Blackhawks sell high on Byfuglien

Hockey Betting Lines

06/24/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For a few weeks during the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs, some folks were calling Dustin Byfuglien the best power forward in the NHL.

It's unlikely Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman agreed entirely with that sentiment, since he opted to trade Byfuglien to Atlanta in a blockbuster deal early Thursday morning.

Byfuglien, along with defenseman Brent Sopel and forwards Ben Eager and Akim Aliu, were dealt to the Thrashers for Atlanta's first round pick (24th overall) in this weekend's NHL Entry Draft, the 54th pick, and forwards Marty Reasoner, Jeremy Morin, and Joey Crabb.

This trade has just about everything to do with Chicago's salary cap situation. Byfuglien is scheduled to make $3 million this season in the final year of his contract and the Blackhawks obviously did not feel they could afford to re-sign the bulky winger next year. Also, with the draft picks they gave up, we can also infer that Atlanta has every intention of keeping Byfuglien around long-term.

The Blackhawks already have devoted loads of money to players like Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa, Patrick Sharp, Brian Campbell and others, so it makes sense they decided to trade Byfuglien now because they must believe his value will never be higher than it as at present.

But, the fact that the deal makes fiscal sense for the Blackhawks doesn't necessarily mean that Chicago won't wind up regretting this trade. After all, we are just weeks removed from a solid performance by Byfuglien in the Stanley Cup Finals, which ended with the Hawks celebrating their first title in 49 years.

Byfuglien tallied six points (3 goals, 3 assists) in six games against Philadelphia in the Cup Finals and, as the series wore on, he was able to turn the tables on the Flyers and especially defenseman Chris Pronger.

A 6-foot-4, 257-pound Minnesota native, Byfuglien is a unique talent in the NHL. He is the heaviest player in the league, but also has a great deal of offensive talent and tremendously soft hands for a big man. His offensive skill was obviously a key factor in Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville's decision to skate Byfuglien on the top line with Toews and Kane for most of the playoffs.

The Thrashers, meanwhile, opted to give up quite a bit to land this package from Chicago and may have been more than a little swayed by Byfuglien's ability to draw fans to Philips Arena. The Thrashers were 28th in the NHL in average attendance last year and needed to add some recognizable faces to try and offset the loss of former Atlanta superstar Ilya Kovalchuk, who was dealt before last season's trade deadline.

The addition of Byfuglien and Eager also should make Atlanta a much more physical team and the acquisition of Sopel will add some solid depth to the blue line.

Atlanta is just hoping Byfuglien can continue producing the way he did in the playoffs, where he recorded 11 goals and 16 points in 22 games. However, he has never scored 20 goals or recorded 40 points in a season and Byfuglien is coming off a year in which he tallied just 17 goals and 17 assists in 82 games. The 25-year-old certainly has shown flashes of dominance throughout his career with Chicago, but he'll need to be a more consistent point-producer to justify this trade for Atlanta.

In the end, this could not have been a trade that the Blackhawks were dying to pull off, but simply a move that needed to be made. Of course, Byfuglien became a very popular player in Chicago and fans are generally not receptive to salary dumps, but Bowman understands the Blackhawks need to improve their cap health. Trading a guy with one year left on his contract that you won't be able to re-sign is a good way to start that process. It won't hurt that the Blackhawks also gained a few draft picks and an intriguing prospect like Morin to boot.

This is just one of many difficult decisions Bowman will have to make in order to maintain the defending champions' status as viable Cup contenders. Still, the moves are unlikely to change Chicago's probable position as the top pick to win the West, and possibly a repeat Cup winner.

Byfuglien is a nice weapon to have, but ultimately he was deemed not as essential to the Blackhawks' future success as Toews, Kane and company. Hard to argue with that line of thinking.

HENRIK HAS A HART

A few months back when the finalist for the NHL Awards were announced, I voiced my support for Vancouver forward Henrik Sedin as my pick for the Hart Trophy. Guess I can tell the truth now, that I didn't believe Sedin would actually win the league's MVP award given that his competition was Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby. I still believed he deserved it, though, and so did the Pro Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) members who voted on the Hart Memorial Trophy.

Sedin's Hart win was the biggest surprise of NHL Awards night, and the voting reflected what a close race it was. Sedin garnered 894 voting points compared to 834 for Ovechkin, making it the closest vote since Jose Theodore defeated Jarome Iginla for the Hart in 2002.

Sedin led the NHL in points during the 2009-10 campaign, but that's not what impressed me the most about his season. Henrik, who of course plays on the same line for the Canucks with his identical twin brother Daniel, has always been known as the playmaker, while Daniel has generally taken care of the goal scoring.

However, when Daniel missed 18 games with a broken foot in October and November, Henrik showed there is more to his game than nifty passing. Henrik notched 10 goals and eight assists during his brother's absence, becoming the goal-scorer Vancouver needed with Daniel out of the lineup.

It was that ability to alter his game in such a dramatic way that set Henrik apart from the pack this year in my estimation. Sure, he's not as deadly an offensive player as Ovechkin or Crosby, but Henrik showed an uncanny ability to adjust when his team needed production from him the most. Obviously, the players thought differently, as Ovechkin won the Ted Lindsay Award, which is the league's other MVP Award and chosen by the NHLPA.

