Barnyard Miracles! Bobby Ryan turns from a Duck to a Pig

Poor Bobby Ryan. The kid picked one slot behind Sidney Crosby hasn't had much opportunity to shine on an NHL stage. He played in his first 25 NHL games last year, including 2 in the Dallas series, and after a strong camp this season, was demoted yesterday to the AHL Chops mainly for salary cap reasons.

This is a situation that it's a bit tough to write about, because there's several unknowns at work here: (a) Bobby Ryan's bonus clauses -- thanks to NHL secrecy, I have no idea what Ryan would need to do in order to earn his $1.1 M in bonuses, though I'd guess they pertain to NHL-level achievements. If Ryan started on the Ducks, though, the $1.1 M would count against the cap as potential achievements, and I can't say at what point these bonuses become unachievable. (b) Bobby Ryan's potential -- I've liked what I've seen out of the kid in limited exposure thus far, but Ryan's played most of his hockey completely off my radar. I assume the kid is good, because of draft position and all, but really it's all question marks until it happens on NHL ice. (c) the Anaheim Ducks' need -- This is a biggie -- the Ducks will have Getzlaf-Perry and Morrison-Selanne on their top two lines, and Chris Kunitz will definitely get one of the open wing spots. There's plenty of bodies for the bottom lines also -- Pahlsson-Moen-Niedermayer + Sutherby-Marchant-Carter + Parros-Ebbett-May. Assuming somebody can handle a cushy promotion, I'm not that worried about forward depth this year. There's no Doug Weights or Todd Bertuzzis that need to be hidden in the top lines, at least.

On July 1st, when Corey Perry signed his 5-year contract, I wrote a post looking at how various wingers did next to Getzlaf-and-Perry. It wasn't a fabulous study, but it did show a trend how a "banger" like Brian Sutherby, Brad May, or Jason King got better results than a "scorer" like Kunitz or Bertuzzi. Getzlaf and Perry have always thrived with a Fedoruk-type on their wing, and perhaps that will be the forward solution this year; last night Travis Moen got an audition on the top line (and congrats to Teemu on the hat trick -- fucking awesome). Anyways, forwards can be a discussion for another day, but I don't get the sense that the Ducks need Ryan desperately to become any NHL-level hero just yet.

And that's probably why I shrug at the news that Ryan has to wait his turn to make an NHL impact. I'm always a guy who's in favor of over-sheltering young talent, for maturity reasons and for salary-impact reasons. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry can be a quick example here. When they were brought up to the NHL, it was in a no-pressure situation: 4th line minutes with Fedoruk watching their back, and not a ton of scoring was needed out of them. Even when they got sent down to the AHL for a month or so that first year, that lowered the pressure even further -- they weren't in any Calder Trophy race, for reasons outside their control. Year Two was stepped up a notch -- they were in cushy 2nd-line spots but more scoring was expected (and delivered) that year. And now they're affordable NHL stars.

If Bobby Ryan is really a future cornerstone of this franchise, what's not important to me is the NHL impact he makes in the next two years; he probably needs to do enough to demonstrate he's on the right path, but it's important to remember -- the more NHL achievements he gets, the more expensive his next contract becomes. I don't want him winning any Calder Trophy (which is safe anyways, since he plays on the west coast), and I'd rather not see any 90-point years just yet. I know it's twisted in a way, but holding back Ryan is probably good for the kid and good for the franchise. And I am kind of encouraged by this Bobby Ryan quote about the downside of contract bonuses:

"You just want to warn guys that it could be something that comes back to bite you. I'd waive 'em in a heartbeat if I could – take it down to the league minimum or whatever it would be. When it's right there in front of your face and it's a couple hundred thousand dollars that's hurting you, it's tough."

If this kid can somehow get that team-friendly-contract notion in his head now, I'm feeling pretty optimistic. Now don't get me wrong -- I'm hoping Ryan kicks ass in the AHL and forces Burke to put him in the big leagues a la Be a Pro; I expect he'll be easier to promote later in the season when bonuses become unattainable anyway. If he plays well enough, Bobby Ryan can be this year's trade deadline day pickup, and hopefully enjoy a relatively pressure-free transition into this league, just like Getzlaf and Perry did before him.

