OKT gone, and Manny likely to follow

Okay, first things first. There was too much going on today at work and I forgot that I intended to carve out time to go to the prospect camp. So I suck. Will try to get there tomorrow.

We did learn today that Ole-Kristian Tollefsen is not being extended a qualifying offer, so his days as a Jacket are over. On the one hand, this is a shame — he played with some real heart and toughness, and I thought of him as a poor man’s Anton Volchenkov. On the other hand, it’s hard to say this is shocking — he was out for so much of last season and was pretty much a forgotten man by year’s end. With stay-at-home defensive prospects like Clitsome and Ruth in the system on top of that, it didn’t seem like there was really a place for OKT on the team anymore.

In other news from the weekend, sounds like I’ll be losing a neighbor in Grandview, as Manny Malhotra looks to be moving on as a UFA. Again, not shocking — although he had a strong year last year and has generally been a solid NHLer for a guy who was picked off the waiver wire, Manny’s always been less than the sum of his parts as a player. That he was on the first line much of last year really spoke more to the lack of organizational depth at center than to his unique skills as a player. Yet he did seem like a good guy in the room, and was active and well-liked in the community, so we’ll miss him for that, no doubt. But life goes on.