Rumor: Rumors & Proposals Thread | Kenny "The Gambler" Holland, You've Gotta Know When to Hold 'Em, Know When to Walk Away, Know When to Sit on Your Thumbs

[Sanchez]

Nice lateral movement, great ‘glove’ hand. Will work for scraps.

Keep this dog away from Dustin Swartz!

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

The Campbell contract is absolutely soul crushing. Thinking this team can just fob off $15,000,000 cap hit ($13,500,000 real money) owing is Fantasy Hockey stuff. There's maybe three paths on this...

Buy-Out:
A buy-out is probably most realistic although it f***s the team this year to make meaningful change while carrying his salary in the minors. Team saves its few assets and pays down Campbell forever via The Brick layaway plan.

Mega Asset Chips To The Middle Deal:
Merzlikins $15,775,000 owing after this season (3 years) // Campbell $13,500,000 owing (3 years)
I personally think Merzlikins would thrive in a new winning environment. But C-Bus could likely find a better deal just opting to eat up to 1/2 of Merzlikins' contract ($7,887,500) and cheaper financially than taking on Campbell + $5,612,500 real money. Kekelainen is likely dead man walking so doing a big money deal for an AHL replacement level goaltender is likely a hard sell. Gonna cost Oilers big.

Other mega asset options Askarov (short-term risk he's not quite 1B NHL ready but prospective cornerstone 1A for a decade); Saros (wheel barrel of assets this team doesn't have); etc. Or find a cheap, marginal option like Reimer.

Toxic Contract/Player Exchange:
Something like a Vlasic (ideally + goalie) for Campbell + Kulak deal. Thoughts and Prayer that a faded pedigree malcontent in San Jose can give the Oilers third pairing, 12 minute ice-time that can be bought out next season (or even kept if motivated & effective). Could provide an onboard path for Broberg next season. Frees Oilers to use limited assets for positional upgrades.

In season trades a third of the season in are fairly rare. In season trades for a massively underperforming and overhyped team with no cap space and a $15 million anchor contract is like never country. This is beyond anything Ken Holland has done in 25 years on the job and a true test of Jeff Jackson's new agey thinking of navigating NHL business.

I'd like to believe that Santa Claus is coming. But see above...

The real challenge will be when JJ gets the "No I am not resigning here" email from McDavids new agent. Draisaitl's agent already has that email typed up and sitting in the Drafts folder waiting to hit Send.

 

[gordonhught]

Kulak is a good player. But he's an expensive one. And teams that are struggling to find cap dollars to address organizational shortfalls can't afford to pay a bottom pairing defender $3m.

Look around the league. Who else does that?

Kulak is the best. Anyone who says otherwise can eat balls.

 

[belair]

Kulak is the best. Anyone who says otherwise can eat balls.

The best at being expensive. I eat my chicken balls with sweet and sour sauce.

 

[gordonhught]

The best at being expensive. I eat my chicken balls with sweet and sour sauce.

 

[Fixed to Ruin]

Nice lateral movement, great ‘glove’ hand. Will work for scraps.

If hollywood movies have taught us anything is that dogs win championships.

 

[K1984]

The worst part about this is that it was SOOOOO obvious that he wasn't going to be good after his 9 games. Why dress him beyond that? Just send him to the minors, allow his leg to heal, and not be on the hook for million in cap hit next year. He likely would have dominated the AHL, and gotten another contract next offseason, and we would have been clear of the cap hit next year. But NOPE, that blatantly obvious solution was apparently to hard for our GM to figure out. Just a disaster.

I don't think it's a matter of that path being too hard to figure out, I think it was a calculus of how bad it would make us look league wide and even internally on a few different fronts.

Recapping the facts:

- Brown had offers from elsewhere that would have paid him this season
- McDavid himself heavily recruited him
- He was likely the only player of any quality (deemed at the time) that would be willing to sign with this type of structure (see McDavid connection)
- Brown didn't have to do this, but rather than take the cash today decided to do his friend and the team a favour and play ball with this cap scheme

Burying him after only 9 games isn't a lot when considering he missed a lot of time the year before and the team as a whole was playing like shit including the two stars that he was supposed to benefit playing off of. Even if we said "f*** it" and buried him anyways, here are all the consequences that the organization would face:

- Player that helped the team when he didn't have to is buried for the season when at the time probably felt he hadn't had a chance to get his feet under him yet while costing him $3.35M in cash that he could have had in hand had he just signed elsewhere

- Every agent and player in the NHL takes note of the fact that you can't trust the Oilers word if they say they are going to do something for your client

- Brown's agency, which is massive and influential, likely black balls the Oilers

- McDavid, who personally recruited him is likely insanely pissed off because he had a hand in costing his friend his NHL job, sent him to Bakersfield instead of in Edmonton with his family, and cost him $3.35M dollars.

