By Ray Flowers
July 6, 2008 4:21pm CDT

JAROMIR JAGR: 2 years, $35 million, Avangard Omsk of the Continental Hockey League
Jaromir Jagr’s NHL career is apparently over as, according to his agent. He has signed a two-year deal to play with the Russian team that he skated for during the 2004-05 NHL lockout. Jagr will reportedly honor the two years of the contract and then return home to the Czech Republic to play for his hometown team in Kladno, where his father is helping to build a new arena.

Jagr’s season (25 goals and 71 points), was the worst of his storied career since his second year in the league, but he still came alive in the playoffs with five goals and 10 assists in 10 games before the Rangers were eliminated. Jagr was runner up for NHL MVP in 2005-06 with 54 goals and 123 points but had seen his goal total (30, 25), assist total (66,46) and point total (96, 71) decrease in each of his last two seasons. Still, he was a starter in every fantasy league and his loss will have an impact on the fantasy community. If he never skates in an NHL game again, Jagr will end his career with the 12th highest goal scoring total ever (646) and the ninth most points in league history (1599). Thanks for the memories, Mario Jr.


MARKUS NASLUND: 3 years, $18 million, New York Rangers
The Rangers wasted little time in replacing Jagr, as they scooped up former Canucks star and captain Markus Naslund to help provide some offense up front. "It was very appealing to me and my family to live in New York and be part of what's going on there,� Naslund told TSN.

Naslund isn’t the star he once was when he was racking up 40-goal seasons early in the decade, but he has still scored at least 24 goals in nine straight seasons. However, his point scoring totals have fallen each of the last four years (104, 84, 79, 60 and 55), and last year’s effort was his worst offering since 1997-98. His production on the power-play has also begun to wane a bit, though 18 PP goals the past two years still show him to be a solid presence with the man advantage. Don’t be swayed by the name on draft day, but he is still worthy of starting in leagues that start two left wings.


BRAD STUART: 4 years, $15 million, Detroit Red Wings
Stuart, who was moved to the Red Wings at the trade deadline and helped to stabilize a team that was dealing with a myriad of injuries, decided to remain with the team that allowed him to hoist the Stanley Cup. Stuart’s deal includes a no-trade clause for the first two years and a limited one for the final two years of the deal, something he wanted after playing for five teams the past three seasons.

Stuart’s overall numbers last season were mediocre at best (6-17-23, -10 with 69 PIM), as a terrible supporting cast in Los Angeles held his numbers in check (he skated in 63 games with the Kings, nine with the Wings). However, moving to Detroit full-time should do wonders for his production, especially in the plus/minus category. A rugged defensemen, Stuart also has a lot of offensive flair, though he has failed to live up to the promise he flashed during his rookie season in San Jose when he lit the lamp 10 times on his way to 36 points. Stuart would appear to be in line to match those numbers in the coming season, with a solid plus/minus, making him rosterable in all fantasy formats.


COREY PERRY: 5 years, $26.25 million, Anaheim Ducks
Restricted free agent Corey Perry wasn’t stupid. He saw the Ducks backing up a truck with a lot of cash in it, so he signed on the dotted line. It also doesn’t hurt that the Ducks, bolstered by the return of Scott Niedermayer, figure to be one of the better teams in the Western Conference yet again. "I really wanted to stay in Anaheim, it's a great place to play hockey," Perry said in a report on TSN. "At the end of the day, it's the same deal (as Ryan Getzlaf) and it was just nice to get it over and done with pretty quick."

Despite suffering from a lacerated calf muscle that forced him to miss 12 games, Perry still led the Ducks with 29 goals and 11 PP goals. Toss in 108 PIM, and you have yourself one fine all-around fantasy force who could be slightly undervalued because he failed to reach the 30-goal plateau and scored only 54 points because of his limited time on the ice. In fact, Perry was one of only three skaters in the league with at least 25 goals and 100 PIM, joining Brenden Morrow and Ryan Malone, so his mix of production and rough stuff is one that few possess.


MIKE GREEN: 4 years, $21 million, Washington Capitals
Like Perry, this restricted fre -agent decided to stay with his home team, signing a huge deal considering the paucity of games he has at the NHL level. "Mike has developed into an impact defenseman in the short time since we drafted him, and he will be a key part of our team moving forward," said Capitals VP and GM George McPhee on TSN.

Mike Green was a first-round selection in the 2004 draft, so it is clear that there were visions of him contributing on offense and perhaps one day manning the point on the power-play. But entering the 2007-08 season, his NHL career consisted of 92 games with three goals and 15 points, so expecting a breaout was a long shot. Well, the term breakout was coined to speak to the situation of a player like Green who blew up last season, so much so in fact, that in 13 January games he scored six goals and 14 points, totals that compared favorably to his career production entering the season. He ended up leading full-time defensemen with 18 goals (Dustin Byfuglien scored 19 but he saw time at forward), while tying for the blueline lead with four game-winning goals in addition to finishing seventh in blueline scoring with 56 points. Green figures to continue to produce points merely by feeding the puck to Alexander Ovechkin, but he is a bit of a risk heading into the upcoming season, given his lack of a proven track record.


ROB BLAKE: 1 year, $5 million, San Jose Sharks
The Sharks lost out when Brian Campbell moved on to sign with the Sharks ( Frozen Pucks, July 3rd), so they needed to do something to address the hole that opened up on their blueline. The Sharks brought in rugged, yet talented, old timer Rob Blake, who has played 18 years in the NHL to help out on the backend for a team in need of a power-play quarterback, a role that Blake has filled with aplomb for seemingly forever.

First off, Blake won’t replace the production of Campbell, though that doesn’t mean this is a poor addition. Blake always scores goals, and last year’s total of nine was the first time since 1996-97 that he has appeared in at least 50 games without scoring in double digits, as he averaged 16 goals over the previous six seasons. Being on the power-play with Joe Thornton should allow Blake to contribute heavily on that unit, as well, a great sign for a player who has averaged eight goals and 15 power-play assists the past six years. Blake also employs the hip check better than anyone, and that physicality always brings a good deal of PIMs (an average of 95 the past three seasons).

One last note. Though everyone looks at Blake as old and past his prime, did you know that he is actually the same age as Nicklas Lidstrom?


SEAN AVERY: 4 years, $15.5 million, Dallas Stars
The super pest will take his annoying, grating game to the Lone Star state where he could team with Brenden Morrow to form the most annoying set of talented, aggressive, undersized warriors in the NHL. Avery is known more for his antics and fisticuffs than his skills, and it is worth noting that the Rangers were 9-13-3 the past two seasons when he wasn’t in the lineup but 50-20-16 with him in it.

Avery is a punk, and unless he skates for your team, you probably hate the guy. But there is no room for personal bias in fantasy hockey, so you have to look at Avery for what he is, and that is a tremendously valuable piece of a championship team. The PIMs are always there with totals of 261, 257, 174 and 154 the past four years, but it’s his growing offensive game that marks him as a solid pickup. Last season Avery scored 15 goals, this on the heels of an 18 goal performance in 2006-07. He doesn’t add much on the power-play or in terms of assists, but he was one of only three skaters with 15 goals and 150 PIM last season, joining Scott Hartnell (24, 159) and Dion Phaneuf (17, 182). Keep him in mind in the mid to late rounds. He will surely have another solid campaign out west.