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Post by Willie Dog on Jan 24, 2016 11:50:50 GMT -5
Ladd and Okposo are very good target options. These are the type of supporting scoring players that don't wilt under pressure that the Berg needs to be adding to the mix. They also can be made to fit in Montreal's cap situation. The real interesting option to me is to see if the Berg decides to try to move a guy like Markov at the deadline. Much is made that Washington is likely all in this year. Ovie friendship and all. From a pure selling high perspective this may be a tiny window. It would leave a gap next year, but Petry, Beau, Barberio, etc can all take on more over time. MT continues to keep Pateryn doing diddly (so much for pipe dreams of rotating Dmen). MT can bring back Fankie BooBoo to fill the gap
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jan 24, 2016 11:54:12 GMT -5
Stamkos is local, of the greater Toronto area, and the Leafs surely have more cap space and a better Head Coach situation. i think Stamkos is saying goodbye to Tampa, but I doubt Montreal is part of the chase. I'll bet on Pro Line every once in a while and it's rare that I'll spend over $5 bucks when I do ... however, I'll put that $5 bucks down on Steven Stamkos going to Toronto ... I really think he's heading there ... the Leafs can free up what it will take to land him and they'll have both JVR and Stammer on their top-six ... he'd also provide an experienced veteran presence to bring those youngsters along ... and they've got some good ones coming up ... I was listening to TSN 690 on this one and they figure it will either be TO or the NYR ... Cheers.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jan 24, 2016 11:55:53 GMT -5
Ladd and Okposo are very good target options. These are the type of supporting scoring players that don't wilt under pressure that the Berg needs to be adding to the mix. They also can be made to fit in Montreal's cap situation. The real interesting option to me is to see if the Berg decides to try to move a guy like Markov at the deadline. Much is made that Washington is likely all in this year. Ovie friendship and all. From a pure selling high perspective this may be a tiny window. It would leave a gap next year, but Petry, Beau, Barberio, etc can all take on more over time. MT continues to keep Pateryn doing diddly (so much for pipe dreams of rotating Dmen). Yeah, if the season is over by the trade deadline then Washington would probably pay up on Markov ... don't have a crystal ball, but Marky would probably be welcome in Washington where a PP actually works ... Cheers.
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Post by jkr on Jan 24, 2016 12:07:17 GMT -5
I think Stamkos stays. He is on record as saying he wants to stay in Tampa. www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=793599#&navid=nhl-searchAccording to Friedman he has turned down 8.5. Well, it is January and they have 5 months to bridge the gap between that already high number to something like 9.5-10. If he has turned down a deal that at least means they are talking & talking can lead to a resolution. This is a soon to be 26 year old that already has a 60 goal season on his resume. Yzerman is not going to let him get away. Here is an article I found about ownership's view: www.toutsurlehockey.com/27325/manchettes/tslh/TBL/2015-09-21/stamkos-restera-a-tampa-bay-selon-le-proprio-du-lightning/In the translation it refers to Vinnik saying he is not imposing a ceiling on Yzerman to sign Stamkos. FWIW the TSN panel brought this up a few nights ago. McKenzie stuck to his guns and thinks he is going to free agency. Button and Poulin think he signs with TB before July 1.
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Post by blny on Jan 24, 2016 12:51:04 GMT -5
Hartnell. Nope. Not for Desharnais. Never going to happen. If Bergevin can trade a contract with term (Cole), who was under performing at the time of the trade, for an expiring contract (Ryder) and get the extra pick ...
