Faceoff Factor

Tis The Season To Read Folly...

Matt Bodenschatz | National Hockey League

Jun 29, 09:50 PM | Hype this story!

In case you’ve missed it, Evgeni Malkin is on the trading block and apparently could land in Los Angeles for the likes of Jack Johnson, Dustin Brown, and more.

There’s also talk that the entire Penguins roster hates coach Michel Therrien, but general manager Ray Shero would rather let the wheels fall off than fire his coach.

And, word on some blogs is that Shero will be pursuing every free agent, including those classified as restricted.

Of course, everything just written is just a sampling of the fodder that gets tossed around between the final game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the first day of free agency.

What can you expect? Apparently there is nothing else to write about with regards to the sport of hockey.

But really, when you break down the majority of these rumors from bloggers with “inside sources,” they’re rather easy to debunk. And, in most cases, it takes little time to get to the bottom of them.

Still, the Malkin rumors persisted for weeks, and the Therrien rumors continue to be fueled by clueless dramatists.

Of the junk I read online and listen to on sports talk radio and television, possibly the most entertaining are the discussions of players who “want to come to Pittsburgh” or who are “on top of the Penguins’ priority list.”

I don’t doubt the majority of NHL players would want to skate with Sidney Crosby or Malkin. They’re two of the most talented players in the world. But money speaks louder than anything else, and the reality is that the Penguins clearly can’t afford to sign everyone who would like to play in Pittsburgh.

But what strikes me as humorous is the notion that anything can be determined prior to July 1.

The last time I checked, impending unrestricted free agents aren’t free to talk to potential suitors until July 1, and potential suitors can’t sniff around impending free agents until July 1.

So how does anyone know what can or will happen once the horn sounds and free agency begins?

The fact is, everything is a complete shot in the dark. Sure general managers may divulge small tidbits of their plans, such as the desire to add a goal scorer or a physical defender, but to assume any general manager is leaking which players specifically he will target is, well, ridiculous.

Nonetheless, this folly that finds its way onto the Internet by the means of college kids and their blogs can be fun to read and think “what if.”

But enough is enough

I’m sure I speak for many when I say I’ll be glad when the free agency frenzy dies down and the rumor mongers take a break.

Then again, when free agency cools off in a week and the silence of summer sets in, I’m sure we’ll hear new and crazier notions, such as trading Crosby for the entire Phoenix Coyotes roster because Gretzky was the “Great One” and Crosby is the “Next One.”