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Abel to Yzerman

Looking Back At The Summer Of Ken

by IwoCPO on 11/20/06 at 07:24 PM ET
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I whined like a little girl. I stomped my feet and pouted and fretted. Free agents were being gobbled up like possum steak at Bubba's. Ken Holland was asleep at the switch!! I invented a cynical term and used it again and again. It's the Summer of Ken. The Summer of Ken is sucking. The Summer of Ken is passing us by. I wrote things like, "tick tock Kenny". Because sitting here in Memphis, with the internet at my disposal and KNOWLEDGE OF MY TEAM, I knew exactly what should be done, who should be signed and, by god, how they should be used. Well, let's take a look at some of the players that would have made my Summer of Ken a bit more palatable, and how they're faring with the teams who--in some cases--got suckered.

Remember: Holland said, after The Punch In The Face, that we needed upgrades on the blue line, in the grit department and certainly in net.

Defensemen I wanted, but Holland didn’t sign because he doesn’t like me.

Keith Carney, Wild:  averaging just under 13 minutes/game, +1, 2 points
Jay McKee, Blues:  Oct 23rd hand surgery has limited him to 1 game played. Due back by Christmas.
Willie Mitchell, Canucks: 12 games played, +4, 1 point and only 2 PIM.  Averaging 22 minutes/game.
Aaron Ward, Rangers: 21 games played, 8 points, 48 blocked shots.
Ed Jovanowski, Coyotes: 20 games played, 10 points, averaging 22 minutes/game.
Brendan Witt, Islanders: 18 games played, 5 pts, +5, 21 minutes/game, 39 PIM.

Forwards I was convinced would have career years simply because the Winged Wheel does that to guys, prompts career years

Mark Parrish, Wild: 19 GP, 8 pts, -4
Dallas Drake, Blues: 15 GP, 1 pt, -9
Fernando Pisani, Oilers: 20 GP, 5 pts, -1
Doug Weight, Blues: 19 GP, 11 pts, 20 min/game
Bill Guerin, Blues: 19 GP, 8 goals, 5 assists, 2 PPG, 17 min/game
Matthew Barnaby, Stars: 19 GP, 6 pts, 79 PIM, 8 min/game
Anson Carter, Blue Jackets: 18 GP, 4 pts, -8
Michael Peca, Leafs: 20 GP, 7 points, -2, 0 PP points
JP Dumont, Bubba: 18 GP, 15 points, 5 PP points, 15 minutes/game

Goaltenders who I demanded Holland sign or trade for, all of them, no matter the cost, to compete in an open tryout in Traverse City for the privilege to follow the legend that was Legace.

Martin Gerber, Sens: 4-8 record, 3.45 GAA, .890 Save
Martin Biron, Sabres: 7-1 record, 3.10 GAA, .893 Save
JS Giguere, Ducks: 11-1 record, 2.39 GAA, .914 Save
Dwayne Roloson, Oilers: 10-6 record, 2.38 GAA, .923 Save

Whew.  What a team we would have had.  With Carney, Barnaby, Carter, Gerber, McKee and Pisani?  Unfriggingbeatable.

Feel free to add others I’ve missed.  Do I still think we should have tried for Dumont? Yes.  Giguere? Yes. Mitchell? Yes. Drake? Yes.  But for some reason Ken Holland didn’t listen, and here we are floundering at 12-5-2.

 

 

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About Abel to Yzerman

Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977.  No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y.  Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation.  There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature.  Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that. Your suggestions and critiques are welcome: wphoulihan@gmail.com