Five more players were named as franchise players today, removing them from the pool of unrestricted free agents.

Most of the decisions were unsurprising. Philadelphia, for instance, protected legendary goaltender Dallas Eliuk and perennial All-Pro forward Tom Marechek.

Eliuk, the alltime saves leader (4,854), recorded a 13.04 goals-against average and a 75.5 save percentage last season, his thirteenth as a member of the Wings. Marechek, meanwhile, led the team in goals (42), assists (45) and points (87) in 2003, and is the team's alltime leader in all three categories.

Limited to tagging just two players from its pool of potential unrestricted free agents (players 32 years of age or older with six years of professional experience), the Wings allowed forward Tom Ryan and defenseman Paul Cantabene to test the waters.

The San Jose Stealth tagged both of its eligible players, goaltender Rob Blasdell (11.78 goals-against average, 75.3 save percentage in 2003) and forward Dan Teat (29 goals, 19 assists).

Only in Rochester was there a surprising move. The Knighthawks applied the franchise player tag only to forward Curt Malawsky, preventing (for the time being) his seemingly inevitable shift to a West Coast team, probably Vancouver.

Malawsky, limited to nine games last season due to back spasms, still managed to record 23 goals and fifteen assists.

The Knighthawks left four players exposed, three of whom -- Pat Cougevan, Tim Soudan, and Regy Thorpe -- are not seen as serious threats to sign elsewhere.

The fourth, however, is goaltender Pat O'Toole, who recorded a league-leading save percentage of 78.3 last season, and added a second-best 10.20 goals-against average to boot.

There is no indication of whether O'Toole has already signed a contract or if he would remain in Rochester. If not, today's development could change the plans of any team which was already talking with Bob Watson, the Toronto Rock goaltender who was left unprotected earlier this week.

The Anaheim Storm and Vancouver Ravens, meanwhile, chose not to use their franchise player tags, sending seven players into the free agent market (Anaheim's Brian O'Keefe, Gordon Purdie, Steve Sombrotto, and Paul Talmo; and Vancouver's Ryan Campbell, Dwight Maetche, and Dan Stroup).

In light of the Ravens' recent announcement that they have signed twenty-one players, it is possible that Campbell, Maetche, and Stroup have already re-upped.

Finally, for unknown reasons, the Calgary Roughnecks were given an extension until noon Friday to decide who to tag. Forward Jason Wulder and defensemen Neil Doddridge and Tyson Leies are eligible for unrestricted free agency.

All players who are tagged as franchise players will receive the maximum permitted salary of $20,625 (American) this season.