I'm not saying nothing good was done. I think adding Adam Larsson was a positive move and something that aided in the development of Oscar Klefbom and Darnell Nurse. It prevented our coach from having to use one of them the way Justin Schultz was used--improperly and often--ultimately negatively impacting their development and expected salaries. There are reasons why all young defensemen have washed out of Edmonton before them.
I think our payroll beyond this year is one that looks promising. The needs of the roster today aren't as insurmountable as they were three years ago and the core pieces of this roster are locked in place for several years. Additionally, I also feel our farm system is in the best shape it's been in since I've begun paying close attention to hockey.
I think instead of learning that our players aren't as valuable as we think they are, the same posters who used to deem these players untouchable choose to still hold them in extremely high regard while throwing all context out the window. I'm willing to address the fact that the market for wingers has been historically poor and having only them as our prized assets, we weren't exactly sitting in a position of strength when going into trade negotiations. That isn't defeatist--it's reality.
Turning a perennial lottery team into a competitor takes more than simply adding a franchise forward. There are numerous factors that went into turning that roster into a sustainable and competitive product. And the majority of them are routinely glossed over.
