Free Agency Pt 4

In the final installment of the my free agency run down we'll take a look at some of the people that are out there available come July 1 and see who the Thrashers might want to target, what it might take to get them, and what their chances of landing some of these fish will be.

First off before we dive into the pool I'll lay out what some of my thinking is. Obviously the biggest piece the Thrashers may want to look at once the feeding frenzy begins will be for a winger that can fill in for some of those 40 goals that left when we traded Kovalchuk. Now we got Bergfors, who should be a solid 20 goals next season, so we don't really need a 40 goal man...just another solid 20 goals or so would be nice. We don't need a center, we've got a glut of those, but we need a good solid winger, left or right should do. I'm excluding anybody above the 35 year old range for sure and let's see what we can come up with.

Ilya Kovalchuk - Ok...I couldn't do a UFA post without mentioning the biggest fish in the pond come July 1. Before I go too far, I am a realist and know our chances of signing Kovy to a contract are slim to none...and slim just left town. Now, let me regale you with what, as a fan, I would love to see happen; I know this is as probable as me taking a stroll on the surface of the moon this afternoon...but go with me...as a Thrasher fan it will make you feel good. I want to see New Jersey knocked out in round 1, this of course is two fold, it gets Kovy out of the playoffs early as I don't want him rewarded with post season glory, and it gets us an earlier draft pick. When July rolls around I want him and Jay Grossman to listen to all the offers and none to be as good as what the Thrashers offered him to stay in February, I would love to think that NHL GM's figured he was overpriced. On July 2 the Thrashers sign Kovy for about 9.5 for 10 years, so in the end we get Kovy at a reasonable price, Bergie and a 1st round pick. Will this happen? Yeah...when monkeys fly out of my butt..

Now for realistic choices...

Patrick Marleu - LW - A consistant 30 goal scorer. The San Jose Shark is probably the stand out player on a great team of players. He will command almost as much, and in certain instances perhaps more than Ilya Kovalchuk this coming season. I expect that San Jose will position themselves to meet his salary demands and for him to be resigned. If he choses to look outside the Shark Tank then expect his salary to be hefty, with a no trade clause and for long term. I don't think he will seriously be on the Thrashers' radar and more importantly I can almost guarantee that the Thrashers aren't on his.

Alexander Frolov - LW - A 20-25 goal scorer. The L.A. King sniper is part of an up and coming, exciting King's squad and, like Marleu, I expect him to be resigned by his team. If he choses to look outside the L.A. market expect him to go for 5 to 6 million per year for a minimum of 4. I think the Thrashers would have a low percentage shot at him.

Alexei Ponikarovsky - LW - 20 goal scorer. This is a winger that will get looks from many clubs, including the Thrashers. He's a solid 2nd or 3rd line winger with some upside. He should be a fairly economical pickup at around 2.5 to 3 million per year for a 4 year deal. He's played with Antropov and Kubina so he would have familiar faces on the club, no to mention the strong Russian presence we have on the roster could be tempting. I think he should be on the short list of players that Dudley will have in his sights, consider him in the mix for UFA signing talks.

Ruslan Fedotenko - LW - 15 goal scorer. Fedotenko is at best a 3rd line winger and we have those already. He should be a fairly inexpensive addition to whatever team picks him up. I don't see him being on Dudley's shopping list.

Those should be the top wingers available. Note, this is not supposed to be a comprehensive list..just a few for thought and who I think will be the under 35 wingers that will be ones to look at.

This will conclude my 4 part series on FA's...next we'll talk about the vacated "C" and who should maybe get it.