It is just more Severson can’t do anything wrong and Santini sucks garbage that has been proven wrong weeks ago.
Trading Santini would be as dumb as trading Severson. He is in no way expendable.
He's actually pretty expendable. He's already a solid bottom pairing dman that could possibly be a top 4 defenseman with a bit more work. And no, trading him wouldn't be as foolish as trading Severson. Saying that is putting them on equal footing when Severson is a better player and more valuable to the team.
Santini hasn't shown he can be a top 4 dman yet since he has only struggled in that position.
It doesn't help he is playing with an aging player like Greene who is equally as bad in a top 4 role, but Santini is the most expendable dman given how the team has Butcher and Mueller, and either one of them are capable of playing on the right side where Santini would have a place. We also have Lovejoy who honestly hasn't been horrible in the bottom pairing role. It's hard to take him out when he has been pretty solid (aside from that shitty pinch in Boston). I do think Santini is better than Lovejoy, but his cap hit also makes him expendable.
So being defensively solid and at the very least a bottom pairing dman in his early 20s with a low cap hit with some potential top 4 upside does make him the most expendable dman on the team.
Trading Santini would be a step backwards for the team. He is one of the better defensive defenseman on the team when used properly. Still not sure how Lovejoy is in over him.
It wouldn't be a step backwards if it could net us a top 6 forward that has a ton of speed and a great shot that can pot you 25-30 goals a season for the next few years. There are 5 dmen on the current d core that aren't even in their 30s yet. And There are two defenseman playing over Santini right now. Mueller and Lovejoy.
we did, although i’d argue larsson wasn’t our best defenseman, but it’s irrelevant because santini isn’t our best defenseman now. anyway, that’s true, but not something you want to make a habit of. santini could very well be a legitimate top-4 defenseman someday, and those are more valuable than wingers to me.
don’t get me wrong- if we had hall and hoffman on this team, we wouldn’t see another ‘our 2nd line isn’t working’ posts until their contracts ran out. but i wouldn’t want to sacrifice any young defensemen right now. just my opinion.
i agree with
@Nubmer6 in that we have a lot of defensemen, but i’m not counting any chickens before they’re hatched, even with severson. i made that mistake already with the gelinas/urbom/merrill years. that said, i fully acknowledge the results these past few years are better than the urbom squad
A top 6 scoring winger is more valuable than a bottom pairing dman that may have more upside than his current playing level suggests. If a trade can be made using Santini to get Hoffman you make it. You don't hold onto him just because of what ifs. You go with what you need. This team needs more consistent scoring that can be placed on another line.
Lets see, what's the better idea, holding onto a what if, or using that what if to get a proven top 6 goal scoring winger?
You're hoping Santini becomes something more, kind of like how people kept hoping that Gelinas, Merrill and Urbom became more than what they are.
That is just as bad as counting your chickens before they hatch.
It's also just being too afraid to make a move because of past screw ups.
This is exactly why, in my eyes, I think the asking price is too steep for us for a guy like Hoffman. We need to try and keep our younger d-men because that's the area we should try and build up going forward. Guys like Severson and Santini should only be moved for the absolute right price. As much as I like Hoffman, I don't think we should move Santini for him.
Ideally, we come away with a good young defender in this upcoming draft, and then maybe weigh your options from there.
One of these things is not like the other. Some of you are overrating the living hell out of Santini.