Thing is I don't disagree with much of this, the frustrating thing is there's zero progress on the ice comparing year one to year five. Heck they had a better record in year one than they'll wind up with this year. And yeah I know, but more prospects but more picks. It just becomes a bit empty when that's all we're pointing to year after year.
Shero did some good things, some neccesary things and I actually agreed with most of his moves when he made them. The problem is the results weren't improving after five years, having to trade guys like Hall, Vat and MarJo set back the rebuild further and we can't just keep blaming Lou for everything, especially when most of the roster has become Shero guys, it's become a comical meme.
Obviously the Cory situation hurt, as much because of the timing of his extension (only kicking in after his great first year post-Lou) as the timing of the trade itself but even cynics of the trade saying you can't trade a top ten pick for a goalie didn't see Cory falling off that fast, that soon into his deal. Still it's not like his cap hit really crippled the team itself, it's more the locking up the roster spot and waiting for his prior talent to show up between injuries and meltdowns that hamstrung us.
How far back did those trades really set us though? The Hall trade was a no brainer, we still sucked the first year we got him and wound up with Nico + a load of other prospects. The Vatanen trade helped us make the playoffs that year, which hey maybe wasn't the best move but given how hungry everyone is for some success I won't argue with it - in the same light the Grabner trade was likely worse for us in that Rykov is a good LHD prospect which we lack, but again maybe worth it to make the playoffs again? The MoJo trade we gave up a 2018 2nd and 3rd, and would we really expect those picks to be making an impact for us now? No, there have been 28 total NHL games between two players taken in the 2nd and 3rd rounds that year so far.
The Mueller trade wasn't good in hindsight but it wasn't that big of a cost for a young LHD which again we needed, c'est la vie.
A roster can be filled with draft picks, trades, or signings. Maybe Shero could've done more with regards to signings but I personally never really criticize a GM over not signing free agents, there are too many factors behind the scenes that we don't know. Trades can be tough, it's hard to know what's happening behind the scenes as well and who/what opportunities may be available but for the most part Shero's trades were fine.
With respect to rebuilding it comes back to what I said before, what did he have to work with in trade bait? An aging group that didn't really yield much, a small group of core players that stayed (Zajac, Greene, etc) some younger players that were worth holding onto (Severson, Wood, etc) and then more expendable pieces that were good but could be traded off for the right price (Larsson, Henrique). I really don't see how he could've done thaaat much better. Maybe just says f*** it and sells everything off to turn into draft picks, but that leads to the last point which is picks and that it's still too early to say for sure how he did there. Especially with the picks that he did trade to try and make the team better.
We're gonna
start to see the fruits of those drafts come up soon. Smith should be an NHL regular next year, I know we said that last year but gotta think he's ready now. Boqvist should be an NHL regular next year. Anderson could be a mainstay in the bottom 6 sooner or later too. Then you think about the other young guys recently acquired that maybe not ready next year but soon - Bahl, Merkely, Kuokkanen, Point (I know not all Shero, now I'm just bringing it back to the team's state right now) and there has to be a bit more excitement.
The more I think on it the more I realize how badly the Cory trade made things. I love the guy don't get me wrong, but really did not fit the timeline for where the team was at and only prolonged the rebuilding process.