Trade and Free Agency Discussion Thread - Don't Expect More Augmenting

[Walshy7]

Missed that Anthony Duclair signed a 1 year $1.7M deal with Florida. It could have worked out worse for him but that's less than Ottawa's QO. At least he didn't have to pay an agent.

or play in ottawa

it was a get me out of town discount

 

[ShaneFalco]

Mike Hoffman, Erik Haula headline top NHL unrestricted free agents with season details now in place - TSN.ca

 

[SprDaVE]

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Mike Hoffman, Erik Haula headline top NHL unrestricted free agents with season details now in place - TSN.ca

Some good depth scoring in there. We can't afford any of them I don't think.

I would still love to find a way to sign and fit Athanasiou but very unlikely. Same for Soderberg.

 

[Fogelhund]

Some good depth scoring in there. We can't afford any of them I don't think.

I would still love to find a way to sign and fit Athanasiou but very unlikely. Same for Soderberg.

Not on that list, and probably easier to sign, would be Brassard. Give us some depth at C.

 

[ShaneFalco]

There's going to be a lot of movement

 

[Fogelhund]

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Makes a lot of sense for both teams. He could be their 4C to replace Brad Richardson.

They also signed Caggiula to fight for a depth wing role.

 

[Dreakmur]

I would still love to find a way to sign and fit Athanasiou but very unlikely. Same for Soderberg.

Don’t want AA anywhere near this young core. I wouldn’t sign him if he wanted 8 years at league minimum.

 

[therealkoho]

Not that I'll stomp my feet and hold my breath if it doesn't happen but Trevor Lewis would be a good addition, he skates well, kills penalties and can play late minutes in a shutdown centre's role

other then that I think the Leafs have everything they need

 

[Dreakmur]

Not that I'll stomp my feet and hold my breath if it doesn't happen but Trevor Lewis would be a good addition, he skates well, kills penalties and can play late minutes in a shutdown centre's role

other then that I think the Leafs have everything they need

I would have liked to add a player like that too, but I think Dubas is done. There roster is packed right now.

I've already got Justin Holl, Rasmus Sandin, Jimmy Vesey, and Pierre Engvall on the outside of the starting roster. Bringing in another guy pushes either Robertson or Barabanov out.

 

[Buds17]

I would have liked to add a player like that too, but I think Dubas is done. There roster is packed right now.

I've already got Justin Holl, Rasmus Sandin, Jimmy Vesey, and Pierre Engvall on the outside of the starting roster. Bringing in another guy pushes either Robertson or Barabanov out.

I'm not sure that Dubas would want to risk exposing either of Holl or Vesey to waivers. Engvall is actually not far off from losing waiver exemption status as well. I do agree with you about Engvall and Sandin though.

 

[dubplatepressure]

No. Liljegren can do for us what he does

Completely different players. Murphy has a metric ton more snarl and is much stronger. Lilly may be the more cerebral player with more offensive upside, and may be more mobile too.

I could really see a deal for Murphy mid season if a couple of our depth D don't seem to be working out.

 

[Dreakmur]

I'm not sure that Dubas would want to risk exposing either of Holl or Vesey to waivers. Engvall is actually not far off from losing waiver exemption status as well. I do agree with you about Engvall and Sandin though.

Waivers could be a concern, but I was talking just about icing the best roster on opening night. Though, if a player isn't good enough to make the team, I'm not sure I care that he's claimed.

 

[hamzarocks]

Tampa manages to get everyone signed and will be cap compliant once they place kucherov on LTIR

Cirelli takes 3 years 4.8 which is fair for what he is right now. The bolts window keeps open. Their drafting/scouting from 2011-2016 really set up their foundation with so many pieces from then coming during that period.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

I would have liked to add a player like that too, but I think Dubas is done. There roster is packed right now.

I've already got Justin Holl, Rasmus Sandin, Jimmy Vesey, and Pierre Engvall on the outside of the starting roster. Bringing in another guy pushes either Robertson or Barabanov out.

