Standard signing, individual player question thread

Post by **Minstrel** » Thu Mar 02, 2006 8:24 am

I think it's possible you needed to give him time to addjust to the new team and new linemates; ten games isn't that much really. I've had several FA/trade aquisitions have real rough starts but after they get time and get settled they play to how I expected them to. Make sure anyone you bring in fits what you are trying to do and the players you'll be lining them up with to do it. It's not enough to bring in a RW with second line talent and put him as your 2nd line RW for example.

This is true of EHM teams in general, any time you moves it will take time for things to settle down and contstant changes will only make things worse. Players will play best when they are given the best chance to use their skills, put a sniper on your fourth line with two ECHL calibre grinders and it doesn't matter how good that sniper is, he'll struggle.

flea · Post by **flea** » Thu Mar 02, 2006 11:11 am

Yeah, u are right Minstrel, I probably should have given Chris a little bit more time to adjust, but I thought that I had enough....he also played the 8 preseason games with this two guys....but I really was looking for something else:

Jason Spezza!!!

He still was available because he was on IR in the free agency months and nobody signed him....I tried, but he was asking too much and I had no cap space left. But when I waived Drury and traded Gionta away for a draft pick I had the room to approach a signing with Jason...and he agreed.

So I guess at the end it turned out pretty well for me, lol

Greets

dragons · Post by **dragons** » Mon Mar 06, 2006 2:46 pm

Systemfel wrote:Holtet always seems to end up in the NLA in my games.

After season 1 every coach in my penguins team recommended me to give him more icetime in the 2nd season...havent played more than 5 matches....so it i shard to know if he will be a star!

Harper · Post by **Harper** » Mon Mar 13, 2006 1:49 am

flea wrote:Yeah, u are right Minstrel, I probably should have given Chris a little bit more time to adjust, but I thought that I had enough....he also played the 8 preseason games with this two guys....but I really was looking for something else:

Jason Spezza!!!

He still was available because he was on IR in the free agency months and nobody signed him....I tried, but he was asking too much and I had no cap space left. But when I waived Drury and traded Gionta away for a draft pick I had the room to approach a signing with Jason...and he agreed.

So I guess at the end it turned out pretty well for me, lol

Greets

I traded a 36 year old Forsberg (about 4 million) to Boston in his last year of his contract for Josef Melichar, Jonathon Filewhich, Ben Walter, and three 4th round picks. Then I signed Jason Spezza at $2.5 million

It worked out well for me. Forsberg left the Bruins after that season, and I still have Spezza.

Post by **Minstrel** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 12:10 am

I'm going to 'sticky' this as the contributions made to this thread by people could be very helpful to newer visitors.

If you find that when you start up a game you have a certain player targeted that always works out well for you feel free to add that information here!

A player on Defense you can get for basically nothing is Travis Roche who starts with Minnesota I believe. He's a base-salary guy and he's an incredibly solid stay-at-homer who posts 8 ratings in darn near every game. He's not old enough to be troubled by stamina problems like a lot of cheap d-men are and he can easily hold his own as a #4 guy and really give your team a boost. I picked him up from waivers as an injury fill in and he never came out of the lineup.

Post by **E5150_ca** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 3:10 am

Just to add to this topic, I absolutly love picking up Eric Cairns and Jay Mckee, two tough stay-at-home Defense that won't cost you too much. They both have great stamina too, so if your down with injurys they can fill in on the top lines.

Post by **inSTAALed** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 4:04 am

Adam Hall is a solid fourth liner if he is paired with the right people.

Post by **E5150_ca** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 5:34 am

Pretty much anyone is a solid 4th liner if paired with the right people.

Post by **inSTAALed** » Wed Jul 26, 2006 5:52 am

Well there you go!

Tom saves the day again!

hockeymike2006 · Post by **hockeymike2006** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 4:28 pm

Using the ducks team SHane O Brien is the complete tool so far. IN 65 games in his first pro season hes notched 6 goals and 22 assists as a dman with 198 PIM. 4 goals are on the PP. Young guys you should try and aquire too is Bjorn Melin and Peterri Wirtanen.

