Ducks’ GM Brian Burke spoke about the Penner offer sheet and Kevin Lowe during a conference call yesterday evening. For the most part, Burke held his tongue and stated things professionally, but you could tell he is fuming about the offer Kevin Lowe made. Burke let callers know he was not against the act of giving Penner an offer sheet itself; he was irate over the timing and amount of the deal.

Burke was in Penticton, British Columbia at the time of the offer for his induction ceremony to the BC Hockey Hall of Fame. Said Burke:

“Tonight is the induction ceremony for the British Columbia Hockey Hall of Fame. I certainly think this could have waited until Monday. I don’t think it shows a lot of respect for the BC Hockey Hall of Fame. I think it’s a classless move, timing-wise. I was not notified until an agent faxed in the offer to us. I thought Kevin would have called me and told me this was coming. I thought that was gutless“.

Burke also stated he thinks these kinds of over-inflated offers impact all 30 teams in the league and this was the second time Lowe and the Oilers made such an offer this summer (Lowe gave Thomas Vanek of Buffalo a seven year, $50M offer not long ago which the Sabres matched).

“I think it’s an act of desperation by a general manager who is fighting to keep his job. I wouldn’t have done it,” added Burke.

Burke also responded to questions regarding the potential retirements of Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne and if that complicates things regarding matching the Penner offer or not. He was also asked if the fact he has to resign Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry next summer (both will become Restricted Free Agents) weighs in. His answer was brief, simply stating that he won’t have an answer until he speaks to ownership about their cap situation going forward. He did mention that he told Selanne and Niedermayer they could have the entire summer to decide what to do and he won’t go back on that word.

In the end, I believe Lowe hurt his relationship with Brian Burke. When a caller stated that Burke and Lowe talked as much as any two GMs in the league, Burke’s answer was short and scathing:

“We used to, quite a bit”.

I think that says it all.

I have decided to introduce a new weekly blog post, summarizing what the other Ducks’ bloggers had to say this week. My mind was drawing a blank on a catchy, fitting name to use for the title so if you have any suggestions, then by all means let me hear them! If you run a Ducks’ blog and I’m not covering you here, let me know so I add you to my list. With that said, here we go!

Earl Sleek and the Battle of California

In his latest posting, Earl chimes in with his comments on the Dustin Penner offer sheet, drawing comparisons to Joffrey Lupul. Pressed for time due to working a full time day job, Earl promises there is more to come! Read his entire post here.

In a very interesting read, Earl pens a letter to Ducks GM Brian Burke, offering up the idea of giving Ryan Getzlaf a decade-plus Rick DiPietro type contract. If it was going to be any Duck then I’d have to agree; Ryan Getzlaf would be my choice too (and the only Ducks’ player I’d really consider for an offer of such magnitude). Check out the full letter here.

Finally, I just want to say congratulations to Earl on the new BoC logo. It looks great! Now I’ll have to push myself to get our new header done sooner rather than later… For those interested, here it is.

Christy Leigh Finn is the Girl with a Puck

Not surprisingly, Finny’s latest post covers the Penner offer sheet as well. Read all about it here.

She also wrote an entertaining piece about Travis Moen and a recent interview (article) where he answers the important questions, such as which Duck would fail miserably at farm life the most? His answer - Teemu Selanne. Check it out here.

Next up is something for all you guys out there; the Ducks ‘Power Players’ (couldn’t they come up with a sexier name?) tryouts. You can get a look at what it takes by clicking here.

The Flying V

In a blog that’s actually newer than my own, we find random ramblings included a call to duty for any Ducks fan who knows his prospects and finance. Have what it takes and want to help the Flying V grow? Head on over for more details.

Next up are some photos and excerpts on Lord Stanley’s day with resident francophone Ducks, Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Francois Beauchemin. To take a look click here.

Lastly, The Flying V introduces their Player of the Week post. The inaugural player is Dustin Penner. Ironic, in that he may not be a Duck much longer. A great addition to a new blog, give it some love here.

On the Ducks Wire

It’s hard for me to keep up with the massive amount of posts the Wire churns out, but the latest is all about hot topic Dustin Penner and Lowe’s snipe attempt. Read it here.

Next are quite a few posts with different videos and links on players’ days with the Cup. Some of them are: Ryan Getzlaf - Chris Kunitz - Dustin Penner.

Interested in joining the Ducks Official Street Team? Maybe you want more info on the Ducks’ Fan Cruise? If you’re a Ducks fan, you should want to check both out.