Color me an optimist; Go Ducks.

Nobody judges talent like XBOX 360

Earl Sleek, September 24:

Thanks to NHL 09's Be a Pro Mode starting me out on the Iowa Chops, I feel that I'm now a qualified judge of minor league talent (and by my digital eye the keepers on that team are Festerling and Ebbett).

Anaheim Ducks website, October 2:

But Festerling and Ebbett are two players who have remained above the fray so far, surviving three rounds of roster cuts that have trimmed the team size from 54 at the start of training camp to 27 currently.

This is turning scarier and scarier, and if you haven't bought NHL 09 yet, it's not only terribly addicting, but it might make you look like a minor league genius, too! I should note that I have never even seen a real-life version of Festerling play, and other than a couple of call-up games last year, the same for Ebbett.

Apologies to Brokeyard (of malfunctioning 360 fame). Go Ducks.

Brett Favre: Pigskin Hero to Pig-Skinned Zero?

Favre the enforcer? It might be his best option.
Well, I’m late to the show on this story, but I guess in a quest for Midwest relevance, the Ducks’ new AHL affiliate the Iowa Pigs have offered a contract of some unknown capacity to former NFL great Brett Favre. Now on the face of things, this is a more ridiculous idea than even the Kings moving to Kansas City, and I’m not even sure the relevant question is “Can Brett Favre play hockey?”, but what the heck? It’s a summertime story.

Now I really don’t have a ton to say about this marketing gimmick, because even though this is a somewhat Ducks-related story, I may be one of the least-knowledgeable internet voices on the subject.

• As I note regularly, I don’t follow the AHL at all, as it’s not televised in any way in SoCal. I probably cannot name five players who played for the Portland Pirates (Anaheim’s previous affiliate) last year—those that I can name were introduced to me when they were called up to the big club.



• I have no idea how well or badly hockey sells in Iowa. This may be the key to answering the question, “Is this a good idea or not?” [EDIT: Puck Daddy provides a good Iowa perspective about hockey.]



• I don’t know very much about Brett Favre, as I avoid the NFL like Todd Bertuzzi avoids backchecking. I basically know that he’s a long-time Packers quarterback who has had some recent retirement controversy (the football fan staying in my house filled me in on this last night), but still remains one of the top 10 most recognizable and appealing names in sports.

So, from my seat of ignorance, I don’t know how well to commend or condemn the new Iowa ownership for their certainly brazen gimmick; if it generates enough buzz to get more eyes on Pigs Hockey, probably it’s a good idea. Still, what’s next for the Iowa Headline-Makers? What other former athlete, now estranged from the sport that made them famous, could help bring this club to local prominence?

Barry Bonds on the blueline? Michael Vick on the wing? Let’s get some suggestions to help put this Pig club on the map.

Sleek gets ImMirtle-ized. Go Pigs!

That'll do, pig. That'll do.
So I was mostly without internet today, and didn't see this until late. Apparently the Ducks' AHL affiliate, now in Iowa, came out with this new name and logo. And it wasn't until I read this post that I realized that as a Ducks fan, I guess I'm supposed to be outraged.

Ummmm, sorry, but I really can't care one bit. In fact, I'm mystified that this bothers Ducks fans at all.

• As far as I'm concerned, Des Moines is no closer to SoCal than Portland (ME) was. So long as it's not accessible by television, it's completely off my radar. I've only seen one AHL game in my life -- during the lockout they televised the AHL All-Star Game. This is a logo I'll probably never see.



• As for the logo itself, what's there to get upset about? Didn't we Anaheim fans spend a decade rooting on a cartoon farm animal? Hey, I'm a guy who firmly believes that all team names and all logos are inherently stupid, and anybody who is going to stand up for a Red Wing or a Maple Leaf and ridicule a Duck or a Pig needs to argue with somebody younger than me. I do prefer having a logo to not having one, though; two years later I'm still sort of miffed that the Ducks chickened out and went with a non-offensive "text only" design.



• Besides, there's plenty of ways that I can draw a pig. And that's exactly what king of bloggers James Mirtle jokingly challenged me to do. He started this blog, so I felt obligated, and I'm kind of happy with how it turned out -- click here to see it.

Go Pigs.