Mailbag: 12/10/11

Hello all. Thanks for submitting questions for this week's mailbag. It was an interesting week around hockey, so let's get to it:

What are your thoughts on the Tyler Seguin benching?


Kevin 
Stratham, New Hampshire


I like the message it sends. Accidental or not, leading scorer or not, Seguin missed a team breakfast and was subsequently benched for it. Not the biggest offense in the world, of course, but it sends a message to Seguin and to the rest of the Bruins that they're in it together and everyone plays by the same rules. Claude Julien is a rigid, yet well-liked, coach and this should get the ear of his players once again. Even with the Bruins playing as well as they are there is always room for improvement and always accountability, something the Bruins preach while playing their team-first concept that lead them to the Stanley Cup in 2011.

Do you think Anaheim should make a drastic move to save their season or will the addition of new coach Bruce Boudreau be enough?


Mike
Newton, Massachusetts


It's obvious the Ducks have a talent-laden roster. But sitting a point out of last in the Western Conference is certainly uncharted territory for the Ducks, who have been incredibly successful under coach Randy Carlyle since winning the Stanley Cup in 2007. But this Ducks roster should be able to win as is. The Bobby Ryan trade has been called off since the addition of Boudreau and rightfully so. It will take a few weeks for the team to completely gel under Boudreau, but the reality is they have a good young core and don't need to blow up the roster. The reality is the Ducks have in-house problems to clean up; they're currently 26th in the NHL in team defense at 3.21 goals against per game. The Ducks have been giving up 31.8 shots per game and have only won 22.2% of the games when they've actually out-shot their opponents. The Ducks don't need a big move to turn things around; they need to start playing better hockey from the crease out, something that Bruce Boudreau can hopefully facilitate.

Outside of Quebec City, Las Vegas, and Kansas City, which markets do you think could support an NHL franchise?


Brett
Chesire, Connecticut

Is it time for the NHL to return to Kansas City? 

Well, for one, I don't think Las Vegas could support one. There is too much population turnover to build a fan base. I think some of the markets the NHL has to take a look at in the future are Seattle, Washington and possibly Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There is plenty of hockey support out in Seattle for their WHL team, the Seattle Thunderbirds, and an NHL team could come calling at some point. While it's one thing to sell out WHL games and another to sell out NHL games, it would be an interesting venture for the league. Milwaukee would be another interesting pick; University of Wisconsin hockey plays to sell out crowds and there is a deep love of the game in the northwest. The only concern would be Milwaukee's proximity to Minnesota. Kansas City is an interesting option that the NHL will probably explore some day, but for now, I'm not sold. The first place I'd put a new team is Quebec City, then give Seattle a shot.

How did the Hurricanes manage to get ANYTHING for Tomas Kaberle, let alone a reliable veteran defenseman?


Jesse
Raleigh, North Carolina


I'm not particularly sure here. Montreal is certainly paying for what has been and not what is when it comes to Kaberle (though he currently has two assists on two goals in his first game as a Hab). But the fact is this: since leaving Toronto, Kaberle has been wretched both in Boston and in Carolina. Jarsolav Spacek is a nice pick-up for the Canes and with his deal expiring after this season gives the Canes flexibility moving forward should defenseman Brian Dumoulin (Boston College) or Ryan Murphy (Kitchener Rangers) be able to crack the NHL squad. To answer the question, I'm not totally sure how Canes GM Jim Rutheford sold Kaberle to Montreal as "someone who will help the power play" but he did and Carolina fans should be grateful.

Thanks again for another exciting Mailbag!

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