Confirmed with Link: Predators Acquire 2nd in 2025, 7th in 2024 from Tampa Bay for Ryan McDonagh 4th in 2024

[Porter Stoutheart]

I thought guys like Tanev or Pesce would be candidates to sign even if we had KEPT McDonagh. So who knows where that leaves us now. If the goal is to maintain a spot in the playoff races, let alone to improve immediately, then I would think the team almost needs to sign TWO solid D now, not just 1.

 

[Soundgarden]

With the logjam in Milwaukee I want to see some of our young guys up, in addition to adding another vet.

 

[herzausstein]

Trotz doing McD a solid. Shit value though.

He is about to be 35 and has a caphit just under 7 million for 2 more seasons. Also a NTC that he likely only waives for Tampa. Not sure what kind of value you are expecting.

 

[ShagDaddy]

I like it. Will miss seeing McDonagh take pucks to the face and tucking loose pucks back under Soro’s pads but I’m glad he gets to go home.

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

I don't know, getting a 2nd for him is still a good move IMO, he's getting older and most likely just wanted back to TB. Stastny, Del Gaizo, Molendyk, Wilsby are all LHD.

I think, in a vacuum, he was worth more (and more on the ice to us), but it's obvious this was probably planned/previously agreed to to an extent. Guess it depends on moves from here. We don't have a lot of defensive quality among our NHL-defensmen group at the moment.

 

[maplepred]

It's definitely way too early to see the whole picture, but we can grab another vet while still getting younger.

If we can get Marner/Stamkos + another top 4 defenseman it'll be a great offseason.

I agree, definitely way too early to judge, the playoffs aren’t even over yet haha.

I mean I agree about if we can get marner or stammer (preferably marner because of age) plus another top 4 defenseman to replace McD (we do not have anyone in the system now that is capable of that) that would be solid but I worry about assets we would have to move out to get another top 4 defenseman back? McD was traded for fairly cheap I feel. We won’t get a guy back of that quality for a second… free agency it is then I suppose? We sure do have a ton of cap space.

Imagine we could sign Skjei to replace McD, do a trade around juuse and marner then somehow bring in Necas with some of our plentiful draft picks and maybe Tomasino since hes unfortunately on the outs… sigh..

Imagine this:

Forsberg Necas Marner
Nyquist O’Reilly Evangelista
Parssinen Sissons Novak
Smith McCarron Jankowski

Josi Fabbro
Skjei Carrier
Lauzon Schenn

I think maybe we somehow try to replace Fabbro with a higher end top pair RD as well…. But he’s still quite young and has been good but not great. Maybe Carrier plays first pair RD
Or maybe we with Tyler Myers too! We have so much cap space lol

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

He is about to be 35 and has a caphit just under 7 million for 2 more seasons. Also a NTC that he likely only waives for Tampa. Not sure what kind of value you are expecting.

Think with a rising cap and his level of play he could have gotten a 1st still.

 

[Flgatorguy87]

Think with a rising cap and his level of play he could have gotten a 1st still.

If he only waived to Tampa then you think they'd send a 1st to us after giving him away for free?

 

[darth5]

hard to get much younger with a 35 year old holding that roster spot. Preds are known as a team that tries to do right by its players, also. I think we can keep Statsney on the big club now. Not that he won't be missed, by all accounts a great leader by example.

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

If he only waived to Tampa then you think they'd send a 1st to us after giving him away for free?

The cap space we opened up for them wasn't free. If he only waives for TB and they want him there's no need to send picks as well. The trade basically values McD at a 3rd/4th, which is crazy for a guy at his performance level we didn't need to trade.

It is what it is, and good we got something and honored his wishes, but it wasn't really good value for the player.

 

[herzausstein]

Think with a rising cap and his level of play he could have gotten a 1st still.

Not without some real retention. As it is, Tampa is going to have to purge some cap if they want Stamkos back. Only serious salary without trade protections are Hagel and Cirelli. Hagel has been great for them and Cirelli is a bit expensive but a good player. They may dump Jeannot and Sheary and hope to scrape together a team.

 

[Flgatorguy87]

The cap space we opened up for them wasn't free. If he only waives for TB and they want him there's no need to send picks as well. The trade basically values McD at a 3rd/4th, which is crazy for a guy at his performance level we didn't need to trade.

It is what it is, and good we got something and honored his wishes, but it wasn't really good value for the player.

Well then the cap space he opens for us also isn't free. Both are given value.

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

Well then the cap space he opens for us also isn't free. Both are given value.

It's why I say it's not good value for us but we'll see what other moves are made this off-season/next. If we actually use that space productively then it makes more sense.

 

[Flgatorguy87]

It's why I say it's not good value for us but we'll see what other moves are made this off-season/next. If we actually use that space productively then it makes more sense.

I agree in a vacuum his value is much higher than this trade reflects, but utilizing his cap space elsewhere, potential of a pick hitting, the possibility of decline, and his movement clause all made the value very reasonable in my mind. It could certainly go either way, but there's a real possibility his play declines with his age and people are quickly wondering how we got any value back for his contract.

 

[Armourboy]

I mean a 2nd for a guy you can only trade to one team ain't bad. McD is a decent player but he isn't a guy I lose sleep over. The real trick in the deal is what we do with the cap space, if we don't use it then that part of it has no real value.

 

[beardawg]

If he only waived to Tampa then you think they'd send a 1st to us after giving him away for free?

Not only that, but it'd be a 2026 1st because Chicago has TBLs this year and we have it in 2025

 

[Viqsi]

ooookay definitely didn't see that coming

 

[Top 6 Spaling]

With the logjam in Milwaukee I want to see some of our young guys up, in addition to adding another vet.

This seals quality over quantity for me. I like the idea of getting young guys up plus adding 1, maybe 2, true top 4 defense. We don't need depth, pool the money and get one really good player like Pesce or Zadorov.

 

[BigFatCat999]

For all those screaming this should’ve been first round pick just remember the Preds screwed Tampa Bay with the Jeannot trade

 

[Top 6 Spaling]

My $0.02 USD is that this is really good value for a defenseman of McD's age and contract. As well as he has played, there's no guarantee he's as effective the next two years.

 

[weeze]

To all the folks saying what’s Barry doing, he’s honoring McD’s request of going back to Tampa.

Does this affect the Stamkos coming because of McD and Schenn?

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Does this affect the Stamkos coming because of McD and Schenn?

No. Because Stamkos was never coming regardless.

 

[weeze]

I like it. Will miss seeing McDonagh take pucks to the face and tucking loose pucks back under Soro’s pads but I’m glad he gets to go home.

He did what he was paid to do. He played his game, played hard, got injured, came back and played some more. He is probably looking to retire and go back where he spent most of his time.

 

[maplepred]

hard to get much younger with a 35 year old holding that roster spot. Preds are known as a team that tries to do right by its players, also. I think we can keep Statsney on the big club now. Not that he won't be missed, by all accounts a great leader by example.

May as well move out O’Reilly and Nyquist then as well with that view..

 

[Byrddog]

It's definitely way too early to see the whole picture, but we can grab another vet while still getting younger.

If we can get Marner/Stamkos + another top 4 defenseman it'll be a great offseason.

I really thought that Stamkos was going to walk before this. But he and Mac are good friends. My guess Tampa gets him at a reasonable hit now. Now if Trotz needs a defensive center Cirelli is almost certainly on the block now but 6.5 mil is a bitter pill to swallow for him.