I disagree that Tampa did very well, and based on what I have read outside of the Tampa board, it seems as though many also agree Tampa lost the trade. If Jeannot was such a high priority moving ahead, Colton should've been dealt at the tdl last year when he would've more than likely returned better. The team wasn't likely winning a Cup with the way certain players were struggling, so getting out ahead of the upcoming cap situation then would've been better asset management.
The Jeannot trade was terrible in terms of cost, and I continue to bring it up because the team now is seemingly forced to spend cap on him, instead of signing/promoting a cheaper player and having some extra space for one of Killorn or Colton.
Colton may not have been a line driver, but as far as scoring touch, averaging 20 goals a year given his deployment and caliber of linemates seems pretty solid. Maybe his ceiling is just a good 3rd liner, but it would've been nice to see him get that top 6 chance(and I'd take him.on the team moving ahead 10/10 over Jeannot at this point). Most of Colton's advanced stats also indicate he has more potential than just a 3rd liner, and it won't surprise me if he ends up similar to Lehkonen and his improvement, if Colton gets a bigger role in Colorado.
Maybe Colton did price himself out, and if Killorn walks as well it just shows more of how JBB may have mismanaged the cap with both prioritizing Jeannot, and with some of the higher than expected values on the rfa contracts last summer.