guy should have made a move. Hank is right on here, in that everyone knew this team had problems long before the Pitt game.

At X-Mas he should have done something to shake this team a little. To change the chemistry. It seems as though after the Comrie fiasco BM kinda gave up on making a deal. That was a mistake. But the problem in that as well is that most of the guys teams were asking about were guys Bm wanted to keep around for next season. As he called "Core" guys. For that, if he has a plan this offseason to make some changes I will give him some leeway.

But it isn't just BM's fault and it isn't just the players fault. This became a season of lackluster thinking and play all across the board. From the Nazi who looks at my ticket every game like he doesn't know me eventhough we have had these same seats for 7+ years. To BM who clearly decided his work was done at the waiver draft.

For that, if he has a plan this offseason to make some changes I will give him some leeway.

I'm not calling for his head... he's still a good GM in my book. I just thing you clearly have to give him a failing grade for THIS season and that was the point of the thread back when Booger started it.

We knew at Christmas that the team needed a change.

Murray felt the team was going to work things out on its own. He was looking for a trade that would help the team immediately(adding a talent in Comrie)...otherwise he wasn't going to make a trade just to change things up in the lockerroom...its debateable whether a minor trade around christmas would have made a difference.

Not to put some blame on Murray would just be blind to the fact that the guy should have made a move. Hank is right on here, in that everyone knew this team had problems long before the Pitt game.

At X-Mas he should have done something to shake this team a little. To change the chemistry. It seems as though after the Comrie fiasco BM kinda gave up on making a deal. That was a mistake. But the problem in that as well is that most of the guys teams were asking about were guys Bm wanted to keep around for next season. As he called "Core" guys. For that, if he has a plan this offseason to make some changes I will give him some leeway.

But it isn't just BM's fault and it isn't just the players fault. This became a season of lackluster thinking and play all across the board. From the Nazi who looks at my ticket every game like he doesn't know me eventhough we have had these same seats for 7+ years. To BM who clearly decided his work was done at the waiver draft.
How do you know BM wasn't trying to make a deal?Should he have made a deal for the sake of doing it? I don't think so, if your not going to get what you want for what your willing to give up then you shouldn't do anything.

BM knew by the deadline this team was done and instead of making a move for the sake of it(Trading Gerber for a mid round pick would be smart?) so instead he's going to start over this offseason which is fine with me.

I'm not calling for his head... he's still a good GM in my book. I just thing you clearly have to give him a failing grade for THIS season and that was the point of the thread back when Booger started it.

For this season, i hope you're taking into account the offseason as well. Oates wanted more money and moved on. Thomas was offered a position, but wanted to stay closer to home, which is no where near Anaheim. Then PK ditched the team w/o notice to the team, Coach nor GM. Murray did the impossible: he signed Prospal ( to a $2.5 mil base salary!) and then got Fedorov to sign with the Ducks. After the Prospal signing, to me, getting Fedorov wasn't a high probability in my book, but lo and behold Murray got him! He also got our #1 draft pick from 1997 to fly over the pond and play with us. Then with Carney unexpectedly going down before the season started, he picked up Simpson off the waiver wire.

Oh yeah... give Murray a failing grade after giving the Ducks hope again after losing its captain. A lot of season tix holders were about to get refunds on their purchases until Murray calmed people down some and up comes Fedorov. Funny, he increased the sales projection in the preseason. The Pond averaged about 1,000 more fans per game this year than last year. sure... why not give the man a failing grade?! ( tongue in cheek )

How do you know BM wasn't trying to make a deal?Should he have made a deal for the sake of doing it? I don't think so, if your not going to get what you want for what your willing to give up then you shouldn't do anything.

BM knew by the deadline this team was done and instead of making a move for the sake of it(Trading Gerber for a mid round pick would be smart?) so instead he's going to start over this offseason which is fine with me.

Yeah he should have made a deal for the sake of making a deal. Something had to be done to wake this team up. Something, anything. I don't really care about getting full value in a deal if it means it wakes the rest of the team up. Because by not making something happen we completly wasted a season. And now are left with the same players who put forth 82 games of crap for us this season and my hard earned money went down the drain. I invest in this team and when the man in charge does NOTHING all season to make an improvment then he deserves to be chastised.

Then again when they struggled at midseason last year after big offseason changes, Murray didn't blow the whole thing up, either. And it worked, the team eventually straightened itself out, which allowed for positive moves to be made in order to foster a playoff push.

