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Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Brian Burke Happy with Corey Perry Situation & Draft Day Deals

By Ken Armer


On NHL Live on Tuesday, Anaheim Ducks GM Brian Burke discussed a lot of current situations. Burke covered everything from Toronto GM rumors to the Draft and free agency. Two priorities for the Ducks fans that Burke discusses were Corey Perry, and the Draft.

Regarding the Draft:

Ducks fans look for a draft day deal or two for the Ducks, “We’re looking at all different scenarios” Burke said “We like this draft”. Burke spoke like he is hoping to move from 12th overall and feels confident he could make a great draft day deal. The only other hint Burke tossed out is he is looking at North Americans. Burke, when asked if he would take Nikita Filatov if he is available at #12 said no, that he didn’t feel Filatov would be a good fit in the Ducks system.

Regarding free agent Corey Perry:

Burke made two important things clear for Corey Perry fans, Perry wants to stay in Anaheim and the Ducks are confident in signing him but the waiting game is on. Yes, a Dustin Penner situation could happen with the Ducks having other issues to handle before signing Perry, but Burke is very confident Perry will remain in a Ducks uniform. Burke was asked about arbitration and explained that was not an option. So rest assured Perry fans, Burke is doing all he can to keep Corey Perry. Even I feel slightly better now.

12 comments:

Earl Sleek said...

Burke was asked about arbitration and explained that was not an option.

This actually alarms me rather than comforts me. The one sure-fire way to prevent a K-Lowe/D-Penner situation is to take a player to arbitration. It's not the ideal situation for sure, but it does take Perry off the RFA market.

I really thought Burke would have learned his lesson from last year (especially since last year proved that arbitration isn't the salary-prod it once was), so hopefully all of this gets resolved quickly.

My blind optimism hopes that there's already a contract agreed on, and Perry will put his signature on it the first minute the CBA allows.

Oh, and Burke is looking at North Americans in the draft? Shocker! I'm almost ready for him to pack his bags for Toronto, if for no other reason than I'm starting to miss the European aspect of hockey.

Ken said...

Yeah, im a little lost on the arbitration thing, then again don't know all that much about it to be honest. It certainly does feel like Burke is 100% sure Perry is coming back so only time will tell. As for Europeans, im sorta with Burke, they are more finesse and less hard nosed hockey types. Oh well, only the draft will tell.

Earl Sleek said...

Yeah, but you look at the teams successful last postseason: Detroit, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia -- they were all stocked with plenty of European talent.

They may prefer a different style, but I fail to see how that matters. Perry plays a different style than does Bertuzzi, yet they can work together on the same line.

I dunno, it's starting to border on racism, and if Burke's out the door, it's one thing that I'll be glad to see go with him.

Earl Sleek said...

Or maybe better said, I'd prefer a GM who wasn't so ready to shut the door on 1/3 to 1/2 of draft-eligible players because of their damn birthplace.

Ken said...

agreed. The Filatov comment seems sorta dumb...im sorry if hes available, take him.

Earl Sleek said...

Well, maybe my fears were unfounded. Per my Fanhouse sources (J.P.), the Ducks have just signed a player from Europe.

Unfortunately, that player is Josh Green (scroll down to his name).

Here's his Hockey Reference page.

Mike in OC said...

Guys I think arbitration is not an option because of arbitration rules. I think If you signed an entry level contract before the age of 20, you need at least 4 years of NHL experience to qualify for arbitration.

I also though his comment about Filatov was because of how hard it is getting them out of Russia, but I would draft that guy at 12 and take the chance.

Earl Sleek said...

Ah, thanks for the clarification, Mike. My arbitration bylaws knowledge is shit.

Alexander Dubcek said...

Ha, I saw Josh Green score his first NHL goal for the Kings, I believe on opening night 1998 against Boston, a game Robitaille won in OT.

Doogie2K said...

Hey look, it's another ex-Oiler. How many is that in the last couple of years, now?

Yeah, I got nothing. Another nondescript Canadian plugger, right up Burke's alley.

Bryan said...

I'm not exactly sure on the Ducks cap space, but what exactly does Burke have to work with. That is assuming Niedermayer and Selanne come back, since I don't think they would have come back to just play half a season.

Earl Sleek said...

Unfortunately, Bryan, I've sort of given up on cap calculations -- it's a pretty complicated set of rules, and there's hardly any confirmation of who or what technically counted against the cap, even in previous years.

All I can tell you is that with Scott, the Ducks are spending more than they'd probably like, and with a raise to Perry and a contract for Selanne, they're probably over the cap.

At best, I can just refer you to the two salary cap sites in the sidebar, and you can try to figure it out from there:

NHL Numbers
NHLSCAP.com

Also, David Johnson at hockeyanalysis.com has a rundown here, if you'd like to get a third opinion.

I think it's really silly that the NHL doesn't make cap calculations more known. Basically, we don't get a lot of basis on which to judge GMs because we get a very shady picture of their salary constraints. I think the NHL would be better served if its fans could grasp its cap concept better, but "better served" isn't really the NHL's motto.