Speculation: Trade Ideas and Free Agency VI - 2014 Offseason Edition

[nickschultzfan]

Heatley.

Regarding Vanek, I was thinking about improving the PP, and I want Parise, Coyle, and even Koivu to get more time in front of the net, Pominville maybe Granlund down low, Nino on the half wall, and Spurgeon, Scandella, Brodin, and even Folin be given more practice and game time on the point, rather than a forward.

And then I realized that Vanek would actually mess up that plan. He would push Parise/Coyle/Koivu out of the front of the net, and more forward son the point instead of developing our blue liners there.

 

[57special]

And Gaborik played a huge part in it. slow?

 

[57special]

I'd be fine with Vanek. He has a bad playoffs and still led his team in points? Sounds decent lol, 3 yr deal imo though.

Try visiting the MTL forum to see how enamored they were with his PO performance.

But 3 years is not a problem. 5-7 was a given up till now.

 

[57special]

Regarding Vanek, I was thinking about improving the PP, and I want Parise, Coyle, and even Koivu to get more time in front of the net, Pominville maybe Granlund down low, Nino on the half wall, and Spurgeon, Scandella, Brodin, and even Folin be given more practice and game time on the point, rather than a forward.

And then I realized that Vanek would actually mess up that plan. He would push Parise/Coyle/Koivu out of the front of the net, and more forward son the point instead of developing our blue liners there.

I'm a big proponent of playing D men on the point on PP. It is familiar territory for them...they understand the timing and angles better than any forward possibly could, let alone the danger of a blocked shot, which forwards typically are oblivious to.

I can't see Vanek signing here for a short term, unless it's for huge $$. The whole point for him to come here is to find a home for his family. I would guess he would be more amenable for a long term at a lesser rate, I.e., [email protected]. I'd consider that.

 

[Victorious Secret]

That just seems like the kind of thing they'd have an obscure rule for in order to prohibit it.

Its allowable. But the team that traded for or bought said player out can't be signed by either team otherwise its cap circumvention. Trading and compliance is allowable.

how do you expect to sign granny, coyle , haula , scandy and brodin after next year?

There is room for one more large contract and have plenty of room for fillers and raises. Don't overvalue those players, just because you can use nicknames for them doesn't mean they hold greater value. They are also RFAs. As much as you think they could get, think lower.

 

[Wild11MN]

Its allowable. But the team that traded for or bought said player out can't be signed by either team otherwise its cap circumvention. Trading and compliance is allowable.



There is room for one more large contract and have plenty of room for fillers and raises. Don't overvalue those players, just because you can use nicknames for them doesn't mean they hold greater value. They are also RFAs. As much as you think they could get, think lower.

Right. Granlund, Coyle, Haula, Scandella... all of them are improving but none of them have been amazing where they'll get monster raises here. Still waiting for a true breakout year from the first two. We could definitely get one more large contract in I think.

 

[tomthestone*]

Regarding Vanek, I was thinking about improving the PP, and I want Parise, Coyle, and even Koivu to get more time in front of the net, Pominville maybe Granlund down low, Nino on the half wall, and Spurgeon, Scandella, Brodin, and even Folin be given more practice and game time on the point, rather than a forward.

And then I realized that Vanek would actually mess up that plan. He would push Parise/Coyle/Koivu out of the front of the net, and more forward son the point instead of developing our blue liners there.

Vanek would hold down the front of the net because he's a power play monster. Bumping Koivu off the first unit, or at least adding a consistent threat with the man-advantage over constant experimenting is just what the Wild need. Parise should keep his spot whether or not Vanek is brought in, and Coyle isn't any good on the PP.

It's going to be awesome to look back at the flow of opinions on Vanek throughout this year if the Wild sign him. Vanek is a case unlike any I remember, being traded multiple times in his contract year while his perceived value ebbs and flows like a volatile stock on Wall Street. The guy plays like a bigger, slightly better Pominville, and would crush with a clever center like Granlund.

