The Two-Line Pass

Watching the New Jersey/Tampa game last night, I couldn’t help but notice that Ryan Malone was almost unnoticable. That got me thinking: The Bolts just paid him $31.5 million for the next SEVEN years, and so far they’ve gotten two goals and a -2 in 11 games in just 15:31 of ice time a night. Barry Melrose, in what may be his only good move of the year so far, seems to have plopped Malone on the third line on a permanent basis. Still, It’s an embarrassing purchase for the Lightning’s new ownership, especially when you factor in the cost of the third-round pick they gave up to negotiate with him before free agency actually started.

But was it the worst signing in the NHL this offseason?

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Maybe now he can afford some cordless controllers

Not unlike Terrell Owens, Vinny Lecavalier has 85 million reasons to love Tampa. The Bolts have signed the franchise center, admittedly one of the best players alive, to a front-loaded 11-year deal that will pay him an average of $7.37 million a year and also features a no movement clause.

“It feels really nice,” said Lecavalier, who will meet with season-ticket holders and fans Tuesday. “I started my career here, and we had a few rough years, then we win the Stanley Cup to being in last place last year. But I truly believe we have a bright future and I’m excited to be a part of it. I love Tampa, I’ve always said that.”

That deal looks fantastic right now. Less than $7.4 million for Lecavalier, who’s scored 200 points over the last two seasons, is a steal. But he’s 28 years old, and that no movement clause means Tampa will be saddled with that contract when he’s up into his late 30s.

It’s strange, people jumped all over Garth Snow for signing Rick DiPietro for 15 years, and rightfully so, but there’s not a ton of outrage over this insane Lecavalier contract. At least goalies traditionally hold up in some fashion into their late 30s, as opposed to power forwards, and at least DiPi’s cap hit is only $3.5 million per.

This might be the worst contract of the New NHL, and no one’s talking about it. They will be in six years when Vinny starts slowing down and still has five years of movement-free checks to cash.

With this new ownership group, it’s really no surprise that I’ve used the tags “Tampa Bay Lightning” and “Insane signings” together more than once.

Here is a list of left wings that are currently under contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets: Rick Nash, Fredrik Modin, Kristian Huselius, Jason Chimera, and Raffi Torres.

Here is a list of centers that are currently under contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets: Jiri Novotny, Manny Malhotra, and Derick Brassard.

Here is a list of right wings that are currently under contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets: Jared Boll.

So today they signed R.J. Umberger and Mike Peca. Both centers.

The Columbus Post Dispatch also reported that they will negotiate with two restricted free agents, goaltender Pascal Leclaire and center/left wing (again, not right wing) Nikita Filatov.

Umm, does Scott Howson not see a problem with this? A center is not a right wing, and neither is a left wing. What the hell is Columbus going to do this year? The best remaining right wings in the free agent pool are David Vyborny (26 points last season), who played in Columbus last year and in whom Howson has expressed little interest, Trevor Letowski (18 points) and Martin Lapointe (13). All three are north of 30 and all three, frankly, were never especially good.

Columbus has a few very mediocre prospects to fill its right side, but any team that wants to make the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, which is ostensibly what Columbus is trying to achieve, probably shouldn’t have Adam Pineault getting second-line minutes every night.

Even the new owners are suiting up!

The one thing of which Lightning GM Jay Feaster cannot be accused is taking the summer off.

Yesterday the Bolts, who already had something like 26 players under contract, signed three more. Mark Recchi (who’s 40.. he and Gary Roberts can watch Matlock on the dressing room big-screen), Andrew Hutchinson and Russian defector Evgeny Artyukhin (who re-defected) all put pen to paper for to play in Tampa this winter.

And apparently Brandon Bochenski, who played for Boston, Anaheim and Nashville last year, also signed a deal with Tampa at some point in the last week or so, at least according the NHLPA’s website. Literally no one has reported this though.

Since the beginning of the NHL draft late last month, Tampa has acquired 14 players, not including the kids they drafted. FOURTEEN! Five of them are former Penguins. And if Darryl Sydor (another former Penguin) or Bryan McCabe is put on waivers, the Bolts are likely to pick them up as well.

Owner Len Barrie has predicted that his team will win the Southeast next year, and if they can figure out a way to roll four eight-man lines, they just might do it.

New coach Barry Melrose (ha!) is going to need a cheat sheet for at least the first month of the season.