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Post by blny on Jan 24, 2016 13:10:11 GMT -5
Cap hits (58.425 million) Goalies. (7.075 Million) Carey Price ... 6.5 million Mike Condon .. 0.575 million Defence. (26.15 million) PK Subban ... 9 million Markov ......... 5.75 million Petry ............. 5.5 million Emelin .......... 4.1 million Beaulieu ....... 1.0 million Pateryn ......... 0.8 million extension Forwards (25.2 million) Plekanec .... 5 million Pacioretty ... 4.5 million Gallagher .... 3.75 million Desharnais .. 3.5 million Eller ............. 3.5 million Galchenyuk .. 2.8 million Mitchell ......... 1.2 million Flynn ............ 0.95 million Main difference between our numbers is I'm including DLR. We have to include PAP's number at least because it's $1,333,333.00 that Bergevin doesn't have to spend. I've run the roster, with dlr through excel and PAP and it comes to $61,683,330 every time. As that's less than the cost of a minimum NHL contract, I call it $62 million. pleks 6000000 max 4500000 gally 3750000 eller 3500000 dd 3500000 galch 2800000 mitchell 1200000 flynn 950000 dlr 925000 pk 9000000 markov 5750000 petry 5500000 beaulieu 1000000 pateryn 800000 emelin 4100000 price 6500000 condon 575000 parenteau 1333333
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Post by Skilly on Jan 24, 2016 17:51:31 GMT -5
I'm not including DLR because you said 16 players, and because I think we don't need him ...
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Post by seventeen on Jan 24, 2016 21:48:43 GMT -5
I think Stamkos stays. He is on record as saying he wants to stay in Tampa. www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=793599#&navid=nhl-searchAccording to Friedman he has turned down 8.5. Well, it is January and they have 5 months to bridge the gap between that already high number to something like 9.5-10. If he has turned down a deal that at least means they are talking & talking can lead to a resolution. This is a soon to be 26 year old that already has a 60 goal season on his resume. Yzerman is not going to let him get away. Here is an article I found about ownership's view: www.toutsurlehockey.com/27325/manchettes/tslh/TBL/2015-09-21/stamkos-restera-a-tampa-bay-selon-le-proprio-du-lightning/In the translation it refers to Vinnik saying he is not imposing a ceiling on Yzerman to sign Stamkos. FWIW the TSN panel brought this up a few nights ago. McKenzie stuck to his guns and thinks he is going to free agency. Button and Poulin think he signs with TB before July 1. The problem for Y is that his payroll is going up a lot in the next 2 years. He may not be able to afford Stamkos except at a discount.
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Post by folatre on Jan 24, 2016 22:50:45 GMT -5
And the other problem for Yzerman is that he really does not have five months to negotiate unless he is willing to let the trade deadline pass and potentially lose Stamkos for nothing after the season.
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Post by seventeen on Jan 24, 2016 23:12:23 GMT -5
That would be a post of BCesque proportions and I'm not in that class. well that's gotta be a first . . . BC (heck, anybody on the board) and class mentioned in the same sentence. OK. In that Caste then.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 6:47:51 GMT -5
I'm not including DLR because you said 16 players, and because I think we don't need him ... I took him for being part of the 16 contracts next year. PAP must be what's part of the 16 contracts ... any way you slice it though, whether you have DLR or someone else they'll likely be a better part of $1 million towards the cap. PAP's $1,333,333.00 and another player to fill a roster spot is going to total more than $2 million.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 7:52:11 GMT -5
Ladd and Okposo are very good target options. These are the type of supporting scoring players that don't wilt under pressure that the Berg needs to be adding to the mix. They also can be made to fit in Montreal's cap situation. The real interesting option to me is to see if the Berg decides to try to move a guy like Markov at the deadline. Much is made that Washington is likely all in this year. Ovie friendship and all. From a pure selling high perspective this may be a tiny window. It would leave a gap next year, but Petry, Beau, Barberio, etc can all take on more over time. MT continues to keep Pateryn doing diddly (so much for pipe dreams of rotating Dmen). Gary Lawless is reporting, along with the time to trade Ladd being right now, that Ladd's camp is looking for a deal in the area of 6 years and "north of $6 million" per. Too rich for a guy with one 60 point season and never 30 goals. Given that he's 30, I'd rather take the 33 year old Hartnell for at least $1.25 million less and 3 fewer years.
