Brawndo

The NLL Shop is completely sold out of Bandits Championship Merchandise less than 12 hours after the game ended. 😳 Which is interesting as it was all pre-order and none of it has gone into production yet.

Per Bettman the salary cap is expected to rise by one million for next season

John Buccigross referred to Ryan Johnson as Owen Power’s long term partner on Twitter in January. To the second point, this is the value of having a top flight analytics department to fill out the roster.

And I imagine that KA’s Forward Thinking Front Office would agree there is long term benefit in a single season of Hellebuyck He would provide the perfect bridge to Levi and the experience the rest of the team particularity the young players would receive from winning two to four playoff series in the Spring of 2024 would be quite beneficial. Hellebuyck would also be a full season rental, would be here for TC, 82 games and the playoff run. A second pairing defensemen is not going to have the same impact on the team in 2-3 seasons that Hellebuyck probably would have in one, especially when there will be UFAs who can fill a second pairing role I have a sneaking suspicion one of the reasons Adams set and would not exceed His price for Ullmark is the fact this was KA’s First major negotiation as a GM and he needed to set a tone with other GMs and Agents. Had the asking price from Arizona been universal, I imagine Chychurn is a Sabre. Most would rather the Sabres trade a 2024 1st for Hellebuyck, but if you are Winnipeg why take an asset which will most likely be worth less as the acquiring team will have a full season of Hellebuyck to improve their record. The Sabres pick in 2024 should be in the 20s especially with the addition an all star goalie. The other rumored teams to be in on him are the Kings and Devils, neither which have their first this draft and Detroit, who by Yzerman’s own admission is further behind in their rebuild so I doubt they trade the 9th overall pick.

That was actually the first of three mock draft podcasts and it was actually Eddy Tabone who is their stat guru and lacrosse correspondent. Chad posted a different article the same day where the Hellebuyck Trade Proposal was. There is no way in hell I would trade Peterka for Petersson.

Hellebuyck is probably the difference between just making the playoffs and winning a round or two. GMKA has positioned the organization to make this exact type of move, especially at a position of need. This isn’t the first time that Chad has brought up the Sabres interest in Hellebuyck.

Hellebuyck isn’t a normal rental player though. He is one of the Top Three Players at a position which has been unsettled for the Sabres going back about a decade. Levi has a lot of promise, but it still unproven. This would allow the team to set a number of starts for Levi and lower the number of games for Hellebuyck from the mid 60s that he has played the past two seasons in Winnipeg. A number 4 defenseman is much easier to find in UFA and I believe either Novikov or Johnson will be ready for second pairing minutes by the 2024-25 season. UPL doesn’t appear to be in their future and Kisakov probably never makes the Sabres Roster with the depth at forward The Sabres Front Office has created the perfect environment to make a move like this, as the roster is ready to take the next step and has assembled a deep pool of assets. Okposo said the expectations for the team is the playoffs, a move like this shows the FO agrees.

This was without an extension. Essentially giving up 13OA for one year of a Vezina Finalist makes a lot of sense. This gives Levi the chance to have his number of starts set and gives Hellebuyck a chance to reduce His regular season, starts and rest up for the playoffs. As @dudacekpreviously mentioned, Hellebuyck might not be the best candidate for the Sabres based on the style that they play so this does have to be taken into consideration. In terms of New Jersey, yes, they are a contender. I would also add the LA Kings as well as the Detroit Red Wings into this mix as well. Neither New Jersey or LA have their first round pick this year, but have multiple assets in terms of prospects that can be traded. LA and Detroit would be in best position to sign him long-term.

Chad DeDomincis released a Mock Offseason this AM. Said the price for Hellebuyck isn’t astronomical. A first, rostered player and B Prospect. He had the Sabres trading 13th OA, UPL and Kisakov for Him. Also this trade Buffalo Sabres acquire Matt Grzelcyk in exchange for Jacob Bryson and the Sabres’ 2024 second-round pick Does not have Jost or Zemgus returning. Mentioned VO isn’t generating much trade interest around the league

Chad DeDomincis released a Mock Offseason this AM. Said Moore and Simashev are names he has heard for 13th. Also they have interest in Michkov should he start to slide. Moving up for Him is something they would consider

John Hynes fired in Nashville as HC Andrew Brunette expected to be named HC of the Preds

Suzie Kewl’s First Love was always Baseball. She is now the multi media journalist for the Lehigh Iron Pigs the AAA Team for the Phillies.

Friedman mentioned it a few weeks ago on the 32 Thoughts Pod. The NHLPA has agreed to discuss it

Here is the picture

I doubt he gets by Washington, but I would love it