Speculation: Say the Habs do end up signin Tavares AND Stastny, does that solve their problems short term?

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

And even with Tavares and a 18 years old rookie dmen we wont win the cup next year. We will need a couple of run and by that time, weber will be 35, Price 33, Pacioretty and Byron UFAs, Scherbak, Lehkonen, Hudon and Reilly RFAs. 10 more years of mediocrity.

Not sure though. Dahlin is quite something.

The Alzner and Shaw contracts need to be dealt with moving forward if any run is to happen.

The only miracle I want is Dahlin.

We can get Hughes next year for center

 

[mariolemieux66]

Not sure though. Dahlin is quite something.

The Alzner and Shaw contracts need to be dealt with moving forward if any run is to happen.

The only miracle I want is Dahlin.

We can get Hughes next year for center

Its still takes most dmen 3 to 4 years to get comfortable in the NHL, Hedman, Karlsson, Keith, Subban, Seabrook. And if we draft Dahlin, sign Tavares, Price goes to normal and Weber plays like he can, we dont get a chance at Hughes

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Its still takes most dmen 3 to 4 years to get comfortable in the NHL, Hedman, Karlsson, Keith, Subban, Seabrook. And if we draft Dahlin, sign Tavares, Price goes to normal and Weber plays like he can, we dont get a chance at Hughes

Yeah I kinda hope that if we draft Dahlin, he opts to stay at least one more season in Sweden even if doesn't make sense.

Thing is, I've been watching a lot of footage from the kid lately, and I seriously believe he could have a quicker impact than all the players you named. Prospect dmen are often hyped up because of an overall package, but with Dahlin, it's his sheer skills and vision. He's as much of a play driver as Karlsson was in the SHL, but with a better physical package and a better defender imo. He's gonna be something else.

 

[cashinstinct]

I hope they don’t sign Stastny to a multi year contract.

Since many other teams will offer multi year, I know it means he won’t sign a one year deal.

(On the PS4 I offer more $$ when I want the player to accept a one year deal, but it’s not the Playstation !)

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

If this actually happened, I'd look to see if we could pluck Edler out of Vancouver. Pay a little more than he's worth so they'll take Shaw, Schlemko or god forbid they're willing to take Alzner. With how many seconds we have, I think it's workable, especially with Vancouver openly acknowledging they will take on bad contracts for a price.

 

[Beendair Donedat]

a good defense will almost always outweigh the need of a good center line.

We don’t have either.

 

[Habs Icing]

Drouin 5.5
Chucky 4.9
Casper 4.5
Shaw 3.9
Gallagher 3.75
Danault 3.5
Byron 1.17
Deslauriers 0.95
Scherbak 0.86
Lekhonen 0.84
DLR 0.9
Whoever 0.9

Weber 7.86
Petry 5.5
Alzner 4.63
Schlemko 2.1
Benn 1.1
Juulsen 0.86
Mete 0.75

Price 10.5
Whoever 0.9

65.87

That leaves about 14 mil in free space, so unless Shaw retires or gets put on LTIR indefinitely or somehow we miraculously get rid of Alzner's contract, no way we can sign both Tavares and Stastny. And even if we sign both, that leaves a gaping hole on the first pairing's left side. Unless, of course, we draft Dahlin.

Just getting Tavares would be a miracle.

Getting Dahlin is another miracle.

Signing Stastny is pointless, but it's the likeliest to happen.

If you sign Tavares then you need to get Stastny or a #2 center (*cough*Bozak). Just getting Tavares and not getting a #2 center is like digging a hole in the ocean. It gets you nowhere. If that is The Idiot's plan then I agree with the poster MarioLemieux66 I would prefer a blow up.

Drouin and Danault are not options as #2 centers. Drouin is a winger and Danault is a #3. If The Idiot succeeds in getting JT and stops there then there's absolutely no hope for this man. None.

