That' a lot of post, and much I don't agree with. Dorion traded what I view to be acceptable futures, and all were secondary compared to our top several assets. We traded away Bowers and a lottery protected 1st, those are the best futures we gave up, while keeping Chabot, White, Brown, Batherson, Formenton, and Chalpik. We don't have endless spots on the team. Realistically I just listed 6 players that look to need roster spaces now and in the near future, and people are complaining because we gave up other futures?
We need to start trading the quantity of assets we have to better the spots we have. People around here like to hoard picks and prospects, which is what we have done, through excellent drafting. At some point though, since not all of your quality assets can make your team, you have to trade some top get better in areas. This is what PD has done.
Bowers and the lottery protected 1st were traded to upgrade from Turris to Duchene. That is a significant upgrade from where I'm sitting, if you don't see it that way then I can understand why you see it as a waste. That's not me looking with rose coloured glasses, that you and me disagreeing about how good Duchene is compared to Turris. I have a feeling that you'll be moving closer to my view sooner than later.
Our playoff run rentals were bought with later picks and Dahlen. Yes it would have been nice to keep the prospect, but in the end it was a nice secondary prospect traded for a player that scored at a .5ppg down the stretch. Personally I would trade Dahlen for that over and over again.
The real issue is the difference between how I view team success, and how you view it. You have a hundred excuses as to why and how the team could have done all kinds of things differently, and you and others downplay last year's success because we didn't win it all. To you it seems like all moves were a waste because we didn't win the cup. To me the moves were well worth it because the team came within a goal of making the finals. Honestly I could never watch a sport and be a fan under those conditions.
The draft pick is lottery protected, so we're going to get another excellent pick this year, and yet folks still argue that we have mortgaged the future. The reality is that this is a one off bad year, like at least one team has every year. next year's pick will not likely be a lottery pick, but even if it was we need another prospect, ready years away, like a hole in the head. What we need are on roster upgrades, like Duchene over Turris.
The last point that doesn't seem to matter to many folks is how happy the team was that the GM went out and made moves to help them make the playoffs and be successful in them. The prospect and pick fans miss the fact that the guys on the team don't care about that as much as winning now. The guys were in a good spot and wanted to make a run for it. The GM decided to support that and bring in some depth and support AND IT WORKED. You think because they didn't win the cup that it was a failure, but I'd bet money that no-one in the organization thinks that, and definitely not the players. To your futures point, PD did all that without giving up a single top asset. Not one.
I'm not going to wade into the EK trade stuff, so much that goes around this site is rumours and conjecture. That of course is part of what this site is, but I'm not about to include it in my feeling towards management. If an involved party comes out and says something, I'll add it to the fact base. EK plays for us, both sides have indicated that they want him to stay.
There's a lot of stuff you wouldn't do in my place, but then again you wouldn't know what to do if suddenly saw things through my eyes. I feel like a pretty even keel fan who enjoys the Sens. I don't go out my way to make up or believe rumours and speculation, and I try not to get caught up in all of the hindsight, the woulda's, coulda's, and shoulda's. It seems the make me unpopular around here with the most frequent posters, but such is life. I don't need to prove my perspective to you, those who choose to see things the way you do have already cast their die.
Perhaps just understand that some fans view things differently, or take different pleasures from the entertainment. Case in point, last years run was a lucky failure to you, while it was one of my favourite fan experiences that came up a bit short. In truth, this team has given us three excellent stretch drives in the recent past that have been more exciting that almost anything else other teams have had to offer their fan bases. Call me crazy and move on.
