What an opportunity missed. Am I overreacting in that every time a potential franchise-changing deal goes by quietly I feel like it's a slap in the face from management to the fans?

really thought we would get this one here. and if they get rid of RJ for squat I am going to be crushed.

Am I the only one who's mad and really really disappointed in management.. This is a crap deal for Calgary.. they give up...

#1 Defenseman
Legitimate bottom 6 NHL Forward
Pretty good prospect..

for a
2nd line Dman in White
2/3 liners in Hagman and Stajan
And on top of that Mayers is a dump !!!

We could have offered a MUCH MUCH better deal for Calgary...

YES this is a slap in the face... #1 are hard to come by in the first place... LET ALONE AT THIS PRICE... This is just absolute @#@$@#%

Eplagge: You took the words right out of my mouth.

Much like Erhoff, CBJ ownership feels that running a pro sports team is like running Worthington Industries...nickel and dime, nickel and dime, nickel and dime...

Like that scenario, another team...one who actually spends...fleeces a desparate trading partner...

Heck, as Puck-Rakers reported, the CBJ weren't even in the mix or even approached Burke...

Another case of ownership selling us (the fans) short...

For those upset about the CBJ not trading for Phaneuf. You have to have something to trade. We (as fans) don't want players from a bad team, why should Calgary want them? The only true marketable player that we have is Nash.

Indeed Mase1, indeed... Although I am listening to Calgary/Toronto Sports radio (960/590AM), and one of the guests mentioned that there was a clear preference on Calgary's side to trade Dion to the East if at all possible. So Howsen might not have been able to swing a deal, but I would at least like to hear that he's inquiring about the situation and keeping his finger on the pulse.. Hearing that we weren't even in the mix is discouraging.. Heck the Dispatch made it sound like they didn't even try, that's what's so darn disturbing. It really feels like this team is not making a full effort to become Stanley Cup contenders. Whatever happened it has become clear that a blue-chipper #1 Defense-man was up for grabs and it appears we did nothing, nada, zip... That is what is disturbing, especially since we are a small market team, meaning that we will miss out on most trades to begin with... Players might have No-trade clauses and use them for us, or we simple don't have the roster to swing a big deal, or perhaps cap space becomes an issue.... So to see this go down, knowing that we could have swung this deal is very very disheartening.. I am wondering how the Dispatch is going to put a swing on this missed opportunity.. And yes, we have now missed out on Ehrhoff and Richards... How many more opportunities can we afford to miss and still be competitive.. Anyways, it has become abundantly clear to me that Howsen has a huge task this upcoming deadline and the off-season that follows. The team is pretty good, has decent depth, BUT NOW the really important moves have to be made.. A tweak here and there, perhaps bringing in a #1 Defenseman or Center.. Howsen has the opportunity before the 2010-2011 season start to make the moves to make this team a playoff contender.. Yes this season this team has redefined suck... But I just feel as a Hockey fan that this team is 2 or 3 good Trades/UFA's away from being a solid playoff contender.. The foundation is there, now it's time for Howsen to rectify the coaching and locker-room situation... (P.S Ownership, please don't screw us now, love your fans)

Eplagge: It's like our own LTL often says (on another subject) - (our org making a blockbuster trade) "It's as predictable as that 'rise and dine' portion being on the Bob Evans menu, every morning".

Let's be honest: While improved, this is still not a destination; we don't have the bullets other orgs have to make trades; this org is C-H-E-A-P.

So, when we make a splash(?) in the UFA market, it involves one thing: Overpaying for middling (Sammi) or questionable (Commie - remember, he was considered the 2nd biggest potential UFA bust, last season. Could it be that it just took him to come back to reality? Just saying) - talent.

While I despise the Golden Boy (Burkey), give him props for having the stones - failure or feast - for making such big moves. Dude has done it over his whole career.

Mase1 you are right.. we are improved... but I would go even a bit further... I still think the Jackets are a place players desperately don't want to go to.. We are known to be cheap and it's quite possible this organization is not going to be around for the long term..
If we do anything in the UFA market we will overpay, that's almost a given to me..

Pahlsson, yes he has been a disappointment.. I personally wanted the Jackets to bring him in so badly this offseason, but I am willing to admit.. I was wrong, he's not very effective for us, at all. PLUS we overpaid, he's a 1.5-2M player and we paid 2.5+ that's a pretty big mistake on Howsen's end.. BUT I still think Sammi can be very effective for us, if given better 3rd line wingers... But overall he's a bust..

Commodore has really been a disaster.. I thought he was OK last year, hoping he would take another step this year.. BUT he has been a big fat bust.. He's slow, prodding and not talented enough to be a top 4 defenseman.. He could be a very effective 3-pairing guy.. but we are paying him almost 4M. He's going to be a negative asset on this club for a long time to come.. If he's healthy and playing well he could potentially be an OK 2nd liner but he will never be a good deal because of his salary.

Eplagge: (RE: Commie) Yeah, I've seen more than a few of his former team's fans snicker when the CBJ acquired him - now, they're REALLY laughing (the old 'I told you so' crap).

Also, let's face it: when teams like the Hawks and Leafs make big splashes, it's because they have large, hockey-mad, markets - meaning: they can go to/past the cap, knowing that they will sell out night in, night out.

In our case (CBJ), not so much: while improved, our attendance ranks about 20th - but, look beyond the total numbers - teams like Toronto and Chi-Town not only sell out, but, every night, they have SRO.

So, while this isn't that type of market, yet, at least give the (getting to the) cap a go of it. I mean, what's the harm - if you spend, put out a decent product, one good enough to draw capacity/near capacity, losing 6-8 million sure beats being cheap and losing 12 million (which is what they're slated to lose), right?