Melin posted 15 pts in 9 games with Portland in the AHL before I recalled him and then got 11 goals and 9 assists in 45 games.

Wirtanen played 44 games in Portland with 10 goals and 29 assists.

I just recalled him and in 7 games has 1 goal and 2 assists.

Post by **inSTAALed** » Mon Sep 25, 2006 7:43 pm

Get Balastik!

He is crazy in this game! As soon as the Jackets put him on the block I got him for a 7th and haven't looked back.

At the end of the season: 42 - 53 - 95 in 64 games

bruins72 · Post by **bruins72** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:21 pm

I've got a few guys I've gone after in EVERY game I've started with EHM 2007 so far (and I've started about 5 or 6 games... some I just haven't continued). First off, always try to trade for Niittymaki. I usually control the Bruins (except for the Predators game I'm playing at the moment) and their goaltending doesn't really cut it. Niittymaki doesn't have a high salary and he doesn't take too much to pry from the Flyers. I even traded Vokoun for him in my Nashville game.

I also go for Chris Drury. He's always put on the block early in the game because he's making $3M per season and Buffalo is cheap. This may be a database flaw, I don't know. He doesn't cost too much because Buffalo wants to lower their salary. You don't get him for free though.

When training camp is over and teams start putting players on waivers, keep an eye on the Panthers. Every single time they will waive Joel Kwiatkowski. He's a great skater, a defenseman who plays boths sides, and he's a good passer. Maybe him a 5-6 defenseman but give him PP minutes. He works out great and he only makes $500k.

I also make some signings to fill out my minor league rosters. I usually got for the same guys, UFAs between the ages of 20 and 22. I sign them up and send them to my farm team. If they're not getting played, I loan them out. I've yet to play a complete season (I've been experimenting too much), so I don't know how they turn out. I usually sign Geoff Platt, Rane Carnegie, and Chanse Fitzpatrick (among others).

Powerslave · Post by **Powerslave** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:30 pm

I was able to get Cole for a few draft picks earlyin the season but my best acquisitions were Weinhandl later in the season (pretty cheap, got him from the Wild for a bag of pucks, can play an offensive or defensive game equally well plus PP or PK) and signed Lindros in the off season (doesn't seem to be injury prone, signed him for 2.5 mil, can play first or second line center, complete beast). Auld is also a solid backup.

Thundercleese · Post by **Thundercleese** » Fri Oct 20, 2006 8:25 am

Trent Hunter is unbelievable. Versatile and an offensive powerhouse. I have him on my top line with Alexei Kaigorodov (who I got the rights for from Ottawa when he was 25 for next to nothing) and Jarome Iginla and it's going to be 100 point seasons for all three the way things are going. He's cheap too, not even 2 million (I let NY resign him then I traded for him)

Dave Scatchard is another incredibly versatile player who can lead your penalty kill and score some goals on a third or fourth line role. If you're desperate for a center if one of your top two guys goes down he can fill in seamlessly. He's expensive-ish for a third liner (1.7 million) but he's fully worth every cent.

Marcus Nilson is a guy who doesn't get much credit...he's a surprisingly solid offensive player and is excellent on the left wing checking against the opponent's most dangerous right winger. Last season he scored 20 goals for me playing on the fourth line and second PK unit, that's all. No PP time, no bumps to the second line, 20 goals from the fourth. Awesome.

Mattias Weinhandl I got for dirt cheap (under 1 mil) and he scored 36 goals and 65 points as my second line right winger. Also, he scored the game-winning goal in OT in the seventh game of the Cup finals (of course, Darren McCarty did that for me in 05, but still...)

To round out my list of former NY Islanders who can't seem to help the team win while they're there but have been excellent for me, Jason Blake can play all three forward positions, is ridiculously fast, passes well and has defensive upside. Now if I can just find a way to sign all these guys to fifteen year contracts....