The leftovers:

James Mirtle covers the Penner offer sheet here.

Ducks Blog also vents about the Penner offer, read it here.

Kuklas Korner examines the financial aspect of keeping Penner here.

For more Ducks blogs be sure to check out the links in the sidebar!

Dustin Penner has signed an offer sheet presented to him by Kevin Lowe and the Edmonton Oilers. The deal is for a term of five years and is worth 21.5 million dollars. Anaheim has the next move.

If Burke decides to match, Penner will remain a Duck signed to a longterm deal and a cap hit of 4.3 million per season. However, Burke also has the offer to let Penner become an Oiler and receive compensation. If this is the decision he makes, Anaheim would receive a 1st, 2nd and 3rd round draft pick from Edmonton.

Penner scored 29 goals last year in his first full rookie campaign and brings the size of a power forward. The main knock on him is consistency; when he’s on, he is dominant, but when he’s off he is barely noticeable on the ice. Many people believe Burke will take the draft picks.

Varius’ Note: Although I don’t fully agree with the move, in my opinion, Burke is going to match. He’s a big Penner fan and assuming Selanne / Niedermayer retire he will have the space. Schneider and Bertuzzi will be off the books by the time he has to work out new deals for Getzlaf and Perry. Either way, expect Brian Burke to publicly BLAST Lowe for making the offer.

In a slow news week, I figured I’d come up with something original to write about on a rainy (down in Costa Rica) Sunday afternoon. As I’m a longtime wrestling fan (everything from small indy feds up to the big guys like the WWE and TNA), I thought it might be fun to compare our players to which WWE wrestler (current) they most closely resemble, based on character, attitude, playing style, etc… Hope you enjoy it!

Teemu Selanne

Shawn Michaels

This was an easy one. HBK is the comeback kid of the WWE, making a return from serious injury that kept him out for four years (broken back). He came back as good as ever and went on to headline major events once again. He is currently contemplating retirement, much like one Finnish Flash. Selanne also seemed like his career was coming to an end after an injury-plagued time in Colorado; but Burke took a chance on Teemu and his rebuilt knee and it paid major dividends; Selanne went on to score 40 and 48 goals and win his first ever Stanley Cup. He is now considering retiring, to go out while he’s still on top.

Scott Niedermayer

Ric Flair

Another one that didn’t take much thought. Ric Flair has seen and done it all in his storied career and will be remembered as one of the best ever. You can match those exact same words up against the hockey of Scott Niedermayer; there is practically nothing left he hasn’t done. Let’s hope that Scott opts to follow Ric’s example and put off retirement simply for no other reason than love of the game (Triple H pun intended for you smart marks who get it).

Chris Pronger

Triple H

Triple H is one of the best at what he does, but what he does isn’t always pretty. He is a workhorse and will do whatever necessary to win, even if it’s not always ‘clean’. The same goes for Chris Pronger. He is a tactician, with strength and a long reach on the ice, who will make the hits he has to if it means his team will claim victory. He doesn’t mind being called a ‘bda guy’ by fans or opposing teams. He’s a guy you want with you, not against you.

J.S. Giguere

John Cena

Competitive, tenacious, resilient. These are just some of the traits these men share. Both men seem to thrive on adversity and are at their best when face to face with it. Nothing flashy, they just get things done. A hard work ethic and the drive to be the best seems to be their common goal, also.

Ryan Getzlaf

Bobby Lashley

Both are young, hungry guys who are taking their potential and turning it into reality. Both are becoming dominant in all aspects of their profession and can do it all. Getzlaf started showing his skill and physical presence last season, much like Lashley has been showing his since being moved to ECW and then Monday Night RAW. They are the stars of tomorrow and tomorrow doesn’t seem far away at all.

Dustin Penner

Batista

Big, strong bulls, these men seem to take major strides forward while taking the occasional step back. They play the power game, but don’t bring the consistency needed from night to night to be an upper-tier star. If they can bring themselves to bring their ‘A’ game every night, then watch out!

Andy McDonald

Jeff Hardy

Quick as lightning, but sometimes enigmatic, these two stars seem to be on similar paths. Both have raw talent but are only now putting it all together on a consistent basis, proving why they deserve to be where they are. Both have been underrated before but have worked hard to prove doubters wrong. They both seem to shine brightest when matched with others of the right chemistry.

