QbGamer Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 $1 million cap hit next year. One year remaining. Good at face-offs. Good 4th line pickup via waivers. Depth or first step to making a big trade? I suspect depth as how could BG know that a low cost center would be waived this week just days before the trade deadline. Picked up Bg off of waivers picked this new guy off of waivers. Bg talks to other Gms to get a feel for everything, im sure he was aware he was going to be moved or the possibility was there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHaul Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 This year, he did deliver us two big names, both are injured right now. Lang and Tanguay. Gainey brought us Lang Tanguay + Shneider 3 huge names thnak u very much Lets be realistic here. Those are all good players, but its a bit of a stretch to call them huge names. They'd be great complimentary players, but they aren't the impact guys we've all been waiting for (although Schneider is making a case lately ). We've been waiting for that star we've been told we're going to get every year and every year we've been disappointed in that regard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kubby31 Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 good pickup, the key here is that he can win faceoffs Correct,that's a huge assest to add to our game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RocketPower Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Correct,that's a huge assest to add to our game. He did look good out there - worked hard and played smart - been missing from some of our players . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teststory Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 He looked pretty good his first game. It's always nice to have another center who can play PK and add some energy. I think he played in place of Koivu on the PK tonight as Koivu as been under the weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jean-1 Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 Not a bad first game..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortwinkler Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 I really don't think it was that great of a game. His first shift he was a -1. His second shift he took a bad penalty... For the rest of the game I didn't even notice him out there, except for when he missed the break away opportunity. IMO I still think this guy is several steps below Begin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHaul Posted February 28, 2009 Report Share Posted February 28, 2009 I really don't think it was that great of a game. His first shift he was a -1. His second shift he took a bad penalty... For the rest of the game I didn't even notice him out there, except for when he missed the break away opportunity. IMO I still think this guy is several steps below Begin. Steps below Begin? I must have missed the bad, late penalty Metropolit took to cost us an important game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SK74_mtl Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 I really don't think it was that great of a game. His first shift he was a -1. His second shift he took a bad penalty... For the rest of the game I didn't even notice him out there, except for when he missed the break away opportunity. IMO I still think this guy is several steps below Begin. Are you serious? Who in their right mind would even consider putting Begin out there for some of the most important faceoffs of the game? No one. Metropolit on the other hand...... and he delivered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourtrax Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Fitting in well on the fourth line, which would be much more effective if it wasn't always playing a man down in either zone (Laraque). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocdood Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Glen played professional roller hocker back in the mid 90's here in Anaheim, I would take my son to the games and after the games Glen would come out and talk to the kids and my son never forgot that. I think Glen could be your 4th line center, give the guy a chance, he is one that made it the hard way. I know every player has their story too. Below is a story about Glen from the Washington Post 2000. TORONTO A piercing wind whips across two high-rise housing tenements as children smack a tennis ball with hockey sticks. Mattresses clutter stairwells. Debris hangs from windows. Broken beer bottles stain a desolate parking lot. Regent Park, considered Canada's most drug-infested housing project, has all the signs of urban blight. It's not much different from some projects in the United States – except the blacktop of a basketball court is replaced by a thin, crackling ice surface at two makeshift outdoor rinks. This is where Washington Capitals prospect Glen Metropolit returned on a chilly Sunday in late November. He came back to Toronto to play a hockey game. He came back to Regent Park a hero. Metropolit, 25, is one of the few to make it out of his home neighborhood. Not every youngster has the will and determination to navigate the minefield of city life – drugs, alcohol, gangs – and cling to a dream virtually no one believed he could fulfill. That's why Metropolit is the first NHL player to emerge from Regent Park. Hockey was his life and his escape; the game also was his salvation. "We had to drag him off the ice to get him to eat," said Linda Hachey, Metropolit's mother. "There were a lot of freezing cold days and there's no one out there but him – he's the only one out there smacking a puck against the