I would not be counting in Robertson, Barabanov, and both Thornton and Spezza being in the lineup over Engvall and Vesey. That is going to be an open competition and likely rotated often. If Malgin comes back from Switzerland this year, he could also be in that mix, but I think the Leafs keep him over there so they don't need to worry about waivers.

Holl is also going to be above Bogosian on the depth chart. Bogosian is on the outside looking in right now, but as the #7 in this kind of format, he will likely get a lot of playing time. Even the #8 (likely Marincin) will likely get to play a fair number of games, since they will likely want to keep guys fresh. That same concept will likely apply to all of the bottom 6 guys outside of Kerfoot as well, especially with older guys like Thornton and Spezza. If they even end up being the best guys (I would not be surprised if Vesey, Robertson, Barabanov, and Engvall outperform them), then they are likely not going to be able to handle all of the back-to-backs and 3-in-4's that will be happening this season.

As for a guy like Trevor Lewis, he wouldn't be a top 12 guy. Like Frolik/Sheary/Caggiula, he can compete, but the expectation would be that he sits on the taxi-squad and maybe occasionally gets rotated in. We are already seeing teams sign guys like Frolik, Sheary, and Caggiula to more than likely just sit on the taxi-squad, and the Leafs are not going to be any different. If there is an AHL season, we can't afford to have two of Boyd, Petan, or Anderson on the taxi-squad because that leaves two big holes in the AHL top 6 that we can't properly replace. We'd either need to sign guys to replace them in the AHL (i.e. Perlini, Gaunce, etc.), or we need to sign guys like Lewis who can occupy the taxi-squad and keep Boyd/Petan/Anderson in the AHL. The Leafs may be waiting to see what happens with the AHL season, since we are a Canadian team and there are only 3 other Canadian teams in the AHL right now (we may just get cancelled), but I fully expect there to be more moves if an AHL season goes forward.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Tampa manages to get everyone signed and will be cap compliant once they place kucherov on LTIR

Cirelli takes 3 years 4.8 which is fair for what he is right now. The bolts window keeps open. Their drafting/scouting from 2011-2016 really set up their foundation with so many pieces from then coming during that period.

It kicks the can down the road at the expense of their top player, and one of the best players in the NHL. I don't think they want Kucherov out of the lineup for the sake of not having to dump Johnson/Palat/Killorn or one of their young guys, but rather it is just a small silver lining. Tampa is still good, especially if Stamkos is healthy, but that is a major blow to Tampa.

They are still screwed next year. Johnson still has major term and they do not have any major money coming off of the books, but will be losing some key depth guys like Coleman, Goodrow, and Paquette (to a lesser extent) when they can't afford to pay them. They are really hoping guys like Mitch Stephens, Mathieu Joseph, Taylor Raddysh, Alex Volkov, Alex Barre-Boulet, and Boris Katchouk start paying dividends, or they are going to be dumpster diving like the Leafs.

 

[hamzarocks]

It kicks the can down the road at the expense of their top player, and one of the best players in the NHL. I don't think they want Kucherov out of the lineup for the sake of not having to dump Johnson/Palat/Killorn or one of their young guys, but rather it is just a small silver lining.

They are still screwed next year. Johnson still has major term and they do not have any major money coming off of the books, but will be losing some key depth guys like Coleman, Goodrow, and Paquette (to a lesser extent) when they can't afford to pay them. They are really hoping guys like Mitch Stephens, Mathieu Joseph, Taylor Raddysh, Alex Volkov, Alex Barre-Boulet, and Boris Katchouk start paying dividends, or they are going to be dumpster diving like the Leafs.

One thing going for them is that this year was probably the hardest year to manage cap with early uncertainty, a flat cap, teams unwilling to take on high cash contracts etc.

Next year (summer of 2021) we should be hopefully moving past the pandemic. Teams will have better handle on where they stand for future operations and how they can re-align their business practice to recover some of the lost revenues from no fans.

If the cap increases next year due to fans returning or a new TV deal/Seattle coming into the fold(does that effect the cap not sure?) it helps a team like the bolts.

