Perhaps frenzy was a bit strong, but...

Well, free agent day. I’ll focus on this as long as I can, but I have to be honest, we’re nearly two hours into it and the biggest signings so far are two guys re-signing with their own teams.

The San Jose Sharks and Joe Thornton have come to terms on a three-year contract extension at an average cap hit of $7.2 million. And it’s being reported the Calgary Flames and Jarome Iginla have agreed to terms on a similar deal, though it’s not been finalized yet.

St. Louis also kept one of their own in the fold, resigning former Calder Trophy-winning defenseman Barret Jackman to a one-year, $2.2 million contract.

11:48 (MDT): Todd White to Atlanta (and the floodgates opened?), four years, $9.5 million, very good deal for both sides. White is not a big point-getter, but he has shown the ability to produce at the right times (aka: in the clutch), and he plays very well in his own end. He should fit in well in the defensive system Bob Hartley is still trying to implement in Atlanta. He will be a solid third-line forward, and solid leader.

12:14: Where would we be without re-signings? Pittsburgh has re-signed Ryan Whitney, and thankfully, TSN.ca isn’t offering any details.

(update: six years, $24 million)

12:23: Tom Poti is the next to go, signing a four-year deal with Washington for an annual cap hit of $3.5 million. That’s way more money than I’d spend on Poti, but it’s a move the Caps had to make. Poti is somewhere between traffic cone and invisible in his own end of the rink, but he makes a good first pass, and that’s something the Caps have been lacking. Ideally, they’d like to get a winger or centre to move the puck to Alex Ovechkin, but the importance of a good first pass out of the defensive zone can’t be overstated.

12:28 The Florida Panthers continued their quest for relevancy with two very nice mid-level free agent signings. First, I like Brett McLean, I think he’s a very good player, and a very useful part, but there is absolutely no way he’s worth more money than Richard Zednik. Not the nights ol’ Dickie decides to play, anyway. We all thought Washington was going to be a good fit for Zednik last year, but that didn’t work out so well. Nonetheless, when Zednik wants to be, he’s a dynamic offensive threat. He should provide scoring help for Olli Jokinen. Zednik is a steal at two years, $3.25 million; McLean could be a steal at three years, $5.1 million. He’s posted 31, 40 and 35 points the last three seasons, and will be given every chance to improve those numbers in Florida.

12:51: The Ducks make a big splash, locking up defenseman Mathieu Schneider for two years, $11.25 million. Schneider has resurrected his career in Detroit, and was always a fan-favourite while playing in Los Angeles. Up the road in Anaheim, he should star on the Ducks blue line. Schneider’s signing will likely set the bar for the deals Sheldon Souray, Scott Hannan and Brian Rafalski accept before the end of summer. The biggest thing to keep in mind with this signing is that it probably means the Ducks are expecting Scott Niedermayer to retire.

1:18: I’ll use this lull to comment on the Tiger-Cats pitiful performance Saturday night. Despite a new coach, new GM, and what appears to be a 90 per cent roster overhaul, the Cats apparently still think you can win football games by not scoring touchdowns. It’s not gonna happen guys. Without a doubt, my favourite moment of the game came with the Cats backed up to their own two yard line. First, they take an unbelievable procedure penalty which backs them up to the one. Now, they run a passing play, with a seven-step drop. So Jason Maas is deep in his own end zone now, and he fires a pass out to the flat where he find Brock Ralph for a completion. Trouble is, Ralph’s still a yard deep in his own end zone when he makes the catch. I love a good safety, even if it’s against my own team, so I started to cheer for it, when Ralph drops the ball, and the Stampeders recover for a touchdown. No wonder I’m going grey. I have faith this year’s team will fare better than last year’s 4-14 squad did, if only because it’s nearly impossible for so-called professionals to perform worse than the 2006 Tiger-Cats. But just for the fun of it, let’s see how long this touchdown-less run can go. We’re at four quarters.

1:43: After a one-year European hiatus, Dick Tarnstrom is coming back to Edmonton. The Oilers missed him more than anyone though they’d realize last season, and just bringing him back constitutes a serious upgrade to their defense corps. The Oilers also signed Denis Grebeshkov, but let’s see if he ever even makes it to Edmonton. Both guys got one year deals, no word on the money yet.

1:49: The Flyers continued their overhaul signing Daniel Briere to an eight-year $52 million deal. The deal works out at an average cap hit of $6.5 million a year and immediately improves the Flyers’ offense. The length of the deal also gives the Flyers’ young guns room to grow. This team is still two or three years away from making big waves in the East, but this deal is long enough that Briere will still be around when the Flyers are ready to contend. The deal includes a no-movement clause, which means no trades, no buyouts, nothing. These guys are together for the next eight years.