Thundercleese · Post by **Thundercleese** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 6:56 am

Jeff Campbell is a guy I stumbled across languishing somewhere in Europe. Alex Tanguay went down in the playoffs and I needed a 'ringer' to get the puck to Iginla; Campbell is who I found. He's young, he can play all three forward positions and he's a fantastic passer. On my second line he was good for a point a game and he's dirt, dirt cheap--I gave him the minimum possible and he even offered to take a two-way deal!

Post by **Minstrel** » Fri Nov 24, 2006 7:01 am

Yeah, I love Hunter... as I mentioned he's scored 30 for me from a dedicated checking line before.

I continue to not be able to say enough good things about Ben Clymer and Radek Martinek on defense. You can usually get Martinek very cheap and he plays like a poor man's Scott Niedermayer. Clymer is flat out awesome AND can play on a checking line as a forward if you need him to due to injury. I've had some teams where he played on my checking line wing full time but then filled in on defense for injuries so he's a guy that is the answer to a lot of questions and invaluable with his talent, flexibility and low pricepoint.

Also worth having due to cost/ability ratio and similar positional flexibility to Clymer is Kwiatkowski who Florida almost always waives or gives away for next to nothing.

Sucker Punch · Post by **Sucker Punch** » Sun Dec 03, 2006 9:20 pm

Sure a few of these guys have been mentioned, but here's a list of guys I target when I first start up. They can all be had pretty easily, and you'll notice I have a hardon for two-way/defensive players.

- Michal Handzus: Helluva 2nd line centre, good on the PK. Pretty cheap too, and signed on for a few years.
- Dave Scatchard: Fantastic shutdown centre. Between him and Handzus killing penalties, I'm always top 5 in the PK.
- Chris Clark: Seems to lead my team in blocked shots. Great on the PK, and 3rd line checker.
- Ville Leino: Starts in the finnish league, I think, available to sign. Great 3rd/4th liner, can step into higher roles if needed.
- Mike Van Ryn: Good, pretty cheap 2nd pairing defenseman. Can kill penalties and put up points on the power play.
- Denis Kulyash: Decent defenseman, usually have him on my 3rd pairing. But he has a monstrous 20 slapshot, stick him on your first PP unit and he'll make a big difference.
- Ossi Vaananen: Good, cheap 4-6 defenseman. Pretty quick, defensive guy. Good killing penalties.
- Mikko Jokela: Not a great defenseman, but solid all around. Can be had for next to nothing, and can play well in your 3rd pairing.
- Mikka Wiikman: Fantastic, young goaltending prospect. No NHL rights at the beginning of the game, and it seems a lot of teams go after him. Throw money at the guy to get him. In my most recent game, I offered him $750,000 per year and he signed elsewhere.

I think most people know this, but Bobby Ryan and Marc Staal are fantastic prospects who can be head relatively cheaply at the beginning of the game. I usually leave them in juniors for a year, and bring them up the next. They're usually head and shoulders above every other rookie in the league. Ryan got a ppg in his first year, Staal got almost 60 points, but beat out Ryan for the calder.

Forsberg · Post by **Forsberg** » Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:03 pm

E5150_ca wrote:Just to add to this topic, I absolutly love picking up Eric Cairns and Jay Mckee, two tough stay-at-home Defense that won't cost you too much. They both have great stamina too, so if your down with injurys they can fill in on the top lines.

Jay Mckee = 4 mill per season, thats not cheap!.

Post by **timmy_t** » Mon Dec 04, 2006 7:03 am

He was talking about Jay McKee in EHM 2005. I think he was around 1 million per season then...

Joe · Post by **Joe** » Tue Dec 05, 2006 4:06 am

Sucker Punch wrote:Sure a few of these guys have been mentioned, but here's a list of guys I target when I first start up. They can all be had pretty easily, and you'll notice I have a hardon for two-way/defensive players.

