And that's fair to say. But I have also been a firm believer that it's better to pay your 22 year old big money for his 22-29 year old seasons, then pay for the 28-34 seasons when there is much more likely of a decline.
But again, I was just point out that paying the stars are rarely the issue....especially when it's for the 22-29 years. The cap issue come from signing non core guys to longer, bigger contracts.
With Rielly, Dermott, Liljegren and Sandin, the Leafs have the ability to trade a guy like Zaitsev, and replace him in the top 4 with a cheap, ELC and then can also bridge one of the guys for 2 years. That gives them a 5 year window of a cheap, underpaid Dman. That will have great value for the Leafs.
This was never a slight against the Leafs. It was to show that the Leafs have options and the doom and gloom some people spew about the cap can be fixed with a smart GM. It just might mean sacrificing a guy like Zaitsev.