"JUST BURY HIM" is an easy call to make from the cheap seats, but this is so much more complex than that and the cost of the fallout related to this move would likely, maybe even certainly exceed the inconvenience of his cap hit for one more year. Don't think it's an exaggeration at all to suggest that this move could be the beginning of the end of McDavid in Edmonton. People don't forget things like this.

 

[Soundwave]

Nice lateral movement, great ‘glove’ hand. Will work for scraps.

Brad Holland is already on the first flight out to scout.

 

[GOilers88]

No he’s young and has still played less than 150 NHL games. This isn’t some 31 year old goalie who’s been playing pro for over 8 years. He’s in his first full NHL season. He’s still got 1B potential.

I'm okay with people not liking Skinner. I'm okay with thinking he's a backup. I'm okay with wanting to upgrade him (though I think to propose trading him while keeping Jack Campbell on the books is completely insane for a few reasons).

What I don't understand and am having a hard time understanding, is this idea that he doesn't have much talent or potential and he just is what he currently is. So many of the names thrown around as possible solutions are guys who are either the same age or older than Skinner, and who over their first couple seasons had numbers either equal to or lower than Stu has over his. Not a single one of those guys was made to go instantly from prospect to full time play over half the games of the season starter, let alone on a team trying to contend for a cup. But for some reason, unlike many of those other guys who improved or broke out at later ages enough to be considered upgrades now, Stu just is what he is, won't improve, and his bodies worth of work which includes 2 years of .913/914 - 2.62/2.75 numbers isn't something we can use when comparing him to these older guys who had very similar numbers at the same ages.

If he was sporting career numbers below .900 sure, I get it. But he isn't. He just has the unfortunate task of having to take on a ridiculous workload he isn't ready or suited for. But not being able to improve beyond age 25 defies logic in my opinion. Too many times I've watched young and old players in Edmonton forced to play roles they aren't suited for, the fans shittalk the players and want them all gone, then talk about re-acquiring them a couple seasons down the road after they were traded and proceeded to play fine elsewhere. People say management never learns but it also seems like some fans don't either.

 

[Soundwave]

I'm okay with people not liking Skinner. I'm okay with thinking he's a backup. I'm okay with wanting to upgrade him (though I think to propose trading him while keeping Jack Campbell on the books is completely insane for a few reasons).

What I don't understand and am having a hard time understanding, is this idea that he doesn't have much talent or potential and he just is what he currently is. So many of the names thrown around as possible solutions are guys who are either the same age or older than Skinner, and who over their first couple seasons had numbers either equal to or lower than Stu has over his. Not a single one of those guys was made to go instantly from prospect to full time play over half the games of the season starter, let alone on a team trying to contend for a cup. But for some reason, unlike many of those other guys who improved or broke out at later ages enough to be considered upgrades now, Stu just is what he is, won't improve, and his bodies worth of work which includes 2 years of .913/914 - 2.62/2.75 numbers isn't something we can use when comparing him to these older guys who had very similar numbers at the same ages.

If he was sporting career numbers below .900 sure, I get it. But he isn't. He just has the unfortunate task of having to take on a ridiculous workload he isn't ready or suited for. But not being able to improve beyond age 25 defies logic in my opinion. Too many times I've watched young and old players in Edmonton forced to play roles they aren't suited for, the fans shittalk the players and want them all gone, then talk about re-acquiring them a couple seasons down the road after they were traded and proceeded to play fine elsewhere. People say management never learns but it also seems like some fans don't either.

I don't think the work load is the problem.

It's a talent/ability problem with him. He isn't very naturally gifted, he's a mediocre athlete that moves slowly in net.

I don't see that stuff changing.

There are plenty of guys who are a starter at age 25+.

 

[GOilers88]

I don't think the work load is the problem.

It's a talent/ability problem with him. He isn't very naturally gifted, he's a mediocre athlete that moves slowly in net.

I don't see that stuff changing.

There are plenty of guys who are a starter at age 25+.

The workload is absolutely a problem. 60 game starters aren't the thing anymore. Even if he was doing better this season they'd run him into the f***ing ground before they got to the playoffs anyways.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

The workload is absolutely a problem. 60 game starters aren't the thing anymore. Even if he was doing better this season they'd run him into the f***ing ground before they got to the playoffs anyways.

I think you're both right.

The NHL we're in currently has under 10 reliable #1 goalies. Then you have about 30-40 goalies in the next tier. Every goalie in this tier is capable of having a .915 SV%, but more importantly also capable of having a .890 SV%, and its going to range from year to year.

Because only those 6-8 Tier 1 goalies are capable of playing 55-60 games, you need at least two Tier 2 goalies. Having just one is devastating and that's the position we're in.

