DrJockitch

FA has been very generous. Everyone is spending to a cap that has been flat for several years, well not everyone but a lot of teams. Some though are more paper cap hits like Myers would be if we traded him. Many teams have weaponized the cap to picking up dead weight contracts. We get our dead weight contracts the old fashioned way, FA’s money. I think his willingness to spend has held us back from tearing down when we should have. Every GM thinks they can spend their way into a contract extension when we spend to the cap no matter how bad we are. I think it is fair to have lots of gripes about FA’s ownership but his willingness to spend money is not one of them. (I know I just griped about it) Since they hired JR they have been talking about the need for a practice facility and looking for solutions, not like what Tocchet said was new.

Boeser’s contract ends same time Lekk’s SHL one does. He will be gone in 2 years, not sure about trade unless deadline next year.

They spent $20M to buyout OEL. This ownership group is many things but cheap isn’t one of them.

Wasn’t saying was a bad thing. Can clearly see that is what most of the newer guys are aimed toward as well as some of the players like Mik that they added last year. Getting Mik and Podz into our top 6 would make a very different looking team with a microscopic bottom 6. Not sure Podz will be there next season or not. work in progress but still doesn’t really seem like the right forward core to suit Tocchet’s style.

It’s a hot take thread man, don’t over analyze it.

End of first month we have worst record in league. Make a big recovery before losing out on playoffs by losing last game.

I take this to mean get ready for dump and chase, clog the middle boring hockey.

I am all for small players but they need to put in a position to succeed. Surrounding them with a dozen other small players is not that. our TDL moves are more directed at showing STH that we should be better next year, so we buy when we are out. It is a crazy way to do things but that is the Aquillini way.

Small forward group that fits poorly with coaching style. Defence that needs everyone to play at a level they never have. Jeckle and Hyde goaltending last year. Who knows how we will do. But i suspect floating around the bubble. My prediction: Poor start but not as bad as last year, our first month schedule is very tough. A little under 500 first half or so of season, a little above after. Knocking on door of WC but falling flat on our faces last few days of season when have chance to grab a WC spot is how I see it. That and spending draft capital on UFAs we can’t afford to resign at the deadline.

A small soft defensively poor goal scoring winger who can’t score 20, nah not half the player Bo is. Defensively poor little wingers rarely have a lot of TDL value. If we wait that long to move some little wingers we will be selling at TDL. Or as we do when out of the playoffs, buying!?

Clearing out 4-5M in cap space for a small middle six forward when we have too many small middle six forwards would be a coup for Alvin. Hoglander is waiting for one of those spots and is a likely waiver wire casualty otherwise. We would gain cap flexibility and a chance to find another right side D or a right handed C since we seem to have exactly none. Trading either of those guys just for the cap space would be great for this years team.

It also seems that by saying celebrities can’t do it, does that mean they can’t have actors act in commercials? Doug Ford writes lazy policy typically.

Drug adds are so cheesy it is comical. Gambling adds are just frustrating.

Wayne and Pronger. Ain’t the young guys they are aiming at, it is us.

It is too much and it is pervasive. Heck they even have gambling segments in the shows now as if the advertising isn’t enough.

Would agree. First year numbers say definitely worth a shot. Not a bad signing, see how he does a little further down the lineup on what is begrudgingly a pretty good team

Wow, that was a drop off. Looked like good player 2 seasons ago.

No, but OEL wins the comeback award.

Same person that would grab a woman like that and think it was appropriate with his daughter? Or publicly fantasize about it with his daughter.

Okay, I saw the headline and said the Leafs and who? I really couldn’t come up with the second. Edmonton never even occurred to me.

You have some crazy takes on here but I find your Woo ones the wildest and most entertaining. He did an amazing job last year bringing himself from borderline AHL D to a mid pairing regular. Fantastic growth considering how slow had developed until then. This is nowhere near regular NHL depth D man level. Maybe it has clicked now and he will get an NHL game or two this season which will be great progress. But, first pairing NHLer!?

I think it is a matter of these are three wingers that are somewhat redundant and disappointing at their cap hits while we need to move out some salary. Not hard to reach as to who we would prefer to move. I don’t think there is a situation that we see Brock come back after his contract. He has been overpaid, seems to have little value around the league and his contract ends when OEL’s cap penalty jumps and Lekkerimaki is probably coming over. It also probably;h coincides with the timing we should see Raty and Klimovich starting as NHL regulars of it is going to happen. Probably also around the time Willander and EP are coming over. The strategy seems to be place holders next 2 years until this group of prospects has matured together then see if can work them in when we need cost controls the most because of cap recapture and EP/Hronek’s new deals kicking in.

We were very near the bottom (great for rebuilding team) when Benning left. Looks more rounded after actually drafting some D last year. Still short at C but adding Raty was helpful especially if he improves skating. Some puzzling picks this year in overages that likely were going to be available for free soon and didn’t exactly blow their draft plus seasons away. Would be nice to hold on to some second rounders and actually make some extra pics but that isn’t how FA runs the team. For a team that has been as bad as long as we have we should have a top prospect pool but we are just happy to be scraping out of the basement at this point. We build for scraping all the way into the middle of the pack and are easily satisfied at this point by any positive signs because of the backwards way we do things. Crazy that we have been this bad for this long and still had to build a third of our lineup through the B-D level UFAs again.

Need size and attitude in our forward lineup, especially the bottom six. This off-season we have somehow found a way to get smaller upfront on a lineup that already looked like a Smurf villages. Suter is nice add but small, even though Blueger plays a more physical game he is barely averages sized. Aman looks to be on the outside looking in and he was one of the few players with size, Hogz no longer waiver eligible so will be most likely be on team. We went from small to tiny upfront on a lineup that wants to stress boring dump and chase hockey. Joshua is not coming out of the lineup. He may be a nice add but we need subtractions more than we need additions and that is where this management has struggled, removing players and contracts.

I think at this point it is an absolute crap shoot. We could click and outscore our issues. Demko could carry us at least to the threshold. It could be a terrible failure. The defence doesn’t click, the forwards get pushed around to easily and Demko is slow out of the gate again. Either outcome seems about as likely to me. At least, unlike in the Benning years, if it doesn’t click we have some sellable assets.