Speculation: 2021 Offseason Trade/Free Agency Thread

[AngelDuck]

There are bargains to be had in FA. No one is saying give Hall 6 years 55 million, but to completely ignore FA is also foolish.

We need to upgrade on the margin any way possible

 

[dracom]

I'm worried about Bob going after guys who are offensive contributors because we've seen how that has worked so far. Sprong and Milano were guys who came in a produced offensively but were bad in other areas and so they got banished. Really wish we could just get a guy who's offensive contribution is far above his defensive contributions and just deal with it instead of trying to force that player to be more defensively responsible by sacrificing offense.

 

[dracom]

There are bargains to be had in FA. No one is saying give Hall 6 years 55 million, but to completely ignore FA is also foolish.

We need to upgrade on the margin any way possible

Not sure what bargains you're thinking of, because going through the expected FAs for this offseason I don't really see any one who could be a bargain. Lot of the good FA will probably re-sign with their current team, like Hamilton. Or someone like Saad will probably get 5.5x5 or something which we should avoid. Our bottom 6 is covered and if we're getting anyone for the top 6 to help with scoring we'll have to probably trade for him.

 

[AngelDuck]

Not sure what bargains you're thinking of, because going through the expected FAs for this offseason I don't really see any one who could be a bargain. Lot of the good FA will probably re-sign with their current team, like Hamilton. Or someone like Saad will probably get 5.5x5 or something which we should avoid. Our bottom 6 is covered and if we're getting anyone for the top 6 to help with scoring we'll have to probably trade for him.

Last year you had Duclair, Hoffman and Athanousiou who would have both been good pickups.

I’d like to see us take a look at Matthias Janmark and Mikael Granlund if the price is right. Both guys bring some offense and can play center and wing. Possibly Wennberg too

We have money to spend

I absolutely don’t want Saad or Foligno but I wouldn’t say our bottom 6 is “covered”. We have a bunch of muckers/low offensive upside guys that could be replaced there ImO

 

[Anaheim4ever]

Last year you had Duclair, Hoffman and Athanousiou who would have both been good pickups.

I’d like to see us take a look at Matthias Janmark and Mikael Granlund if the price is right. Both guys bring some offense and can play center and wing. Possibly Wennberg too

I'm sure 32yearold Hoffman is looking forward to signing with Anaheim with a 0% chance at a cup & a very tiny chance at the playoffs where they get blown out in the 1st round.
For someone like him to sign here he'd want a long term deal because he's gonna retire without a cup

Even if he signs a 1 year deal with the Ducks the team probably hurts his production and effects which teams try to trade for him as well as what his next deal would look like.

 

[AngelDuck]

I'm sure 32yearold Hoffman is looking forward to signing with Anaheim with a 0% chance at a cup & a very tiny chance at the playoffs where they get blown out in the 1st round.
For someone like him to sign here he'd want a long term deal because he's gonna retire without a cup.

I didn’t say sign him this season. I said he would have been a fine pickup last offseason.

There are plenty of solid players that would be an upgrade on the Deslauriers/Grant/Heinens of the world that would be willing to sign here

And if we’re out of contention by the trade deadline, you can trade them for a free pick. Win-win

 

[Static]

I'm worried about Bob going after guys who are offensive contributors because we've seen how that has worked so far. Sprong and Milano were guys who came in a produced offensively but were bad in other areas and so they got banished. Really wish we could just get a guy who's offensive contribution is far above his defensive contributions and just deal with it instead of trying to force that player to be more defensively responsible by sacrificing offense.

Those guys were peripheral pieces and dice rolls though. I don't think Bob has a problem with offense-only guys as long as the offense they bring actually outweighs the defensive shortcomings. With those two it didn't.

There's nothing wrong with demanding net-positive contributions from all players regardless of which part of the game that contribution is coming from.

 

[dracom]

Last year you had Duclair, Hoffman and Athanousiou who would have both been good pickups.

