I am a relatively young man (stop snickering sweetie!), raised on NES video games and now have a good job which affords me a healthy chunk of disposable income. In short: I am exactly who video game developers are trying to lure. As if the 8-bit old NES Ice Hockey graphic I use as an avatar and as the unofficial logo as this blog wasn't a dead giveaway, I'm also the ideal person companies should be targeting to sell hockey video games. Alas, I usually find some enjoyment of hockey (and sports) video games, but I never enjoy them the same way I do games like Arkham Asylum or Assassin's Creed 2.

I played NHL 09 a lot, and it was a fulfilling game. But I feel like I wasted $60 on NHL 10. There just isn't enough time for a development crew to churn out substantial improvements to a game, update rosters, and put that polish on the improvements all within a year. I ended up bored with NHL 10 very quickly because I was playing almost an exact replica of NHL 09 (which I had already become bored with), but all the effort I had done for NHL 09 (franchise/be a player mode) was moot in NHL 10. NHL 10 offered me very little in the way of new gameplay, and NHL '09's Rosters felt archaic and out-of-date. Instead of having 2 great games, I had 2 games with substantial deficiencies. That yearly disappointment always left me, and I assume other gamers, unfulfilled with their hockey, and sports, game experience.

The NHL 2k Series, thought to be left for dead, may have finally taken a step to eliminate the annual disappointment that hockey games currently undergo.

More after the jump

So now that I've had some time to think about it, I've got a little more tempered thoughts on both the trades that brought Mueller, Porter and Yelle over to the Avs. I'm writing this blog while wearing my old Yelle sweater, which should give a preview of where I stand on that trade. (Hint: I like it, but not as much as you might think). But the big trade was the Wolski for Mueller and Porter.

Trades are a really difficult to judge, mainly because you can't really judge it until after you see how it plays out. And even then, you have to judge it in context of the knowledge available at the time. It's a bizarre thing because it's a judgement made on a plethora of "What-Ifs" and many judgements are based on the faulty assumption that a player would be the same if they didn't get traded. That's the best assumption people can make, but it's probably not an accurate one. But with that said, here's my thoughts on the trades and my snap-judgements:

More after the jump

Today's trade day, and I have thoughts about it, and what the Avs should do (some of which I've already shared). The problem is that by the time you read them, they will likely be out of date. In fact I was thinking of writing a "I think the Avs should stand pat for the most part" post but I'm sure the Avs would trade 1/2 their team as soon as I pushed the "publish button". So here's how this is going to go down today:

If I see any info on the Avs I'll post it here with my first take. I'll just sporadically update throughout the day, think of it as a semi-twitter feed/semi-live blog. We'll see how it goes. I'm going to start with the Wolski rumors from Yesterday

3/2 - TSN's Bob McKenzie reports that the Avs are shopping Wolski, and that Phoenix is interested.

Jibble: I don't have any problems with the Avs shopping Wolski, or even trading him, but let's make sure we get proper value for him. I know people like calling Wolski soft and questioning his effort, and he's earned a little bit of that, but he's an über-talented 24 years old on pace for 60 points, one whose underlying stats indicate he's: 1- improving and 2 - playing better than his results of the last few weeks.

Trading Wolski just doesn't make sense right now. The Avs are thin at left wing, so why trade the highest scoring left winger? If the Avs traded away Wolski their left side would look like: Galiardi, McLeod, Tucker, Stoa. That's not really setting themselves up for much in the playoffs.

Frankly, I don't see what Phoenix has to offer. Maybe some prospects. Brett MacLean's (the PHX prospect not the old fringe NHL Av) name was tossed around. I don't know much about that kid. One thing's for certain: Wolski is worth a lot more than a second round pick. If he's traded for less than a 1st + Prospect it's a big time lose./

TSNBobMcKenzie: CBJ's Raffi Torres is an interesting possibility for a number of teams but the asking price is a first-round pick.

I like Torres, and was kind of hoping that the Avs would make a run at him, since they could use a LW. But not for a 1st rounder. Then again in a world where Jordan Leopold is worth a 2nd round pick (at least twice now) this might not seem all that crazy.

Actually... it's still crazy.

More thoughts on Wolski

I still can't get how We are looking at trading away our best (or second best if you think Galiardi has passed him. It's a little early for that one IMO) LWer, when what we need is a good LWer.

Right now I only see two ways trading Wolski away makes any sense. 1) Package him and some picks (it would probably Wolski + 1st, and maybe even Gaunce/Elliot/Barrie) for David Booth of Florida.

The other option that makes sense is Wolski for Boyes, almost straight up. St. Louis is reportedly shopping him as of yesterday, and he's a good player who's had a rough season. The ol "Change of scenery" scenario could play out there.

Dater tweeted that Svatos could head to Phoenix.

I actually think that could work out well for ol Svats Machine. For some reason, and I'm not sure why, he seems like a good fit there. Even though they already have a better version of Svats with Radim Vrbata. That said, Phoenix seems to be a place where mercurial players thrive, for whatever reason. Tippett's a good coach who routinely gets the most from his wingers (like he did for Dallas for a long time). I wouldn't mind that trade at all.

adater Bruins asked about Wolski, but Avs would want first-round pick for him. Unlikely

Boston just gave up a 2nd + 2 players for Seidenberg and Bartowski, but a mid 1st round pick is too steep for a 60-point 24 year old winger. Chirelli must be smoking crack.

adater Mueller and Kevin Porter to Avs for Wolski is official. Done

Well this is... underwhelming. Mueller is a guy who played well his rookie year and has stalled. He's got 16 points in 53 games this season and the fan base and team got tired of his lack of heart and questioned his work ethic.

In other words, he's a poor man's Wolski. He's got 4 goals this season, and he plays RW, a position we are stacked in. Maybe he can transition to the left side.

Porter seems like a pretty decent prospect. Maybe a poor-man's O'Reilly. Phoenix guys like him, he did well in College (Hobey Baker Winner), but fell to the 4th round of the draft.

Obviously we'll have to see if Mueller can ressurect his career and how Porter does, but I'm extremly undwewhelmed right now. I think Wolski was worth more.

Update: the more I think about this, the more I hate it. Like, a lot.

Stephane Yelle Traded to the Avs

Finally a move I can get behind. Yelle is more than nostalgia. He's a veteran leader with cup rings who understands Colorado. Not only that but he's an excellent defensive zone face-off guy, and will be an anchor on the 4th line with Hendricks and Durno/Tucker.

The Avs have needed a face-off guy for a long time, maybe even since Yelle. Yelle

also happens to be the name on the back of the first sweater I ever bought, which i'll be wearing tonight, and possibly next week as well.

Good stuff, still don't like the Wolski deal all that much.

A new post over at Olympic Hockey Blog from me, about the Winners and losers of the Olympic tourney. It'll most likely be my last blog over there. I'm completely commited to the Avs from here on out.