Silos at a Crossroads -- Great White Rumour Mill

[ Show ]

Support VoyForums

[ Shrink ]

VoyForums Announcement: Programming and providing support for this service has been a labor of love since 1997. We are one of the few services online who values our users' privacy, and have never sold your information. We have even fought hard to defend your privacy in legal cases; however, we've done it with almost no financial support -- paying out of pocket to continue providing the service. Due to the issues imposed on us by advertisers, we also stopped hosting most ads on the forums many years ago. We hope you appreciate our efforts.

Show your support by donating any amount. (Note: We are still technically a for-profit company, so your contribution is not tax-deductible.) PayPal Acct: Feedback:

Donate to VoyForums (PayPal):

[ Login ] [ Contact Forum Admin ] [ Main index ] [ Post a new message ] [ Search | Check update time | Archives: 1, 2, [3] ]

Subject: Silos at a Crossroads

Author:
Saskatoon Sun

[ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]

Date Posted: 21:48:34 08/31/02 Sat

One week after the disappointing 4-3 series loss at the hands of the Calgary Cougars, the Silos' organization is debating what the near future of the club will be.

Saskatoon GM Ken McKenna thinks there is a solid cast of players to build around, but he is also a little concerned that there isn't a great deal of good young talent in the system. Given the team's shaky financial position, at least compared to some other teams in the GWHL, it may be difficult for McKenna to make any significant improvements to the team via free agency.

"Adding one very good player via free agency won't help this team become a Cup contender, so spending money in free agency isn't a given" stated McKenna. "We need to be stronger on defense, as well as more offensively balanced, so it will be difficult for us to accomplish all that with the limited funds we have for free agents."

The other option for the Silos is to rebuild, which might be the more likely approach. The Silos do have a few interesting prospects, but only C Kris Beech is close to making the big club. Saskatoon didn't have a nominee for the top rookie award this season, because none suited up for the team, and there are few worthy prospects on the farm in Prince Albert. In addition, blunders by previous management have left the team with very few draft picks over the next 3 seasons, so rebuilding will be a tough road to hoe, as well.

"We have some players that should interest other teams, but they won't come cheaply" warned the Silos' GM. "Halifax got quite a haul for a second-tier talent like Eric Daze, so that is the benchmark we are working from. I imagine some teams will balk at this, but that is something we'll have to deal with."

The players most likely to stay put are Alexei Yashin, Nikolai Khabibulin and Janne Niinimaa, but many other players on the roster can be had for the right price. Also, the Silos are likely to lose a couple free agents in the off-season, so those holes will have to be filled.

All in all, it makes for an interesting off-season for the Silos.

[ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]