Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier announced the Sabres have agreed to terms with unrestricted free agent defenseman Shaone Morrisonn on a two-year contract.
Morrisonn (12/23/1982, 6’4”, 217 lbs., shoots left) has spent the last five seasons with Washington. The 27-year-old was consistently among Washington’s leaders in hits and blocked shots throughout his career, including 163 hits and 104 blocks last season. In 418 career games with Washington and Boston, Morrisonn has 70 points (10+60), 423 PIMs and is a plus-36.
A native of Vancouver, BC, Morrisonn was originally drafted in the first round (19th overall) by Boston in the 2001 Entry Draft. He was traded to Washington in March 2004 in the deal that sent Sergei Gonchar to the Bruins. Morrisonn played his junior hockey with the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers.
As evidence that the Buffalo Sabres and owner Tom Golisano are trying to save money any way possible, the team has shockingly waived forward Tim Kennedy, just days after he was awarded a one-year, $1-million dollar contract through arbitration.
In a report by Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News, Kennedy’s agent expressed shock over the move.
“It makes no sense to me,” said Allain Roy, Kennedy’s agent to Gleason.. “You’ll have to talk to Darcy on that one. It’s an enigma to everybody in hockey.”
The move can’t be salary cap relate. Buffalo was close to $9 million under the $59.7 million salary cap before Kennedy’s arbitration reward.
He was also improving on the ice. Kennedy had 10 goals and 26 assists as a rookie last season. He was also one of Buffalo’s few bright spots among the forwards in their first round playoff loss to Boston this spring.
Couple that with the fact that he’s a hometown boy, and there has to be more to this story than meets the eye. Releasing Kennedy after his arbitration merely to save the organization money will turn a lot of fans against the organization.
We’ll await more details and an explanation from Darcy Regier. He’s unlikely to speak until after the waiver period ends Tuesday at noon. At that time, it appears the Sabres will buy out Kennedy’s deal and he’ll become an unrestricted free agent.
The Sabres haven’t made any official announcement. In fact, the only news currently released were highlights from Patrick Kaleta’s Beach Volleyball event this past weekend on Sabres.com.
Stay tuned.
Some random observations through the first half-week of Buffalo Bills training camp, based on what I’ve seen and heard:
◊ The consensus around people covering the Bills is certainly surprise regarding Aaron Schobel. Four days ago it appeared imminent that Schobel would return to the Bills sometime within the next 7 to 10 days, especially after multiple reports, including here that he was looking for a rental in the Orchard Park area. I’d love to be a fly on the wall to hear what conversation took place between Buddy Nix and Schobel’s representation over the weekend to suddenly flip to this conclusion. Nix and Chan Gailey has maintained a patience approach with Schobel since OTAs several months ago. Now, only four days into training camp Nix announces in essence the team is wiping their hands with him. It’s interesting to say the least.
Continue reading ‘Bills Training Camp Observations’
The Buffalo Bills moving on without Aaron Schobel. GM Buddy Nix made the following statement to the media this morning:
“Aaron has been contemplating retirement for the past seven months, but we are at the point where we are moving forward and have informed his agent of our plans. Aaron has been a very good player for the Bills and we wish him and his family the best, but there comes a point where we have to move forward and that point is today. We are focusing on the team’s best interests.”
Things seemed in place for Schobel to return as of late last week. NFL.com’s Jason La Canfora first reported that Schobel was seeking out rental space in the Buffalo area, and later we reported that Schobel was going through the same real estate company that originally sold his home last April.
Continue reading ‘Nix Says Bills Moving On Without Schobel’