Francois Beauchemin

Randy Orton

This was a hard one. While my first instincts were to go with King Booker, due to Francois’ nickname of King Beauchemin (stemming from his fight against Jarome Iginla in 2006), in the end I decided on Randy Orton. Both men are still young and haven’t truly proven themselves to be at the top of their craft yet. They are on the upswing though and definitely have the tools needed. This upcoming year looks to be their break-out chance to reach elite status and stay there.

Ilya Bryzgalov

Mr. Kennedy

Another tough one. I wanted to go with Super Crazy, based on the language barrier, but opted for Ken Kennedy instead. Mr. Kennedy is young and brash and wants the spotlight. It seems Ilya Bryzgalov thinks the same way. Both are money when it comes to interviews. The question exists on both account: will they get their shot and what will they do with it?

Chris Kunitz

Matt Hardy

Chris and Matt have a lot in common. They were both under the shadow of others and both got second chances. They both really made the most of those second chances, too. Kunitz was waived and finally returned to land himself a spot on the Ducks top line; his play let him stay there. Matt has hit his bumps in the road, being released from the WWE only to be re-hired and given a new push. He is on his way up and rising fast, much like Chris Kunitz.

Corey Perry

Johnny Nitro

When I think Corey Perry, I think young, somewhat arrogant and flashy moves. Nitro fits that description to a Tee. Both have the raw talent to be great, but the question remains if they can put it all together. Some nights, Perry is on fire agitating opponents while owning the puck. Then again, some nights he’s barely noticeable. Nitro is always at his best on PPVs but can sometimes ‘phone it on’ when it’s a television match he’s not motivated for.

There you have it. I hope you enjoy, don’t forget to leave your comments with who you’d choose! Look for Part Two to come later this week.

The Ducks’ official website has just confirmed three more signings. The first one we have already posted about, that being Jason King. The two newer announcements are for free agent winger Dan LaCouture and prospect defenseman Brett Skinner.

Skinner was acquired in a deadline deal with the Canucks two seasons ago in a deal that sent Keith Carney the other way. He spent time in both Portland and Omaha of the AHL last season, playing well enough but not showing much development. At this point his potential is to be a solid, puck-moving defenseman playing a number four role.

Dan LaCouture is somewhat of a journeyman, having played in Edmonton, Pittsburgh, New York (Rangers), Boston and finally a few games for the New Jersey Devils last year. He is looking at a fourth-line depth role with the club most likely.

For those who haven’t taken a look at the Ducks schedule, it is now official here: NHL Ducks 2007-2008 Schedule

Anaheim will start the season off with two games versus cross-town rivals the Los Angeles Kings in faraway London, England. I like this move by the NHL a lot as they are trying to help spread the game and acquire more of a global fan base. I’m even more excited that *I* might even get to be there for both games! I have a business show to attend in Amsterdam a week later, so the current plan is to take a vacation to London for the games than make my way down to Amsterdam. This is assuming I can score tickets of course (and not for a King’s ransom; no pun intended) as both games have already sold out.

The thing most Ducks’ fans are talking about next is the lack of National television coverage when we hoist our championship banner. I’d have to agree with them. The Ducks should be the new poster child for the new NHL, yet once again the league is afraid to put the spotlight on them. This isn’t a Cinderella team either; despite the potential losses of Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim will still be coming into the season a contender. They will still be playing the up-tempo, hard-hitting game that brought them to the dance and excites fans. The NHL should consider hiring  someone like Snoop Dogg as a spokesperson (a new Ducks’ fan) if they want to be seen as in touch with today’s fans.

Next up for discussion is the block of games from January 17th until February 12th where Anaheim plays an incredible 12 of 13 games on the road. While many fans think this is a grueling screw job handed to us by Gary Bettman and the league, I don’t. The games for the most part are geographically organized. They will visit Nashville, Minnesota and Dallas then come home for Detroit. Then it’s a skip across town to L.A., followed by Minnesota again and St. Louis. Up next comes the Eastern swing, through Philly, New York (Isanders and Rangers) and New Jersey. Then the final peg of the trip is Detroit again, Colorado and finally home.

The Ducks then do have seven straight games at home to help balance out the long days on the road. Aside from that the interesting points are we hold our first home game against the Bruins, Ottawa comes calling for revenge on March 3rd and we will play Sid the Kid in the Penguins home opener. The Montreal Canadians will also visit Anaheim this year for any Habs fans residing in Orange County.