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Post by jkr on Jan 25, 2016 8:30:37 GMT -5
I think Stamkos stays. He is on record as saying he wants to stay in Tampa. www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=793599#&navid=nhl-searchAccording to Friedman he has turned down 8.5. Well, it is January and they have 5 months to bridge the gap between that already high number to something like 9.5-10. If he has turned down a deal that at least means they are talking & talking can lead to a resolution. This is a soon to be 26 year old that already has a 60 goal season on his resume. Yzerman is not going to let him get away. Here is an article I found about ownership's view: www.toutsurlehockey.com/27325/manchettes/tslh/TBL/2015-09-21/stamkos-restera-a-tampa-bay-selon-le-proprio-du-lightning/In the translation it refers to Vinnik saying he is not imposing a ceiling on Yzerman to sign Stamkos. FWIW the TSN panel brought this up a few nights ago. McKenzie stuck to his guns and thinks he is going to free agency. Button and Poulin think he signs with TB before July 1. The problem for Y is that his payroll is going up a lot in the next 2 years. He may not be able to afford Stamkos except at a discount. When you have someone on your roster that has scored 60 goals in a season then that's your priority. These types of talents are very rare & you don't sacrifice them to sign guys like Palat or Killorn. I don't mean to demean their abilities but they are an awful lot easier to find. Chicago already knows this & Stan Bowman has become quite adept & keeping his "must have" players & filling in the blanks for the other spots. If Yzerman loses Stamkos he will regret it for the rest of his career.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Jan 25, 2016 8:53:38 GMT -5
The problem for Y is that his payroll is going up a lot in the next 2 years. He may not be able to afford Stamkos except at a discount. Tampa being dismantled ... can't come soon enough for me ... time is running out fast on us, too ... we'd better have a Cup by the time Pacioretty/Price's contracts come up ... we've got a Vezina winner in Price and a Norris winner in Subban ... I know an Art Ross winner is a lot to ask for, but we're going to need goals just the same ... #brokenrecord Cheers.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 9:02:53 GMT -5
The problem for Y is that his payroll is going up a lot in the next 2 years. He may not be able to afford Stamkos except at a discount. When you have someone on your roster that has scored 60 goals in a season then that's your priority. These types of talents are very rare & you don't sacrifice them to sign guys like Palat or Killorn. I don't mean to demean their abilities but they are an awful lot easier to find. Chicago already knows this & Stan Bowman has become quite adept & keeping his "must have" players & filling in the blanks for the other spots. If Yzerman loses Stamkos he will regret it for the rest of his career. I don't think there's any doubt that it's potentially a huge mistake to walk away from a Stamkos-like player. The triplets aside, much was made, after their instant success and chemistry, about Stamkos being 'stuck' with Callahan and Killorn. Cooper's been more than reluctant to alter the top six in any way. Steven has still put up good numbers, though there's a bit of a slip this year, while playing with a defensive player in Callahan and a reasonable secondary scorer in Killorn. If I'm the premier player, the face, of a team, I'd like to be playing with at least one of the triplets. One has to privately wonder if the the team's unwillingness to try it is a veiled attempt to diminish Stamkos' production in an attempt to affect contract value. "Steve, you've gone from a who scored 60g and 100p to a guy putting up 30g and 70p. We don't feel that's a $10 million player." etc etc. More than anything, those roster decisions may be what drives him out of town. Not the contract offer. Montreal can offer Pacioretty and Gallgher for a minimum of 3 years. Their premier puck mover, and one of his closest friends, is locked up. Carey Price is in net. I just can't ignore the contract issues Tampa is staring at. Remove Stamkos from the equation altogether, and you still have a hard time signing everyone who hits RFA/UFA in the next 2 years. Most of those guys are key pieces too. I don't know a lot about their farm system, but I do know that the Drouin situation throws a huge wrench into any plans that would allow them to trade off an RFA for pieces. I do know when I look at their AHL affiliate that it's only got two guys with more than 10 goals and one of them is Jeff Tambellini. Granted Marchessault and Vermin (what a name) have apparently graduated, but there's a lot of late 20s and older on that club. All that tells me is that there is a lack of depth that appears ready to make the jump and replace guys who are primed for big contracts the club can't afford.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 9:20:27 GMT -5
