News: Gregoire to Winnipeg; Martinek to Columbus

Former Islanders prospect Jason Gregoire has signed an entry level contract with the Winnipeg Jets according to Ken Wiebe of the Winnipeg Sun. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native spent the last three years with the University of North Dakota, culminating with 43 points in 35 games this past season. Gregoire, who was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2007 NHL Draft, became a free agent after completing his college season and going pro.

CH: Like I said on earlier podcasts, this is extremely underwhelming by Gregoire. It's a real slap in the face to the team that drafted him and took a shot on him when he really was not ranked very high in 2007. He seemed like a character guy, and I certainly did not expect him to leave the Islanders like this. That said, he'll get more of a chance to crack the NHL roster on a Winnipeg team who is still rebuilding. Either way, whether people brush this off or not, just remember the only other player to use this loophole was Blake Wheeler, who was picked in the top 10 of the NHL draft (and I did not defend him when he did). That said, life goes on, and the Islanders will too with their elite level prospect pool.

AT: I would've liked Gregoire in the depth charts, but he'll probably have a better chance at being higher in ranking in Winnipeg's system. Not to mention he's actually from Winnipeg, so his first team will be his hometown team. A shame as he should've signed with the team that drafted him, but there's not much you can do in this situation. I hope this loophole is fixed in the next CBA.

Secondly, the Columbus Blue Jackets have signed former Islanders defenseman Radek Martinek to a 1 year, $2.2 million contract on Wednesday. Martinek, a 10-year veteran (all with the Islanders), finished with 16 points in 64 games last year.

CH: Martinek was a good Islander for many years and I'm very happy to see that he found a home in Columbus next season. He will fit in well with that system and collection of players, and if he stays healthy will be an underrated piece as the Blue Jackets push for their second playoff appearance in franchise history.

As for the Islanders, this was their back-up plan. Now he's gone. So it's really up to Snow now. We've identified some free agents and trade targets that are still out there. It's only July 7, so there is plenty of time, but the Islanders need to act before this August 1 vote. Waiting until arbitration will not make the fanbase happy, which normally is not a big deal, but with such an important day in Islanders history they should be doing their best to get the fans excited for the next season. And that does not include signing Kirill Kabanov to an entry-level contract. I remain patient and hopeful, because it is still early, but with free agent defensemen off the board daily and trades happening seemingly every other day, it makes every fan antsy. How many more players will be moved? Will there even be players available? I'm all for Garth Snow to wait for the move that fits best for the team, but that move has to come. Anything less would make this off-season a complete failure. He has two months to make it happen, but more and more targets will be gone as the days go by.

AT: I liked Radek. I really did. He was amazingly the healthiest D-man on the Isles this past season. But as Carey mentioned, he was their backup plan, and he's gone now. Where do the Isles go now? You have to hope and pray Garth is on the phone constantly looking for a top 4 D man to deal for. It is absolutely essential for success at this point. Hope Radek fits in well in Columbus. Beautiful city, he'll be with another former Islander in Wisniewski, and he seems the be excited.

News: Islanders Sign F Trevor Frischmon

The New York Islanders have signed forward Trevor Frischmon to a one year, two-way contract, which was announced by the Isles AHL affiliate Bridgeport.

Frischmon, 29, has spent his entire professional career in the Columbus Blue Jackets organization, playing at for both Syracuse and Springfield of the AHL. He had a career year in Springfield last year, as he notched 29 points (4 goals) with a +6 in 80 games. The playmaking center has 102 points in 327 career AHL games. 

The center, who is 6'0" and 200 lbs., played three games with the Blue Jackets in 2009-10, going scoreless.

CH: The Islanders let Rob Hisey go, so this is the guy that will probably replace him in Bridgeport. Frischmon, who is a checking line center, adds veteran stability to the Sound Tigers, which is something they sorely needed over the past few years. He will round out the Sound Tigers centers, most likely, joining David Ullstrom, Casey Cizikas, Tony Romano, and Tomas Marcinko. The Tigers still need more forward help on the wings, as Rhett Rakhshani, Tyler McNeely, and Justin DiBenedetto are the only signed players down there. From that perspective, look for a bunch more depth signings in the coming weeks. Solid signing, and addressed a need that the organization needed.

AT: There's definitely a lot more depth in Bridgeport nowadays. With the influx of young players, re-signing of Marcinko, and with some more moves to come, I think Bridgeport is pretty well off next season. Let's just hope Poulin can stay healthy and perform at the level he had before he was called up. Let's also hope he doesn't need to be called up.