I’d like to see us take a look at Matthias Janmark and Mikael Granlund if the price is right. Both guys bring some offense and can play center and wing. Possibly Wennberg too

We have money to spend

I absolutely don’t want Saad or Foligno but I wouldn’t say our bottom 6 is “covered”. We have a bunch of muckers/low offensive upside guys that could be replaced there ImO

Fair. Not sure if Hoffman would have wanted to come here last season though. Duclair and Athanousiou would have been good picks ups last season. Not really seeing any similar guys who are closer to 25 as FA like them this offseason though. Janmark I don't get, he doesn't really produce anymore than our current guys. Granlund could be a good pickup actually, though again I just go back to us having to overspend for FAs which I just don't think we should be doing.

Just cause we have money doesn't mean we NEED to spend it especially when we're not contending right now.

Jones-Steel-Carrick
Deslaurier-Grant-Volkov

just kinda of a quick idea of a bottom 6 I was thinking of. we could upgrade on those guys, but Im not sure if it's a priority.

Those guys were peripheral pieces and dice rolls though. I don't think Bob has a problem with offense-only guys as long as the offense they bring actually outweighs the defensive shortcomings. With those two it didn't.

There's nothing wrong with demanding net-positive contributions from all players regardless of which part of the game that contribution is coming from.

I really don't buy that Sprong or Milano were so bad defensively that they shouldn't have been allowed to stick in the NHL for a team starved for goal scoring. Sprong played 42 games with the Caps so they obviously thought he was ok enough to get nhl ice time. I just find it kinda funny that we accept players who are defensively responsible but offensive black holes while not accepting the opposite.

 

[Goose of Reason]

Milano's issue wasn't defense, it was that he got concussed and was apparently dealing with post concussion syndrome that kept him out for the rest of the year.

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

I'm worried about Bob going after guys who are offensive contributors because we've seen how that has worked so far. Sprong and Milano were guys who came in a produced offensively but were bad in other areas and so they got banished. Really wish we could just get a guy who's offensive contribution is far above his defensive contributions and just deal with it instead of trying to force that player to be more defensively responsible by sacrificing offense.

What the heck did Milano produce. He's had one good game, ever. Then he banished himself to the infirmary.

 

[AngelDuck]

Fair. Not sure if Hoffman would have wanted to come here last season though. Duclair and Athanousiou would have been good picks ups last season. Not really seeing any similar guys who are closer to 25 as FA like them this offseason though. Janmark I don't get, he doesn't really produce anymore than our current guys. Granlund could be a good pickup actually, though again I just go back to us having to overspend for FAs which I just don't think we should be doing.

Just cause we have money doesn't mean we NEED to spend it especially when we're not contending right now.

Jones-Steel-Carrick
Deslaurier-Grant-Volkov

just kinda of a quick idea of a bottom 6 I was thinking of. we could upgrade on those guys, but Im not sure if it's a priority.
.

When you are as bad as we were offensively and have money to spend, yes you absolutely do NEED to spend money. Unless you want to pray all your prospects pan out for all of eternity and bank on that

And I’m sorry but if that is truly our bottom 6 next year, we are going to have the exact same problems we had the past 2 seasons. I mean it’s just terrible

The goal isn’t to have a collection of 4th liners in your bottom 6. It’s to have at least a couple guys that could realistically play top 9 somewhere playing there

 

[Trojans86]

I’d rather trade for a youngish top 6 player, rather than sign a ufa

But who do we give up for a youngish top 6 forward?

 

[Trojans86]

Ducks should absolutely avoid FA signings & weaponize their cap space for picks.

I agree but the showed us last season that they don't really want to do that.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

But who do we give up for a youngish top 6 forward?

I mean that all depends on the forward in question. Some teams are going to be in cap situations where they can’t hold on to their developed young talent

 

[Hockey Duckie]

There are bargains to be had in FA. No one is saying give Hall 6 years 55 million, but to completely ignore FA is also foolish.

We need to upgrade on the margin any way possible

I'm lost in this recent thread dialogue. We're lacking talent, mostly on the forward side. Yet, the recent comments have been to "stay put and don't spend any money on FA's" or "let's wait until next off-season to start spending". For all the berating GM Murrays has gotten on this board about not knowing the direction of this franchise, we're here saying to stay put as if we're confident in the direction of this franchise to build only through the draft.