The problem for Y is that his payroll is going up a lot in the next 2 years. He may not be able to afford Stamkos except at a discount. Tampa being dismantled ... can't come soon enough for me ... time is running out fast on us, too ... we'd better have a Cup by the time Pacioretty/Price's contracts come up ... we've got a Vezina winner in Price and a Norris winner in Subban ... I know an Art Ross winner is a lot to ask for, but we're going to need goals just the same ... #brokenrecord Cheers. The Canadien's saving grace is the way the contracts are staggered. Pacioretty isn't due a new contract before Plekanec's next deal expires (if he's still around). Price isn't due a new deal before Markov's and Emelin's contracts expire. The buffer is there. It's impossible to say what these two guys will be 'worth' come those times. Pro contracts never seem to go down, but if the Canadian dollar stays low for a few years and affects the cap, it won't make it easy on anyone. Player contracts could certain plateau, and teams won't just be able to throw money at players. Stamkos $10 million Subban $9 million Price $8.5 million (Lundqvist cap hit and highest for a goalie in league) Pacioretty $6.875 million (the average salary of the 4 guys who've scored more goals in the last 3 years) Total: $34.75 million That's roughly have the cap devoted to 4 guys. I don't have time to do the math on the other 29 teams' top 4 guys. It means a bottom six full of guys averaging $1 million and a bottom pairing around the same or less.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 9:32:01 GMT -5
For $hits and giggles ... a lineup with Stamkos, Pacioretty, Price and Subban signed to the above and including a Coburn like signing I had above and a Hartnell like contract. Galchenyuk is extended on a contract like Gallagher's and Beaulieu is a fixture on the second pair at $3 million. The 950k on the second line is an offensive kid on an ELC (Scherbak or maybe even a lottery pick from this year. The bottom six is to reflect average salaries. Eller would likely be gone. The point is, don't waste the money on the bottom six. They should be relatively interchangeable from year to year and cheap.
6875000 10000000 3750000 4750000 3750000 950000 1000000 1000000 1000000 1000000 1000000 1000000 5000000 9000000 3000000 5500000 1000000 1000000 8500000 575000
That's $69.65 million.
Look at Chicago's roster. That's what they've done. They've got Kane and Toews on $10.5 million hits and they've got $1.5 million in cap space. That's a significant player at the deadline.
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Post by Skilly on Jan 25, 2016 10:16:02 GMT -5
I'm not including DLR because you said 16 players, and because I think we don't need him ... I took him for being part of the 16 contracts next year. PAP must be what's part of the 16 contracts ... any way you slice it though, whether you have DLR or someone else they'll likely be a better part of $1 million towards the cap. PAP's $1,333,333.00 and another player to fill a roster spot is going to total more than $2 million. I think you are missing my point We have 17 players currently under contract + PAP's buyout ... that's 18. You referenced only 16, so I assumed you eliminated one of them. I choose DLR. I also included resigning Barberio, Byron and DSP (all at 1 million). My line-up is a full lineup ... 2 goalies, 13 forwards, 7 defense ... If I have an error in my caps, it isn't in the number of players, it could conceivably be in their bonuses which have to be carried (even though it is unlikely they will meet them). The only players we have with such contracts would be Beaulieu and Scherbak. I got my numbers from nhlnumbers.com , they may not have any bonuses included, I will re-check EDIT: It can not be Beaulieu. He will be on his second contract with a 1 Million cap hit. Scherbak does have bonuses in each year, his cap hit next year will be 1.1 million I checked three different sites ... war-on-ice, nhlnumbers, and generalfanager ... they all have us at 58.425M for 16 players (if we remove DLR) and 59.758M if we add in PAP to the 16 contracts. Is it possible you used Plekanec's and Gallagher's salary instead of cap-hit? EDIT: I had Plekanec's cap hit incorrect, therefore it is 59.425M for 16 players without DLR (60.758M including PAP's buy-out). However, DLR could be swapped for DSP for the 13th forward
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 10:21:46 GMT -5
