Frozen Pucks

June 18, 2008 11:00am CDT

Is this the end for Joe Sakic?

Joe Sakic will be 39 years old next month, an age at which many players have long since hung up their skates for the last time. However, he still isn't clear about whether or not he would like to join them, according to a report in the Denver Post on June 16th. "Joe has not told me of any decision yet, and I assume that means he hasn't told the team anything yet," Don Baizley, Sakic's agent, said. All of this brings up the bigger question of whether or not Sakic should retire.

Sakic was limited to just 44 games in 2007-08, as he missed about three months of action because of a groin injury that required surgery. However, when he was on the ice, he was still an extremely productive player with 40 points in 44 games for an average of 0.91 points per game. That was higher than the averages of Brenden Morrow (0.90), Patrick Kane (0.88) and Olli Jokinen (0.87), to name just a few. Sakic did lose a stretch of three straight years of at least 32 goals and 87 points because of the injury, but we are still talking about a guy who has scored at least 79 points in every one of the 10 seasons he has skated in at least 75 games. So it is clear that Sakic still has "game" and can easily serve as a solid third string fantasy center, possibly even a #2 if healthy.

If he does end up calling it a career, it has been one hell of a career. Sakic has scored 623 goals (14th best in league history), 1,106 assists (11th all-time) and 1,629 points (8th all-time). He has also excelled when it counts the most (in the playoffs), with 84 goals (7th all-time) and 188 points (7th all-time), not to mention an all-time record of eight overtime game-winning goals. Here's to hoping he hangs around for another season.


Where will Mats Sundin end up?

Sundin is now a free agent, and rumors have been circulating that he might end up in Detroit, where seemingly every other Swedish player in the NHL seems to end up. However, a report in the Detroit Free Press that quoted fellow countryman Henrik Zetterberg would seem to suggest that the Wings don't really think that Sundin will join the club. The good news is that Sundin's agent, J.P. Berry, has basically said Sundin will return to the NHL for at least another season, so it doesn't appear like we have a Joe Sakic-type possibility of a retirement.

If possible, Sundin has been even more consistent than Sakic, a fact that's attributed to the excellent track record of health that has seen Sundin play in at least 70 games in each of the past 12 seasons dating back to the strike year of 1994. In that time, Sundin has scored at least 27 goals and 72 points each season, marking him as a solid #2 center or an excellent third option. He has also been a potent power-play contributor over the years, with double-digit goal totals with the man advantage in five of the last six seasons, and over the past four years he has scored at least 29 power-play points each year. No matter where he ends up, he will be productive, and keep an eye on who ends up on his line, as they will likely see a substantial increase in point production.


Should the Islanders bother with Alexei Yashin?

The last time we saw Alexei Yashin in the NHL was 2006-07, when he managed to score 18 goals and 50 points in 58 games for the Islanders. After that season, the Isles decided to buy out the remaining four years of Yashin's ludicrous 10-year contract that he, by any objective measure, failed to live up to (he was given a $17.63 million buyout to be paid over eight years, instead of the $26 million that he was originally due). Apparently Yashin would like to return to the greatest league on earth after playing the past season in the Russian Superliga, where he is fresh off a season in which he was named the best player in the playoffs after a regular season that saw him named to the first team All-Star squad. So there are two questions: First, how much will it cost to bring him back to the States? And second, is it worth it to do so?

"We've had discussions," Marc Gandler, Yashin's agent, told Newsday. "But it's been very slow because I told them in the beginning how much I wanted. They're obviously not happy about that... My premise is that he should get what his market value is ... We're only looking for a one-year deal." All we know is that his asking price is less than $4.5 million, but given that he basically fleeced the Islanders out of millions with his often uninspired play, it would be surprising if the Isles would offer anywhere near that much dough.

As for the second question, it's obvious that the club needs to do something. Given that the Islanders finished 29th out of 30 teams in scoring and that their leading point producer was Mike Comrie with just 49 points (no other center scored more than 35 points - Josef Vasicek), it would seem quite obvious that the Isles are in need of someone to put up points. And for all his failings, it's not like Yashin isn't productive in terms of points, as he scored 290 points in 346 games while skating on the Island. Time will tell, but I just don't know if the Isles will bite on the guy, though that doesn't mean another team won't.


Will Dan Ellis return to the Predators?
Just a couple of weeks back I proclaimed Dan Ellis as a potential 40-game winner in the coming season (Fantasy Forecasting, Goalies). However, that prediction may or may not be on hold, depending upon how the contract negotiations go between Chris Mason and the club. Here is what we know, according to the Tennessean:

The Predators signed defensemen Ryan Suter to a four-year, $14 million deal and have now turned their attention to signing Ellis, as well as defensemen Shea Weber. While the team feels it will be able to lock up Weber, they are clearly uncertain as to whether or not Ellis will remain in the fold or chose to become and unrestricted free agent on July 1st. "If it gets to July 1, I don't think it's realistic that Dan is coming back here,' GM David Poile said. "I don't think there is any better opportunity to be a No. 1 goalie than there is here. That's where he ended up with us. I've gone through all the possibilities where he could go and I don't see as good (of) opportunities.'

Ellis led the league in save percentage last year with a .924 mark and his GAA of 2.34 was also strong. Given the struggles that Mason went through last year, Ellis is the clear cut number one in Nashville, but apparently he might be angling for a bigger contract than the team is willing to give to a guy who has played in only 45 NHL games. You heard it straight from the GM's mouth. If a deal isn't worked out in the next two weeks, Ellis will likely hit the open market where he will hope to score big, at which point the Preds will have to look for another seasoned goaltender to, at worst, pair with Mason.


Three cheers for Igor Larionov

The third NHL jersey I ever got was a San Jose Sharks Igor Larionov #7 sweater. At the time I just knew him as the deft passer who helped the Sharks to perhaps the biggest upset in NHL history when the lowly Sharks defeated the top-ranked Red Wings in the 1994 playoffs (it is there fitting that Igor enjoyed his greatest success wearing a Wings uniform). Little did I know the full story.

Larionov had a nice NHL career, with 169 goals and 644 points in 921 games while having his name etched no the Stanley Cup three times, but his legacy, the one that led to his election to the Hall of Fame, goes back to his days in Russia.

Larionov, nicknamed the "Russian Gretzky" for his passing skills, led CSKA Moscow to eight consecutive Russian League Championship and was awarded the Player of the Year award in 1988. On the international scene, he led the Russian national team to two Olympic gold medals in 1984 and 1988 before he chose to leave Russia to come to America. Also nicknamed the "Professor" for the way that he saw the ice and studied the game, Larionov was not only a superstar on the ice, but he was one of the pioneers that led to the influx of Russian talent into the NHL. "I can't really put into words or to describe what this honor means to me", said Larionov. "It's very touching to know that I will be celebrating one of the top accomplishments in my hockey career by being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame."

Congratulations Mr. Larionov, you truly deserve the honor that was bestowed upon you.