CarterHud

     The Ottawa Senators have acquired LW Tommy Wingels from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for forwards Buddy Robinson, Zach Stortini, and a 7th round draft pick in the 2017 draft. Here\’s why it happened:
      For the entire year, the Sens have been looking to find a solid bottom 6 winger. Prospect Curtis Lazar has just 1 point, an assist, in 25 games this year and is a -6, being a major disappointment. The Sens found some success in their depth, though, as C Ryan Dzingel has 23 points in 45 games. Players like Robinson, LW Max McCormick, and RW Casey Bailey have played a few amount of games this season. LW Matt Puempel was dealt to the New York Rangers earlier this year. The 28 year old Wingels has 8 points in 37 games this season. Wingels also has some playoff experience, especially with the Sharks in last year\’s Stanley Cup final. \”Tommy has been a valuable member of our franchise for many years, a phenomenal teammate and a true role model on and off the ice for our organization and the NHL,\” San Jose GM Doug Wilson said. \”As a team evolves and younger players push for roster spots, unfortunately tough decisions have to be made. We wish Tommy and his wife, Molly, nothing but success in the future.\” Wingels has 122 points in 337 games so far in his career, all with San Jose. Wingels should first play with Ottawa Thursday against the Calgary Flames.
         The Sharks will also retain 30% of Wingels contract. He\’s owed $2.45 mil in his 3rd year of his contract, and he will be a UFA on July 1st this year.
        For the Sharks they get some depth in their minor league system. \”We also want to welcome Buddy and Zach to our organization. They add size and depth to our reserve list and we look forward to having them in San Jose,\” Wilson also said. The 6 foot 6, 232Ib, 25 year old Robinson has 0 points in 4 games this year in the NHL. He made his debut last year in 3 games, with a goal and an assist in 3 games. The 6-2 219Ib, 31 year old Stortini has 3 points in 22 games this year in the AHL, and has 257 games of NHL experience, most recently in the 2011-12 season with the Nashville Predators.

  Today I had the pleasure to meet/interview New York Islanders defenseman Johnny Boychuk. Boychuk, who is turning 33 tomorrow, was drafted 61st overall by the Colorado Avalanche in 2002. He is now playing in his 7th full NHL season, having played for the Avalanche, Boston Bruins, and now the Islanders. He has 37 goals and 98 assists for 135 career NHL points. Boychuk, who is known for his big slap shot, won the Stanley Cup with the Bruins in 2011. In 2015, Boychuk signed a 7 year contract extension with the Islanders
 

JB: It will be good, he used to be a player, and he knows the keys to either changing in game strategy or seeing what the other team is doing and can adapt well.  

3. Over your 3 years here in NY, do you feel more comfortable playing with a puck-moving defenseman in Nick Leddy, a traditional d-man like Travis Hamonic, another shot-blocking machine like Calvin de Haan, an all around guy like Thomas Hickey, or Dennis Seidenberg, whom you played with in Boston?
JB: I like playing with Nick [Leddy] and I also like playing with Thomas [Hickey]. I think with either one we do well together and complement each other. We kind of have a chemistry of knowing where to be and we talk a lot when we\’re out on the ice. So it\’s easy to play with them.         

JB: I think I can score 10 goals this year. It\’s not out of the question. It\’s about getting the right opportunities, getting your shots on the net and not getting them blocked. 

JB: Getting to play in Boston was a key opportunity for me. I think just having fun and working hard was a big thing. I kept doing that and gave it my best and luckily I got to stay.
 

7. In your NHL career, you have 920 blocked shots. Do you ever get a little scared to block a shot? and what player would you least like to block a shot from?
JB: Yes, especially when it\’s going at you over a 100 miles per hour. You have to block the shot but you don\’t really want to because you know it\’s going to hurt. But that\’s your job and hopefully it\’s only going to hurt for a little. I\’d probably least want to block Zdeno Chara\’s shot. I\’ve blocked a few of his in practice [with the Bruins] and it\’s not really fun because they are going really fast. 

