Bag of Pucks: Ryan Smyth Edition
March 2nd, 2007 by murph
OK I promise this is it for the Ryan Smyth coverage here at Islanders Army. There is just so much coverage coming from the Canadian press, Newsday and the hockey blogosphere that it’s tough to ignore.
- Radio station CHED in Edmonton has the audio of Smyth’s “farewell” speech/press conference.
- A pair of articles from the Toronto Globe and Mail on Smyth’s departure.
- Even USA Today, who normally dedicates a whopping 1/4 of one page to NHL action chimed in.
- LCS Hockey is convinced Smyth is a rental player.
- Meanwhile, Coach Nolan’s job is to convince Smyth otherwise in the next 3-4 months.
- NewYorkIslanders.com and Islanders TV has lots of Smyth coverage too. I checked out Islanders TV this morning to find videos of Smyth’s arrival, first practice, press conference, post press conference interview and even more footage from last night’s game.
- And finally, Greg Logan’s blog has one more article about Smyth that didn’t make the newspaper.
It was chilly yesterday morning here in the heartland of hockey. “Minus-94,” a local radio announcer cracked.
Smyth repeatedly declined any and all attempts to get him to discuss the dollar figures that separated him and the Oilers when negotiations for a contract extension broke down about 20 minutes before Tuesday’s NHL trading deadline.
Smyth wouldn’t say; his agent, Don Meehan, thought it would serve no purpose to discuss the matter publicly; and Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe didn’t return a phone call.
“That’s between Donnie and myself and Kevin and the organization,” said Smyth. “It just didn’t work out.”
Fair enough. Whenever a negotiation of this length and magnitude fails, there’s certainly enough blame to go around. The Oilers could have been more proactive in trying to get Smyth’s name on a contract last summer, when they were throwing dollars around to the likes of Ales Hemsky and Fernando Pisani — but weren’t.
How much do you pay an athlete if he is your leading scorer, the soul of your team and the face of the franchise?
Edmonton Oilers general manager Kevin Lowe had a different opinion from Ryan Smyth on that issue, which is why Lowe has been accused of selling the Oilers’ soul to the New York Islanders.
On Monday afternoon, Lowe’s reputation around the league was clean and shiny, with plenty of sparkle on his resume. Right after the lockout, he brought Chris Pronger to Edmonton. Just last spring he was being celebrated for making the key trades — including the acquisition of goalie Dwayne Roloson— which allowed the Oilers to slide into the playoffs and then reach the Stanley Cup Finals. Lowe’s Oilers were the first No. 8 team to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. Fans certainly viewed him as a man who didn’t need directions to find success.
But in his short time in charge, Snow has proved himself to be both aggressive and effective. Although only time will tell whether the long-term deal was shrew or folly, DiPietro has been sharp this season, particularly this past month, posting an 8-2-2 mark. Two of his free agent signings, Viktor Kozlov and Sean Hill, have both meaningful contributors. When it became clear that Mike York was struggling and Alexei Zhitnik wasn’t fitting into coach Ted Nolan’s style early this season, Snow traded them and saved $5 million on cap space and actually received players (Randy Robitaille and Freddy Meyer) that are performing better than the players they replaced.
At the time, Snow pledged he would use the money near the trade deadline to improve the team. He made good on his promise by bringing in power-play point man Marc-Andre Bergeron, Richard Zednik and finally Smyth.
Snow had approached Lowe at the general managers’ meetings in Naples, Fla., and told Lowe that if he was going to trade Smyth, he wanted a chance to make a bid. Apparently he made the best offer because the Islanders have now have transplanted the Oilers’ soul.
Getting Smyth was a bold but risky move. It’ll be difficult criticizing the trade if New York makes the playoffs and manages any sort of postseason run, at least, you know, until the unrestricted Smyth signs with a Canadian team over the summer, making anything short of a Stanley Cup a colossal failure. Giving up three first-round picks for a rental player is inviting grief. Even Snow’s oversized shoulder pads won’t be able to protect him from the abuse.
“We’d love to — we’d love to do that,” said Nolan in regards to re-singing Smyth, who will be seeking at least $5 million a year. “I think in time — and a player has to feel comfortable where he’s playing, and obviously with the economics and what have you, but this is a beautiful place. I mentioned to the media here last night, I mean, I look up in the rafters, and this my first year in Long Island, I look up in the rafters and I see Potvin, I see Bossy and Trottier and Gillies and the sweaters retired in the rafters; I see four banners and Stanley Cup winners, and this is a great place to play in. Hopefully we can make this Ryan’s second home.”
It’s worth the effort. But, in the end, I’m sure Smyth will find Long Island a nice place to visit, but he wouldn’t want to live there.
“When you get a player of Ryan’s stature and character, this brings back some credibility,” Nolan said. “I mean, we got more press in Canada than any other time. This one put us on the map, and hopefully, it will get other people aware of what we have to offer here on Long Island.
“Players have choices, and we want them to say, Long Island treats their players well, Long Island’s a great place to live, and we want them to choose us. There’s no better way to sell your product than to get word of mouth.”
“I look forward to this new chapter with the Islanders and making a run for the Cup,” said Smyth. “I’m just one player and that doesn’t make a team, but hopefully, I’ll be a piece to the puzzle that gives this team an opportunity to win the Cup.”
When Smyth arrived at the arena this morning around 11 am, he had little time to dress and get on the ice before the Islanders’ morning skate ended, but he still had time to talk to some of the players and personnel.
“Everyone here has been so welcoming,” said Smyth. “The first guys I talked to were Silli and Hunts. I know Silli from way back, and Hunts as well. I met some guys in the locker room and on the ice as well. The atmosphere has been really good.”
A student of the game, Smyth certainly knows the Oilers dynasty that he grew up following closely, but he also talked about the dynasty the preceded the Oilers’, the Islanders’ four Stanley Cup run.
“I really appreciate the history of this organization. Just looking up at the banners, it’s a lot like the history of the Oilers. The names of Trottier, Bossy go on and on.”
As great as the Coliseum can be when it’s rocking, as it has been in several recent games (Pittsburgh, Toronto, the Jason Blake chant at the end of the Philadelphia game the other night), we all know there’s a big difference between the hockey culture in American cities compared to what it is in the Canadian venues Smyth is used to.
