Thornton commits to Bruins, Leafs steal Lindros

On Thursday, Boston Bruins centerman Joe Thornton signed a three-year, $20M deal to stay with the only NHL team he's ever played for. The 26-year old captain of the Bruins was the first overall selection in the 1997 entry draft, and has been an all-star three times in his seven NHL seasons. Thornton would have become an unrestricted free agent next summer, but opted to avoid that by signing the three year contract.

This contract should help Marian Hossa in his arbitration. Thornton's numbers are pretty similar to those of Iggy and Hossa, yet Hossa gets paid chump change compared to Iggy and Thornton

C JOE THORNTON, Boston. age 26. 3 years/$20M
2000-01 72GP...37G...34A...71TP...-4....107PIM
2001-02 66GP...22G...46A...68TP...+7....127PIM
2002-03 77GP...36G...65A..101TP...+12...109PIM
2003-04 77GP...23G...50A...73TP...+18...98PIM

C JAROME IGINLA, Calgary. age 28. 3 years/$21M
2000-01 77GP...31G...40A...71TP...-2....62PIM
2001-02 82GP...52G...44A...96TP...+27...77PIM
2002-03 75GP...35G...32A...67TP...-10...49PIM
2003-04 81GP...41G...32A...73TP...+21...84PIM

RW MARIAN HOSSA, Ottawa. age 26. (offer of 3 years/$11.9M refused)
2000-01 81GP...32G...43A...75TP...+19...44PIM
2001-02 80GP...31G...35A...66TP...+11...50PIM
2002-03 80GP...45G...35A...80TP...+8....34PIM
2003-04 81GP...36G...46A...82TP...+4....46PIM

With the exception of Thornton's number of penalty minutes, all three of those statistical sets are almost identical. This signing will go a long way to helping maid Marian get what he wants and deserves. But the difference in the players is that Thornton and Iggy each wear the "C" on their sweater, whereas Hossa doesn't even wear an "A". Something screams out about that. A guy who consistently produces at nearly a point a night, but he's not even the alternate captain? There's something else going on there. I don't know what, and I can't even begin to speculate, but something's going on in the state of Denmark. I don't want to call it rotten, but it's not exactly fresh, either.

Meanwhile, the Leafs continue to add big names at bargain bin prices. They signed Eric Lindros to a one-year, $1.55M deal ....

BREAKING NEWS ..... HURRICANES RE-SIGN COLE, BOULERICE

(back to our regularly scheduled post, already in progress)

Lindros, who, Like fellow Leafs newcomer Jason Allison , has had concussion problems, should still be a nice pickup for the perinnial Prince of Wales contender. The concerns are more significant for Allison, but folks are a little worried about #88, too. At that price, though, it's a risk well worth taking. If both of these guys play at about 85%, or even if either or both of them miss half a season, the benefits will outweigh the costs. Nobody will expect spectacular seasons from them, but Leafs fans should expect about 60 points out of both guys.
As much as I dislike the Leafs, I like the moves they've made this summer.