 

[Sheikyerbouti]

Brown had offers from elsewhere that would have paid him this season

They all would have cut him by game 8 imo. Those offers all assumed he could still play. There is not a well run team in the league that wouldn't have culled the contract at the first opportunity imo. It was an obvious decisions by game 5

 

[guymez]

They all would have cut him by game 8 imo. Those offers all assumed he could still play. There is not a well run team in the league that wouldn't have culled the contract at the first opportunity imo. It was an obvious decisions by game 5

I am willing to bet that there isnt a single team that signs Brown (with full knowledge of his injury situation) that cuts him after 8 games.

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

They all would have cut him by game 8 imo. Those offers all assumed he could still play. There is not a well run team in the league that wouldn't have culled the contract at the first opportunity imo. It was an obvious decisions by game 5

It was reported he had offers above $3m base salary from other teams.

 

[McTonyBrar]

Friedman and Panchod Stauffer piss me the f*** off on Oilers Now.

 

[Oilhawks]

Friedman and Panchod Stauffer piss me the f*** off on Oilers Now.

What now?

Guessing a bunch of blue balls nothingburgers?

It’s not shocking. If a trade is made it’ll be random. Frustrating that there’s no speculation of substance though.

 

[tinfish]

If hollywood movies have taught us anything is that dogs win championships.

There's nothing in the NHL rule book that says you can't ice a dog as your goaltender

 

[Hockeylife2018]

Friedman and Panchod Stauffer piss me the f*** off on Oilers Now.

More of the "no one to trade with" stuff?

 

[gordonhught]

More of the "no one to trade with" stuff?

Trade broberg to cowgary for wolf or vladar

 

[McTonyBrar]

Friedman and Stauffer believe that Skinner and Pickard have bought the Oilers enough time to not make a goalie move until the all star break.

HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA.

He also said Campbell has lost the starting goalie role in Bakersfield

 

[McDanglez]

I don't think it's a matter of that path being too hard to figure out, I think it was a calculus of how bad it would make us look league wide and even internally on a few different fronts.

Recapping the facts:

- Brown had offers from elsewhere that would have paid him this season
- McDavid himself heavily recruited him
- He was likely the only player of any quality (deemed at the time) that would be willing to sign with this type of structure (see McDavid connection)
- Brown didn't have to do this, but rather than take the cash today decided to do his friend and the team a favour and play ball with this cap scheme

Burying him after only 9 games isn't a lot when considering he missed a lot of time the year before and the team as a whole was playing like shit including the two stars that he was supposed to benefit playing off of. Even if we said "f*** it" and buried him anyways, here are all the consequences that the organization would face:

- Player that helped the team when he didn't have to is buried for the season when at the time probably felt he hadn't had a chance to get his feet under him yet while costing him $3.35M in cash that he could have had in hand had he just signed elsewhere

- Every agent and player in the NHL takes note of the fact that you can't trust the Oilers word if they say they are going to do something for your client

- Brown's agency, which is massive and influential, likely black balls the Oilers

- McDavid, who personally recruited him is likely insanely pissed off because he had a hand in costing his friend his NHL job, sent him to Bakersfield instead of in Edmonton with his family, and cost him $3.35M dollars.

"JUST BURY HIM" is an easy call to make from the cheap seats, but this is so much more complex than that and the cost of the fallout related to this move would likely, maybe even certainly exceed the inconvenience of his cap hit for one more year. Don't think it's an exaggeration at all to suggest that this move could be the beginning of the end of McDavid in Edmonton. People don't forget things like this.

The Oiler's didn't owe anything to Connor Brown. He signed the contract with the clause that he had to play in a certain amount of games to receive the bonus. He had to hold up his end of the deal too and be a useful NHL player for us.

The Oilers absolutely should have sent him down before his bonus so he could find his game and get into game shape. Then if that happens bring him back up and he can have his "bonus".

 

[Mr Kot]

Friedman and Stauffer believe that Skinner and Pickard have bought the Oilers enough time to not make a goalie move until the all star break.

HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA.

He also said Campbell has lost the starting goalie role in Bakersfield

 

[Took a pill in Sbisa]

The Oiler's didn't owe anything to Connor Brown. He signed the contract with the clause that he had to play in a certain amount of games to receive the bonus. He had to hold up his end of the deal too and be a useful NHL player for us.

The Oilers absolutely should have sent him down before his bonus so he could find his game and get into game shape. Then if that happens bring him back up and he can have his "bonus".

The clause was clearly just a cap circumvention to allow the Oilers to defer his salary to next year. He's healthy and in shape, sending him down because he's not contributing enough would have been incredibly bad business.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Friedman and Stauffer believe that Skinner and Pickard have bought the Oilers enough time to not make a goalie move until the all star break.

HAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHA.

He also said Campbell has lost the starting goalie role in Bakersfield

Fire anyone with this braindead mentality.