Confirmed with Link: [COL/CBJ] Ryan Stanton for Cody Goloubef

[InjuredChoker]

The LA Kings were an 8 seed when they won their first Cup in 2012 (so not what I'd call a "championship pedigree"). Nashville was a Wild Card team last year that went to Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals.

These things can happen, and the team has to start making the playoffs for it to begin moving into that reality.

preds lost in the 2nd round to sharks. blues and sharks faced off in the western conference finals.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Yeah it should be easy but about 70% of the league is in the same boat. They all have a few good players. What makes us better than Calgary who has nice pieces but is also bordering on terrible? It's about taking the next step, not maybe hitting 90 points in a good year. It's about getting away from the pack. It's the toughest thing to change your stripes, what's going to keep from running the same movie over and over again?

 

[AnimalMother73]

Sakic seems to have learned and only signed Vets to short deals. Far different than the Stuart, Iginla, etc signings. And only Tyutin was a significant salary. He missed on Boeds and I'm sure a couple other signings on younger guys that probably required term

I think it is within reason to believe his outlook on this team has changed. The real test or sign of how he feels about this squad will be how/who he acquires this remaining season and next offseason regarding his boon of cap space.

Boedker has 2 goals in 22 games and is signed at 4 per for 4 seasons...as bad as Colbourne has been I'd take his contract over Boedker every day of the week and twice on Sundays right now!

 

[RockLobster]

preds lost in the 2nd round to sharks. blues and sharks faced off in the western conference finals.

This is true, I made a mistake in double-checking my information.

I believe my point still stands though, teams that get in have the opportunity to do damage.

 

[Alex Jones]

Yeah it should be easy but about 70% of the league is in the same boat. They all have a few good players. What makes us better than Calgary who has nice pieces but is also bordering on terrible? It's about taking the next step, not maybe hitting 90 points in a good year. It's about getting away from the pack. It's the toughest thing to change your stripes, what's going to keep from running the same movie over and over again?

And that 70% of the league is never going to win a championship. I think we're a little more balanced than Calgary right now, but they do not have a strong enough core to compete. They have a couple of amazing players, but not enough else. I personally think that they are in for another decade of the Iginla era, where they had a couple of great players dragging a roster of passengers to ninth in the conference. I don't want that. The goal should be to win championships, and right now we have a largely middle aged core that can't even finish in the top half of the league. That doesn't seem like a team that can bring home the Cup. I agree with Sakic, they need to start finishing in the top half of the league, or things need to change around here.

 

[henchman21]

Constantly picking top 5 and tanking doesn't guarantee success either. Hit on your top ~40 picks, get occasional depth from the mid rounds, and smart signings/trades are how the best teams are built. Lately the Avs have done well on the first part... the rest is mixed... some good, some bad.

 

[the_fan]

Constantly picking top 5 and tanking doesn't guarantee success either. Hit on your top ~40 picks, get occasional depth from the mid rounds, and smart signings/trades are how the best teams are built. Lately the Avs have done well on the first part... the rest is mixed... some good, some bad.

Tanking helps if the player you pick is Crosby or a Kane or McDavid. Lets face it, Duchene and MacKinnon are good players, but neither one is creative enough play maker to produce no matter who they play with, and make their line mates better unless their line mates are star players. Duchene and MacKinnon are more of north, south, fast, flashy players, but they don't have that, puck possession, hanging on to the puck, patience, creation in the offensive zone game.

You put anyone with Kane, Crosby or McDavid, you'll get the same results and they can make average players on their lines look like stars, Duchene and MacKinnon aren't capable of that and that's why its so hard finding right players for both to have chemistry with.


If Avs tanked, won the lottery, and picked McDavid in 2015, they'd make the playoffs every year from 2015 without a doubt.

 

[henchman21]

For every McDavid there are 2 Yakupov/RNHs.

 

[UncleRisto]

For every McDavid there are 2 Yakupov/MacKinnons.

 

[AslanRH]

Boedker has 2 goals in 22 games and is signed at 4 per for 4 seasons...as bad as Colbourne has been I'd take his contract over Boedker every day of the week and twice on Sundays right now!

Probably a correct assessment although I think he fits the Bednar mold better than Colbourne and better than in SJS. I think he'd have done better here than he has to this point there. He was pretty aggressive on the forecheck (not physically of course) and had the ability to complement or top 6 speed.

Honestly right now I'd settle for a Holland for Mitchell trade just to mix it up a bit. Seems to me Mitchell would be more a Babcock type than Holland. Try to do a +Corrado +Gelinas with it.