 

[Beegoalie]

The Wild absolutely need goal-scorers... But Vanek isn't even a goal-scorer. He scores goals, but he's not a goal-scorer. On top of that, he's clearly trending down right now. It's pretty clear that the Wild's success depends on our young players, and Vanek isn't going to improve the Wild's chances long-term.

[mod] The guy has how many goals in his career?

25
43
36
40
28
32
26
20(half season)
27

The truth is HE IS A GOAL SCORER. In fact he would be the most prolific goal scorer this franchise has ever had save Marian Gaborik, Zach Parise.

Also by your definition of goal-scorer then Zach Parise isn't a goal scorer. How many pretty goals does he score? Not many. Does it matter how one scores goals? They all count the same. We need goal scoring. Vanek will give us that.

 

[SunDin]

How the hell does him being American make you want him even less?

Sorry I understand how that might have sounded.. I love america & american players, in fact USA was my fav team after my homecountry Sweden in the Olympics.

I just think it would be interessting if the Wild does with Finns, what Red Wings have done with Swedes(who worked out awesome for them). Its just my personal liking..

So basicly if I have to choose between 2 equally good players: 1 fin and one whatever nation,, Id want the Fin player.

 

[Victorious Secret]

Right. Granlund, Coyle, Haula, Scandella... all of them are improving but none of them have been amazing where they'll get monster raises here. Still waiting for a true breakout year from the first two. We could definitely get one more large contract in I think.

If you run the numbers, we definitely have at least one for the next 3-4 years.

 

[thestonedkoala]

I know you know how unrealistic that is, but even if such a move were possible all you'd be doing is hooking the Wild into a $7M center for more years than Koivu has remaining. Stastny puts up a prettier stat line but I doubt you'd want him as the 1C after a series with LA, Chicago or St. Louis.

Then there's the whole part about Koivu being the captain. And having done nothing to play his way off a playoff team. And having a partial no-trade clause. I suppose these EA Sports trade scenarios are good talkers though.

Stastny is much younger than Koivu - which means a bigger window for Minnesota to compete. As well, part of the reason why some of us are clamoring for a guy like Stastny is because of his prettier stats. We need to start producing from every position. Not just the wings.

I really love how this off-season we're discussing goal scoring and our team's lack of goal scorers and yet we have this problem of a) not demanding more from the players on this team (outside of Poms and Parise) and b) keeping the problems and just building on top of it.

Our centers are probably in the bottom 5 for goal scoring and offensive production. We would probably be last if it wasn't for Granlund's ability to generate offensive ability.

Koivu is a) getting slower and b) his goal production has significantly declined since he signed his contract.11 GOALS? Third line forwards out scored him. And no, I'm not expecting Koivu to become a 25-30 goal scorer. I'm expecting though consistent 15-20 goals a season. 15-20 shouldn't be unreasonable for him.

If we can flip Stastny for Koivu, I'd be for it.

 

[TwiztedHeat]

I really wish we'd make a play for Byfuglien. He'd be such a perfect fit here. Dumba, 1st and one more plus could potentially get a deal done.

 

[Lapa]

Stastny is much younger than Koivu - which means a bigger window for Minnesota to compete. As well, part of the reason why some of us are clamoring for a guy like Stastny is because of his prettier stats. We need to start producing from every position. Not just the wings.

Stastny is 2 years younger. That's not "much younger".

We did get production from our centers, too. Koivu scored at .83 PPG, Granlund and Haula both had great seasons.

I really love how this off-season we're discussing goal scoring and our team's lack of goal scorers and yet we have this problem of a) not demanding more from the players on this team (outside of Poms and Parise) and b) keeping the problems and just building on top of it.

Our centers are probably in the bottom 5 for goal scoring and offensive production. We would probably be last if it wasn't for Granlund's ability to generate offensive ability.

Koivu is not a goal scorer, and Granlund and Haula are still young, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. All of those three players are important for us, all in their own way. Just because a player isn't +20 goal scorer doesn't mean that he's a part of a problem (that I don't even think we have).

Also, you do realize how good guys like Granlund and Koivu are at setting guys up for goals, right? Koivu and Granlund had the most primary assists per 60 minutes, according to behindthenet.ca.

