Rumor: Yandle not in the team's plans moving forward, but he's playing anyway..? :thinking_emoji:

[Jean Luc Discard]

I mean two games doesn't change years worth of soft ass play. People just look at his points and think they know what they're talking about. It's always the same "his offense makes up for his defense" when the real reason is his loser attitude which is toxic for a loser organization like the Panthers that's trying to establish a winning culture.

Plus these two games were against the Hawks, one of the bottom feeders in this season. Let's see how Yandle fairs up against teams which really put pressure on Yandle. Previous season's KY is just a Pez-dispenser give away machine against forward trios like Svechnikov-Aho-Teravainen.

 

[Jean Luc Discard]

Q took it easy on him, reports are Q will hire Jeff Gillooly to finish the job

Instead of Kaptain K taking one for the team by disclosing his injury and ending his ironmaiden streak, the Panthers are taking one for Yandle.

 

[Big Bjugs]

If you listen to the podcast about the Yandle situation, apparently a lot of players and other hockey guys around the league do. Friedmann (?) mentions being surprised by it - "we fans don't care but it matters to these guys".

Ok that’s all fine and dandy. I didn’t realize we build our team based off what other players feel about one of our players situation. Good to know.

 

[letsgrowcactus]

Ok that’s all fine and dandy. I didn’t realize we build our team based off what other players feel about one of our players situation. Good to know.

Yes, because that's what I said we should do

As I said just a post below which I guess you missed:

Just saying, this is not just Yandle wanting to keep his streak, apparently other players and hockey guys around the league think it matters too. If we healthy-scratch him, it's not just Yandle's pride on the line, which is the narrative that several people keep pushing here - other players around the league will be upset about it as well. Will it reflect on us when we're signing guys, extending guys or hoping someone waives an NTC? Not saying anybody would decide to avoid the Panthers just because we ended Yandle's streak, but it could create a certain perception around the team and become one of the many factors.

I'm not saying we should bow blindly to the streak - if scratching him is the way to win, do it. But saying it doesn't matter at all is false, at least if you believe Friedman's podcast.

 

[Big Bjugs]

Yes, because that's what I said we should do

As I said just a post below which I guess you missed:

You know what brings big names to a hockey club? A winning culture.

Yandles streak on a laughable club that has a new direction every year is the least of our worries.

 

[kerrabria]

I have never thought Yandle was as bad as others have, and I think he's playing fine as a bottom 4 guy.

 

[Jean Luc Discard]

I have never thought Yandle was as bad as others have, and I think he's playing fine as a bottom 4 guy.

I agree, plays pretty well against rebuilding teams if you exclude the fact he costs $6.35mil still two years after this season, leg speed ain't there anymore and thus a lot of stick infractions and mouthing off to the refs, etc.

I'd rather have 3x Gudas' in the bottom4 for the same price even at the cost of missing out on those beautiful drop-passes to the opponents during PP.

 

[GermanPanther]

I agree, plays pretty well against rebuilding teams if you exclude the fact he costs $6.35mil still two years after this season, leg speed ain't there anymore and thus a lot of stick infractions and mouthing off to the refs, etc.

I'd rather have 3x Gudas' in the bottom4 for the same price even at the cost of missing out on those beautiful drop-passes to the opponents during PP.

Where is the Store who sell the Gudas?

 

[austropanther]

I agree, plays pretty well against rebuilding teams if you exclude the fact he costs $6.35mil still two years after this season, leg speed ain't there anymore and thus a lot of stick infractions and mouthing off to the refs, etc.

I'd rather have 3x Gudas' in the bottom4 for the same price even at the cost of missing out on those beautiful drop-passes to the opponents during PP.

Completely agree.
Yandle as a possible number 3 on our D depth chart? I have a little bit of vomit in my mouth just thinking about it.

He is having the 3rd highest salary on the team behind Bob and Ek while basically being a 3rd pairing PP specialist.

No one should be surprised if he gets as much flak as the Bobs and Gudbransons in this world for all the bad clearing attempts and stupid penalties he takes (3 unnecessary minors within 2 games, leading the team in PIM)

 

[Mogo]

Dont forget we get to protect him in expansion draft too

 

[Dr Beinfest]

I have never thought Yandle was as bad as others have, and I think he's playing fine as a bottom 4 guy.

The thing is, much like how you can’t call up your star scoring prospect to play a fourth line role, Yandle’s talent doesn’t belong in the bottom 4. He needs to be playing lots of power play minutes, he needs to be playing with top talent to be effective. He also gets paid top-4 money.

I never thought the Panthers should move on, mostly because the defense is otherwise god awful and Yandle is durable and can at least score. But he’s definitely still a liability.

Until you have someone capable of actually playing at the NHL level in his position, you can’t exactly “move on” from him. The Panthers are severely lacking at NHL defensive talent top to bottom through the organization.

 

[letsgrowcactus]

An Athletic article - various NHL players squee over how much they love Yandle and what a great teammate he is

Summary: Funny, really funny, cheers and celebrates your every success, great guy, loves the game, like a kid in the candy store every time he's on the ice, constantly making people laugh, makes stuff in the locker room better, makes every guy feel better about themselves

A couple quotes:
Dave Moss, Coyotes teammate 2012-15: He’s the guy in the locker room that everyone wants to be around. Quick-witted, always telling stories and one-liners. He’s easily the funniest guy I’ve ever played with.

Shane Doan: In saying all of this, I’ve never come across somebody that wants to win as much. That’s what makes him the best teammate.

Derrek Morris: When I went to Boston, I got plopped onto the team before training camp. I didn’t know anybody, had no idea how to get around or where to get my kids into hockey. And without even asking, Keith called me and said “Call my dad, he will take care of you. He will get you around that city. He’ll help you out. Call my brother, call my family. They’re all there to help you.” I didn’t even have to call his dad. His dad called me and got my son into youth hockey.