 

[henchman21]

You think Colborne doesn't fit and then want Holland in the same post... Holland is a shorter Colborne with less scoring ability. Same exact issues. If Bednar won't give Colborne the light of day, he won't give it to Holland. I'm not saying that deal couldn't happen, but it would be dead in the water and pointless from the moment it happened.

 

[thehockeywatchinger]

Peter Holland vs Mitchell.... NON

This player is not as strong as Coburn. He brings no scoring. We saw Leafs use him on PP last game. Soft, périphérique and no impact. He is only a defensive 4th line. He is slow and not a creative. That is not good for Avalanches. Wait for Compher to come from injury. What I see, he is far the better.

My Google does Comfort for Compher. Excuse me.

 

[AslanRH]

I actually don't care for either Holland or Corrado. I really just threw it out there as it is a minor shake up rather than the major shake up that O fear might be coming.

If I were to argue for it, Holland is younger, so of course that means more potential to develop (am I doing this right?), 500k cheaper, and expires as an RFA just in case it works out.

The real perk for me would be dumping Gelinas. I have an irrational dislike for him on this team.

 

[UncleRisto]

The real perk for me would be dumping Gelinas. I have an irrational dislike for him on this team.

I'd say it's pretty rational.

 

[AvsGuy]

Still waiting for us to trade for Andrew Cassels, David Vyborny and Espen Knutsen

There's a weird trip down memory lane

 

[Pokecheque]

I was a huge Knutsen fan. No joke.

 

[CBJWerenski8]

I was a fan of CG in Cbus. Liked him alot. How has he been playing? I know he has no points and a -5, but has he been OK?

 

[tigervixxxen]

I was a fan of CG in Cbus. Liked him alot. How has he been playing? I know he has no points and a -5, but has he been OK?

He sat for a few games following the Montreal debacle, not that he was the only one responsible for it. He played again tonight, looked fine with more limited minutes. So not a whole lot more to say I guess.

 

[AvsGuy]

Kind of relevant to this post: What has hiring MacFarland added to this team? He clearly shows an affinity for former Blue Jackets players who have no business being in the NHL.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Everyone indulges in nepotism, that really doesn't bother me. If it's not him it's someone else bringing their buddies in. MacFarland built the development system in Columbus and we see that turning out success right now. The development system took a step forward here at least with him, obviously needs to continue.

 

[AvsGuy]

Everyone indulges in nepotism, that really doesn't bother me. If it's not him it's someone else bringing their buddies in. MacFarland built the development system in Columbus and we see that turning out success right now. The development system took a step forward here at least with him, obviously needs to continue.

It did? Genuinely curious as to how so and what evidence fans are seeing of that.

And to be clear, former Blue Jackets players are not his buddies, they're much closer to former employees. I don't think the nepotism argument holds any water here, especially when the guys he brings in are so obviously devoid of even a modicum of skill.

 

[Bender]

It did? Genuinely curious as to how so and what evidence fans are seeing of that.

And to be clear, former Blue Jackets players are not his buddies, they're much closer to former employees. I don't think the nepotism argument holds any water here, especially when the guys he brings in are so obviously devoid of even a modicum of skill.

I think the rookie tournament is a positive step. I think the rookie camp they held as well (instead of just off-ice sessions).

I won't pretend to know if those are MacFarland initiatives or not but it's it's no doubt a step forward in my view as well.

 

[AvsGuy]

I think the rookie tournament is a positive step. I think the rookie camp they held as well (instead of just off-ice sessions).

I won't pretend to know if those are MacFarland initiatives or not but it's it's no doubt a step forward in my view as well.

I know it pays to look at the positives sometimes, but is that enough for you? As a long-time in-depth fan of this hockey club, is a nice rookie camp and tournament enough to justify the complete ineptitude in every other category that we've witnessed this season? Perhaps I'm being short-sighted but I don't see what anyone on our management is bringing to the table at this point.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Buddies, guys, whatever. St. Louis seems to love our cast offs for whatever reason. It happens.

Development staff, new coach in SA, spent money to upgrade facilities in SA and yes things like a proper development camp, rookie tournament. It's early but there's some success in development. Turning Rantanen out to a NHL player (I know the bar was already high there), Greer and Compher having early success.its baby steps it has to start somewhere. This org moves at a glacial pace at any sort of changes.

Is there any evidence that MacFarland had done anything detrimental? Even if you don't like Goloubef, they got him in a trade without having to give anything up. He's from outside the glory years circle jerk, I'm willing to give his vision a shot.

 

[dahrougem2]

I was a fan of CG in Cbus. Liked him alot. How has he been playing? I know he has no points and a -5, but has he been OK?

He's not an NHL caliber hockey player. If he does play, it needs to be in heavily sheltered minutes and cannot by any means be over 14-15 minutes