Koivu is a) getting slower and b) his goal production has significantly declined since he signed his contract.11 GOALS? Third line forwards out scored him. And no, I'm not expecting Koivu to become a 25-30 goal scorer. I'm expecting though consistent 15-20 goals a season. 15-20 shouldn't be unreasonable for him.

If we can flip Stastny for Koivu, I'd be for it.

Koivu had screws in his ankle. That's going to slow him down. Also, on an 82 game pace, Koivu would have had ~14 goals.

I'd rather keep Koivu. Even more so when we'd have to most likely give up a lot of money to sign him. There will be many, many other teams pursuing him as well.

 

[tomthestone*]

Stastny is much younger than Koivu - which means a bigger window for Minnesota to compete. As well, part of the reason why some of us are clamoring for a guy like Stastny is because of his prettier stats. We need to start producing from every position. Not just the wings.

I really love how this off-season we're discussing goal scoring and our team's lack of goal scorers and yet we have this problem of a) not demanding more from the players on this team (outside of Poms and Parise) and b) keeping the problems and just building on top of it.

Our centers are probably in the bottom 5 for goal scoring and offensive production. We would probably be last if it wasn't for Granlund's ability to generate offensive ability.

Koivu is a) getting slower and b) his goal production has significantly declined since he signed his contract.11 GOALS? Third line forwards out scored him. And no, I'm not expecting Koivu to become a 25-30 goal scorer. I'm expecting though consistent 15-20 goals a season. 15-20 shouldn't be unreasonable for him.

If we can flip Stastny for Koivu, I'd be for it.

Bringing in a proven goal scorer (Vanek?) to essentially replace Heatley adds more goals to the lineup than moving out Koivu in favor of Stastny. Plus the goals Koivu keeps out of the Wild net over 82 outweigh the extra goals Stastny would produce. And paying Stastny $7M would take up more cap space than what Koivu makes now. So I don't know what you meant by flipping a center to free up a bit of cap room, or why that suggestion would be made when it's clear the Wild have plenty of cap room this year.

 

[Victorious Secret]

If and this is a big if, we sign Stastny, you think we would flip one of our centers to save some cap space? I'd rather sign Stastny for 7 million and flip Koivu for prospects and picks.

We could be three deep in top 30 centers. I definitely wouldn't mind doing that. And we'd always have the option to trade.

Right. Granlund, Coyle, Haula, Scandella... all of them are improving but none of them have been amazing where they'll get monster raises here. Still waiting for a true breakout year from the first two. We could definitely get one more large contract in I think.

Exactly. At the same time, I don't think they'd pull a Ryan O'Reilly, either.

Stastny is much younger than Koivu - which means a bigger window for Minnesota to compete. As well, part of the reason why some of us are clamoring for a guy like Stastny is because of his prettier stats. We need to start producing from every position. Not just the wings.

I really love how this off-season we're discussing goal scoring and our team's lack of goal scorers and yet we have this problem of a) not demanding more from the players on this team (outside of Poms and Parise) and b) keeping the problems and just building on top of it.

Our centers are probably in the bottom 5 for goal scoring and offensive production. We would probably be last if it wasn't for Granlund's ability to generate offensive ability.

Koivu is a) getting slower and b) his goal production has significantly declined since he signed his contract.11 GOALS? Third line forwards out scored him. And no, I'm not expecting Koivu to become a 25-30 goal scorer. I'm expecting though consistent 15-20 goals a season. 15-20 shouldn't be unreasonable for him.

If we can flip Stastny for Koivu, I'd be for it.

After watching him during the playoffs, he's got some nasty on him, too. That definitely resonates.

With so much more to play with, it seems like he has had more opportunities in years past, but feels the need to pass it.

As for Koivu. He could be a great center with those guys ahead of him. I just don't buy into the line '1', line '2', line '3'. If you have three top 30 centers, you have the opportunity to have 3 top lines, complete with nice wingers, so why not take that opportunity? Koivu would be more rested for special team opportunities, overall health would go up, not be injured as often. I just don't see a downside of another top center.

