The Price of Moving Up in the Draft
I've seen it being suggested in many different threads, in the Sabres Forum and in the Trade Rumors. I've seen such things as people (re: Leafs fans
) thinking they could possibly move up to the 5th pick for their 20th+Gardiner. I've seen a couple that have Stafford plus our pick, maybe around 10, and think that might be enough to move up to 5th or 6th. However, the fact of the matter is, very rarely is a top 10 pick traded. It has only happened five (plus the Kessel trade which two picks ended up being in the top ten) times since the 04-05 lockout.
Here's a recap of the deals made:
Trading Vanek is a possibility, as players like Jeff Carter, Phil Kessel, and Jordan Staal have been traded for high picks, the downside though is losing a proven player like Vanek for a possible top player. I say possible because you never know what could happen with draft picks, even those with almost sure-fire potential. It's a proven asset for an unknown. Ryan Miller would also be a possibility, but he's going to be less than a month away from 33 at the time of the draft.
Also, Carter had years left on his contract, and Carolina and Toronto made the trades knowing they were going to be able to sign Staal and Kessel to long term extensions, so only having 1 year left on Vanek and Miller's contract while a plus in some ways, could also be seen as a negative.
Some have also made the argument to use the Minnesota 1st to move up from. Say the pick was a mid/late 1st, between 15-22. While slightly more possible to be done than trading into or further into the top 10, the price is still steep.
So to move up, say 5 spots, from the Wild's pick would mean a 2nd Round pick, another 2nd to move up into the 12/13 range, and another 2nd or even a future 1st to possibly move into the top 10. The point being that if you wanted to trade the Minnesota pick (around 20) to move near the top 10, at best you would probably be looking at adding 3 2nd Round picks, or something of equal value.
Now, the Sabres have the assets to possibly pull off a deal like that. In the next 3 years, the Sabres currently have 4 1st's and 7 2nds. But are you willing to pay the cost to do it?
I've seen it being suggested in many different threads, in the Sabres Forum and in the Trade Rumors. I've seen such things as people (re: Leafs fans
) thinking they could possibly move up to the 5th pick for their 20th+Gardiner. I've seen a couple that have Stafford plus our pick, maybe around 10, and think that might be enough to move up to 5th or 6th. However, the fact of the matter is, very rarely is a top 10 pick traded. It has only happened five (plus the Kessel trade which two picks ended up being in the top ten) times since the 04-05 lockout.Here's a recap of the deals made:
And the Kessel deal, which were for 2 future 1st's that ended up being top 10 picks. So moving at the top of the draft, even with a pick that could be only 2 spots difference, would cost you at least an early 2nd. Teams just don't really like moving down from the top it seems.
Trading Vanek is a possibility, as players like Jeff Carter, Phil Kessel, and Jordan Staal have been traded for high picks, the downside though is losing a proven player like Vanek for a possible top player. I say possible because you never know what could happen with draft picks, even those with almost sure-fire potential. It's a proven asset for an unknown. Ryan Miller would also be a possibility, but he's going to be less than a month away from 33 at the time of the draft.
Also, Carter had years left on his contract, and Carolina and Toronto made the trades knowing they were going to be able to sign Staal and Kessel to long term extensions, so only having 1 year left on Vanek and Miller's contract while a plus in some ways, could also be seen as a negative.
Some have also made the argument to use the Minnesota 1st to move up from. Say the pick was a mid/late 1st, between 15-22. While slightly more possible to be done than trading into or further into the top 10, the price is still steep.
So to move up, say 5 spots, from the Wild's pick would mean a 2nd Round pick, another 2nd to move up into the 12/13 range, and another 2nd or even a future 1st to possibly move into the top 10. The point being that if you wanted to trade the Minnesota pick (around 20) to move near the top 10, at best you would probably be looking at adding 3 2nd Round picks, or something of equal value.
Now, the Sabres have the assets to possibly pull off a deal like that. In the next 3 years, the Sabres currently have 4 1st's and 7 2nds. But are you willing to pay the cost to do it?
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