I took him for being part of the 16 contracts next year. PAP must be what's part of the 16 contracts ... any way you slice it though, whether you have DLR or someone else they'll likely be a better part of $1 million towards the cap. PAP's $1,333,333.00 and another player to fill a roster spot is going to total more than $2 million. I think you are missing my point We have 17 players currently under contract + PAP's buyout ... that's 18. You referenced only 16, so I assumed you eliminated one of them. I choose DLR. I also included resigning Barberio, Byron and DSP (all at 1 million). My line-up is a full lineup ... 2 goalies, 13 forwards, 7 defense ... If I have an error in my caps, it isn't in the number of players, it could conceivably be in their bonuses which have to be carried (even though it is unlikely they will meet them). The only players we have with such contracts would be Beaulieu and Scherbak. I got my numbers from nhlnumbers.com , they may not have any bonuses included, I will re-check 23 hours ago Skilly said: Cap hits (58.425 million) Goalies. (7.075 Million) Carey Price ... 6.5 million Mike Condon .. 0.575 million Defence. (26.15 million) PK Subban ... 9 million Markov ......... 5.75 million Petry ............. 5.5 million Emelin .......... 4.1 million Beaulieu ....... 1.0 million Pateryn ......... 0.8 million extension Forwards (25.2 million) Plekanec .... 5 million Pacioretty ... 4.5 million Gallagher .... 3.75 million Desharnais .. 3.5 million Eller ............. 3.5 million Galchenyuk .. 2.8 million Mitchell ......... 1.2 million Flynn ............ 0.95 million 8 forwards, 6 defense, 2 goalies Add in DSP, Byron and Barberio at $1 million each and you're just under $62 million with now 10 forwards, 7 defense, and 2 goalies.
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Post by Skilly on Jan 25, 2016 10:40:15 GMT -5
I think you are missing my point We have 17 players currently under contract + PAP's buyout ... that's 18. You referenced only 16, so I assumed you eliminated one of them. I choose DLR. I also included resigning Barberio, Byron and DSP (all at 1 million). My line-up is a full lineup ... 2 goalies, 13 forwards, 7 defense ... If I have an error in my caps, it isn't in the number of players, it could conceivably be in their bonuses which have to be carried (even though it is unlikely they will meet them). The only players we have with such contracts would be Beaulieu and Scherbak. I got my numbers from nhlnumbers.com , they may not have any bonuses included, I will re-check 23 hours ago Skilly said: Cap hits (58.425 million) Goalies. (7.075 Million) Carey Price ... 6.5 million Mike Condon .. 0.575 million Defence. (26.15 million) PK Subban ... 9 million Markov ......... 5.75 million Petry ............. 5.5 million Emelin .......... 4.1 million Beaulieu ....... 1.0 million Pateryn ......... 0.8 million extension Forwards (25.2 million) Plekanec .... 5 million Pacioretty ... 4.5 million Gallagher .... 3.75 million Desharnais .. 3.5 million Eller ............. 3.5 million Galchenyuk .. 2.8 million Mitchell ......... 1.2 million Flynn ............ 0.95 million 8 forwards, 6 defense, 2 goalies Add in DSP, Byron and Barberio at $1 million each and you're just under $62 million with now 10 forwards, 7 defense, and 2 goalies. I don't see your point??? You said there was a 74 million dollar cap ... so my lineup now has 11.5 million (edited) to sign THREE guys (Ladd and Okposo cost 10 million by your own words). Even if you give LADD 6 million. We can afford it with a 74 million cap without removing players. Maybe we don't go after both ... maybe we settle for a 2.5-3.0 million player to handle the buyout to PAP. But we do not have to remove the contracts you were saying, if free agency goes our way. (pie in the sky, perhaps)
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Post by Skilly on Jan 25, 2016 11:02:18 GMT -5
Main difference between our numbers is I'm including DLR. We have to include PAP's number at least because it's $1,333,333.00 that Bergevin doesn't have to spend. I've run the roster, with dlr through excel and PAP and it comes to $61,683,330 every time. As that's less than the cost of a minimum NHL contract, I call it $62 million. pleks 6000000 max 4500000 gally 3750000 eller 3500000 dd 3500000 galch 2800000 mitchell 1200000 flynn 950000 dlr 925000 pk 9000000 markov 5750000 petry 5500000 beaulieu 1000000 pateryn 800000 emelin 4100000 price 6500000 condon 575000 parenteau 1333333 LOL I don't know why it bothers me so much that are numbers are not matching ... but I think I have found it. Plakanec's cap hit is 6 million on his extension (I had 5 million) ... and your list has 17 players on it, not 16. We good now! I think I made all the relevant edits in my previous posts ... sorry about that.
