A Loyal Dog
I love SlafCaulZuki (pronounced Slafkovsky). Woof!
- Oct 20, 2016
- 9,571
- 11,535
O'Reilly
Pacioretty (with agreement to extend with BUF)
Petry (600k retained)
Lindgren
2nd round pick 2018 (MTL - 35th overall)
Why do the Habs do this?
The Habs lose their best offensive player and 2nd best defenseman (2nd to Weber) but finally acquire a center they most desperately need. While the hole in the wings is not too bad (since they're stacked), they could target Carlson/Green in free agency to fill in the Petry spot (and if they don't, then they can easily roll with Juulsen).
Why do the Sabres do this?
The Sabres weakest areas are in the LW and the RD (considering Dahlin is coming in to save the day in LD). Pacioretty is a premium top 2-way LW who finally gets the chance to play with an actual good center. He will greatly contribute to the offense (they'll need it with ROR out of their lineup). But where it gets interesting is that they also acquire Petry who would become their best defenseman (for the moment). They also get Lindgren who could help out with goaltending (and possibly break out - he's certainly shown he's got what it takes in MTL). This also opens the Sabres window to finally contend and get out of the rut they've been in for far too long.
I understand BUF gets older with this trade, but again: they will be able to contend & solidify their team. They have what it takes to go far with these trades (and a certain Dahlin incoming) IMO.