The cap space is higher than 14 mil. You've included Casper. His sorry ass will be shipped out this off season. Also, Schlemko or Benn will be gone and are you sure that Danault's cap hit is 3.5?

 

[Habs Halifax]

Tavares and Stastny would complete our forward group but we have issues on D. I like Mete on the left side but I think we need PMD with size.

???? / Weber
???? / Petry
Mete / Juulsen

Third pairing would need to mature though. Dahlin would be perfect with Weber for the next 4 or 5 years IMO.

Alzner needs to go. Old school type D with no creativity. If he was well above average on D, I’d be ok but he’s not at this stage.

There is a difference between cup contenders and cup pretenders. Teams win with solid D. Forget about winning a Cup like how the Pens are built

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

If this actually happened, I'd look to see if we could pluck Edler out of Vancouver. Pay a little more than he's worth so they'll take Shaw, Schlemko or god forbid they're willing to take Alzner. With how many seconds we have, I think it's workable, especially with Vancouver openly acknowledging they will take on bad contracts for a price.

That sounds prophetic.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

If you sign Tavares then you need to get Stastny or a #2 center (*cough*Bozak). Just getting Tavares and not getting a #2 center is like digging a hole in the ocean. It gets you nowhere. If that is The Idiot's plan then I agree with the poster MarioLemieux66 I would prefer a blow up.

Drouin and Danault are not options as #2 centers. Drouin is a winger and Danault is a #3. If The Idiot succeeds in getting JT and stops there then there's absolutely no hope for this man. None.

The cap space is higher than 14 mil. You've included Casper. His sorry ass will be shipped out this off season. Also, Schlemko or Benn will be gone and are you sure that Danault's cap hit is 3.5?

We need a left pmd more than a #2C if we get JT.

The names in Italic are approximations. It's what I think Danault will get. Quote me when he signs a new contract.

 

[habsfan909]

Tavares and Stastny would complete our forward group but we have issues on D. I like Mete on the left side but I think we need PMD with size.

???? / Weber
???? / Petry
Mete / Juulsen

Third pairing would need to mature though. Dahlin would be perfect with Weber for the next 4 or 5 years IMO.

Alzner needs to go. Old school type D with no creativity. If he was well above average on D, I’d be ok but he’s not at this stage.

There is a difference between cup contenders and cup pretenders. Teams win with solid D. Forget about winning a Cup like how the Pens are built

If you want to trade Alzner you need to trade 1 or 2 of our 2nds with him.

 

[Habs Icing]

We need a left pmd more than a #2C if we get JT.

The names in Italic are approximations. It's what I think Danault will get. Quote me when he signs a new contract.

It's either all three or nothing: #1 & #2 centers and a left PMD. I'd be pretty pissed if The Idiot decides to go for half measures.

 

[Habs Halifax]

If you want to trade Alzner you need to trade 1 or 2 of our 2nds with him.

Not necessarily and depends on what we get in return. He won’t be easy to move but it’s not impossible. We may need to take on another contract

Alzner and Patch for Lucic and... ??? Many other options

 

[Habs Icing]

Tavares and Stastny would complete our forward group but we have issues on D. I like Mete on the left side but I think we need PMD with size.

???? / Weber
???? / Petry
Mete / Juulsen

Third pairing would need to mature though. Dahlin would be perfect with Weber for the next 4 or 5 years IMO.

Alzner needs to go. Old school type D with no creativity. If he was well above average on D, I’d be ok but he’s not at this stage.

There is a difference between cup contenders and cup pretenders. Teams win with solid D. Forget about winning a Cup like how the Pens are built

If The Idiot is capable of landing Tavares and Stastny/Bozak then he can package Pacioretty for a left PMD. Alzner on the 3rd pairing is not a disaster. It's not cap efficient but not a defensive disaster.

PMD - Weber
Reilly - Petry
Alzner - Juulsen

 

[Habs Halifax]

It's either all three or nothing: #1 & #2 centers and a left PMD.