The only difference was that our expectations were a lot lower when the team dumped 7 straight in December last season, so we didn't see the need for any "shakeup" moves since we weren't thinking we'd go anywhere anyway. It's more perception than any change in Murray ... I mean, by all rights this team should have been much better than it was. At some point the onus is on the players and coaches to get it done, because despite the team's flaws I think they were given all the pieces necessary to have a good season.

For this season, i hope you're taking into account the offseason as well. Oates wanted more money and moved on. Thomas was offered a position, but wanted to stay closer to home, which is no where near Anaheim. Then PK ditched the team w/o notice to the team, Coach nor GM. Murray did the impossible: he signed Prospal ( to a $2.5 mil base salary!) and then got Fedorov to sign with the Ducks. After the Prospal signing, to me, getting Fedorov wasn't a high probability in my book, but lo and behold Murray got him!

I'd agrue that the team was better off with Karyia making $10mm. Murray should have just qualified him (same money we payed Fedorov) and then still signed Prospal to replace Oates. Murray had that whole thing blow up in his face and he did an OK job trying to fix it.


He also got our #1 draft pick from 1997 to fly over the pond and play with us.

I like Holmqvist but he contributed nothing to the team.

Then with Carney unexpectedly going down before the season started, he picked up Simpson off the waiver wire.

I liked the move a lot, but it back fired in a big way. Probably would have been better off with out it.

I'd agrue that the team was better off with Karyia making $10mm. Murray should have just qualified him (same money we payed Fedorov) and then still signed Prospal to replace Oates. Murray had that whole thing blow up in his face and he did an OK job trying to fix it.



Kariya isn't worth 10 million. I still agree with Murray not qualifying him.

I'd agrue that the team was better off with Karyia making $10mm. Murray should have just qualified him (same money we payed Fedorov) and then still signed Prospal to replace Oates. Murray had that whole thing blow up in his face and he did an OK job trying to fix it.

PK wasn't worth $10 mil. Anyhow, if you replace Sergei with PK, we'd prolly have LESS wins with this team and it's ailments.

I know it's just heresay, but i thought Murray said something about signing PK to a lesser amount salary, bringing back Selanne AND signing Fedorov when the whole PK/Selanne went to the Avs scenario.

Kariya isn't worth 10 million.

Neither was Federov. Don't you find it odd that Murray was so unwilling to pay Kariya that amount but when he needed to do it for damage control it wasn't all that bad?

Neither was Federov. Don't you find it odd that Murray was so unwilling to pay Kariya that amount but when he needed to do it for damage control it wasn't all that bad?

Well no player is worth 10 million but if you ask anyone I think the consensus would be spending 10 million on Feds over Kariya is a much smarter move.

How can anyone compare Kariya vs. Fedorov? Last season was Kariya's 9th season with Anaheim. This season was Fedorov's first. Anaheim was real fortunate last season not having to deal with critical injuries to Carney, Rucchin, Leclerc, Nieds, and Ozolinsh. It is real unfair to blame Fedorov and Prospal for Anaheim's woes considering they never had a stable roster/linemates for most of the year.

How can anyone compare Kariya vs. Fedorov? Last season was Kariya's 9th season with Anaheim. This season was Fedorov's first. Anaheim was real fortunate last season not having to deal with critical injuries to Carney, Rucchin, Leclerc, Nieds, and Ozolinsh. It is real unfair to blame Fedorov and Prospal for Anaheim's woes considering they never had a stable roster/linemates for most of the year.

And besides which, last year notwithstanding, the Ducks with Kariya have mostly been pathetic and uninspired too. We had what, 2 good years out of 9 with Kariya? (Actually, both times it was more like a good 2nd half.) And how many times did we hear Kariya say, "We just didn't show up ready to play tonight?" At worst, you can say that the Ducks with Fedorov were no worse than they were most any year with Kariya, and probably better than most of those past teams.

Face it, we lost *nothing* in the swap of Kariya to Feds, and certainly gained more than a little defensively. Had the blueline played like it had the previous year, had we had a 2nd and 3rd line producing like it did in 02-03, and if Giggy doesn't do a tank job, THEN you can judge Kariya vs. Feds by the W-L column. A more fair comparison for the two players' contributions would be to compare this year's Ducks to the Ducks from a few years ago when the defense, goaltending, and supporting scoring sucked. Kariya was no more able to lift those teams up than Fedorov was this year's team.