The TJ contract specifically sucks for what he was this year. If he manages to bounce back and play around a 50 point pace over the 56 game season I could see teams being interested in him again. His NTC also turns into a Modified NTC with him submitting a list of 20 teams he would be okay being dealt to. I see tampa have much more flexibility and options next year trying to deal TJ.

Most of those young players you listed are pretty skilled players and I can see some of them emerging as support pieces to Stamkos/kuch/point/cirelli. Kind of like AJ/Kap/brown/Hyman emerged for us

They will lose TJ/Gourde/Killorn and maybe palat but with their superstars being locked in for cheaper than market deals (kuch, stamkos, hedman) they have the core foundation to be a cup contender for atleast the next half decade.

 

[Buds17]

Waivers could be a concern, but I was talking just about icing the best roster on opening night. Though, if a player isn't good enough to make the team, I'm not sure I care that he's claimed.

Fair enough. I'd say waivers could be more of a concern this season though considering both COVID and the usual potential for injuries.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

One thing going for them is that this year was probably the hardest year to manage cap with early uncertainty, a flat cap, teams unwilling to take on high cash contracts etc.

Next year (summer of 2021) we should be hopefully moving past the pandemic. Teams will have better handle on where they stand for future operations and how they can re-align their business practice to recover some of the lost revenues from no fans.

If the cap increases next year due to fans returning or a new TV deal/Seattle coming into the fold(does that effect the cap not sure?) it helps a team like the bolts.

The TJ contract specifically sucks for what he was this year. If he manages to bounce back and play around a 50 point pace over the 56 game season I could see teams being interested in him again. His NTC also turns into a Modified NTC with him submitting a list of 20 teams he would be okay being dealt to. I see tampa have much more flexibility and options next year trying to deal TJ.

Most of those young players you listed are pretty skilled players and I can se them emerging as support pieces to Stamkos/kuch/point/cirelli

They will lose TJ/Gourde/Killorn and maybe palat but with their superstars being locked in for cheaper than market deals (kuch, stamkos, hedman) they have the core foundation to be a cup contender for atleast the next half decade.

The price is still going to be as high as it was this year. At best there will just be more teams that can financially handle a contract like Johnson's, but I doubt that will knock down the price for taking on a 5+ mill long term contract for a guy who is not a top 6 caliber player.

Also, remember that they will still need to pay Point, Sergachev, Cirelli, Cernak, etc. in the next 2-3 years... And it will almost certainly cost them a premium to do so (assuming they are still worth it), as it does with almost every other bridge contract. Tampa may be able to benefit from taxes lowering their cap hits, but those guys will still want to get paid... And I doubt they will be able to keep them all. Their pool is also not as good as the Leafs anymore, and there are not a ton of high end guys coming through their system. They have those forwards and Cal Foote (who would be behind Sandin and Liljegren in our pool), a decent goalie prospect in Hugo Alnefelt, and a few semi-promising NCAA guys who are still 2-3 years from becoming anything. They had to trade away a lot to make their past few runs, and it will likely cost much of what they have left to dump a guy like Johnson... Unless they just take what they can get for Palat or Killorn. They may be able to recoup some decent assets for them, but I doubt it will be full value and it hurts Tampa in the short term a lot more than dumping Johnson.

The best thing they can hope for is that Johnson regains value by effectively replacing Kucherov this year. Maybe they can at least break even on him at that point.

 

[Dekes For Days]

Tampa manages to get everyone signed and will be cap compliant once they place kucherov on LTIR

They actually still have to make a move, even with Kucherov on LTIR and a 20 man roster. And they lose one of the best players in the world for a year.

 

[Dreakmur]

I would not be counting in Robertson, Barabanov, and both Thornton and Spezza being in the lineup over Engvall and Vesey. That is going to be an open competition and likely rotated often. If Malgin comes back from Switzerland this year, he could also be in that mix, but I think the Leafs keep him over there so they don't need to worry about waivers.

Yes, we probably rotate guys in and out, but I was talking about the opening night roster. That's when you dress your best possible line-up.