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 12:22:06 GMT -5
LOL . Yes, all that sorted, let's get back to the rebuild. Matthews, Laine, Puljujarvi!
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Post by Boston_Habs on Jan 25, 2016 15:10:26 GMT -5
It's impossible for a GM to plan for things that are out of his control, but Berg has pretty much tied his hands as far as next year is concerned. We have 8 forwards under contract, with only Weise and Fleischmann as UFA's. That's less than $2m in salary rolling off on a forward group that has underwhelmed to say the least. On D, we have 5 guys under contract and the rest under our control.
This roster is pretty much baked for next year, which to me is almost more concerning than what is happening right now. If we miss the playoffs or get bounced early, it will be difficult for Berg to make any moves unless he can find a taker for some of our contracts.
The Emelin contract was ill-advised when it happened, and will be tough to move at $4.1 million for 2 more years. That's too much for a 3rd pair guy. I think that's an immovable contract unless we are taking an equally bad contract back.
The other deal that is looking bad is extending Pleks for another 2 years at $6m per. I've been one of Pleks' bigger supporters (durable, versatile, consistent 20+ goal guy). I just wish Berg had waited until the offseason to deal with him. Pleks is the kind of guy who, I think, would want to stay here so I don't believe there was much risk of losing him as a UFA. Now that his production has taken a big dip and the team is struggling.... the lost flexibility of that $6m could cost Berg this summer.
Especially if Stamkos decides to go UFA. It may be a pipe dream, but the Habs certainly offer him a far better opportunity to win than Toronto (a solid core all locked up to reasonable contracts). The problem is we don't have $10m in cap space coming up this summer unless Bergevin does some wheeling and dealing. But which contracts can he reasonably trade without having to take money back?
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Post by blny on Jan 25, 2016 15:52:48 GMT -5
If Berg is willing to take less of a return ...
Emelin has moved around the bottom 4 this year. I would say he's looked somewhat better this year than last, but not as good as we'd all like. Still, there are always teams looking for D. Dallas might be a good fit. Klingberg and Goligoski are their puck movers. After that it's Oduya, Demers, and sub $1 million guys. I think the bigger stumbling block with him, and for that matter Plekanec and Markov, is the ntc.
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Post by CentreHice on Jan 25, 2016 16:51:54 GMT -5
Great reads, insights, and planning, guys!
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Post by stoat on Jan 26, 2016 0:00:13 GMT -5
The only golden moment this season was the Winter Classic. The 9-0 start was a wet dream.
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Post by stoat on Jan 26, 2016 0:07:04 GMT -5
Ladd and Okposo are very good target options. These are the type of supporting scoring players that don't wilt under pressure that the Berg needs to be adding to the mix. They also can be made to fit in Montreal's cap situation. The real interesting option to me is to see if the Berg decides to try to move a guy like Markov at the deadline. Much is made that Washington is likely all in this year. Ovie friendship and all. From a pure selling high perspective this may be a tiny window. It would leave a gap next year, but Petry, Beau, Barberio, etc can all take on more over time. MT continues to keep Pateryn doing diddly (so much for pipe dreams of rotating Dmen). MT can bring back Fankie BooBoo to fill the gap Only half the roster shouldn't be on the market. The problem is, can trading the other half make the Habs a powerhouse? I'm skeptical. Moreover, are there any prospects in the organization who might shine next season?