Neither was Federov. Don't you find it odd that Murray was so unwilling to pay Kariya that amount but when he needed to do it for damage control it wasn't all that bad?

He gave Feds a front loaded contract to get him in a Ducks uniform. 6 million next year is pretty decent.

Also Murray was willing to give 10 million for a franchise center who is great all around rather than 10 million for a 5'9 speedster who can't score anymore.

He gave Feds a front loaded contract to get him in a Ducks uniform. 6 million next year is pretty decent.

Then 8 million for 3 more years for a center that's a lot closer to 40 than 30 by the last year. We better all hope Fedorov keeps his game together or he opts out of the deal. To say nothing about a possible salary cap and how this deal could ******* us in those terms.

Murray blew off Kariya saying that the franchise couldn't deal with one player making 10mm. Then to save face he went out and paid one guy 10mm. Talent-wise it was a lateral move, the Ducks lost nothing but they really didn't gain much either. Are you all so bitter at Kariya that you can't admit that?

Then 8 million for 3 more years for a center that's a lot closer to 40 than 30 by the last year. We better all hope Fedorov keeps his game together or he opts out of the deal. To say nothing about a possible salary cap and how this deal could ******* us in those terms.

Murray blew off Kariya saying that the franchise couldn't deal with one player making 10mm. Then to save face he went out and paid one guy 10mm. Talent-wise it was a lateral move, the Ducks lost nothing but they really didn't gain much either. Are you all so bitter at Kariya that you can't admit that?

Everyone has their own view of this thing. I don't think Murray blew Kariya off as you state. He just decided the 10 million would be better spent in other places. At first those other places were in both Kariya and Selanne. But then they bailed for Colorado. So he went with Fedorov and Prospal instead. To me the guys we have now make us a better team than Kariya/Selanne would have. But you are right on the lateral movement. It really didn't affect us hugely either way.

We've been through this Kariya Murray thing a million times. BM took a chance, it backfired so he did what he thought he had to, to keep the momentum going into this season. That clearly didn't work out. End of story.

And for the record I am not bitter at Kariya at all, I am happy he is gone. I was cheering the second he bailed out for Colorado.

He just decided the 10 million would be better spent in other places. At first those other places were in both Kariya and Selanne. But then they bailed for Colorado. So he went with Fedorov and Prospal instead.

Take Prospal out of the equation, he was brought in to replace Oates both in terms of salary and production. Karyia bailed for Colorado replaced by Fedorov... 10mm out and 10mm back in.

I applaude Murray's attempt to rid the team of a 10mm boat anchor, but since that was his intent in his dealings with Kariya why did he go out and get another one? In the short term it certainly didn't help the team even though it was a good try. In the long term, he gave a lot of money to a pretty old player with CBA uncertaintly looming. Personally, I seriously wonder how all of this made the team better.

I applaude Murray's attempt to rid the team of a 10mm boat anchor, but since that was his intent in his dealings with Kariya why did he go out and get another one? In the short term it certainly didn't help the team even though it was a good try. In the long term, he gave a lot of money to a pretty old player with CBA uncertaintly looming. Personally, I seriously wonder how all of this made the team better.

Well if you look at it in guaranteed funds than we are giving feds 16m over 2 years. This equals 8m per. We offered kariya 7m, so we are offering really 1m more for feds than what we did to kariya. Also, if their is a salary cap than I think Murray and Feds would talk it over so that Feds wouldn't option the rest of his contract if it were to put the team in a whole financially. They could then work out a different deal if feds wanted to stay and obviously he would if he was going to option the last 3 years. Whats done is done and after everything that has happened I am with Murray 100%. Since his arrival he has done everything great. Made excellent trades, great signings and drafted some very promising young players.

Repeating the question, what was the quote about Jiggy playing for money?

I can't take issue with many of Booger's comments. The Rucchin one provides the most food for thought. I guess I disagree on Prospal, although I do like his energy and enthusiasm. He just didn't perform up to expectations given the amount of ice time and PP time that he had this season. And I agree that Salei is an ideal #4 guy, unfortunately pressed into a top two role most of the year. He is three parts solid defenseman and one part stupid penalty waiting to happen.

