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From John Ferguson Jr. to Cliff Fletcher (part II) to Brian Burke to Dave Nonis, the annual free agent frenzy has been nothing short of a recurring nightmare for Maple Leaf general managers (recent) past and present. Each and every July 1st signing has brought with it excitement and all too large expectations only to fizzle into one pricey disappointment after another. Now helming another rebuild in Calgary, Burke often described the day in disastrous terms for the NHLs management community, decrying the slew of exorbitant contracts with "unrealistic values and unrealistic term…that bite you right in the butt at some point". Value, all too important under the confines of a cap system and best found in homegrown products, is never harder to find than on July 1st – a day that sees the contracts get larger and sillier with each passing year. It began in earnest for the Leafs shortly after the outset of the cap era in the summer of 2006. John Ferguson Jr., fighting for a job that would soon run its course, plugged two holes on the Toronto defence that July with a pair of expensive free agent additions. Formerly a member of Tampas Cup winning squad in 2004, Pavel Kubina was inked for four years and $20 million and Hal Gill, once a towering defender in Boston but far less effective under the free-flowing rules of the league post-lockout, raked in more than $6 million for three years. Both were overpaid from the outset – especially in the case of Kubina, one of many to struggle under the weight of an onerous contract – and both were eventually traded. 2007 Jason Blake came next. Scoring more frequently as an Islander in 2006 than at any other point in a 13-year career, Blake – age 33 – signed with the Leafs for five years and $20 million in the last significant move of the Ferguson Jr. era. Blake, predictably, could not live up to the expectations of such a large contract, never coming close to 40 goals again; he was dealt to Anaheim alongside Vesa Toskala for J.S. Giguere in 2010. 2008 Mostly forgotten now, but of considerable damage to the organization during a brief 10-month tenure, Fletcher continued the free agent plight in 2008. Maybe even more stunning now than it was then, Fletcher handed former Avalanche defender Jeff Finger, he of 94 games of NHL experience, four years and $14 million. Finger played 62 forgettable games in a Leaf uniform, was eventually buried in the minors, never to be heard from again. Joining Finger in the free agent trot that day was Niklas Hagman, a Finnish winger who scored 27 goals the year prior in Dallas. Hagman also cashed in under Fletcher, lured for four years at a bloated $12 million. Though he scored 42 goals in two seasons with the Leafs, Hagman was consistently inconsistent, soon to be dealt to Calgary in the famed Dion Phaneuf trade. 2009 Still months from pulling the trigger on the noisiest (and most controversial) move of his busy Toronto tenure – the hotly debated Phil Kessel trade – Burke sought a big and ultimately failed splash in his first summer as the Leafs front man. It was all about truculence then and truculence he got. There were the four years and $4 million pitched to former Rangers heavyweight, Colton Orr; five long years and $22.5 million to Mike Komisarek; three years at just over $11 million for Francois Beauchemin. Orr lingered as a mostly unused tough guy for Ron Wilson before being briefly banished to the minors (he eventually returned to the NHL). Komisarek, a step or two slow for the speedier new game, tumbled quickly under the burden of a deal he could never live up to and was bought out by the organization last summer. Beauchemin eventually found his game, but not in Toronto. He returned to the Ducks in the Jake Gardiner-Joffrey Lupul swap, finishing fourth in the 2013 Norris Trophy voting. 2010 Still trying to fill various holes through free agency, Burke added the veteran grinder Colby Armstrong from Pittsburgh the following summer (three years, $9 million). Armstrong never found much health as a Leaf though and preceded fellow free agent signee, Komisarek, on the buyout line. 2011 Tim Connolly recorded just 42 points in his final go-around in Buffalo, but still landed $9 million for two years in the summer of 2011. Connolly never hit the desired mark of No. 1 centre for the Leafs (he had 36 points in 70 games), was demoted to the Marlies after a year and is now out of the NHL. 2013 And then last summer there was David Clarkson, the first signee of Nonis as Leafs GM. In perhaps the worst deal of the aforementioned bunch, Clarkson landed in his hometown for seven years and more than $36 million on July 1st, 2013. Year 1 was an all-out nightmare and while theres every chance of a bounce-back of some kind in Year 2, his talents are unlikely to ever match the value of an incredibly burdensome contract. Clarkson was just the latest in a line of July 1st blunders. The fundamental flaw in continually swinging big in free agency is the lacking value the process ensures – players are almost always overvalued on Day 1 of the contract. As demonstrated yet again by the L.A. Kings earlier this summer, team building (and sustained success) is best accomplished through successful draft and development, not pricey spending on a mistake-laden day. And so while impending UFAs like Paul Statsny may appear to solve long-standing needs, Nonis (and Brendan Shanahan) would be wise to approach with caution. The answer, especially in Toronto, is almost never found on July 1st. Player Contract End Result Pavel Kubina 4 years, $20M Traded Hal Gill 3 years, $6.25M