Around The NHL: Flyers Trade Carter, Richards; Sign Bryzgalov

The Philadelphia Flyers have made two blockbuster deals today, trading forward Jeff Carter to the Columbus Blue Jackets and forward Mike Richards to the Los Angeles Kings. After trading for Ilya Bryzgalov, they signed the goalie to a 9-year extension for $51 million, which will be a cap hit for $5.67 million per year. All of this news can be found on TSN. 

CH: Oh my. Let's start with the Jeff Carter trade, seeing as that news broke first. This was a move we all somewhat expected to happen, even right down to the team he was traded for. The actual trade itself favors both teams. Columbus undoubtedly gets the best player in the trade right now, and possibly for the foreseeable future. They get a center that can play next to Rick Nash for years to come. We talked on the podcast yesterday that Scott Howson needed to make a "homerun" type move as the Blue Jackets have largely been stagnant for the past few years. I mentioned they may take a player like Ryan Murphy to go for the homerun on potential. Instead, they did something even better. For the Flyers standpoint, Voracek, who is still a major project has great potential as a power forward in this league. They also get the 8th overall pick, which in my opinion, could be used on a player like Mika Zibanjead, which is exactly the type of player the Flyers love to have. They also get a third round pick in the trade.

AT: Great deal for both sides. The Flyers just couldn't afford Carter anymore with Bryzgalov wanting to come into the fold. They get Voracek, a budding winger with huge potential, the 8th pick who could end up being anyone from Ryan Murphy to Mika Zibanejad as well as a 3rd rounder. Voracek isn't carter, but he's also not signed to a huge, long term deal like Carter was. It was a bad decision and tying them down, and they made the right move. Both sides made out pretty equally here.

CH: The Mike Richards trade was a complete shocker. I can't think of a single person who honestly saw this coming, and it's a great trade for both sides again. Los Angeles gets a heart-and-soul center who they've wanted for a long time. If they can clear Ryan Smyth's salary by next Friday, they also could still be major players for Brad Richards. This is a team that is on the rise, and with a top-3 prospect pool in the league, could afford to trade Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds for him. From the Flyers standpoint, there's no going around it. Brayden Schenn is a top-10 prospect in the entire league, and Wayne Simmonds is a prototypical Flyer player. They also get a 2nd round pick in the deal, making this a great haul for a guy who has recently been wildly criticized by Philadelphia and national media.

AT: This makes the Ryan Smyth trade to Edmonton all the more likely, as you said. I know there were reports (Brad) Richards only wanted to go to an original 6 team, but to play with such a young team with legitimate opportunity could become very enticing. I know some in Flyer-land are against this, but I really believe it was an equal trade. There's always that "risk" with prospects, but I really believe Schenn will become a star in this league. You clear cap room to improve your team in required ways to get to the next level and you get a player who could become an 80+ point player. For right now with a Flyers team that was struggling to get under the cap, this makes sense.

CH: The Bryzgalov deal is long - VERY long. Nine years for a goalie is just not going to work. We see it here with Rick DiPietro. We see it in Vancouver with Roberto Luongo. There are just too many variables at play here with injuries and performance. The cap hit, however, is right in the wheelhouse it should be, but I'm sure the condition on that was to add the extra years on the contract. Very risky move here for the Flyers because while Bryzgalov is a good, top 10-12 goalie in the league, he is not elite. A lot of pressure is going to be placed on Bryzgalov after the Flyers shipped out Richards and Carter, even if it is not directly tied to him.

AT: Bryz has been pretty durable the past few seasons. I don't know if the length was the best for the team - I personally would've gone for 5 or 6 years, but they also got him at 5.6m per, much less than the 7m+ that he was rumored to be asking for. There's going to be a lot of pressure on him in a huge hockey city like Philly as compared to Anaheim and Phoenix.

CH: The overall outlook for the Flyers is very interesting. Now, assuming they don't make a play for Brad Richards (who knows?), they realistically could finish anywhere from 1st to 10th in the conference next year. They are still a good team, but they aren't a great team at this current moment. However, the future looks extremely bright for this team as when players like Schenn, Voracek, and the 2011 8th overall pick pan out, the Flyers will be in a great position. What a crazy day in the NHL.

AT: They have about 7.5m in cap space now and they have to sign/trade Nodl, Carcillo, Voracek, Leino, Powe and Simmonds. I don't see them landing Brad Richards at this point. But man, what a great day to be a hockey blogger. I love stuff like this! Should be exciting tomorrow at the draft party!