Free Agency isn't for bargains. Some players turn up and some don't. Hoffman turned up and Hall didn't for Buffalo. It's often a gamble. People forget that GM Murray tried to acquire Faulk as well as get him to sign an expensive extension.

Until further notice, we should be assuming that any goal expectations should be reduced by at least a third if not more. So let's assume he's [Blake Coleman] going to top maybe 15 goals with the squad as composed. Are we willing to pay probably close to $4M per year? I'd say not.

At $4 mil on a three year term, Coleman might be a good acquisition. Besides the assumed 15 goals, his two-way game is very solid and adds mean streak that we particularly don't possess. Coleman maybe underrated for what he brings. In 2018-19, when he signed a 3-year contract worth $5.4 mil total, Coleman notched 22 goals and 14 assists in 72 games with the Devils. The following season, he earned 21 goals and 10 assists in 57 games before getting traded to the Bolts. In the playoffs, Coleman had 5 goals and 8 assists in 25 playoff games on the way to a Cup win last year. This shortened season, he potted 14 goals and 17 assists with the second highest +/- rating of +15 in 55 games. His 14 goals would make him our second highest goal scorer.

He is playing behind some very good players in Tampa, but he was able to produce with the Devils. Tampa can't afford him going into next season (well, they can with their LTIR magic tricks, I suppose). Coleman could be a late bloomer.​

I think many teams are looking for homerun swings going into FA. Maybe going after Coleman early could get him before the rest of the league pounces could get him to agree. He would be one piece, but we need another piece with far higher offensive upside. Aside from FA, we may have to swing a trade for an RFA that doesn't want to be with their team any longer such as Buffalo's Reinhart, whose trade cost is far less than trading for Eichel. Either way, the Ducks need to infuse more forward talent in their club in order to become more relevant in the playoff conversations. But this "let's sit out of FA and wait until next season" talk is truly confusing. If we swing and miss, then fine. But not taking a swing at all? So why are so many hating on GM Murray if you simply want to sit and wait another year for our youth program to develop? Does this mean that GM Murray was on the correct path all along? Just an odd turn in discussion.

 

[Static]

Fair. Not sure if Hoffman would have wanted to come here last season though. Duclair and Athanousiou would have been good picks ups last season. Not really seeing any similar guys who are closer to 25 as FA like them this offseason though. Janmark I don't get, he doesn't really produce anymore than our current guys. Granlund could be a good pickup actually, though again I just go back to us having to overspend for FAs which I just don't think we should be doing.

Just cause we have money doesn't mean we NEED to spend it especially when we're not contending right now.

Jones-Steel-Carrick
Deslaurier-Grant-Volkov

just kinda of a quick idea of a bottom 6 I was thinking of. we could upgrade on those guys, but Im not sure if it's a priority.



I really don't buy that Sprong or Milano were so bad defensively that they shouldn't have been allowed to stick in the NHL for a team starved for goal scoring. Sprong played 42 games with the Caps so they obviously thought he was ok enough to get nhl ice time. I just find it kinda funny that we accept players who are defensively responsible but offensive black holes while not accepting the opposite.

Sure, I just don't think they were very good offensively either. I think sprong would have worked out better if we had better offensive players here to feed him.

 

[Hockey Duckie]

But who do we give up for a youngish top 6 forward?

We have G Dostal shining, especially with his AHL playoff performance. I'd hate to give up D LaCombe, but his stock has risen since the WJC-20's. I'd also hate to throw in Perreault. We can throw in C Steel. We can use draft picks that excludes this year's first round pick.

Our LD's are stacked, especially if we re-sign Lindholm to an extension.

Lindholm
Fowler
Fleury
Benoit (AHL)
Mahura (AHL)
Curran (AHL)
LaCombe (NCAA)
Thrun (NCAA)​

The addition and late bloom of Fleury gave the Ducks a lot of depth in a hurry as well as draft capital for a trade.

