I have an issue with the thought that you can be a last place team and be competitive. You look at blundering franchises like Edm, perennial underachievers like Win, and that 1 team that is crippled by injuries, if you want to be the worst then you can't be good enough to be competitive against Boston and Anaheim, you have to get down to their level. We played Florida to a 1-0 loss and beat Carolina in a shootout. Last place finishes are usually catastrophic, rosters built to finish last are historically catastrophic. I'm not much interested in walking a line for McEichel, I want the job done so we can stop this nonsense. You gotta accept that worst place teams aren't watchable, because there's gonna be someone else out there who is unwatchable that's gonna be worse.
Right now I have no rant about the on-ice product, it sucks. It's league worst levels of suck. However, Myers looks good to very good, and Girgensons has moments of greatness. Outside of those two players there really isn't anyone on this roster that I care about. Reinhart I'm desperate to get him out of here before he gets hurt. Zadorov, if he's stuck here because of a contract foible with the CHL then activate him, if nothing else he needs to be smacking bodies around and handling the puck. Ennis, Hodgson, Moulson, Stewart, and Stafford are just nameless faceless middle 6 point producers that can be collected in bunches every offseason, if none of them are here in 4 years I wouldn't think anything of it.
I don't buy into this culture of winning and work ethic thing because I realistically see 60% of this roster gone by the time they start playing meaningful games again and their replacements aren't part of the team. Whose learning to win and work? Myers? Might be our best player, he's at least our best defender right now. Girgensons? Probably the other player in the running for best player. The guys. I have an issue with, that I swear at, that make me drink, they're tank commanders right now and that's the priority, finish dead friggin last.
TL
R you can't be watchable and get McEichel