Fistfullofbeer
Moderator
I've got one question for you.
How many 2nd(ish) pairing defenseman do we need?
We already got about four or five.
I get that the upgrade on him might be tough and I'm not a big fan of trying to fix things in free agency as you basically overpay everytime and have to hope that the last couple of years of the contract aren't all that bad.
I personally feel Dunn might be a guy some team might like enough to give up something of value or might be willing to do a "hockey trade" to give up another guy that might need a change of scenery.
And given that we've already invested a good amount of money on guys for those positions(Larsson and Oleksiak) I don't see too much value in keeping another one of those guys around.
Especially with Ryker Evans waiting in the AHL being a somewhat similar prospect(puck moving LHD) and way cheaper than Dunn.
As of right now Dunn and Soucy are our prime trade targets, IMO, unless one of them turns it around and makes himself to valuable to trade for us.
BTW: I'm not blaming everything on Dunn and have been talking about team defense etc. the whole time.
To me it's more about asset management and also paving the way for our prospects as they'll be the most important thing to built something solid in Seattle.
I agree with you that if there is a chance to find an upgrade on Dunn, we should do it for sure. If we can somehow move both Soucy and Dunn at the TDL for assets that can then be flipped for a legit top-pairing D-man, we should absolutely do it.
I am torn on Soucy. I like what he brings but a) He will have really good value at the TDL b) He is a pending UFA and will command a raise.
Dunn is not a 1st pairing D-man. Not sure playing him in that role does the team any favors. And to be honest, I would say Schultz has looked about as good as Dunn has and is signed for another year.
If we move both then next season will look like:
?-Larsson
Oleksiak-Schultz
Evans/FA-Borgen
The 3rd LD could be Evans or a cheapish stay-at-home D-man. Filling that top-D role is easier said than done.
What do we think Dunn and Soucy would return at this TDL (traded separately)? I would look at combing all of those assets + one of our extra 2nd round picks + some B-grade forward prospect(s) to get someone legit for that 1st pairing. Has to be either cost controlled already or with decent term.