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Post by Tankdriver on Jan 26, 2016 9:39:40 GMT -5
MT can bring back Fankie BooBoo to fill the gap Only half the roster shouldn't be on the market. The problem is, can trading the other half make the Habs a powerhouse? I'm skeptical. Moreover, are there any prospects in the organization who might shine next season? Nope.
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Post by folatre on Jan 26, 2016 21:32:24 GMT -5
This is lost season. I do not advocate asset fire sale because there is no way Carey Price wants to play the remainder of his prime years on a club targeting window that opens in 2020. But the empirical record (2011-2016) confirms there is no way forward in the Stanley Cup playoffs with Plekanec and Desharnais 1-2 down the middle. Bergevin is not astute hockey man if he cannot see this and act accordingly. The GM must be the GM and Therrien preference for who plays centre in 2016-17 and future deserves no consideration. One small offensive centre must be traded.
Bergevin overinvested on defense. 29 million USD on d-corps annually is not justifiable by the team play. Sure, Gilbert is gone, hopefully at the deadline. But another high price d-man should go and the obvious choice based on supply and demand is Markov.
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Post by blny on Jan 27, 2016 7:15:09 GMT -5
This is lost season. I do not advocate asset fire sale because there is no way Carey Price wants to play the remainder of his prime years on a club targeting window that opens in 2020. But the empirical record (2011-2016) confirms there is no way forward in the Stanley Cup playoffs with Plekanec and Desharnais 1-2 down the middle. Bergevin is not astute hockey man if he cannot see this and act accordingly. The GM must be the GM and Therrien preference for who plays centre in 2016-17 and future deserves no consideration. One small offensive centre must be traded. Bergevin overinvested on defense. 29 million USD on d-corps annually is not justifiable by the team play. Sure, Gilbert is gone, hopefully at the deadline. But another high price d-man should go and the obvious choice based on supply and demand is Markov. Call it a strategic fire sale. Primarily, we're talking about getting rid of guys either outside the age group of the core, or not good enough for the role MT expects. Regardless, they're not players that will get the Canadiens over the hump and they're money can be better used elsewhere. The priority is clearing cap space. However, if it means taking a contract back, hopefully it's someone that can score regardless of their age; even if it meant taking more term back than the outgoing player (see the Hartnell scenario for such a move). This is all about a quick turn around. It's not based on taking shortcuts though. It's about a purposeful cleanse of the right parts, followed by submitting to defeat by a bad season instead of fighting for mediocre. That means tank. Plummet like a rock in water. Do what's necessary to ensure a high lottery pick. This draft year looks to have some rather dynamic players - even outside the top 3. I don't want to beat around the bush though. Short term pain for long term gain. Once you're through the draft, make a bold UFA signing. This is the hardest part to pull off. We all know who the premiere ufa-to-be is. You could try and spread the new found cap space over more than one forward, but there aren't a lot of young ufas. The RFA pool is decent, but not spectacular. I've tried, briefly, to find out if there is a limit to the number of buyouts a team can have against the cap at one time. There doesn't seem to be a hard limit. Buyout rules for players over 26 are 2/3 the remainder of the total contract spread over twice the remaining years. If there are no takers for Eller and Desharnais, buy them out. DD becomes $1.1725 in space next season and the season after. Eller is the same amount over 4 years. It sucks, but it's one way of freeing up space. That's $4.65 million in space you didn't have. You could conversely offer to eat the same amount in a trade. It accomplishes the same amount of space, and perhaps you get something noteworthy back. Tampa bombed in 2013, despite good seasons from a number of players. They were undermined by poor goal tending. They got 3rd overall that year. Drouin hasn't worked out, but they got a great pick, addressed the goalie situation and rebounded quickly. That sort of turnaround can happen here if done correctly.
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