And that will be for teams actually trying to win something
I'm not sure about that. Outside of a the few top teams in the league, I'm not sure they classify themselves in that way. I think most teams think if they can just get into the playoffs, a lot of things can happen. Maybe they won't win the cup per se, but maybe they can get to the finals, or the conference finals with a great run. Just like Minny a few years ago. They weren't really all that different than the Avs rebuild/experience wise or standings wise.
Scratching a guy and trading a guy are much different situations. The Avs have absolutely shown no desire to move Holden nor do they have any incentive to. Getting a pick doesn't seen to be much of a concern to them. They love him, he's cheap and eat minutes. Why on earth would they trade him?
Ture, but my point was the general idea that Roy has his favorites, and won't ever go against that.
The only reason they'd trade him is to open up room on the left side for Zadorov and Bigras, and to change the makeup of the D. They could move him or one of the other guys to the right side, but they might feel more comfortable with them staying on the left, and a more proven defensive presence on the right. It would allow them to improve on Holden in some way. Also to a lesser extent, gain an asset they lost. Just like how they regained their 2nd from the Sharks.