Is there a momentum occurring now, before we all clearly savour/appreciate it? Suspect there is.
Suppose in 2018 we had an extra 1st, which we used on a Wahlstrom/Boquist type..would that & the 2nd have nabbed Toffoli? Likely so, but we'll never know. We absolutely do know that Madden was enough, probably placing him firmly into the top half of 2018 1st rounders.
So you think about that..guy was actually a 3rd rounder. Look how quickly his stock rose. Short answer: All rival GM's are taking note of the excellence in JB's/Brackett's draft table prowess. How many future trades will we continue to extract max value, from the trusted currency of our drafted/developed prospects?
Other GM's will want a piece of this action.
*******************************Why stop there?**************************
Observe the class/appreciation with which the org is bestowing upon our recently retired vets. Look how all media reports are admitting(even if they don't like it) our team is tight, & playing hard for each other.
Take note of the close bond between our character vets, & cohesiveness with incoming ELC's(& their subsequent performance).
Just as the relative-stock of our prospects is rising, I believe the same effect may 'trickle up' to our vets with a yr/yrs remaining in term. There might be some great opportunities to swap that leadership into more youth/picks, this upcoming draft, or use that rising capital to deal away $$$ & easily get cap-compliant.
IF we can have a very solid spring here, we MIGHT be on the verge of a monster, sustainable(in a cap-paradigm..SO difficult to do)powerhouse. In sport, momentum can be such a powerful, overwhelming & appealing force.