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NHL Free Agency

Happy Canada Day!

As always, the birthday of our great nation also signifies the start of free agency in the NHL! Thanks to smartphones and free/stolen wireless internet, it’s now easier than ever to be social and remain glued to your favorite sports sites…but who is going where this year?

The biggest fish in this year’s free agent market is definitely Brad Richards, who is coming off a 77-point season with the Dallas Stars. Richards is a talented playmaking centre who is going to score big money for sure on the open market. There are plenty of teams lining up to make a pitch for the 31 year old, including the Leafs, Rangers and Kings, but it will be interesting to see who is able to land him in the end.

Tomas Vokoun is easily the best available goalie out there this summer, after a 22-win, six-shutout season in Florida. Will he stay with the Panthers? They certainly have the cap space to make a deal, and they need to add over $20-million in salary to reach the cap floor! Adding Brian Campbell could be the first of many big moves this summer for Florida.

As for defencemen, there are a lot of veterans available at the moment, including the likes of Ed Jovanovski and Bryan McCabe. There are some intriguing restricted free agents on defence that could come into play, like Shea Weber and Drew Doughty, but I can’t see Nashville and LA letting these guys get away.

I can’t wait to see how things shake down! (After the jump: Pro tennis player messes with ball boy, Hilarious ESPN “World Cup Fever” commercial and more!) (more…)