boards. Nothing ever distracted him from hockey. He never wanted to stop playing." Metropolit's attitude remains the same. When, after he had a strong preseason, the Capitals demoted him to Portland, Maine, after one game, he made it impossible for them to keep him there. Now, Metropolit is back in Portland, sent there a few weeks ago after playing 16 games with the Capitals – some solid, some spectacular. During that time, he scored his first NHL goal, contributed to key victories and started a game in Toronto with more than 50 friends and relatives watching. He never complained about the demotions, even though he produced three goals and seven points despite limited playing time while with the Capitals. He also was tied for the team lead with a plus-2 despite being labeled a player with defensive deficiencies. Still, Metropolit would rather continue to scorch the American Hockey League and force his way back to Washington. After a lifetime of hard work proving doubters wrong, Metropolit isn't pouting. He's been dealt much harsher blows, learned to live with much crueler rejection. His natural father was not part of his life. Metropolit has never met him. Hachey was 19 when he left the family, and she soon began a lengthy relationship with Bruce Metropolit, who assumed the role of father. Hachey and Metropolit had a son together, Troy, 22, who was recently arrested and charged with robbing, kidnapping and extorting a prominent Toronto attorney and his wife – a high-profile case in Canada. They also had a daughter, Nicole, 15, an honor student. The couple parted eight years ago. Troy chose the road Glen so easily could have taken. When Glen was running from school to the rink, Troy was often getting into trouble. He never had a passion for sports. He has spent most of the past eight years in legal trouble. "There's a lot of talented kids from around here, but there's so many other things to do," said Mike Wessom, Metropolit's longtime friend and former youth hockey teammate. "There's a lot of pressure into making money at a young age. There's so many kids getting into the wrong things, and at that age it's so easy to go along with them, similar to what happened to Glen's brother. "A lot of kids around here have an attitude – hard-nosed kids who don't know right from wrong. Glen was totally different from them. Glen always made the right decisions." Metropolit estimates he moved 20 times within Regent Park as a youngster. Crime was rampant, especially when crack made its way to Canada in the mid-1980s. A friend of the family once stole their VCR to buy drugs; users and dealers abounded. Daily life was trying. Anything a rambunctious teen could possibly want was there for the taking. But Metropolit rarely created problems, his mother said, and when he did, "All I'd have to say is, 'No hockey tonight,' and he'd be crying," Hachey said. "And I'd never have to do it again. He'd ask to have a licking instead." In Toronto, youth hockey is religion, but it comes with a steep price. Hockey equipment is expensive; skates and sticks are outgrown constantly. The top leagues carry steep fees and ice time isn't cheap. A car is essential to get to games and practices. Hachey didn't drive. Metropolit knew his family couldn't afford his participation in suburban travel leagues, so he never mentioned the idea to his mother. Thus, Metropolit never was drafted by a major junior hockey team, and he wasn't scouted at important youth tournaments. After one terrific season in British Columbia, Metropolit was recruited heavily by several U.S. colleges. He signed a letter-of-intent with Bowling Green, but did not meet academic requirements. Bowling Green's coach helped him get a tryout with the Atlanta Knights of the International Hockey League. Metropolit, then 20, wasn't ready for a league full of former NHL players, but made the Knights' farm team in Nashville of the East Coast Hockey League. Early on, Metropolit could not crack Nashville's lineup. He had talent, but it was raw talent. No one had taught him much about the defensive side of hockey or playing a team game. He had never had proper weight and fitness training. But Nashville's coach, Mark Kumpel, now an assistant in Portland, had never met a more eager or coachable player. By the end of the season he couldn't afford to take Metropolit off the ice. He had evolved into one of the team's best and most popular players. He finished that season with 30 goals and 61 points in 58 games. "He's come a million miles since the first time I saw him," Kumpel said. "He just kept pushing himself to get better and better. "He's a wide-eyed kid with an innocence to him. You could say, 'Glen, I want you to jump up and put both feet in a glass of water.' And he'd say, 'I can't do that.' And you'd say, 'Yes, you can.' And you'd turn back around and somehow he'd get two feet in a glass of water. He still continues to surprise me. "He's not done developing. He's not a full-time NHL player yet, but I think he'll develop into that and, to his credit, he's still wide-eyed and innocent. He's still trying to put those two feet in that glass of water." Metropolit began to add muscle to a small frame, and spent his summers playing professional roller hockey and working for a friend's water repair business. No workout was too intense. One day Wessom saw former Toronto all-star Doug Gilmour running through Riverdale Park (known for its treacherously steep terrain) in the middle of the summer. He told Metropolit Gilmour ran the park five or six times. The next day the two of them were out there in the sticky heat. "After 15 times around, he was still going and I was down on the ground puking and seeing stars," Wessom