The Schultz Sweepstakes:

As mentioned here earlier today, Free Agent Justin Schultz has a short list with the teams still in the running to acquire his services.

Today we will be looking at what each team has to offer and what makes each of them appealing to the highly sought after player.

The teams still in the running are the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, and Ottawa Senators.

One thing to note before we dive into the options is that money will not be a factor. Schultz is only elligible for an entry level contract that he will get the max salary of.

All the teams mentioned also have the cap space to add incentives so his cap hit will most likely be in the neighborhood of $3 million.

Let's take a look.

Around the NHL: UPDATE

UPDATE (2:47pm)

• Goaltender Jonathan Quick has signed a 10-year contract extension with the Los Angeles Kings worth $58 million. He will be paid $5.8 million annually
• The Boston Bruins have resigned starting goalie Tuukka Rask to a 1-year deal worth $3.5 million
• The Tampa Bay Lightning have resigned D Brian Lee to a 2-year $2.3 million contract. He will carry a cap hit of $1.15 per year
• The Nashville Predators came to terms with D Hal Gill on a 2-year $4 million deal. His cap hit will be $2 million per year.

Original post is after the jump:

Top Shelf....Monday?

Th-th-th-that's all folks! The 2011-2012 season is over and we have ourselves a Stanley Cup Champion.

This means one thing for the NHL; transition time! Every year once the Cup is awarded and all the dust has settled, the focus shifts to the season ahead.

With no hockey to be played until pre-season action (sigh), clubs now focus on the NHL Entry Draft which is only days away.

Now that the NHL season is officially over, we will be looking at the biggest events around the league over the past week...er...two weeks.

Click read more!

How will David Jones Affect YOUR Team?

Yesterday the news broke that David Jones, right winger for the Colorado Avalanche, had signed an extension with the team. To be completely honest with you, on a normal day during the season, this move would get very minimal media coverage and for good reason. Jones is a good depth guy that adds secondary scoring.

That's it.

However, someway, somehow the Colorado Avalanche thought it would be a good idea to sign the two time 20 goal scorer to a 4 year, $16 million contract.

Umm. What?????

That's right folks. If your favorite team comes out empty handed after the Free Agency period is over, there's more than a good chance that this signing had something to do with it.

In today's article we look at how this signing is going to affect YOUR favorite team.

More after the jump!

Crowded Crease:

When the Vancouver Canucks were down 3-0 in their first round series against the Los Angeles Kings this spring, they were faced with a decision regarding their starting goalie in game four. In games one and two, they went with the obvious choice, Roberto Luongo. However, in game 3 they turned to Cory Schneider.

Their numbers in the 2010-2011 playoffs were nearly identical with Luongo at a 2.56 GAA and a .914 save percentage while Schneider had a 2.58 GAA and a .915 save percentage. This year would be a completely different story.

With everything on the line going into game 4, the Canucks could either return to the veteran after giving the kid a chance or stick with Schneider and keep the $6.7 million goalie in Luongo on the bench. When the team decided to play Schneider in the must win game 4. Many believe it was the beginning of the end of Roberto Luongo's time in Vancouver.

After a Game Four win to stay alive, the Canucks started Schneider again only to be defeated and eliminated by the eighth seeded L.A Kings. Their splits could not have been further apart.  Schneider had an otherworldly 1.31 GAA and a .960 save percentage (!). Luongo? A 3.59 GAA and a .891 save percentage. 

As Roberto Luongo’s play declined, Cory Schneider’s play got that much better. During the team's exit interviews, Luongo made apparent his feelings that he would not be opposed to a trade (to the right team of course). While this summer has been littered with Luongo trade rumors, I believe that it may be more prudent to trade a younger and more attractive asset in Schneider than try and move Roberto's mammoth contract.


In today's article I will be looking at the reasons as to why I believe Vancouver should not trade Roberto Luongo and instead trade Cory Schneider...

Top Shelf Tuesday: 1st Edition

Every Tuesday at Tape to Tape we will be writing a feature called "Top Shelf Tuesday". This feature will be a recap of the past few days in the NHL.

While the LA Kings and their next victim are "battling" for the Stanley Cup, most hockey fans are stuck thinking ahead to next season and what that means for their own club. 


Today there are some noteworthy happenings around the league featuring Montreal's new coach, players and coaches signing extensions and a top prospect who might just have a career as a comedian if hockey doesn't work out...

More after the jump!

Changing of the Guard?

Four Stanley Cups, 12 Time All Star, a seven time Norris Trophy winner, and a Conn Smythe Trophy winner.  When the Detroit Red Wings drafted Nicklas Lidstrom 53rd overall in the 1989 draft nobody could have predicted that the small Swedish defenseman would have had the career that he did.

No matter what team you follow, Nicklas Lidstrom is regarded around the NHL as a class act and an all time great. When he announced his retirement last week, many experts began asking “What happens to the Red Wings now?” 

Lidstrom’s presence will be hard to replace, as will his leadership. Does the organization feel confident enough to use an internal solution? Do they look to Free Agency? Some believed that the day #5 hung up the skates would be the day the decline of the Red Wings would begin. However, we believe otherwise...


More on Detroit's situation after the jump!

Vokoun Marches with the Penguins:

When the Pittsburgh Penguins were eliminated in the first round of this years playoffs by their rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, there was no mystery as to why their playoff run was cut short. Expected to be the favorite out of the Eastern Conference to advance to the Stanley Cup finals, the Penguins were mired by goaltending problems.

Marc Andre Fleury has been the man behind the mask for Pittsburgh since the 2005-2006 season. He has given the Penguins consistent goaltending for years, even backstopping them to the finals not once but twice; winning a Stanley Cup in the process.

However, this year was different. Between poor defence and Fleury’s sub-par play, the Penguins found the puck in their own net more times than they would have liked.


Read more about the Penguins problems and what they did to solve them, after the jump!

The Search for Mr. Right in Montreal:

Montreal. The city where hockey is not even considered a sport, but a lifestyle. No team is under the media-microscope more than the Montreal Canadiens. Their fans are passionate, vocal, and some would even say ruthless. 

Regardless, Montreal is also known as the hockey mecca. The storied franchise has won 24 Stanley Cups (and trust me, their fans will remind you) yet as of today they have lost some of that swagger that once took them to the promised land. 


More on what went wrong...after the jump!

Tim Thomas NOT playing in 2012-2013:

Summer. The longest months to a hockey fan. Fortunately, we have slowly crawled our way into June...which means the first big off season event, the NHL Entry Draft, is only a handful of days away. 

Where most summer days bring nothing but rumors and speculation, this past weekend brought some interesting news:


Tim Thomas WILL sit out the 2012-2013 NHL season.


More on this situation after the jump!

An Introduction:

Here at Tape to Tape we pride ourselves on being a little different than most hockey blogs. One thing about our community is that we are going to bring you the straight truth along with what we think. 

Do what you will with our thoughts. Agree with them or disagree with them. However, our goal is to get hockey fans to think outside the box on issues surrounding the NHL while causing discussion between you, the readers. 

So what will you be promised on our website?


Find out after the jump!