 

[Victorious Secret]

Stastny is 2 years younger. That's not "much younger". 3 years, actually. Which is quite a bit

We did get production from our centers, too. Koivu scored at .83 PPG, Granlund and Haula both had great seasons.

Haula had a great season for what we expected. However, why not have 4 good centers. Just because we sign Stastny doesn't mean we think either of them is bad, we just value the position and want all that we can get there. Whats wrong with having 4 solid centers? Someone is going to get injured, we're guaranteed a suitable replacement. Is that so bad?

Koivu is not a goal scorer, and Granlund and Haula are still young, so I wouldn't worry too much about that. All of those three players are important for us, all in their own way. Just because a player isn't +20 goal scorer doesn't mean that he's a part of a problem (that I don't even think we have).

Should we continue to make the excuse of 'their young' when they are in the NHL. We should be able to classify as someone as an NHL player or not an NHL player. Since they are both, age shouldn't be held against them, as it works for them in most cases. If a 1st line center with bonafide #1 PP time scores 11 goals. There is a problem. You are right. Just because he doesn't score goals, doesn't mean there is a problem. But since he doesn't get as many assists to make up for his lack of production makes it unpassable. Koivu tied for 88th among all centers in goal scoring playing with great personnel. That, is the problem.

Also, you do realize how good guys like Granlund and Koivu are at setting guys up for goals, right? Koivu and Granlund had the most primary assists per 60 minutes, according to behindthenet.ca.

Koivu was 33rd among all centers in that statistic and Granlund was 57th. Low for both if we consider them a '1st line' and '2nd line' center.

Koivu had screws in his ankle. That's going to slow him down. Also, on an 82 game pace, Koivu would have had ~14 goals.

Meh.

I'd rather keep Koivu. Even more so when we'd have to most likely give up a lot of money to sign him. There will be many, many other teams pursuing him as well.
But, if you have the opportunity to have all three, why not take it?

Bolded.

 

[J22*]

Bolded.

Now give one good reason why Stastny would pick the Wild over The Avs or blues.

 

[kfan22]

Now give one good reason why Stastny would pick the Wild over The Avs or blues.

So you are saying the Avs and Blues are much better than the Wild?

 

[J22*]

So you are saying the Avs and Blues are much better than the Wild?

No, I am saying that it would seem obvious to most that Stastny would be much more likely to sign in those 2 spots before Minnesota.

 

[Victorious Secret]

Why not Minnesota?

As for Colorado, why not us?

 

[J22*]

Why not Minnesota?

As for Colorado, why not us?

Yeah, I couldn't come up with any legitimate reasons either.

I have nothing against Stastny, but if you want him in Minnesota, it will be a 7 year deal and most likely at a cap hit above Parise/Suter

 

[Victorious Secret]

Yeah, I couldn't come up with any legitimate reasons either.

I have nothing against Stastny, but if you want him in Minnesota, it will be a 7 year deal and most likely at a cap hit above Parise/Suter

If its for that price, then I'd rather have 3-4 years of Vanek. Or even just get Niskanen.

 

[J22*]

If its for that price, then I'd rather have 3-4 years of Vanek. Or even just get Niskanen.

I can't see any reason why Stastny would give the Wild a discount. If all he wants is money, I would guess that multiple teams would offer 7 years @ 7.5 per if not more. If he's willing to sign for cheaper with a contender, I dont see how Minnesota can compete with the team he's already playing for or the team from where he grew up.

 

[Victorious Secret]

If he's willing to sign for cheaper with a contender, I dont see how Minnesota can compete with the team he's already playing for or the team from where he grew up.

Pretty easily. Just look at this last years playoff success!!!!!!!!! Heyooooooo

WE CAN SAY THAT NOW

 

[J22*]

Pretty easily. Just look at this last years playoff success!!!!!!!!! Heyooooooo

WE CAN SAY THAT NOW

Meh, that was only because Tyson Barrie got hurt. Everyone knows that