Totally agree! Dahlin could open doors. Dahlin/Tavares/Stastny. It’s possible but we need a little luck.

 

[Habs Halifax]

If The Idiot is capable of landing Tavares and Stastny/Bozak then he can package Pacioretty for a left PMD. Alzner on the 3rd pairing is not a disaster. It's not cap efficient but not a defensive disaster.

PMD - Weber
Reilly - Petry
Alzner - Juulsen

I agree Alzner on the 3rd paring is OK but where do you put Mete?

 

[Habs Icing]

Totally agree! Dahlin could open doors. Dahlin/Tavares/Stastny. It’s possible but we need a little luck.

I'm not counting on Dahlin and I hope the Idiot isn't either. He should have a plan to get a left PMD that does not involve Dahlin and it should be Plan A.

 

[Habs Icing]

I agree Alzner on the 3rd paring is OK but where do you put Mete?

Ideally you let Mete and Reilly fight it out in pre-season. If Mete loses he goes to the A. If Mete wins, Reilly is the 7th d.

 

[Habs Halifax]

I'm not counting on Dahlin and I hope the Idiot isn't either. He should have a plan to get a left PMD that does not involve Dahlin and it should be Plan A.

There is no plan you can force. It’s about capitalizing on circumstances when they present themselves. In order to do this, you need multiple assets that you can spare. Look how Yzerman pulled off the MacDonagh trade.

After this draft, we will have assets. Will be interesting too see how they fit moving forward and who we can dangle in trades to address position of need.

Problem with the Drouin trade is we gave up Sergachev and we were thin on the left side. It wasn’t a area a strength we could spare.

 

[Habaneros]

(Buffalo Saber)Matt Moulson is buried in the AHL making 5 million a year...still owed 5 million for next season ,,. Tavares old line mate....lol yea know what I'm thinking eh if we land Taveres?

 

[BigGreen]

Our centre depth would be ideal if Danault slots in on the 3rd line behind Tavares and Stastny. Bumping Galchenyuk and Drouin on the wing to play with creative centres would be a good fit for the both of them as well. The only problem I see is the slow and immobile defense. Unless you improve it in the off-season and (knock on wood) manage to win the lottery and draft Dahlin, next season would be a matter of scoring 4-5 goals a game in hopes that it masks your defense getting chewed up.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Totally agree! Dahlin could open doors. Dahlin/Tavares/Stastny. It’s possible but we need a little luck.

A little luck??????

That's the very definition of an understatement

 

[Stephen]

The Isles forward group has looked better the past couple of years than the proposed Montreal forward group with Tavares and Stastny, so the Habs would still probably be a borderline playoff team with those additions.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Let me re-state this:

With all guaranteed contracts remaining and the few re-signings, we would stand at 14 mil in cap space with 21 players on the roster.

That's not enough to sign both JT and Stastny.

And there's another huge hole to fill.

The Outgoing players might be :

Pac 4.5
Shaw 3.9
Alzner 4.63
Schlemko 2.1

This adds a whole other layer of difficulty.

 

[Adam Michaels]

Let me re-state this:

With all guaranteed contracts remaining and the few re-signings, we would stand at 14 mil in cap space with 21 players on the roster.

That's not enough to sign both JT and Stastny.

And there's another huge hole to fill.

The Outgoing players might be :

Pac 4.5
Shaw 3.9
Alzner 4.63
Schlemko 2.1

This adds a whole other layer of difficulty.

Another possibility is also Benn @ 1.1M.

A few different scenarios will create more cap space. In terms of trading players to make space on cap, it depends what they get in return. If they get a roster player, than his cap comes back onto Habs' cap.

Also to be taken into consideration is that the cap will go up. And with Vegas' expansion, there could be a big increase. Early reports said that it will go up between 3 to 5 million.

Nevertheless, if they succeed in signing JT, I really don't want Stastny. Only reason I'm good with Stastny is if they miss on JT. BUT, if they do find a way to get both, even better.