Mark Pysyk: Hurricane Irma was coming so we had to evacuate our homes. And Keith and his wife opened up their house to four or five of us and our families in Boston. All under one roof for four days. He took a couple of us out golfing. Just the best host. And they certainly didn’t have to do that. There were hotels downtown that we could have rented. But the fact that we were all there and they invited us in just speaks to the whole Yandle family.

Aaron Ekblad, Panthers teammate, 2016-21: What does (Yandle) mean to Florida Panthers? A whole hell of a lot. He’s a great locker room guy and a good person. We love having him around. And it just makes it easy to come to the rink every day. It puts a smile on your face when you get to see him and he’s cracking jokes and having fun and making practices better. He’s got a lot of great stories and a lot of great insight on situations. A lot of us go to him for advice and whatever we need.

...

So, look, I've never played professional sports. Having said that, having a colleague and friend like this at work makes your life so much better.
And you need various people in your team/on the ice. You can't have ten "Yandles" around (I can see the horrified expressions already, LOL), but it's good to have a person like that in your life.

Anyway. Obviously we need him playing solid hockey first and foremost, but I thought it was worth mentioning given all the discussions around him.

 

[Jean Luc Discard]

So, look, I've never played professional sports. Having said that, having a colleague and friend like this at work makes your life so much better.

I agree but the thing is though that team-based working environments it doesn't matter how pleasant some person is if they aren't pulling their weight, he/she just becomes an anchor keeping the team down. It is unwise to go on to lambaste some colleague even if there's merit to it and thus ofc his current and former teammates will praise how great of a guy he is, and that's probably true. This on the other creates an alternative reality for guys like Yandle who think that they can't do no wrong, give half-asses effort and still be in good graces with their teammates and coaching staff.

 

[CursedCats]

Are there teams in need of a d-man (Yandle) who have a player capable of being a 2nd line center for us at a similar salary?

Kind of like the Matheson-Hornqvist swap...that would be nice.

 

[TheImpatientPanther]

Are there teams in need of a d-man (Yandle) who have a player capable of being a 2nd line center for us at a similar salary?

Kind of like the Matheson-Hornqvist swap...that would be nice.

Not really, there's likely only 2 teams Yandle may waive for, ARI and BOS.

In saying that, we should definitely be kicking tires on Eric Staal in BUF, he's 36.
They won't make playoffs in that death valley of a division.

We have just under $3.3 mil in space, Staal's caphit is literally $3.25 mil x 1 year, owed $3 mil in cash.
He has 3 goals and 5pts, -4 in 10 games with BUF.

He'd be the perfect stopgap 2C for us, I'd dangle our 2021 2nd OR Borgstrom + 2021 3rd if it helps us contend for 3rd or 4th in the division.

 

[scholl]

Not really, there's likely only 2 teams Yandle may waive for, ARI and BOS.

In saying that, we should definitely be kicking tires on Eric Staal in BUF, he's 36.
They won't make playoffs in that death valley of a division.

We have just under $3.3 mil in space, Staal's caphit is literally $3.25 mil x 1 year, owed $3 mil in cash.
He has 3 goals and 5pts, -4 in 10 games with BUF.

He'd be the perfect stopgap 2C for us, I'd dangle our 2021 2nd OR Borgstrom + 2021 3rd if it helps us contend for 3rd or 4th in the division.

Yes can be difficult to move Yandle especially now when the team is winning. Buffalo is an interesting one to talk about because they have Ristolainen who have wanted to leave the team for years and will become UFA in '22. If he would want to come to Florida, I would give Yandle (if it was possible) + 2021 1st, Saarela and some lower picks in following drafts.

 

[violaswallet]

This article came out in The Athletic: ‘Appropriately inappropriate’: Untold stories of Keith Yandle, the NHL’s best teammate
'Appropriately inappropriate': Untold stories of Keith Yandle, the NHL's best teammate

some nice quotes on Yandle as teammate but it doesn’t address his effort past couple years. Bjug has some great quotes about loving him but not much more on his Panthers teammates

I think the problem is that his past teams had guys like Doan that set the tone and we hoped Yands could do something like that. That’s why we brought in Horny I guess

 

[Jean Luc Discard]

I think the problem is that his past teams had guys like Doan that set the tone and we hoped Yands could do something like that. That’s why we brought in Horny I guess

He was not and never will be considered as a integral part of any particular team. He was supposed to replace Campbell on the blueline but that hasn't been the case at all even tho the points are there.

Even Vigneault's wording about Yandle during his time with Rags could be easily used to characterize his time with the Panthers...

https://nypost.com/2016/01/08/the-key-factors-that-make-keith-yandle-rangers-best-trade-chip/

“I’ve liked a lot of things the’s done,” coach Alain Vigneault said. “Like the rest of our group, he’s become better defensively. He’s handled the puck in a good fashion. Obviously a player like Keith will sometimes make some higher-risk plays. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t. But I think for the most part, his game has been all right. And like most of our team, I think it’s moving forward.”

That's not exactly the abstract you'd want hear about some $6.35mil per player... "yeah, it's kinda of a dice roll with this guy. sometimes his plays work out, sometimes they come to bite your ass. As long as the we keep him on the bottom pairing with McIlrath he's pretty decent."

This is not surprising tho as the saying goes that "the more things change, the more they stay same". In this case, Dale was introduced into this org because he was supposed to get rid off the country club atmosphere but he just kept the same thing going. And the same thing is probably going take place with Zito.

 

[KW]

And the same thing is probably going take place with Zito.

I agreed with everything before that sentence.