So Close You Can Smell It

The trades and negotiations are over (for now) ... the teams are in camp preparing themselves for the kick off of the 07/08 NHL Season. The fantasy teams have been selected and the Smack Talk has begun.

I am heading to Italy for 2 weeks - I am not sure if Clint or Brian are going to be updating the blog while I am gone ... if they dont, there will be PLENTY to talk about when I return on Sept 29th.

Ducks Fall Back Option

Forsberg could be in the crosshairs. With Penner gone, Selanne retireing and Neids taking his sweet time to decide it looks like Peter might be on the menu. If Neids does hang up his skates then Anaheim will have tons of cash under the salary cap, according to Burke they have approved a $45 Million payroll for this coming season. Allready $5 Million under the cap with Neids gone (he will be suspended without pay if he does not show up for camp - which he probably wont show up for) that will free up another $6+ Million - More than enough room to attract a strong forward like Pedro!

Keep an eye on this rumor ...

Sharks Locker Room - 2003

Just rummaging through my picture file and I found a picture I took when I started working with the San Jose Sharks ... *smile*

RONIK 2 SHRKS - OMG WTF?

Thats right friends - the same guy who retired by SMS during the break has been picked by the Sharks for one year. My heart dropped when I read this ... $500,000 for Jeremy to play in Teal for one year! I dont know what to say. Doug was not at a loss for words -

"Jeremy Roenick is a tremendous competitor and he has a great love for the game of hockey, we feel he can add something to the talented group of players on our club and we feel that this is an environment where Jeremy can be successful."

Well, JR spent last season racking up a whopping 28 points in 70 games with the Coyotes. Over his career Roenick has 495 career goals, 675 assists and 1,413 penalty minutes. In 136 playoff games, he scored 51 goals and added 65 assists. In 19 years he has played in 9 All Star games and helped win the Silver Medal with the 2002 USA Olympic Hockey Team.

Doug Wilson and Roenick were together when Jeremy was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 1988. Talking to Evan Grossman with NHL.com JR said

“That was a very, very true feeling in my body and soul about retiring,” Roenick said. “I kind of lost a little luster for the game the last couple of years. And then I got a phone call from Doug Wilson. Immediately, from a phone call from a team like San Jose and a guy that I respect -- probably one of the most respected guys I ever played with -- in Doug Wilson, my electricity and my energy immediately came back. When you love to play the game and you’ve loved to play the game for so long, when a team comes along of this nature, this kind of opportunity, it’s very, very easy to get excited and motivated. That’s pretty much how it went. I kind of feel like I’ve gotten a second chance at life on a team where I can fit in and go along with the flow and try to help as much as I can.”

Older, wiser, and maybe even a little quieter than we’re used to Roenick being, he’s back for at least one more season. Not quite one of the out-of-focus guys in the back of the team photo, he says he’s going to be a role player and Roenick has pledged his allegiance to the San Jose Sharks, really the only team that called him this summer. “It’s going to be a quiet year in terms of the verbal side of me,” Roenick said. “I’m going to go in there and really just enjoy being on a team that’s run by probably two of the great players in the League in Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton. I’m going to really love watching them play every single night. It’s an exciting time for me and my family, that’s for sure.”