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Police report: Terrell Owens hospitalized after attempt

Terrell Owens will address the media at a 3:15 p.m. ET news conference outside the Cowboys' practice facility after an internal police report indicated he tried to kill himself by overdosing on prescription pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened.

The Dallas police report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

Owens left the hospital late Wednesday morning, giving reporters a "thumbs up" but making no comment as he was driven away in an SUV.

Michael Irvin said that Owens denied he attempted suicide and said he was rushed to the hospital as a result of an adverse reaction to medication. And a source close to Owens told Michael A. Smith that Owens wasn't attempting suicide.

NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders said he spoke with Owens shortly before his release from the hospital and that Owens was in good spirits.

"The fact that it has been reported a suicide attempt, he's laughed at that notion. It was a case that medication that was taken wasn't accepted well in his system with the other vitamins he's on," Sanders said.

The series of events began a little before 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Owens' publicist, Kim Etheredge, said she was at Owens' home when he took pain medicine for his broken right hand. Concerned by how he began acting, Etheredge said in various interviews Wednesday with Dallas-area media that she called 911. Owens was taken to a hospital, with Etheredge saying it was an allergic reaction to the medicine.

But early Wednesday, several media outlets received a police report -- that had yet to be released by the authorities -- saying Owens had attempted suicide by overdosing on the painkillers, even putting two more pills into his mouth after an unidentified friend intervened.

The police document, first reported by WFAA-TV, said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

When officially released by police, about half the document was blacked out, including the phrases "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication" and "a drug overdose," as well as the details of Owens having two pills pried from his mouth and Owens saying "Yes" when asked if he intended to harm himself.

Etheredge, who said she was the friend cited in the police document, told Dallas-area media Wednesday that the police got the story wrong.

The tape of the 911 call could help clear things up. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get its contents, but fire department officials said it would not be available before late Wednesday.

The police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.

The friend, who is not identified in the report, "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth," the police report said.

Using her fingers, the friend attempted to pry them out of Owens' mouth. Owens told police he had taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied before the incident.

Etheredge told the Star-Telegram that Owens was "fine."

Etheredge said she called 911 because Owens was groggy and lethargic. After taking some supplements "it kicked in a reaction" with the painkillers, she told the Star-Telegram.

"Here's a person whose body is so clean, it really had a negative reaction to the medication and supplements he was taking," Etheridge told The Morning News. "Thank goodness someone was there to call an ambulance."

Police Lt. Rick Watson said he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.

It is not a crime in Texas for a person to attempt suicide.

"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."

Watson and fire department spokesman Joel Lavender cited privacy laws for the lack of information they could provide. Lavender said more details could come from the 911 call. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get the contents of the call.

"Let's just look at the tape, review the tape," Lavender said. "I'll give you an honest answer once I know something."

At the police news conference, Watson released a version of the police narrative with certain sections blacked out. The full report was obtained by several news outlets and reported first by WFAA. The AP received the full version from WFAA.

According to the police report, Dallas Fire and Rescue was called regarding someone "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication." Officers arrived to find Owens being stabilized by ambulance workers, who then took him to Baylor University Medical Center.

Owens was hospitalized late Tuesday because of what his publicist said was an allergic reaction to pain medicine he was taking for a broken hand. Doctors reportedly tried to induce vomiting.

Owens, one of the league's top receivers during his 11-year NFL career, is best known for wild stunts on the field and other publicity-seeking antics off it.

When the Cowboys signed him to a $25 million, three-year deal in March, they said their background checks indicated no red flags. In fact, team consultant Calvin Hill -- who mostly deals with troubled players -- said during training camp that his department was not involved with Owens because he didn't have a history of those kinds of problems.

He missed most of training camp, and three of four preseason games, because of a hamstring injury. He was late for work during his recovery and was fined for it, but Owens laughed it off, saying he overslept. He said it had happened before, though not with Dallas, and would probably happen again.

Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger during a game a week ago Sunday. The next day, doctors screwed in a plate so the bone could heal without fear of further damage. Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said last week that the pain medicine made Owens ill.

Owens had not practiced since the injury, but because Dallas had a bye this past weekend he did not miss a game. He was expected to practice Wednesday, and Parcells had said there was a chance Owens could play Sunday against Tennessee.

Owens had been especially looking forward to the Cowboys' game after that -- Oct. 8, in Philadelphia, against the team that dumped him midway through last season only months after he helped them nearly win the Super Bowl.

Owens was seen laughing and joking on the practice field Tuesday morning. He chatted briefly with reporters in the locker room in the afternoon and seemed fine. A 2-inch scar on the top of his hand was puffy but not wrapped, and he said the swelling was doing down.

While in the locker room, he took a pill from a white paper bag and looked at another medicine bottle that was in the bag. He also called a business partner about a towel-wrap venture they're starting and joked to TV cameras that he wasn't talking until Wednesday and it was only Tuesday.

"My little boy knows better than that," he said, laughing, as he plopped onto a sofa in the middle of the locker room.

Also Tuesday, Owens was involved in launching a national campaign for the National Alliance to End Abuse, an organization aimed at helping at-risk youngsters. He appeared at a high school Tuesday morning and was scheduled to visit others but had to cancel because of changes in the team's practice schedule.

Owens has played two games for the Cowboys, catching nine passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. For updated football betting lines and Dallas Cowboy Superbowl odds visit online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

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