I want to give additional minuses to Babcock for playing Havelid 19 minutes per game right up to the end of the year. What does it take for him to get his ice time reduced?

To me, the only bright spots this year were Pahlsson, Vish, Lupul and Gerber. I guess I wasn't paying that much attention to Severson, although our team having a nice fourth-liner is akin to a crappy car having good trunk space or something. The development of Lupul and Getzlaf are about the only reasons I'm looking forward to next year.

Then 8 million for 3 more years for a center that's a lot closer to 40 than 30 by the last year. We better all hope Fedorov keeps his game together or he opts out of the deal. To say nothing about a possible salary cap and how this deal could ******* us in those terms.

Murray blew off Kariya saying that the franchise couldn't deal with one player making 10mm. Then to save face he went out and paid one guy 10mm. Talent-wise it was a lateral move, the Ducks lost nothing but they really didn't gain much either. Are you all so bitter at Kariya that you can't admit that?
If Kariya hadn't agreed to take a paycut he would have been qualified...simple as that, saying Murray blew him off is quite an accusation to make especially when you look at it from a PR standpoint IMO.

Murray had to do something so he didn't lose season tickets, Fedorov is an adequate replacement who believe it or not sells tickets. Would I rather have added Ray Whitney and Todd Marchant with the money like I wanted at the time?Yes, but from a PR standpoint BM couldn't do it.

Repeating the question, what was the quote about Jiggy playing for money?

"I'm hoping that by going there [to the Worlds], I'm going to know what I'm playing hockey for again. Obviously, there you don't play for the money. You play for the challenge. You play for the honor of your country."

Karyia bailed for Colorado replaced by Fedorov... 10mm out and 10mm back in.

I applaude Murray's attempt to rid the team of a 10mm boat anchor, but since that was his intent in his dealings with Kariya why did he go out and get another one? In the short term it certainly didn't help the team even though it was a good try. In the long term, he gave a lot of money to a pretty old player with CBA uncertaintly looming. Personally, I seriously wonder how all of this made the team better.

This season Feds is making 10 mil, but 6 mil next season. Would you rather have PK play for a one year contract 10 mil this season, and then do it all over again worth $10 mil or more. On avg for five seasons, Feds will be making $8 mil per year. Also, Feds helped save the finances of refunding fans from PK's departure AND increase sales to about 1000 seats per game. You're simply looking at this as a one dimensional move about not getting to the playoffs and blaming one person. LoL funny, though, b/c that one person helped with the ducks' finances. eg... let's say the seats sold were the 32.50 variety for 1000 people. That's $32,500 for tix alone. That doesn't count the $10 parking fee nor the sales in food and paraphanelia. That's only for ONE GAME! X 40 = $1.3 mil in sales tix alone (for upper level seats alone ). So for food and parking, the Pond and Duckies made some profit even though we didn't make the playoffs. From a fan base perspective, that's a good showing! PK doesn't have that much affect like Feds does.

Oh yeah... Feds played almost all of the games this season. How many games did PK play for the Avs?

So Feds didn't bring us to the playoffs. But this team isn't ready to be a SCF team so what's the point about crying about nothing at all? Murray will tweak it next year and hope for the best. We need better talent depth with experience.

This season Feds is making 10 mil, but 6 mil next season. Would you rather have PK play for a one year contract 10 mil this season, and then do it all over again worth $10 mil or more.

I have no idea what the new CBA will look like. Kariya on a 1-year deal gives the team a lot of flexibility if the system changes. Fedorov on a 5 year deal doesn't. For all we know the rules on qualifying offers will change and Kariya would cost less.

Also, Feds helped save the finances of refunding fans from PK's departure AND increase sales to about 1000 seats per game.

Why did the fans want a refund? Because Murray messed up the Kariya situation. This whole tangent is about Murray's desperate attempt to save face.

b/c that one person helped with the ducks' finances. eg... let's say the seats sold were the 32.50 variety for 1000 people. That's $32,500 for tix alone. That doesn't count the $10 parking fee nor the sales in food and paraphanelia. That's only for ONE GAME! X 40 = $1.3 mil in sales tix alone (for upper level seats alone ).

This is so off topic I can't understand where its coming from, but the short answer is... so what. It doesn't help me enjoy the Sharks vs Blues playoff game I watched last night.

PK doesn't have that much affect like Feds does.

