Roster Freeze Open Thread
Will we see some moves today? If not, let's talk about our feelings and favorite songs.
Today, at 3 PM Eastern Standard Time the Olympic roster freeze will take effect and it will not be lifted until February 23rd. Why is this significant to you as a hockey fan? Because the trade deadline is on March 5th at 3 PM EST and many hockey journalists are expecting some activity today. Think of today as the deadline before the deadline because after the Olympic roster freeze is lifted on the 23rd there will be only 11 days for the buyers and sellers to make final decisions and to compete and bargain to get deals done.
For Rangers fans there is another significant aspect to the roster freeze today and that, of course, applies to the hockey club's captain Ryan Callahan. It's no secret that Rangers General Manager wants Callahan's contract settled before today's roster freeze. Now, just because that is what Sather wants doesn't mean that is what he's going to get but it's hardly surprising that Sather wants to "solve" the Ryan Callahan problem sooner rather than later. Here is Pat Leonard's take on the situation:
"If Sather re-signs Callahan to a six- or seven-year deal, he's committing an enormous term to a player whose role on the ice has decreased under coach Alain Vigneault, being removed from the power play and falling to the second penalty-killing unit, and therefore becoming - to put it one way - more replaceable, in terms of production. Sather still would have Dan Girardi, Anton Stralman and several other free agents to address afterward.
Finally, if Sather trades Callahan for a significant enough haul, either this week or before the March 5 trade deadline, he may be making the best move for the franchise's long-term future. However, while there are plenty of capable candidates to pick up the "C" in Callahan's absence, listening to Rangers such as Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh, not many of the captain's teammates appear ready for that scenario actually to arise."
As Evan told us earlier this morning, Larry Brooks said the following about Ryan Callahan and the roster freeze yesterday:
Told, a) no progress toward resolving negotiating impasse between NYR and Callahan; and, b) little chance of trade before tomorrow's freeze.
— Larry Brooks (@NYP_Brooksie) February 6, 2014 In other words... who knows what is going to happen today. Kaiju could emerge from the Grand Canyon and take over the Southwest in a matter of hours. Every day holds unlimited possibilities.
So, consider this your open thread for the deadline before the deadline. I'm not sure just how much action (if any) we'll see today but if deals go down this is the place to talk about it... and if nothing happens we can all just talk about how depressing it was to watch our four-game winning streak come to a screeching halt with the Edmonton Oilers. Enjoy tonight's game, have a fantastic weekend, and please subscribe to Blueshirts Monthly by emailing blueshirtsmonthly@gmail.com with "Subscribe" in the subject line.
Hey, while we're talking deadline day crap, let's hear your predictions for who will be moving where and which teams will be the biggest buyers and sellers around deadline day. My random shot-in-the-dark guess? Ryan Miller lands in Washington and Creepy Crawlers make a comeback next Christmas.
Everybody love everybody and Let's Go Rangers.
