Plekanec Gets Signed- Nabokov Doesn't

For those of you hoping that your team would sign young first line playmaking center Tomas Plekanec, prepare to weep and pull out tufts of hair. Les Habitants signed him to a six year deal, the financial terms of which were not disclosed. The move is a good one, as he was the Canadiens leading scorer this past season, and is a good feeder that can score goals when need be. However, it does raise some questions, as the Canadiens are now a little too deep down the middle, now that former Blues prospect Lars Eller is in the fold. Nevertheless, don't look to see Scott Gomez traded, because he won't be. My guess is the Habs will get creative with positioning and move some centers to wings and vice versa. The top line is in desperate need of a player to complement Cammalleri and Plekanec, and Eller could be a very effective member of that unit due to his scoring touch, physicality, and size. I mean let's face it, any line with Mike "Calamari" Cammalleri and Tomas "Jagr" Plekanec is going to be softer than an overweight kindergartner's breasts (though it certainly won't be as tasty).

On the flip side, San Jose is parting ways with their long time goalie Evgeni Nabokov. It's probably a smart move considering that the Sharks need a shake up after repeated years of playoff disappointment. Nevertheless, it raises an issue between the pipes as to who exactly will stand betwixt them. Thomas Greiss is the most likely successor to the veteran goaltender, but who knows the Sharks may sign someone like a Chris Mason to a short term deal in the hopes that they can squeeze out one last attempt at the Cup. That's highly unlikely though.

In other news, Scott Niedermayer announced his retirement after 18 outstanding seasons of terrifying opponents' top offensive units. The retirement spells out "rebuilding phase" to the Ducks, although Teemu Selanne will most likely be back for one more season after the numbers he put up at the end of last season. The Ducks blue line is now a bit of a mess, and it's rumored that the team has not even discussed a new contract with young star Bobby Ryan. Clearly the Ducks are at a bit of a crossroads; it'll be most interesting to see what they choose to do this summer.

Tom Renney was also named head coach of the Oilers today, in a move that I agree with, but at perhaps a stupidly planned time. The front office says that the team wants to take a slow rebuilding process, and says that it understands that there are no quick fixes. However, the ousting of Pat Quinn after one season seems to part from that philosophy quite a bit. Though it was understood that Renney would eventually take the reigns there, this timing seems ill advised, especially considering that Quinn coached the projected first pick in this year's draft, Taylor Hall. Perhaps this is a sign that they're preparing to take Seguin, as they're weaker at center than at wing, and Seguin, who is a more defensively responsible player, would fit in with Renney better. Still, Hall was born in Alberta, and is the far more dynamic player, so expect to see him get called up to that podium first.