I think the road trip will truly test our team character and I have a feeling the guys will come out on top. It will be interesting to see what kind of activities Randy Carlyle comes up with to keep morale up (such as riding bicycles or wearing pink dresses).

Let me know what you think by leaving a comment!

Acquired earlier this summer in a trade with the Canucks, the Ducks have reached an agreement with Jason King. He will come over and likely play on the Ducks’ AHL team the Portland Pirates.

Had he not reached an agreement, King would have spent his playing time with the Iserlohn Roosters of the DEL-Club league.

While waiting on the official retirement (or not) of Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne, it appears Brian Burke is done with moves for the big club. All of his latest transactions have been Portland-related.

Anaheim has come to terms with two players, both expected to strengthen the Portland roster this season.

Brandon Segal, acquired earlier this summer from the Nashville Predators has been given a two year contract. Segal was formerly ranked in the Predators top 20 prospects.

Joe Callahan was also given a one year deal. The big, rough blue liner set career numbers for himself last season and will be looking to build on that if he wants to make the Ducks’ roster some day.

We have learned that Anaheim has resigned physical AHL defender Aaron Rome to a new one-year deal at $495,000. Rome had a decent camp last year but failed to make the Ducks roster until one game during the season where he notched zero points and was a -1. He also participated in 1 playoff game with the Ducks, compiling zero points and a -2.

Likely Rome will spend time solidifying the Portland blue line once again and be a last minute injury call up for Anaheim.

I’m happy to report the Ducks are NOT one of the 18 teams with at least one player seeking to go to arbitration. This shows me a few things; our chances of resigning Dustin Penner are very good and there aren’t any unhappy team members.

Let’s discuss Dustin Penner some more. Some people seem to think that Penner is seeking more than the Ducks want to give him. I think this is not the case. If it was, he should have opted for arbitration. More likely, I feel the Ducks are close to a new deal with Dustin and might be working out small details, like incentives or term of the contract. While Burke has been smart signing his players this summer mostly to two year deals, I think he would offer Penner three or four years to reduce this year’s cap hit by giving him a lower, longer term deal.

Some of the more interesting players in my opinion heading to arbitration are Ryan Craig of the Lightning, Lee Stempniak of the Blues and Mike Cammalleri of the Kings. All three would make fine Ducks, so it’ll be interesting to see how much they get and what their teams think of their deals. I don’t see any being let go, however. Even if they were, I’d expect a team with more cap space to make a big offer on them before we could snatch them up.

With the current Ducks situation with the potential retirements of two very key players, luckily arbitration is one thing we won’t have to worry about.

I am rather shocked (as I’m sure most Ducks fans are) at a new rumor reported by the infamous hockey blogger known as Eklund. You can read it for yourself here: http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?blogger_id=1

There are really two trains of thought on this topic. The first, is that Teemu is upset about Burke signing Todd Bertuzzi and possibly for more money than offered to Teemu (as a base; Selanne would still have bonuses, surely). I can’t see this as being the case; Teemu has a ton of cash and doesn’t seem to be money-hungry.

The other is that Teemu wants a new challenge, which he would definitely find in Philly. With their slew of changes so far this summer, Selanne might see it as a new task for himself to try and lead them to the Holy Grail. Perhaps he wants to try playing in the Eastern Conference before hanging them up since he’s always been on West Coast teams (Winnipeg, San Jose, Colorado, Anaheim). I see this being possible.

In the end though, I don’t see Selanne leaving the Ducks. He will either retire or return. If he follows the trail of his buddy Paul Kariya, his great Ducks legacy will be tarnished in the mind of many fans (though this is under different circumstances than Paul). I would imagine Teemu wants to end his career at the top, as he has stated, and end it a Duck and be their first player to be retired. There is also the issue of uprooting his family and entire life in California for a drastic change on the East Coast. Thus, I just don’t think it will happen. I hope it won’t happen.

Update: Tim Pannaccio of the Philadelphia Inquirer shoots Eklund down. Read it here: http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=8516

Former Atlanta Thrasher defenseman Shane Hnidy has agreed to a two year deal with the Ducks. Shane is likely an upgrade over unsigned free agent Joe DiPenta and will likely play on the bottom pairing.

Shane does bring a physical game the Ducks like and good things could happen for him in Anaheim as they did for Beauchemin.

Anaheim has announced they have agreed on a one-year contract with Russian defenseman Maxim Kondratiev. Maxim was acquired two seasons ago from the New York Rangers in a deal for Petr Sykora, but played in Russia all last season.