said. "His determination was unbelievable. That's when I knew he had the determination to do whatever he wanted to do." Metropolit began the next season (1996-97) back in the ECHL, with Pensacola. It was there he met his fiance», Michlyn Gazaday, whom he will marry this summer. Her upbringing was nothing like his. Her father is a ph.D.; she got a Ford Explorer for graduation. Two seasons later, Metropolit would be an all-star in the IHL. After his first season in Grand Rapids, the Ottawa Senators invited Metropolit to training camp primarily as a favor to his agent. He was cut a few days in and never played a preseason game. His fire only intensified. Last season Metropolit finished in the top 10 in IHL scoring with 81 points. NHL scouts who once had no time for him now wanted to talk. Ottawa, Detroit and Washington were among the teams pursuing him, but Metropolit knew the Capitals had the weakest offensive talent of the bunch, providing the best chance to reach the NHL immediately. On July 19 Metropolit signed a two-year deal with the Capitals. For the first time in his life he was the property of an NHL team. For the first time in his life he could live on hockey alone. He received a $60,000 signing bonus and was guaranteed to make at least $125,000 each season. The deal is worth a prorated $75,000 a season in Portland, a prorated $510,000 in the NHL this season and a prorated $465,000 in Washington next season. Metropolit was among the hardest-working players in training camp, showcasing his offensive gifts in exhibition games. On opening night he was on the top line with stars Peter Bondra and Adam Oates, then headed back to the minors the next day. When he returned to Washington on Nov. 3, Metropolit scored his first two NHL goals and assisted on another, leading the Capitals to a dramatic victory over Ottawa – the team that discarded him a year ago. Hachey, who now lives in the suburb of Scarborough, gathered with about 25 friends and family members to watch that game on satellite at Metropolit's uncle's house. "We were jumping up and down and swinging each other around," Hachey said. "You'd think the guys there had scored the goals and not Glen." His next game was against the Maple Leafs, his hometown team, and when Metropolit returned to Toronto with the Capitals for a Nov. 29 game, newspapers chronicled his ascent from Regent Park. A Canadian TV crew followed him back to his old neighborhood and then out to his mother's house, where he gave her the stick he used to score his first NHL goal. It hangs near the dining room table, and no one has to ask why it's there. "I look at it all the time," Hachey said. Metropolit went to dinner with 20 buddies that night. The only person he didn't get to visit was Troy, who remains in jail pending trial. He just hoped his brother was watching on television. Coach Ron Wilson gave Metropolit a rare start that night, and as he stood on the blue line at Air Canada Centre for the national anthems he was more nervous than he had been in his first NHL game. Emotions flooded over him. He was just minutes from where he grew up, but was living in another world, one only he knew was attainable. Then, a few weeks later he was back in Portland. The NHL remains just a phone call away. "Even back when I played in the ECHL, everyone [from home] was proud of me, but now they've got a certain glow in their eyes," Metropolit said. "It makes me feel good to see those guys having fun and enjoying it as much as I am. It's like we were all in the NHL. It helps everyone there to see someone come out. It kind of puts a joy to everyone's face. I could see it." He'll return to Toronto this summer and plans on coming back to Regent Park long after his playing days are over. He wants to work with the parks and recreation staff to maintain the rinks and be a positive role model for less fortunate children. He wants to help others escape. © Copyright 2000 The Washington Post Company Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utreder Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 No idea why we picked this guy up. 43% on faceoffs tonight, invisible just like last. Has done nothing that Chipchura or Begin couldn't do, and on top of it we tie up a million dollars of next years money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DA_Champion Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 No idea why we picked this guy up. 43% on faceoffs tonight, invisible just like last. Has done nothing that Chipchura or Begin couldn't do, and on top of it we tie up a million dollars of next years money. To be fair the team did badly in faceoffs, Koivu went 6/12 (the best performance), Plekanec went 7/16, Metropolit went 3/7, and Lapierre went 4/12. Overall though I agree, I don't see the point of this pickup. A depth center is nice, but he's signed through next season as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leafs_rock_go_mccabe Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Yeah... I cannot understand this move either. He's been invisible for the first two games, doesn't seem to add anything to the team that we didn't already have, and I wish we were seeing Chipchura play instead. I'm not even sure if he adds any sandpaper to the club? Was he supposed to be, "Gritty?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
