4 down, 1 to go.

Corey Sarich and the team reached an agreement on a two year contract extension on Monday…

But stop the presses ladies and gents, the Mod-do-meterhas just gone haywire. The Lightning and Fredrik Modin have come to terms on a multi-year deal as well, this announced Monday.

All but oen of Tampa Bay’s arbitration-eligible players have been dealt with now, except Corey Stillman.

I was going to post this rant on Boltsmag but because of the fact it went so far off topic from hockey and the Lightning (who have no say in this fiasco and aren’t to blame), I posted the rant instead on my personal web log — The Stonegauge.

It’s nice to be asked to advertise the Stanley Cup Championship DVD… IBut it isn’t nice to be asked to do so when I can’t even enjoy the thing myself.

No autographs? Lightning’s Richards angry at P.E.I. newspaper | CP

Richards reportedly called the Summerside Journal-Pioneer this week and told staff he would never do another interview with the paper. The Tampa Bay Lightning sniper was apparently upset about an editorial in the paper that chastised him for not signing autographs at a parade and celebration held in his honour earlier in the week.

Reading ove rthe article I can’t help but see it as pointed towards putting down Brad as a pompous and arrogant player. He won’t sign autographs, he was charging for autographs elsewhere and he talked to the writer of this article via airplane on his way to a golf tournament…

The smear machine is in high gear — maybe this is payback to Brad for keeping Lord Stanley’s Cup from a Canadian team?

I’ve got a news story that I want to write a feature piece on in the near future — not on the Lightning directly but on something that I just had happen to me online… Something ironic and aggrivating for me…

I can just say that the championship DVD has something to do with it.

If you’ve been skipping out on Boltsmag lately, you haven’t missed much. There’s some news for the team and the franchise but at the same time — I haven’t been posting due to computer problems that kept me offline most of last week sans my post about Hockeybay, USA.

Nikita Alexeev and Dmitry Afanasenkov both took their qualifying offers. Afanasenkov, who is playing on team Russia in the World Cup this summer, will be making slightly less than 900 thousand dollars while Nikita Alexeev will be making 1.182 million dollars next year…

Both players will have to clear waivers before they are sent down.

This is a make-or-break year for Alexeev and if he comes out of training camp (if there is a training camp in 2004 ) without making the squad, it’s my personal opinion that he will be shipped off ffor a defensiveman. It’s sadly ironic that it mirrors, in reverse, the trade that brought Fredrik Modin to the Tampa Bay Lightning (he was traded from Toronto for defensiveman Cory Cross).

Meanwhile on another front, Pavel Kubina and Rusland Fedotenko are back in black — way in the black for that matter. Kubina has been re-upped after his arbitration hearing, for two years at an average of 3.25 million a year. This is much less than his request of 8-odd million for 2 years that Petr Svoboda (yes, Lightning fans, that Petr Svoboda) was arguing for.

Meanwhile, Rusland Fedotenko took home a nice raise in his arbitary hearing. He is scheduled to make 1.5 million in his one year cotnract while having made 950k last year. fedotenko proved to be a crucial cog for the Lightnign during the playoffs and erased many doubts and qualms fans had after he was acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers.

three Arbitration hearings are still yet to happehn for Lightning players — Fredrik Modin, Corey Sarich and Corey Stillman.

A little humor for you…. This was found on the Usenet….

Since September 11, 2001, Americans and Canadians have come together as never before in our generation. We have banded together to overcome tremendous adversity. We have weathered direct attacks on our own soil, wars overseas, corporate/government scandal, layoffs, unemployment, stock price plunges, droughts, fires, mad cow disease, SARS, Avian flu, high gasoline prices, and a myriad of economic and physical disasters both great and small. But now, we must come together once again to overcome our greatest challenge yet.

Hundreds of Professional Hockey players in our very own nation are going to be locked out, living at well below the seven-figure salary level. And as if that weren’t bad enough they could be deprived of their life giving pay for several months, possibly longer, as a result of the upcoming lockout situation. But you can help!

For only $20,835 a month, about $694.50 a day (that’s less than the cost of a large screen projection TV) you can help an NHL player remain economically viable during his time of need. This contribution by no means solves the problem as it barely covers the annual minimum salary, but it’s a start, and every little bit will help!

Although $700 may not seem like a lot of money to you, to a hockey player it could mean the difference between spending the lockout golfing in Florida or on a Mediterranean cruise. For you, seven hundred dollars is nothing more than a month’s rent, half a mortgage payment, or a month of medical insurance, but to a hockey player, $700 will partially replace his daily salary.

Your commitment of less than $700 a day will enable a player to buy that home entertainment center, trade in the year-old Lexus for a new Ferrari, or enjoy a weekend in Rio.

HOW WILL I KNOW I’M HELPING?
Each month, you will receive a complete financial report on the player you sponsor. Detailed information about his stocks, bonds, 401(k), real estate, and other investment holdings will be mailed to your home. Plus, upon signing up for this program, you will receive an unsigned photo of the player lounging during the lockout on a beach somewhere in the Caribbean (for a signed photo, please include an additional $150). Put the photo on your refrigerator to remind you of other peoples’ suffering.

HOW WILL HE KNOW I’M HELPING?
Your NHL player will be told that he has a SPECIAL FRIEND who just wants to help in a time of need. Although the player won’t know your name, he will be able to make collect calls to your home via a special operator in case additional funds are needed for unforeseen expenses.

YES, I WANT TO HELP!
I would like to sponsor a locked out NHL player. My preference is (check below):

[ ] Forward [ ] Defenseman [ ] Goaltender [ ] Entire team (Please call
our 900 number to ask for the cost of a specific team - $10
per minute)
[ ] Jaromir Jagr (Higher cost: $32,000 per day)

Please charge the account listed below $694.50 per day for the duration of the lockout. Please send me a picture of the player I have sponsored, along with an Jaromir Jagr 2001 Income Statement and my very own Bob Goodenow (Executive Director of the NHLPA player’s Union) pin to wear proudly on my hat (include $80 for hat).

Your Name:_____________________
Telephone Number: ___________
Account Number: _______
Expiry Date:_______
[ ] MasterCard [ ] Visa [ ] American Express [ ] Other
Signature: _______________________

Alternate card (when the primary card exceeds its credit limit):

Account Number: _______
Expiry Date:_______
[ ] MasterCard [ ] Visa [ ] American Express [ ] Other
Signature: _______________________