The keyword with Kondratiev is potential, as he brings offensive upside from the blue line but must add size to his frame if he wants to achieve in the NHL.

Brad May, whom the Ducks acquired at last season’s trade deadline from Colorado has agreed to a new deal. Terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed, however May’s agent Pat Morris has confirmed a deal is done via radio interview.

May provided physical play and a spark during the playoffs and is a good energy line player.

The first two days of unrestricted free agency have come and gone and there were a slew of signings, many more than I was expecting. The Ducks locked in two former Red Wings for the next two years an seem to be both prepping for a strong run to defend their Cup while also dealing with the possible retirements of both Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer.

I’ll go through some of the major signings and give my brief thoughts on each:

Scott Gomez and Chris Drury head to Broadway

Wow. I definitely like the direction the Rangers took, losing Nylander but replacing him with these two stud (and highly-coveted) centers. Lou (Lamiorello; New Jersey Devils’ GM) must have thrown a fit about losing Gomez across the river. Gomez and Jagr could be interesting, while Drury is exactly the kind of player New York needs to model their team after. It also shows their confidence in heading forward with young guys like Ryan Callahan who fit the same mold. Money was about what was expected for these guys and on long-term deals like they got (five years to Drury and seven to Gomez) it might turn out to be a bargain as long as league revenues stick to their upward trend.

Captain Canada and Scott Hannan to Colorado

Colorado fills two huge holes in their lineup and become a strong contender once again. Ryan Smyth is the kind of hard-nosed, crash the net player they have lacked the past few seasons. Hannan will solidify their defense and provide a calming element both on and off the ice. Again, numbers sound about right to me with Hannan even being a potential bargain as I’m sure he could have gotten 5M from someone on the open market. Both the Islanders and Sharks will be hard-pressed to find replacements for their respective losses.

Former Duck Paul Kariya lands in St. Louis

I am somewhat shocked to see Kariya choose a team like St. Louis who, in my opinion, are still another year or two away from becoming a real threat to the Stanley Cup (and that’s best case). I am not surprised to see him leave Nashville however, taking all their ownership issues into consideration. My money was on Paul joining Detroit or San Jose, to play with either Pavel Datsyuk or “Jumbo” Joe Thornton. Maybe he just likes the Dirty South.

Anaheim get Bertuzzi and Schneider

I expected Burke to make an offer to Bertuzzi this off season and  gamble he can return to form under Randy Carlyle and with the Ducks’ team. I like the risk Burke took and have confidence it will indeed pay off. Schneider does seem to be potential damage control for Niedermayer (potentially) retiring. Getting them both on short contracts was a smart move both because of their age and because there is no guarantee they won’t start to decline (or in Todd’s case not rebound). Just imagine if both Scott and Teemu decide to stay; the Ducks will have the best shot at successfully defending their Cup than any team in recent memory.

Daniel Briere to be a Flyer for a long time

There is always great risk with an eight-year contract to ANY player, but it seems that’s what the Flyers had to offer to land Briere. Throw in a no movement clause and it becomes a very risky wager indeed. This move definitely proves Philadelphia don’t intend to repeat last year’s dismal performance and want to win now. That is something important to show fans. With the recent acquisitions of Briere, Lupul, Smith, Timonen and Hartnell along with an extra year of maturity for youngsters like Richards, Carter and Umberger, Philly is a team I’d bet on to make the playoffs this year.

Jason Blake heads to Toronto

Garth Snow needs to make some moves. Losing Smyth and Blake is going to hurt the Isles’ offense tremendously. Blake was rumored to be heading to Toronto so this move doesn’t come as a big surprise to anyone. I have my doubts, though, that Blake will be the 40-goal scorer the Leafs want. He could turn into another Jeff O’Neill. If so, that is going to be a long five-year contract to deal with.

Detroit snags Brian Rafalski

I’m not a Rafalski fan, but this seems to be the option Detroit went with instead of Matt Schneider. That makes sense as Schneider is a lot older (38 years old) and Rafalski signed for only slightly more than Schneider did.Rafalski should fit in with the Red Wings’ style and quarterback their power play and basically provide what Schneider was providing. Another hole for New Jersey to fill though (along with Gomez); Lou is probably in a very sour mood these days.

Well there are my thoughts for now, obviously there were a ton more signings but these were the highest-profile in my opinion. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!