I respect the perspective you are trying to lay down for fans with this one. What you said about TDA not holding as much value in GMs mind, even NYR, as much as what fans perceive really hit a mark.
I will say this though. I personally hold DeAngelo in higher regard than say Barrie, Shattenkirk, or even Hamilton. DeAngelo is a stud with just below average defensive worts. He drives the play from zone to zone and manages to find loose pucks down low accordingly. It bothers me enough that he is more in the mold of a younger Yandle with muscle and grit, or a poor Brent Burns and we could miss out on a golden player who is on the cusp of showing us what exactly he will be the next 5 or 6 years.
I don't see him as a complementary offensive feeder. He is too assertive for that and showed a few times he can make plays in traffic and turn what looks like a zone reversal into an odd-man rush in our favor then set himself up in the process to nail a rebound.
I'll puke if a Monahan level player is the return.
Wasn't TDA the target of the current GM when they made the Stepan deal (besides the salary dump)?
Hasn't TDA developed and produced since that time??
Besides putting up points, doesn't TDA stand up for teammates and is well liked in the dressing room???
He's played for peanuts until now and now that he's an RFA, he's asking to get paid, nothing wrong there, as far as I'm concerned!
I really like what I see and hear from Lundqvist, but to say he's ready and able to step in, if TDA leaves is ludicrous. Ludicrous because we don't know how he and his game will adapt to the NHL yet. In my opinion, the wise thing to do is sign him to a 2 year extension and see how things shake out with our RD, including Lundqvist, after he comes over next year...