Opening Days of 2009 NHL Free Agency: Southeastern Division Team Reviews

With just a mere five days having already passed since the start of free agency, an astounding 58 players have changed teams and 34 others re-signed with their old team.

The mass number of trades has left the NHL in a completely different state than it was just a week ago, with some teams like the Devils feeling a little thin while other clubs like Montreal are beginning to look like one of the teams to beat.

There have been millions of dollars switched around in five days, salary cap statistics basically redone completely, and superstars moving cross-country since free agency began, but it's about time we all look at it from the team perspective and see how each and every team did in this frenzy of signings.

In this edition, I will cover the five Southeastern Division teams. When the Atlantic Division, Northeastern Division, and Western Conference editions come out, the link to them will be added to this section so you can eventually cover the entire league.

Washington Capitals

Acquired: Mike Knuble (PHI)

Lost: Donald Brashear (NYR)

Re-signed: none

The Washington Capitals made just a couple moves, yet both will affect the roster greatly. Donald Brashear, the long-time fighter and hitter for the Capitals, has left for New York, but in his place is Mike Knuble, who is a big improvement.

Knuble, although he may not have the physical qualities of Brashear, has been very succesful in both Boston and Philadelphia recently, and will make a great addition to the already talented first and second lines.

Carolina Hurricanes

Acquired: none

Lost: none

Re-signed: Jussi Jokinen, Erik Cole, & Chad LaRose

The Hurricanes decided to not make a bank-busting splash in the free agent market this year, and instead just re-signed their three major players whose contracts had expired.

Jokinen was a trade deadline pickup of the waiver wire from Tampa Bay, who came in with almost no expectations and ended up with five game-winners in the playoffs. Erik Cole was another trade deadline acquisition from Edmonton, and he had great chemistry with Eric Staal after his arrival. Chad LaRose is also a physical presence with a scoring touch and great work ethic.

Florida Panthers

Acquired: Scott Clemmensen (NJD), Clay Wilson (ATL), Jordan Leopold (CAL)

Lost: Jay Bouwmeester (CAL), Craig Anderson (COL), Peter Skrastins (DAL)

Re-signed: Radek Dvorak, David Booth

The Panthers were extremely active this offseason, acquiring three new players while losing three others, plus re-signing two essential parts of the roster.

Scott Clemmensen came in from New Jersey to replace Craig Anderson (Colorado) as a backup behind Vokoun, and the Panthers also signed former Calgary Flame Jordan Leopold, who did very well on the score sheet last season despite not being very noticed nationwide.

However, the loss of Peter Skrastins will hurt, as he went to Dallas to try to spark an offense that missed the playoffs last year after being a five-seed the season before. Jay Bouwmeester also left, and although it was expected, Bouwmeester formed into a top-ten defenseman last year and will leave a big gap in the Panthers' defense.

Radek Dvorak (pictured at the top of the article) and David Booth were both re-signed. Both players play key rolls in the Panthers' system and were targeted as must-sign players heading into this past week.

Atlanta Thrashers

Acquired: Nic Antropov (NYR)

Lost: Clay Wilson (FLA)

Re-signed: Chris Thorburn

The Thrashers weren't particularly involved in the recent frenzy, but they did make two good moves that could improve the roster greatly heading into next season.

Nic Antropov, a former Ranger, was signed, which will add another talented scorer and perhaps help bring this disoriented Thrashers team together. Chris Thorburn was also re-signed, and will hopefully elevate his play to a new level if Atlanta can finally get something going this upcoming season.

The only loss for the Thrashers was Clay Wilson, who never played a big part in the Thrashers' offense and will likely not be missed.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Acquired: Mattias Ohlund (VAN), Matt Walker (CHI)

Lost: David Koci (COL)

Re-signed: none

The Lightning have made three intriguing moves so far, all of which signalling that Tampa Bay is focused on defense.

The only loss is David Koci, who is heading to the Rocky Mountains. Koci was terrible in 37 games played last year, notching only two points and posting 141 penalty minutes.

On the flip side, Tampa Bay acquired both Mattias Ohlund and Matt Walker to help bulk up the defense. Mattias Ohlund was a defensive force for Vancouver all of the past couple years, and will be a great addition to the blue line in Tampa. Matt Walker was also decent in Chicago last year, and he is now beginning to enter his prime years as a defenseman.