2 days to go till free agency. While everyone is waiting on whether Zach Parise or Martin Brodeur are re-signing, New Jersey took care of a few unrestricted free agents, signing 5 players for next season: the entire CBGB playoff line of Ryan Carter (2 years), Steve Bernier (2 years), and Albany’s captain Stephen Gionta (2 years, first year 1 way second year 2 way), Cam Janssen (1 year, 2 way), and Peter Harrold (unknown terms). Four out of the five all contributed to the Devils Stanley Cup run…and why Janssen was re-signed, I have no idea. He did not get a lot of playing time, basically being scratched except for Rangers games, and instead of sending him down here where he most likely would have been in the lineup, he sat.
In other news, for those that missed it yesterday the AHL wrapped up their annual Board of Governors meeting in South Carolina with a few minor tweaks:
-The Western Conference was sort of realigned for next season: Abbotsford moves from the West to the North Division, Grand Rapids switches from the North to the Midwest Division, and Charlotte gets bumped to the new South Division, which includes Oklahoma City and the three Texas teams (Houston, San Antonio, Texas). Since the River Rats relocated to North Carolina, the Checkers have switched divisions three times: East, then Midwest, and now South.
-A few rules changes involving handling the puck (it is now a penalty if a player closes their hand on the puck as an opponent tries to play it), faceoffs (both players cannot bat the puck with their hand or face a delay of game penalty), and an experimental run with hybrid icing till mid November.
-But the biggest move of all? VIDEO REPLAY! Finally, finally, goals are subject to video review starting next season. If only there was a war room like the NHL does in Toronto…
Unless there’s any more signings tomorrow, next time you hear from me blog wise will be the free agent tracker Sunday afternoon.
Thoughts Inside The Box 