js2 Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Yeah... I cannot understand this move either. He's been invisible for the first two games, doesn't seem to add anything to the team that we didn't already have, and I wish we were seeing Chipchura play instead. I'm not even sure if he adds any sandpaper to the club? Was he supposed to be, "Gritty?" Well, he's small, only has 42 hits in 57 games this season, and is average on faceoffs. We could be letting Chipchura play for cheaper and allow him to further develop. Or we could have played Begin more and put him at center where he's better than both Chipchura and Metropolit at faceoffs and is a much better checker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne-1 Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 this has all been discussed in the trade thread but apparently none of you read it... No idea why we picked this guy up. 43% on faceoffs tonight, invisible just like last. Has done nothing that Chipchura or Begin couldn't do, and on top of it we tie up a million dollars of next years money. Yeah... I cannot understand this move either. He's been invisible for the first two games, doesn't seem to add anything to the team that we didn't already have, and I wish we were seeing Chipchura play instead. I'm not even sure if he adds any sandpaper to the club? Was he supposed to be, "Gritty?" Well, he's small, only has 42 hits in 57 games this season, and is average on faceoffs. We could be letting Chipchura play for cheaper and allow him to further develop. Or we could have played Begin more and put him at center where he's better than both Chipchura and Metropolit at faceoffs and is a much better checker.and he was 60% the night before, so what? neither is significant... what you should look at is his percentage over the long haul, and in Metropolit's case, he'll win just about as often as he loses, which is an improvement over Chipchura... and Begin is NOT better in the face-off circle, they're about the same except Metropolit has taken almost double the number of draws so far this year alone than Begin has in the past three years combined... and while Begin certainly hits more than Metropolit, Chipchura does not... and what do you base your opinion that Begin is a much better checker on?... considering as of noon Friday, Metropolit thought he would be playing in the Philadelphia organization, why should he stand out except in a bad way? he's barely met his teammates, let alone played with them... considering how bad this team is defensively, it's a miracle he isn't also running around out of position all the time... Metropolit has shown he's an everyday player for the last three season -- 3rd or 4th line usually, but at least he doesn't play himself into the press box -- has Chipchura or Begin shown they can be an everyday player for this team? no... you want to play Chipchura hoping that he improves -- his entire game, not just in the faceoff circle -- instead of Metropolit, to save all of $140k in actual salary and less than $60k in cap room? (actually since both those figures need to be pro-rated, you can reduce the savings to about 1/4 of those figures)... since it looks like this team is going to be fighting just to make the playoffs, that's a heck of a risk to take to save relative 'pennies'... and what's wrong with his salary for next year?... considering Chipchura is either going to cost $903k minimum or be gone, and he can't even win a full-time spot in the line-up, that extra $97k maximum you pay Metropolit for the security of being able to handle the job is a bargain... and Metropolit has something Begin doesn't, a desire to be here... Begin asked for a trade, BG knew he was basically done as a Hab, so he did him a favour and traded him... BG then picked up Metropolit to replace him... BG picked up a slightly better everyday role player, who makes a fraction less this season and is signed for next season, to replace a spot-started role player who didn't want to be here (unless he could play more), and who is an UFA at the end of the season... this isn't supposed to be a hockey news world-shattering transaction and just because it's a minor deal doesn't make it pointless or a bad move -- BG was able to do a good guy, Begin, a favour and in the end slightly improved the team (at least on paper)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QbGamer Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 love him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AvtomatKos-yn Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 I have a feeling he'll do big things for us. He's got heart and as we've seen, he has very nice play making skills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bailey1 Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 No idea why we picked this guy up. 43% on faceoffs tonight, invisible just like last. Has done nothing that Chipchura or Begin couldn't do, and on top of it we tie up a million dollars of next years money. To be fair the team did badly in faceoffs, Koivu went 6/12 (the best performance), Plekanec went 7/16, Metropolit went 3/7, and Lapierre went 4/12. Overall though I agree, I don't see the point of this pickup. A depth center is nice, but he's signed through next season as well. Directing this at Oatmeal: To be fair, we were playing, THE SAN JOSE SHARKS...THE...BEST...TEAM...IN...THE...WESTERN...CONFERENCE...!!! Also, we just so happened to hand the Sharks the Loss that FINALLY put them into DOUBLE DIGITS. I can't believe you're serious about complaining about the faceoffs. *shakes head* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fourtrax Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 He was poor on faceoffs last night, but so was the whole team. He did well on draws the previous game. I actually kind of like him. He's not a big guy, but playing on the fourth line with Stewart and Laraque he doesn't have to be, especially as the third man high whose primary focus is on being defensively responsible if the play breaks out of the other team's zone. He's an intelligent player too, doesn't seem like the kind of guy who'll routinely take bad penalties that hurt the team (something Begin was often guilty of). Do we need to be paying a fourth-line center $1 million? Probably not, but he's still doing a better job at that spot than Begin or Chipchura. