Five for Fighting

It's the eve of the UFA

OK, it doesn't have the same ring as Christmas Eve, or even All Hallows Eve (love that name. Should've kept it), but it's still fun to watch everything that transpires the next few days, especially Day 1. Actually, just this last day or two, with teams either re-signing their guys or trading for others, has been a little eye-opening.

So, folks, who would you like to see the Stars acquire during the free-agency period?

Eriksson signs 2-year deal

The Stars shored up left wing Loui Eriksson for a little bit, as he signed a two-year deal worth $3.2 million. Eriksson will get $1.5 million this coming season and $1.7 million for the 2009-10 season. Eriksson had 14 goals and 17 assists in the regular season, adding 4 goals and 4 assists in the playoffs.

I'm a fan of this one. I was one of several -- maybe many -- who was waiting for Eriksson to turn the corner. And I think we all saw him evolving into a good two-way player this season. I've always been a fan of his defensive side, his tenacity to chase down the puck and take it away from opponents. Now he needs to keep building on that scoring touch... there have certainly been nice glimpses, especially when he, Brad Richards and Joel Lundqvist were teamed together in the playoffs.

So congrats to Loui, who's currently in Sweden. I would be, too. Probably a lot cooler there.

The cap is rising

And, no, I'm not talking polar ice caps. Last check on the news, those are still diminishing.

I'm talking NHL salary cap, which will rise to a maximum of $56.7 million this season. That's an increase of $6.4 million. Not too shabby. Here's a few other little numbers:
**The lower limit each NHL team must spend is $40.7 million.
**The most any player can ear in a new contract next season is $11.34 million a year. That's all. That's a shame :)

Anyway, all Stars fans may be asking, what does this mean for my team? Well, chatting with Mr. Les Jackson a few minutes ago, the Stars are going to give themselves a self-imposed cutline, which will sit around the $52 million mark. Jackson wants some flexibility, just in case they want to make a trade at another time.
Long story short: Don't be surprised if this free agency period is a bit quiet. Now if I would've heard that last offseason, I would've been scratching my little head. But as it stands right now, I don't think it's such a bad idea. Think about it, folks: We're no longer talking about a first-round-and-out team. We're talking about a group that had a sweet little run to the Western Conference Finals and will come back just needing a tweak here or there. Not a bad deal, eh? Still, if there's something out there affordable, a nice little wing-ding that isn't too pricey, the Stars could bite.

Stars make qualifying offers to 6

The Dallas Stars extended qualifying offers to six players on Wednesday: forwards Loui Eriksson, B.J. Crombeen, Vojtech Polak, Konstantin Pushkarev and Francis Wathier, as well as defenseman Vadim Khomitski. Three others did not receive offers: forwards Marius Holtet and Janos Vas, and defenseman Jussi Timonen.

I'm going to try (probably unsuccessfully) to explain this stuff in a nutshell. Bear with me. Teams must extend a one-year qualifying offer to a current restricted free agent by June 25 to have the right of first refusal or draft compensation if that player signs an offer sheet with someone else. The offers expire the afternoon of July 15.

Oh, and by the way, the Stars' development camp is from July 6-11. Sessions are open to the public.

Ducks owner suspended indefinitely

Story just came out on ESPN about Anaheim Ducks owner Henry Samueli, who's been suspended indefinitel by commish Gary Bettman. Apparently, Samueli pleaded guilty to making a false statement to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Sounds like not-so-good stuff. Anyway, he's suspended. He's being sentenced in August. Sorry... it seemed more interesting when I first read it than it does now.

Barry's new address

OK, I admit I chuckled a little bit when this first was mentioned, but I'm kind of liking the idea of Barry Melrose in Tampa Bay. Think of it: a team that's looking for a way back to their glory days, one that's got plenty of offensive firepower, anyway, and a goaltender we Stars folk all know and love in Mike Smith. Enter Mr. Melrose, hockey guru, former ESPN commentator and, if I remember correctly, a pretty nice guy.

If I'm a fan in the Tampa Bay area, and I've been gone a while because of the bad times, I'm heading back to the arena to see what he can do immediately.

Draft just about done

The Stars have at least wrapped up their portion of it, taking their final two selections. The Stars took center Matthew Tassone with their sixth-round pick (176th overall) and defenseman Mike Bergin in the seventh round (209th overall).

Tassone had 19 goals and 17 assists in the regular season for the Swift Current Broncos; he added three goals and five assists in the playoffs.

Stars draft two more

Just kind of tracking the tracker right now, and here are the Stars' two recent picks: Center Scott Winkler was taken with their third-round pick (89th overall) and defenseman Philip Larsen went in the fifth round (149th overall).

The 6-2, 195-pound Winkler has played with the Asker Tigers, a junior elite team in Norway. He 30 goals and 29 assists in the 2006-07 season.

Larsen, a 5-11, 185-pounder, played with Frondula of the Swedish Elite League. Yep, that's the one that Stars assistant coach Ulf Dahlen is now coaching.

The Stars select...

Goaltender Tyler Beskorowany is the Stars' first selection in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Tyler's last name Beskorowany is pronounced Bess-core-aw-nee, according to the Stars' website. I was sounding it out before I looked that up, and I at least was coming close :)

Anyway, the sparse info I have on Tyler at the moment: He played in 35 games with the Owen Sound Attack in the Ontario Hockey League. He posted a 4.04 goals-against average and a .900 save percentage in his outings. Owen Sound was apparently in the rebuilding process this past season, so Tyler's numbers aren't too shabby. Also, he's a pretty big guy: 6-foot-5, 200 pounds. I'm guessing he won't need extra padding!

Quiet Stars night

Well, Round 1 is done in the 2008 NHL entry draft. The Stars kept quiet, as was pretty much expected. So we'll pick this back up tomorrow in rounds 2 and beyond. I was surprised, however, to see the Olli Jokinen deal (to Phoenix). The Panthers, by the way, got Keith Ballard and Nick Boynton, as well as the No. 49 pick, for Jokinen.

I guess the Coyotes have a little more upswing at the moment than the Panthers. I'm still relatively new to all this wheeling and dealing at the draft. The Flames and Kings did some work, too, with Michael Cammalleri heading to Calgary for a No. 17 overall pick and a 2009 second-round pick. Then the Kings moved up to No. 12, after giving Anaheim their Nos. 17 and 28 selections.

Anybody confused yet? Anyway, it was a quiet first day for the Stars. That was my main point. I don't know why I tried to stray from it. Bad, bad Tracey.

Oh, the final "name" move: Alex Tanguay and a fifth-round pick from Calgary to Montreal for the Canadiens' No. 25 pick this year and a second-round selection in 2009.

OK, I swear I'm done. Hope that all makes sense. If not, please send all concerns to my e-mail. You all know it by now. If not, just ask Oliver or Cowtown :)