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Napa, CA • United States • 26 Years Old • Male
Since before the March 4 trade deadline the big question has been where will Jay Bouwmeester end up? The 25-year-old defenceman was involved in trade rumors that had him going to Philadelphia, but the deal never materialized. Then the question was with whom would he sign? Then we paused and remembered his rights could be traded at the draft for picks, which is exactly what happened. Now JayBo is locked in for the next five years with an annual cap hit of around $6.7 million to his new team the Calgary Flames.

But is he worth it?

Bouwmeester now makes more money than teammates Dion Phaneuf and Robyn Regehr, despite being perhaps the biggest liability in the NHL. Bouwmeester has never produced a 50-point season in the NHL (Phaneuf has two) and has spent most of his career below even in plus/minus (he only has one season above plus-1).

So why all the hype for JayBo? I ask this seriously because his number just don't match with his value. And, for a team coming off perhaps the worst defensive efforts in the history of hockey, paying nearly $7 million for offense seems like a waste when GM Darryl Sutter is already close to the cap ceiling (remember how they had to play with a short bench at the end of the year because they couldn't afford their players?).

So someone, please, explain this to me.
Filed Under:   Calgary   Flames   Bouwmeester   Free Agency  
July 1, 2009 2:42 PM ET | Delete
July 1, 2009 2:54 PM ET | Delete
i agree partly...he does play a ton of minutes and has played on florida his entire career so that explains the /- woes. but youre right, he doesnt put up a lot of points but that also could be because he played for the panthers and had nobody who could set him up like he will have in calgary. or he could be the next brian campbell
July 1, 2009 3:15 PM ET | Delete
Best player on a poor team.Move him to a much better team and see what happens.
July 1, 2009 4:25 PM ET | Delete
just admit u've never watched a FL game before! it's ok, i havent either, but you now have the best D pair in the league, enjoy it, i think you're gonna be pleasantly surprised bro!
July 1, 2009 7:03 PM ET | Delete
He's the second coming of Christ, dag nab it!! How dare you question, heathen!
July 1, 2009 7:26 PM ET | Delete
To the comment above... He can walk on water, too bad every hockey player can when its frozen!!!!
July 1, 2009 7:37 PM ET | Delete
July 1, 2009 10:30 PM ET | Delete
Plays nearly 30 mins a game against the top line every night. Which means he's seen a lot of OV, Stall, Kovi and such. This guy will put Phaneuf to shame. Dion can score, but is awful defensively.
July 1, 2009 11:04 PM ET | Delete
watch a few flames games this year, and you will see. i had said i would've traded phaneuf for bouwmeester during the season. i'm glad i don't. i think he's the best dman under 30 in the league personally, and have loved the guy since he played in medicine hat.
July 1, 2009 11:20 PM ET | Delete
Who watches Florida games? Not Flames fans, that's for sure. As a Leaf fan and overall Eastern conference hockey fan, I've seen this kid play and he's solid. He's a terrific player with smooth hands, and he's very calm and composed, even when he's under tremendous pressure in his own end he always seems to find a way to play the puck.
July 2, 2009 10:51 AM ET | Delete
he logs premium minutes. he played for a terrible team (hence the lack of 50 point seasons). he is big, can shut players down, has great decision making skills, a nice shot from the point, is very mobile for his size, and he is young. the flames are getting one hell of a player in j-bo.
July 2, 2009 11:55 AM ET | Delete
I watched him in Florida alot. He is a high risk high return defenseman. The kind of guy that looks great on a bad team, but on a disciplined team MIGHT be a problem. I don't know since he has never been part of a good team. Only tieme will tell.
July 2, 2009 5:07 PM ET | Delete
Thank you to all the commenters. I have not watched any Florida games, which is why I only had the stat sheets to go on. I will agree that the Flames now have the best top-4 defense (on-paper). Pair up Phaneuf and Regher and follow that with JayBo and Sarich. Two of the best OFD's paired with equal DFD's...Watch out Northwest Division!
July 2, 2009 5:13 PM ET | Delete
For the record, Phaneuf's four seasons in the NHL: 49 points (20-29) plus-5, 50 points (17-33) plus-10, 60 points (17-43) plus-12, and 47 points (11-36) minus-11. Bouwmeesters four best seasons: 2005-06 46 points (5-41) plus-1, 2006-07 42 points (12-30) plus-23, 2008-09 42 points (15-27) minus-2, 2007-08 37 points (15-22) minus-5.
July 2, 2009 8:58 PM ET | Delete
Florida has not been a good team for the last several years. They have been offensively challenged too. That explains why his /- has been bad and also why his offensive #'s haven't been so good. He was by far the best guy on that team though after Luongo was traded. Is J-Bo > then Dion? I don't know about that.
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