Malgin is useless.

Holl is also going to be above Bogosian on the depth chart. Bogosian is on the outside looking in right now, but as the #7 in this kind of format, he will likely get a lot of playing time. Even the #8 (likely Marincin) will likely get to play a fair number of games, since they will likely want to keep guys fresh.

Holl is better than Bogosian, but we need what Bogosian brings a lot more. I've got Rielly-Brodie as the top pair, and Lehtonen-Bogosian as the bottom pair. Holl battles Dermott for the spot beside Muzzin, and I think Holl loses that.

That same concept will likely apply to all of the bottom 6 guys outside of Kerfoot as well, especially with older guys like Thornton and Spezza. If they even end up being the best guys (I would not be surprised if Vesey, Robertson, Barabanov, and Engvall outperform them), then they are likely not going to be able to handle all of the back-to-backs and 3-in-4's that will be happening this season.

If there's an OHL or AHL option for Robertson, I think that's the best place for him to develop. If there isn't, he has to play, even if it's on the 4th line.

 

[Stephen]

I want to see Zdeno Chara sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs. I feel like that will be the Babe Ruth moment that swings all the divisional mojo to Toronto away from Boston.

 

[hamzarocks]

They actually still have to make a move, even with Kucherov on LTIR and a 20 man roster. And they lose one of the best players in the world for a year.

Ya losing kucherov sucks, but they're fortunate playing in a weak division. If they get Stamkos for the year the should still be 1st-3rd in the division. If kucherov comes back in playoffs do they need to make a roster move or can they use no cap in playoffs loophole?

If they get kucherov back for the playoffs and dont have to make a panic move and give assets to sell on Palat/gourde/TJ in a rush move they're going with the same roster (basically as their cup winning team).

They're still cup favourites so long as Stamkos is healthy and plays in season and kucherov comes back in the 1st round

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Yes, we probably rotate guys in and out, but I was talking about the opening night roster. That's when you dress your best possible line-up.

Malgin is useless.



Holl is better than Bogosian, but we need what Bogosian brings a lot more. I've got Rielly-Brodie as the top pair, and Lehtonen-Bogosian as the bottom pair. Holl battles Dermott for the spot beside Muzzin, and I think Holl loses that.



If there's an OHL or AHL option for Robertson, I think that's the best place for him to develop. If there isn't, he has to play, even if it's on the 4th line.

Well they will almost certainly put in Thornton and Spezza out of respect, but that does not necessarily mean they are the best options for the starting lineup. Malgin is far from useless, but he is likely not playing a lot anyways so it is irrelevant. At best he may be on the taxi-squad if he comes here, but I doubt he comes back so we don't need to put him on waivers. He could be in our lineup full time, or at least will have a serious chance at competing for a job, in 2021-2022 based on the way he is playing in the NLA.

If we are dressing our best possible lineup, then Bogosian is not in it. What he brings is not worth it enough to dress him over Holl.

Robertson will be given an opportunity, but he is not going to be gifted a roster spot. They aren't going to burn a year on him if he is as good as everyone else. He will almost certainly be in the rotation, at least until the OHL opens up, but if he is not showing that he can be good enough (especially offensively) to be in the top 12, then he won't be in the top 12.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Ya losing kucherov sucks, but they're fortunate playing in a weak division. If they get Stamkos for the year the should still be 1st-3rd in the division. If kucherov comes back in playoffs do they need to make a roster move or can they use no cap in playoffs loophole?

If they get kucherov back for the playoffs and dont have to make a panic move and give assets to sell on Palat/gourde/TJ in a rush move they're going with the same roster (basically as their cup winning team).

They're still cup favourites so long as Stamkos is healthy and plays in season and kucherov comes back in the 1st round

Maybe, but there are still problems for next season. They will be fine for this year, but their cap problems are still there. They just don't need to deal with them right now, and that is at the cost of Kucherov.

I don't really care since we won't have to deal with them until the Conference Finals, and I think we can beat them with or without a healthy Kucherov.