8. When you first played with the Colorado Avalanche, you played a few games as a forward. Do you think you could have made it as a forward in the NHL?
JB: No! (laughing) It was a fun experience and to get your first few games as a forward was definitely different.  

  
10. Growing up, who was your favorite player?
 JB: Al MacInnis and Ray Bourque

11. Which city (besides Brooklyn) is your favorite to play in?

 JB: I like playing back home in Edmonton. I also enjoy playing in Boston, Montreal, and Nashville.
 

JB: First, I took it to a children\’s hospital back home. Then, I took it to my Mom and Dad\’s house, and then to another place for people to take pictures with it.

13. Excluding this year, you’ve had 3 different home arenas in 3 years. (TD Garden, Nassau Coliseum, Barclays Center) is it difficult to keep making adjustments to home ice? 
JB: Sometimes, but you get used to playing in your home arena after a little while.
 
14. Before last year, the NHL changed from 4 on 4 OT to 3 on 3 OT. Which style do you like better?

JB: I don\’t play in OT (laughing) so it doesn\’t matter to me. 

JB: Sometimes it is, and sometimes it\’s not. You just have to adjust your style of play, depending on who you are playing against. Some teams are faster then others, and some teams are more hard hitting and physical so you just need to prepare and be ready for everything.

JB: There\’s a lot of family oriented stuff around Long Island. Either from going to the beaches or going into the city, there is a lot of good things on Long Island. The school systems are really good too.   

Thank you to the New York Islanders and Johnny Boychuk for this awesome experience.

McLeod fights former teammate Iginla

        With 27 points, the Colorado Avalanche are last in the NHL, and the only team under 30 points. A week prior to the trade, McLeod had said that there would be changes made to the team given their struggles on the ice. The Avs have also been shopping players like stars Gabriel Landeskog and Matt Duchene.
       The Avalanche must have liked Girard, a 4th round pick in 2013, who has spent the last 3 seasons playing for Milwaukee, the Preds\’ AHL affiliate. Girard had 3 goals and 5 assists in 35 games for Milwaukee this season. McLeod had just 1 point, a goal, in 28 games with Colorado. Also, the Avs are retaining about 40% of McLeod\’s $1.33 million contract. Up until now, the 32 year old scrapper had played his entire career with the club. McLeod stayed with the Preds, and Girard reported directly to San Antonio, the Avs AHL team. McLeod is 5th among current players with 1,359 PIM.
         The Predators probably liked McLeod\’s grit and he has some playoff experience (23 career games with the Avs)
         McLeod\’s first game with Nashville was a VERY interesting one, in Colorado against the Avs. There was about 3 things to note about it. 1, the video tribute that was played for him at Pepsi Center. 2, his fight with former teammate Jarome Iginla, and 3, a goal that he scored. It\’s funny how he had just 1 goal in 28 games with the Avs, but 1 goal in 1 game with the Preds.