2:01: Calgary loves investing big money in crummy defensemen that are well past their prime. Cory Sarich was a big part of Tampa Bay’s Stanley Cup win in 2004, but he hasn’t done much since then. It’s a five-year deal worth $18 million, and I sure hope the Flames know something about Sarich and Adrian Aucoin that the rest of us don’t.

2:04: Brian Rafalski lands in Detroit with a huge five-year, $30 million deal. Rafalski replaces the departed Schneider, but joins Nik Lidstrom, and creates a one-two blue line punch in the motor city that only the Ducks can rival. Dark days are on the horizon in New Jersey.

2:43: Yanic Perreault is off to Chicago for some unknown reason. One year, $1.5 million, and it really just leaves me scratching my head.

3:16: Boston Bruins add gritty winger Shawn Thornton, I’ve always liked this guy. No terms available yet.

3: 45: Radek Dvorak to Florida on a two-year deal, and that sound you hear is a collective yawn.

4:05: Carolina signs Jeff Hamilton to a two year deal for $1.6 million. This was a whole lot more interesting and a whole lot more fun when I didn’t have to pretend to care about the players involved.

4:07: Tampa Bay may have the steal of the day, signing Michel Ouellet to a two year, $2.5 million deal. Ouellet has shown a lot of offensive skill in his time in the league, but he couldn’t find a way to make it work in Pittsburgh. Ouellet may be the winger the Lightning have needed to play with Vincent Lecavalier since the day Lecavalier came into the league.

4:36: Atlanta continues to stockpile also-rans, as they prepare for a difficult season ahead. They’ll send $1.5 million Eric Perron’s way over the next two years. Perron is a small guy with offensive ability. But he has to play bigger than his size.

5:33: The Toronto Maple Leafs make a big splash. They make a big splash every year, but since they signed Curtis Joseph, they’re the only ones that have been getting wet. This one may change things. The Leafs have inked Jason Blake to a four-year, $20 million deal. The small, fiery winger plays well beyond his size, plays in the corners, and will make a good line mate for Mats Sundin. And hey, if I absolutely had to give $5 million a year to Pavel Kubina, or to Blake, I’d pick Blake.

5:36: It’s too bad the New Jersey Devils aren’t going to be very good for a while, because the New York Rangers just signed away Scott Gomez. If that’s not the kind of thing that sparks a sagging rivalry, I don’t know what is. The deal is seven years, $51.5 million, and gives the Rangers a great setup man to play with Jaromir Jagr (or after Jagr retires, Petr Prucha). Assuming Gomez can handle Broadway.

5:50: This guy can handle Broadway, TSN.ca is reporting the Rangers have also signed Chris Drury for $35 million over five years. Mega-bucks for Drury, and suddenly the Rangers are spending like crazy again. There’s no denying all the things Drury brings to the rinks. He can score, he can pass, he can skate, he kills penalties, wins faceoffs, if hockey had a version of baseball’s five-tool player, Drury would be exhibit A. Plus he brings a mountain of those beloved intangibles. This deal probably leaves Brendan Shanahan twisting in the wind, but it also leaves the rest of the Eastern Conference shaking in their skates.

5:56: I just navigated away from the trade trackers, and see the Edmonton Oilers have traded their captain Jason Smith. And less than three months after they traded their inspirational leader, and pseudo-captain Ryan Smyth. Smith goes to Philadelphia with Joffrey Lupul (thanks for showing up in Edmonton, Joff) in exchange for Joni Pitkanen and Geoff Sanderson. Philadelphia pulled a major fast one on the Oilers in this deal. Pitkanen has been sliding downhill for the last two seasons, and it’s tough to say if he’ll ever get back on track. Sanderson’s been around so long, he played for the Hartford Whalers. The Flyers on the other hand, get a guy in Lupul with tremendous upside, but who was playing in the wrong situation. An Edmonton native, the key piece of the Chris Pronger trade, and grandson of a team owner, Lupul couldn’t handle the pressure in Edmonton. In Philly, he’s just another one of the young guys. And Jason Smith. Look up “warrior” in the hockey dictionary, and Smith’s picture is stamped beside it. At a shade under $2 million a year, Smith is an absolute steal.

6:05: Viktor Kozlov to Washington for two years, $5 million. Stop me if you heard this last year with Dickie Zednik, but this guy could be a great fit with Alex Ovechkin.

6:14: TSN has a ticker atop their homepage announcing Scott Niedermayer’s retirement. I won’t get into it all here, but some time during the week, I’ll have a proper SWS sendoff for Niedermayer.

6:18: Screw this. I’m going to celebrate Canada Day. Hope you all enjoyed it, and we’ll be back next year for more of this. But also later in the week to have a look at the great Scott Niedermayer’s career, Major League all stars, and only the Lord knows what else.