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QbGamer Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 A decent rookie gets paid 875 in his first year @ the nhl level, 1 million is NOT much money I think anything under 2 million is peanuts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColRouleBleu Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 So... Since he's on the roster for next year, does this mean Kostopoulos is definitely gone during the off-season? No, it means that Chip's 1,684,569,887th last chance was really his last chance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utreder Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 Directing this at Oatmeal: To be fair, we were playing, THE SAN JOSE SHARKS...THE...BEST...TEAM...IN...THE...WESTERN...CONFERENCE...!!! Also, we just so happened to hand the Sharks the Loss that FINALLY put them into DOUBLE DIGITS. I can't believe you're serious about complaining about the faceoffs. *shakes head* I didn't just bring up faceoffs, I also mentioned he was invisible both nights, and ties up money we'll probably want, seeing as the cap will be going down. I don't see what this guy does better than Chipchura. He is a little better on faceoffs, but in all other areas they're a wash. We're sitting homegrown and cheaper talent. Chipchura's faceoff% in the last five games is, 57.1%, 50.0%, 55.6%, 55.6%, 20.0%. One really bad night at a time where the entire team sucked. In the four most recent games he's been great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne-1 Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 I didn't just bring up faceoffs, I also mentioned he was invisible both nights, and ties up money we'll probably want, seeing as the cap will be going down. I don't see what this guy does better than Chipchura. He is a little better on faceoffs, but in all other areas they're a wash. We're sitting homegrown and cheaper talent. Chipchura's faceoff% in the last five games is, 57.1%, 50.0%, 55.6%, 55.6%, 20.0%. One really bad night at a time where the entire team sucked. In the four most recent games he's been great. a 'little better on faceoffs'? no, markedly better... that alone makes him better than Chipchura even if everything else is equal... if you're calling Chipchura's faceoff numbers 'great', then Metropolit is a 'great' faceoff man because he does that over a whole season, not 4 of 5 games... who cares about talent being 'homegrown'?... you don't think they should acquire players except through the draft?... I'd take a waiver pick-up over a draft disappointment any day if he does the job better, because that's all that matters... and I don't think you understand the economics of this if you think this is a bad move on that front... $1M for a player who will play for you everyday is a BIG bargain -- they were paying Begin $1.3M ($1.057M cap hit) and Chipchura gets $860k ($942,800 cap hit) to sit in the press box... and next year, you would prefer Chipchura, who will be making at least $903k, plus the guy you have to pay at least $500k to play the games you don't play Chipchura -- how is that financially better?... and the cap going down makes this an even better deal, not worse... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
utreder Posted March 1, 2009 Report Share Posted March 1, 2009 a 'little better on faceoffs'? no, markedly better... that alone makes him better than Chipchura even if everything else is equal... if you're calling Chipchura's faceoff numbers 'great', then Metropolit is a 'great' faceoff man because he does that over a whole season, not 4 of 5 games... who cares about talent being 'homegrown'?... you don't think they should acquire players except through the draft?... I'd take a waiver pick-up over a draft disappointment any day if he does the job better, because that's all that matters... and I don't think you understand the economics of this if you think this is a bad move on that front... $1M for a player who will play for you everyday is a BIG bargain -- they were paying Begin $1.3M ($1.057M cap hit) and Chipchura gets $860k ($942,800 cap hit) to sit in the press box... and next year, you would prefer Chipchura, who will be making at least $903k, plus the guy you have to pay at least $500k to play the games you don't play Chipchura -- how is that financially better?... and the cap going down makes this an even better deal, not worse... 1. Those numbers demonstrate that Metropolit is not "markedly better", Chipchura is steadily improving in faceoffs and for four straight games has been up to the task in the circle and out of it. They've been more lenient and patient with players who have shown less. 2. But how is this guy a draft disappointment, and why shouldn't he play almost every game? I cannot remember a single goal against or defensive breakdown that can be attributed to Chipchura. He played with a lot of poise, never dominated, but did his job, particularly in the last couple games. Just as much if not more IMO, than Metropolit has done. 3. The solution I'm suggesting is that we pay Begin nothing, Metropolit nothing, and let Chipchura center the fourth line. It's not like a lot of responsibility falls to that line anyway. I think he has shown improvement and it's time to show some faith in the guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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