- Michal Handzus: Helluva 2nd line centre, good on the PK. Pretty cheap too, and signed on for a few years.
- Dave Scatchard: Fantastic shutdown centre. Between him and Handzus killing penalties, I'm always top 5 in the PK.
- Chris Clark: Seems to lead my team in blocked shots. Great on the PK, and 3rd line checker.
- Ville Leino: Starts in the finnish league, I think, available to sign. Great 3rd/4th liner, can step into higher roles if needed.
- Mike Van Ryn: Good, pretty cheap 2nd pairing defenseman. Can kill penalties and put up points on the power play.
- Denis Kulyash: Decent defenseman, usually have him on my 3rd pairing. But he has a monstrous 20 slapshot, stick him on your first PP unit and he'll make a big difference.
- Ossi Vaananen: Good, cheap 4-6 defenseman. Pretty quick, defensive guy. Good killing penalties.
- Mikko Jokela: Not a great defenseman, but solid all around. Can be had for next to nothing, and can play well in your 3rd pairing.
- Mikka Wiikman: Fantastic, young goaltending prospect. No NHL rights at the beginning of the game, and it seems a lot of teams go after him. Throw money at the guy to get him. In my most recent game, I offered him $750,000 per year and he signed elsewhere.

I think most people know this, but Bobby Ryan and Marc Staal are fantastic prospects who can be head relatively cheaply at the beginning of the game. I usually leave them in juniors for a year, and bring them up the next. They're usually head and shoulders above every other rookie in the league. Ryan got a ppg in his first year, Staal got almost 60 points, but beat out Ryan for the calder.

I wasn't able to find Wiikman or Leino

Post by **Minstrel** » Tue Dec 05, 2006 6:10 am

Joe, if you don't have the Finnish league it looks like as an enhanced league and/or your database settings set to 'Full' you might not see them I'd think. I haven't checked for them in my game yet but those would be the reasons that someone might have a player and others wouldn't.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » Tue Dec 05, 2006 5:08 pm

Minstrel wrote:Joe, if you don't have the Finnish league it looks like as an enhanced league and/or your database settings set to 'Full' you might not see them I'd think. I haven't checked for them in my game yet but those would be the reasons that someone might have a player and others wouldn't.

I see, I kinda always wondered what the difference between enhanced and standard was but I never got around to asking.

Thanks

Systemfel · Post by **Systemfel** » Wed Dec 06, 2006 1:11 am

Sucker Punch wrote:- Ville Leino: Starts in the finnish league, I think, available to sign. Great 3rd/4th liner, can step into higher roles if needed.

Jeez, I signed this guy in '07, and he went on a complete tear in Rochester. Think he scored 180 points and won like five trophies. Then his contract expired and when I wanted to re-sign him, he was asking for FIVE MILLION DOLLARS. 5 mil after ONE year in the AHL. Traded his rights to the Avs for their 1st rounder, which I later used to get Crosby.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » Wed Dec 06, 2006 2:03 am

Systemfel wrote:
Sucker Punch wrote:- Ville Leino: Starts in the finnish league, I think, available to sign. Great 3rd/4th liner, can step into higher roles if needed.
Jeez, I signed this guy in '07, and he went on a complete tear in Rochester. Think he scored 180 points and won like five trophies. Then his contract expired and when I wanted to re-sign him, he was asking for FIVE MILLION DOLLARS. 5 mil after ONE year in the AHL. Traded his rights to the Avs for their 1st rounder, which I later used to get Crosby.

lol an AHL demanding $5M

Sucker Punch · Post by **Sucker Punch** » Thu Dec 07, 2006 11:27 pm

Minstrel wrote:Joe, if you don't have the Finnish league it looks like as an enhanced league and/or your database settings set to 'Full' you might not see them I'd think. I haven't checked for them in my game yet but those would be the reasons that someone might have a player and others wouldn't.

I'm really not sure, but I have heard of this before.

I usually play NHL:enhanced, AHL:standard, and everything else off. I've found them in the unfaked db, default 3.02, and default 3.01. I've never had any problems....

But like, I said, I have heard of this problem before too.