      The MLB arbitration deadline fell on Friday, January 13th, and like most years, many teams/players either avoid arbitration and sign extensions, or just go with it. Many players avoided arbitration this year, and here is the list of all the players who avoided \”arb\”.
         Los Angeles Angels: Danny Espinosa, Kole Calhoun.
       Houston Astros: Dallas Keuchel, Jake Marisnick, George Springer.
       Oakland Athletics: Sonny Gray, Stephen Vogt, Liam Hendricks.
       Toronto Blue Jays: Darwin Barney, Ezequiel Carrera.
       Cleveland Indians: Trevor Bauer, Dan Otero, Zach MacAllister, Cody Allen, Bryan Shaw, Danny Salazar, Lonnie Chisenhall.
        Seattle Mariners: Jean Segura, Drew Smyly, Jarrod Dyson, Danny Valencia, Leonys Martin, James Paxton, Evan Scribner, Nick Vincent.
         Baltimore Orioles: Ryan Flaherty, T.J. McFarland, Zach Britton, Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop, Chris Tillman.
         Texas Rangers: Sam Dyson, A.J. Griffin, Robinson Chirinos, Tanner Scheppers, Jeremy Jeffress, Jake Diekman, Jurickson Profar.
          Tampa Bay Rays: Xavier Cedeno, Kevin Kiermaier, Tim Beckham, Corey Dickerson, Brad Boxberger, Alex Cobb, Danny Farquhar, Brad Miller, Erasmo Ramirez.
           Boston Red Sox: Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr, Joe Kelly, Tyler Thornburg, Brock Holt, Robbie Ross Jr, Sandy Leon.
           Kansas City Royals: Eric Hosmer.
           Detroit Tigers: Andrew Romine, Alex Wilson, Justin Wilson, Bruce Rondon, Nick Castellanos, Jose Iglesias.
           Minnesota Twins: Kyle Gibson, Hector Santiago, Brandon Kintzler, Ryan Pressly.
           Chicago White Sox: Dan Jennings, Todd Frazier, Miguel Gonzalez, Jake Petricka, Zach Putnam.
            New York Yankees: Didi Gregorius, Austin Romine, Aaron Hicks, Tommy Layne, Michael Pineda, Adam Warren.
            Atlanta Braves: Arodys Vizcaino, Ian Krol.
            Milwaukee Brewers: Wily Peralta, Carlos Torres.
            St. Louis Cardinals: Matt Adams, Trevor Rosenthal, Kevin Siegrist
            Chicago Cubs: Jake Arrieta, Hector Rondon, Justin Grimm.
            Arizona Diamondbacks: Chris Hermann, Patrick Corbin, Randall Delgado, Chris Owings.
            San Francisco Giants: Conor Gillaspie, Will Smith, George Kontos, Eduardo Nunez.
            Miami Marlins: A.J. Ramos, Marcell Ozuna, Tom Koehler, Adeiny Hechavarria, Derek Dietrich.
             New York Mets: Lucas Duda, Zack Wheeler, Jeurys Familia, Travis d\’Arnaud, Matt Harvey, Jacob DeGrom, Addison Reed.
             Washington Nationals: Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Tanner Roark, Derek Norris.
             San Diego Padres: Carter Capps, Brandon Maurer, Christian Friedrich, Brad Hand.
             Philadelphia Phillies: Freddy Galvis, Jeanmar Gomez.
             Pittsburgh Pirates: Drew Hutchinson, Jared Hughes, Jordy Mercer, Gerrit Cole, Juan Nicasio.
             Cincinnati Reds: Billy Hamilton, Blake Wood, Tony Cingrani.
             Colardo Rockies: Nolan Arenado, Charlie Blackmon, Tyler Chatwood.
           
              So that is the list of players who avoided arbitration. Other players still have to wait on getting contracts, through arbitration.

        2 trades happened in the MLB, a couple hours apart, including the same team. The first trade, the Seattle Mariners acquired RHP Shae Simmons and OF Mallex Smith from the Atlanta Braves for LHPs Luiz Gohara and Thomas Burrows. But soon after that the Mariners might have been looking to flip Smith in a package for a better player, with the Tampa Bay Rays being a possible destination for the speedy OF.
        The trade was completed soon later, sending Smith, LHP Ryan Yarbrough and SS Carlos Vargas to Tampa Bay for LHP Drew Smyly. Despite more rumors about the Rays dealing ace Chris Archer this offseason, there has been rumors about Smyly leaving, and it finally happened.
          You might ask \”How will these players fill roles for their new team?\” Well, Smyly and the recently acquired Yovani Gallardo will finish up a rotation that lost young pitcher Tajuan Walker earlier this offseason, with Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma being no. 1 and 2, Smyly at the no. 3 spot, James Paxton at the 4, and Gallardo at 5. Smith can add more outfield depth to the Rays, who signed OF Colby Rasmus the day before to add him and Smith to Kevin Kiermaier and Steven Souza Jr. for their 4 outfielders. Simmons can be a helpful arm out of the bullpen for the Mariners, but Gohara and Burrows should be in the minors for the Braves, as should Yarbrough and Vargas be for the Rays.