 

[DavidBL]

I'm sure 32yearold Hoffman is looking forward to signing with Anaheim with a 0% chance at a cup & a very tiny chance at the playoffs where they get blown out in the 1st round.
For someone like him to sign here he'd want a long term deal because he's gonna retire without a cup

Even if he signs a 1 year deal with the Ducks the team probably hurts his production and effects which teams try to trade for him as well as what his next deal would look like.

You know signing for a team like us is actually not a bad idea on a 1 year deal. Instead of signing with one of the teams that may be a cup contender. You sign a cheaper deal with trade control and choose where you want to go after watching the teams play for half a season. Its not like signing in STL got him very far.

 

[TheGoodShepard1]

How about Blake Coleman? Here's what NBCsports had to say about him:

6. Blake Coleman. I know this much: His next contract is going to be a heck of a lot larger than the $1.5M deal he plays on now. Great defensive forward that can score 20 goals and play with a mean streak. The type of player GMs go crazy over, especially in free agency.​

This sounds like a typical Murray player. I don't know if he'll be a top-6 player, but also don't know if he'll be a 20 goal scorer here. I dunno if he's the talent we need, but he can probably help shelter the youth. Plus side is he probably won't break the bank. TB is over the cap next year by $5 mil. So what exactly is "a lot larger than the $1.5 mil deal"? hmmm...

I'd be down for Coleman and a guy like Zach Hyman. Don't know if they'll come here given some playoff teams are going to be after their services, but assuming it's not cost-prohibitive, guys like that who are top-nine forwards who don't look particularly out of place moving up and down the lineup are exactly the type of guys we should be targeting in free agency.

Shouldn't be throwing any money at the supposed big fish on the market this offseason where there's no real A-level free agent. Maybe next year (although I assume Barkov and Seth Jones both sign long-term extensions or are moved before they hit UFA).

 

[Hockey Duckie]

Sure, I just don't think they were very good offensively either. I think sprong would have worked out better if we had better offensive players here to feed him.

I dunno. I read so many reports of Sprong just doing nothing to play defense/back check at the AHL level. While he did move around a bit at the NHL level, that work ethic through and through was just terrible. Sprong is the reason why drafting Perreault scared me. Loads of talent, but is that drive truly there? This AHL season for Perreault relieved my concerns and am damned happy about it!

 

[Leonardo87]

Really think the Ducks should make a serious run at Reinhart. His age fits the Ducks window, and Anaheim is going to compete before Buffalo does.

 

[DavidBL]

Really think the Ducks should make a serious run at Reinhart. His age fits the Ducks window, and Anaheim is going to compete before Buffalo does.

What does he really do for us that Rico and Rakell don't? Other than being younger.

 

[Trojans86]

I mean that all depends on the forward in question. Some teams are going to be in cap situations where they can’t hold on to their developed young talent

I think the hockey trade would be to trade an older guy and retain salary and get a younger guy (like the Fleury trade excl the salary part) but those trades are usually to help them win and help us rebuild. A youngish top 6 forward isn't going to be cheap and I'm not sure we have the older assets for a trade like that.

In my mind the reality is we are not going to be a cup contender for several years at a minimum so the last thing I would want to do is move younger assets to try to win now. Id much rather see us overspend a touch in free agency because we will not have any cap issues for the next 5 years with all of our kids on elcs. This is the one time where we can overpay and it won't put us in a bind. If I were gm I'd sit tight another year or two before starting to buy but if we are hell bent on winning next year I'd rather get guys by overpaying than to get guys by trading futures of any sort.

 

[Leonardo87]

What does he really do for us that Rico and Rakell don't? Other than being younger.

He's younger like you said, can score goals, and will add to the Top 6 and PP, can run something like...

Comtois - Zegras - Reinhart
Rakell - Henrique - Terry

 

[DavidBL]

He's younger like you said, can score goals, and will add to the Top 6 and PP, can run something like...

Comtois - Zegras - Reinhart
Rakell - Henrique - Terry

For me it would depend on price. Hes more of the same IMO. Someone who wont drive a line. Hes only got a couple years left of control and already spoken that he doesn't want to rebuild which could make resigning him harder. Id rather swing for the fences with our first this year and try to get Eichel. If that pick isn't enough to get the conversation started without Z or Drysdale then continue with what we're doing.