The topic is Murray and whether ot not he helped the team. Lets try to stick with it... the Kariya vs Fedorov discussion is pointless and one I've never tried to bring up. My original statement was that AS A TEAM the Ducks may have been better off keeping Kariya.

But this team isn't ready to be a SCF team so what's the point about crying about nothing at all?

Really? The exact same (almost) team went to the SCF last year.

Murray will tweak it next year and hope for the best. We need better talent depth with experience.

Exactly. What we didn't need was a single player making $10mm, especially one that scored 65 points.

What we didn't need was a single player making $10mm, especially one that scored 65 points.
That was the argument for not qualifying Kariya. :banghead:

"I'm hoping that by going there [to the Worlds], I'm going to know what I'm playing hockey for again. Obviously, there you don't play for the money. You play for the challenge. You play for the honor of your country."
See, I've read that quote several times, and I'm torn on how to interpret it. Sometimes, I get the impression from Giguere that he's not overly enamored with playing in Anaheim. I get the sense he'd rather be playing for a Canadian team, or a more established team. This is all speculation on my part. I want to believe that he wants to play for Anaheim, I just don't get that "vibe" from him.

That was the argument for not qualifying Kariya.

I agree with not qualifiying Kariya IF Murray sticks to his intentions and improves the team with 2 or 3 $3-4 million players. He didn't. Murray "fixed" his PR problem with a single guy making $10mm and at best that was a step sidewise for the oraganization. For various reasons, I think it was more of a step backwards.

We certainly could have gotten a two-way center with above average offense for less cash.

I have no idea what the new CBA will look like. Kariya on a 1-year deal gives the team a lot of flexibility if the system changes. Fedorov on a 5 year deal doesn't. For all we know the rules on qualifying offers will change and Kariya would cost less.

You're basing this argument on " UNKNOWNS "? Pretty pathetic considering we've secured Fedorov for 5 seasons at an average of $8 mil a year. You can stop with the $10 mil rhetoric now.



Why did the fans want a refund? Because Murray messed up the Kariya situation. This whole tangent is about Murray's desperate attempt to save face.
Murray didn't mess up with the Kariya situation. Kariya AND Selanne took paycuts to play in Colorado in respect to what BM was going to offer both of them.


The topic is Murray and whether ot not he helped the team. Lets try to stick with it... the Kariya vs Fedorov discussion is pointless and one I've never tried to bring up. My original statement was that AS A TEAM the Ducks may have been better off keeping Kariya.
As I've stated before, replace Fedorov with Kariya and you'd probably have worse numbers. You would still have to deal with nagging injuries to a multiple amount of key players such as Rooch, Leclerc, Nieds , Bylsma and serious injuries to Carney and Ozolinsh. Also deal with the sophmore letdowns of Chistov and Sauer. Offensively, I don't see Kariya driving to the net... more like spin around near the blue line and launch a shot. Defensively... have you compared a Kariya check to a Fedorov check?



Really? The exact same (almost) team went to the SCF last year.
Personnel missing from last year Oates, Kjellberg, Chouinard, Kariya, Thomas, Bylsma and Sawyer. All of those players bring a lot of experience. Oates probably demanded a lot of command and settled down other players b/c of his experience. Kjellberg, though not necessarily an offensive threat, was a great speedy defensive specialist with reach. Thomas was like Oates and showed a lot of grit. He was more of a catalyst and voice of the Ducks last season than Kariya. Chewy, Byslma and Sawyer are part of the Ducks hard hitting checking line with lot of experience... especially with grit.

Last year's team was healthier throughout most of the year. Same cannot be said of this year's team.



Exactly. What we didn't need was a single player making $10mm, especially one that scored 65 points. Hmmm... a GM is supposed to help generate revenue for the team. I dislike speculating on WHAT IFS b/c who's to say was still available instead of getting Fedorov? It's easy having 20/20 hindsight, but let's have Feds play with a healthy team year round AND the very good netminding from season start to end before you start saying acquring him was a waste.

You're basing this argument on " UNKNOWNS "? Pretty pathetic considering we've secured Fedorov for 5 seasons at an average of $8 mil a year. You can stop with the $10 mil rhetoric now.

Don't forget, Fedorov can opt out after either next season, or the following one (don't remember which).