Traded Jason Blake 5 years, $20M Traded Jeff Finger 4 years, $14M Demoted Niklas Hagman 4 years, $12M Traded Colton Orr 4 years, $4M Demoted * Mike Komisarek 5 years, $22.5M Bought Out Francois Beauchemin 3 years, $11.4M Traded Colby Armstrong 3 years, $9M Bought Out Tim Connolly 2 years, $9M Demoted David Clarkson 7 years, $36.75M N/A Fake China Jerseys . The incident occurred at 6:28 of the first period in Anaheims 6-3 home win over Dallas on Sunday. Garbutt left the penalty box and skated at Penner before leaving his skates to deliver a check. Cheap Jerseys From China .com) - The New York Jets have named Mike Maccagnan their new general manager. https://www.chinajerseyscheap.us/.J. Ward appeared in court Friday on misdemeanour charges that he threw a glass mug at a bartender at a Denver strip club. China Jerseys Stitched .com) - The Carolina Hurricanes placed defenseman John-Michael Liles on injured reserve Tuesday. China Jerseys Wholesale . -- The NFL cancelled its Hall of Fame game between St.NEWARK, N.J. -- Patrick Sharp is on one of those streaks. It seems almost every time he shoots, the puck ends up in the net. Sharp had his second hat trick in five games and the Chicago Blackhawks avoided a rare second straight loss with a 5-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Friday night. The 32-year-old Sharp has 14 goals and seven assists in his last 13 games. He has 25 goals in 44 games this season, tied for the team lead with Patrick Kane. "I dont know numbers-wise," Sharp said when asked if he has ever had a run like this. "I think Ive felt like this a few times in my career. Its the result of the good players Im out there with making good plays, and all the hard work you put in as an individual. Its a good run for our team, its a good run for me, and hopefully we can keep it going." Sharp helped Chicago build a 4-1 lead, combining with Kane and Marian Hossa to score in a span of 4:04 early in the third period to give the Blackhawks a 4-1 lead. When the Devils narrowed the margin to a goal with 6:23 to play, Sharp iced the game, breaking in on Martin Brodeur with 1:28 to play and easily beating the NHLs winningest goaltender for his fourth career hat trick. "Its fun to play against a guy like Marty Brodeur, arguably the best goaltender of all-time," said Sharp, who only had six goals in last years lockout-shortened season that ended with Chicago winning the Stanley Cup. "You see guys like that on the ice, Jaromir Jagr as well, its crazy to line up against those guys." Duncan Keith had three assists and fellow defenceman Brent Seabrook two in the four-goal third period against Brodeur, who faced 24 shots. "They have three lines that can get you and their fourth line doesnt hurt them ever, either," Brodeur said. "We played them well, we were right there, and then they kind of took over. Theyre a good team and they showed it. Thats what good teams do." Marek Zidlicky scored twice and fellow defenceman Andy Greene once for New Jersey, which lost in regulation for only the second time in nine games (5-2-2). Both defeats have come against the Blackhawks, who lost in overtime to the Islanders on Thursday. "We played well for the first 40, then we hit the pause button," Devils forward Ryan Carter said. "Against a team like that, you cannot do that. Theyy can score at any time, and they pretty much did.dddddddddddd" Antti Raanta made 24 saves for Chicago, which is 11-1-3 against Eastern Conference opponents. Kane broke a 1-all tie with a great effort and some luck 90 seconds into the third period. Skating down the right boards after taking a pass from Seabrook, Kane centred a pass toward Brandon Saad in front of the net. The puck deflected off Zidlickys stake and past Brodeur for his 24th goal. Sharp, who opened the scoring, connected 74 seconds later with a great shot from low in the left circle that beat Brodeur over the shoulder. Seabrook set it up with a cross-ice pass from the right point. "He has that eye of the tiger," Raanta said of Sharp. "You can see it in the practice. He is trying to score every chance he has. When you do that in the practice it usually happens when you get the chances in the game." Hossa capped the outburst with a shot from between the circles over Brodeurs shoulder after taking a pass from Jonathan Toews, who also had two assists. That gave Chicago a 4-1 lead, but the Devils didnt quit. Zidlicky made the game close again by scoring twice in a little more than 6 minutes, with the second coming on a power play with just over 6 minutes to play. In their Dec. 23 meeting, the Blackhawks outshot the Devils 37-12 in a 5-2 win. It was a totally different game this time. It was competitive for two periods, and the best players on the ice were Brodeur and Raanta, who both stopped several good chances in close. After a scoreless opening period, Sharp gave the Blackhawks the lead. Toews set it up, taking the puck off Mark Faynes stick and finding Sharp between the circles at 1:34. It came seconds after Brodeur had stopped him in close. New Jersey needed 43 seconds to tie the game. Steve Bernier started a counterattack in the Devils zone with a pass to Stephen Gionta. He carried the puck into the Chicago end and lifted a pass to Greene, who slid the puck between Raantas pads. NOTES: Devils F Mike Sislo made his NHL debut after being called up from Albany (AHL) to replace Mattias Tedenby, who was waived earlier in the day. ... Carter returned to the lineup after missing 14 games with a leg injury. ... Sharp also hit the post in the first period on a power play. ... Devils F Patrik Elias missed the game with general soreness. ' ' '