Jump to content

Timonen: 1 year, 6 million deal


Guest jkearse123

Recommended Posts

Interesting. The money is right and is pretty much a "thanks for all your great service" type of contract.

I just read that the Flyers now have over $62MM committed to just 19 players next year and he cap will be $64MM. If that's true, then this really IS interesting.

Edited by terp
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just read that the Flyers now have over $62MM committed to just 19 players next year and he cap will be $64MM. If that's true, then this really IS interesting.

Flyers will put Pronger on LTIR, so that will free up money. The D will be set, they can sign a cheap backup goalie, and will have about 5 million available to fill out the forward positions. At least one of those spots will go to Laughton, so another cheap contract. And they always have the buyout option, which I think may be what happens to Briere. If that's the case, there is another 6.5 million freed up, and suddenly we're in the bidding for Getzlaf or Perry.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's what Meltzer has to say. I disagree with him. I really don't believe any team would have given a 39 year old defenseman $6M unless his name was Lidstrom.

The Flyers have reportedly agreed to a one-year contract extension with Kimmo Timonen. Due to the back-diving structure of his soon-to-expire seven-year contract, Timonen's salary will double next season from the prorated $3 million he's making in 2012-13. However, his cap hit will decrease slightly to $6 million.

Although coming off a stellar game against Tampa Bay, the 38-year-old four-time NHL All-Star has appeared at times this season to have lost a step. Even so, he still remains the single most important member of the Philadelphia blueline.

Timonen would have been the top remaining potential unrestricted free agent defenseman on the market this July, which means his open market value would have been in line with the money he'll get next year from the Flyers. Beyond Timonen, the top available names would be the likes of Sergei Gonchar, Ron Hainsey, Lubomir Visnovsky, Mark Streit, Ryan Whitney and defensive defenseman Robyn Regehr. None of those players have Timonen's two-way ability.

Because Timonen's extension is only for one year, the NHL's over-35 rules will not apply to the new deal. Additionally, his price tag was NOT going to decrease by a penny between now and July (and there's no such thing as a hometown discount anymore in the league, especially after two lockouts).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

None of those players have Timonen's two way ability?? Seriously? Timonen lost a step last year, let alone this year. I'd take Visnovsky, Streit or Whitney over Kimo for that kind of money. You boys need a puck mover so Visnovsky or Whitney would fit the bill perfectly.

I know you guys love Timonen, but this is stupid money for him in my eyes.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love Timonen as well, but this is stupid money. We doubled the salary of a soon to be 38 yr old, Dman, who has been hurt, with major injuries over the last several years. Lavy has proved he can't manage his mins--partially due to our lack of depth on the blueline-but he will once again, get worn down over an 82/game schedule, and struggle in the playoffs next year. I personally think Timonen has struggled a lot this year, coming off his surgery.

I have defended Timonen for a long time, and will continue to do so. However, this is classic Homer..overpaying for a player near the edge, or past his prime. I will not defend the contract...

Carle looks like an absolute bargain at $5.5 million right now..... :angry:

Without looking, is there another defenseman in the league, who is 38 and has a $6 million cap hit next year???

Edited by DaGreatGazoo
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree that 6m for Timo at his age is a little absurd but I think Homer is looking at what he has available to him and doesn't want to be screwed for next year.

If he was successful in getting Weber last year, this contract wouldn't even be a thought in his mind. But after losing out on Weber, he needs to cover his butt.

If the Flyers were .500 going into the trade deadline (which seems like a fair evaluation at this point), Timo would have fetched a really good prospect or better.

That's probably what I would have done as a GM.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wow, that is an overpayment. Not sure what the advantage is of signing him right now... it's not like we got a hometown discount!!

What that tells me is that our defense will not be radically different next year.

That was to get him to not look for a multi-year deal elsewhere.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the Flyers were .500 going into the trade deadline (which seems like a fair evaluation at this point), Timo would have fetched a really good prospect or better.

That's probably what I would have done as a GM.

I was really hoping the Flyers & Kimmo would do something like this at the trade deadline, then re-sign him to a 1- or even 2-year deal in the off-season. It's one of the only ways the team could get better on D without trading a top young forward. As long as he's healthy #44 would be a highly valuable rental for a contending team.

Maybe they explored it and Kimmo said no? I hope they at least discussed the possibility...

The only other move I can see to significantly improve the D without sacrificing Schenn or Couturier would be to trade Briere. Which would not make me happy either :/

Edited by Lucky13
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@DaGreatGazoo

Yeah, why does Homer need to do this now? Don't get me wrong, Kimmo deserves to be treated like the class act that he is and I totally believe in loyalty, but why is Homer so poor at keeping his options open?

Meltzer pointed out that Homer "keeping his options open" lost Leino, Carle and Jagr (he specifically notes the first wasn't a big deal, but the latter two's prices went up significantly because they weren't signed in season). With all the cows out of the barn, Homer may have decided it was time to close the doors...

Before I get all crazy about the amount, I'll wait for the confirmation.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I like Timonen's game and I am appreciative for everything he has contributed to this franchise. But if this rumor is true, that's just plain ridiculous. What exactly is the point in this? We could sign one decent and one OK blueliner for that price.

Homer is completely following in Clarke's footsteps. His inability to manage cap is obvious and is costing the team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Meltzer pointed out that Homer "keeping his options open" lost Leino, Carle and Jagr (he specifically notes the first wasn't a big deal, but the latter two's prices went up significantly because they weren't signed in season). With all the cows out of the barn, Homer may have decided it was time to close the doors...

Before I get all crazy about the amount, I'll wait for the confirmation.

And if you really think about, there was no good reason to lose either Carle or Jagr.... Jagr in particular. I still can't even begin to undertsand Homer's reason for not giving Jagr what the Stars gave him. I can possibly see he was getting ready to sign Suter and Parise, so he tried to free up some cash, but why not keep Jagr as an insurance *until* you confirm Parise and Suter are coming. Then you can find a way to deal with excess cap. There are always ways. And at the end, Homer ended up significantly weakening the team... and nothing else to show for.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Podein25

@radoran

I read that Meltzer piece as well. And I agree that we lost Carle because they waited; however, if you are willing to offer Kimmo, $6 million/year. I would have STRONGLY preferred they overpaid Carle when they had the chance. Granted, you might not make this offer to Kimmo if you have Carle under contract, but to compound a mistake(losing Carle) by making another mistake, is well, just a HUGE mistake, IMO.

I also agree about not having options moving forward. I will bet a bottle of good rum that this deal with include an NMC for Kimmo, so even if they would want to move him next year, they can't. To me, the timing is very odd.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...