Murray didn't mess up with the Kariya situation. Kariya AND Selanne took paycuts to play in Colorado in respect to what BM was going to offer both of them.
He screwed it up. He thought he could re-sign Kariya for less, but underestimated Kariya's desire to leave. (Either that or overestimated his loyalty). I'm glad we didn't re-sign Selanne, based on his abysmal production this year. But, considering we basically did a lateral with Kariya to Fedorov, it's a screw up in my book.


As I've stated before, replace Fedorov with Kariya and you'd probably have worse numbers. You would still have to deal with nagging injuries to a multiple amount of key players such as Rooch, Leclerc, Nieds , Bylsma and serious injuries to Carney and Ozolinsh. Also deal with the sophmore letdowns of Chistov and Sauer. Offensively, I don't see Kariya driving to the net... more like spin around near the blue line and launch a shot. Defensively... have you compared a Kariya check to a Fedorov check?
The injuries did play a key role. But, even when guys were healthy, the team often lacked intensity in their play. On many occassions, key players didn't show up to the game. Fedorov's defensive game is not so much about "checking" it's more about positioning, skating, passing, and being able to read the play. So, I don't think it's appropriate to say defensively compare a Kariya check to a Fedorov check. Neither player is very physical. Fedorov is marginally more physical.

Personnel missing from last year Oates, Kjellberg, Chouinard, Kariya, Thomas, Bylsma and Sawyer. All of those players bring a lot of experience. Oates probably demanded a lot of command and settled down other players b/c of his experience. Kjellberg, though not necessarily an offensive threat, was a great speedy defensive specialist with reach. Thomas was like Oates and showed a lot of grit. He was more of a catalyst and voice of the Ducks last season than Kariya. Chewy, Byslma and Sawyer are part of the Ducks hard hitting checking line with lot of experience... especially with grit.
The loss of Oates was huge, along with Kariya and Thomas. Chouinard's loss was offset by the emergence of Pahlsson and return of McDonald. The loss of Sawyer didn't really matter. He was gone a big part of last year, including all of the playoffs. I don't really see losing him as a big deal at all. Plus he had little prior experience. Kjellberg...eh, I liked him as a player, but no huge loss there. The personnel we had here this year should have won, but didn't. BM should bear the load of responsibility along with the coaching staff and players.


Hmmm... a GM is supposed to help generate revenue for the team. I dislike speculating on WHAT IFS b/c who's to say was still available instead of getting Fedorov? It's easy having 20/20 hindsight, but let's have Feds play with a healthy team year round AND the very good netminding from season start to end before you start saying acquring him was a waste
That's one of the GM's duties, but his prime responsibility...by far in my book, is to put a winning team on the ice. He failed in that. Personally I believe this team will make the playoffs next year, especially if, as you say, we have good netminding and health. I wouldn't say acquiring Fedorov is a waste. Questionable move though for sure, especially as the way it's looking now, as simply a PR move which hasn't appreciably helped the team.

We certainly could have gotten a two-way center with above average offense for less cash.

Who? Marchant? I don't remember any free agents like that. (unless you're talking trade)

...BM should bear the load of responsibility along with the coaching staff and players...

That's everyone... Unless we should blame others...

That's everyone... Unless we should blame others...
I forgot the fans, the training staff, the Physical Therapists, the staff at Disney Ice, anyone who watch a practice at Disney Ice. :D

I guess my point was that as the leader of the organization Bryan Murray should bear the brunt of the responsibility. I just got carried away with the rest of them.

Who? Marchant? I don't remember any free agents like that. (unless you're talking trade)

Oates...of course Murray screwed that one up by not picking up his option.

You're basing this argument on " UNKNOWNS "? Pretty pathetic considering we've secured Fedorov for 5 seasons at an average of $8 mil a year. You can stop with the $10 mil rhetoric now.

Tell me again why a 39 year-old center making 8 million is a good thing. And the changing CBA is a valid reason for caution IMO. A lot of GMs went into the season with that mindset.

It was $10mm that the Ducks paid him. You can't dodge that fact with an "average" that may never come to pass. Hockey next season is an UNKNOWN as is the length of his contract.

Personnel missing from last year Oates, Kjellberg, Chouinard, Kariya, Thomas, Bylsma and Sawyer.

Oates was replaced by Prospal - that was an upgrade. Of the rest, only Thomas mattered and he only played 12 or so games so without him we still make the playoffs last year.

Hmmm... a GM is supposed to help generate revenue for the team.

A single playoff game generates 4-6 million.