Curt

That should definitely be a pretty good 4th line. We have watched it be a pretty good 4th line for like half a season+ already.

I think there is a difference there. I feel like Asplund is way ahead of Mittelstadt in terms of physical development. Once Asplund adjusted to the AHL game he was able to compete against men, take on more responsibility and really showcase that growth that we saw in the 2nd half. Mittelstadt, I feel like, really needs a couple years in a pro training environment to build up his strength. Until that happens I don’t think he is going to be able to really “break out”, or fully showcase his skills. Last season we saw flashes of the skills, we often saw what he was trying to do, but he often looked like a boy amongst men to me.

Over.......201. I think it mostly will depend on health, but 200 is probably just about the right spot to set that.

That’s some pretty harsh criticism of Samuelsson’s skating!

I don’t think I would trade Reino for Laine.

According to Capfriendly, Ullmark will still be a RFA after this contract.

Dang! I thought he would get about $2M. This looks like it’s going to be about $3M though!

I also don’t think we will see any buyouts. It just isn’t going to be necessary with how things stand right now. Ullmark and McCabe left to sign with $3M is space. Those two combined will probably cost in the range of $3.5-4M. That would put Buffalo a little over the cap, but as others have said, sending Sobotka and Hunwick to the AHL, just to get down to the NHL roster size limit, creates $2M in additional cap space. So Buffalo should be at least $1-1.5M under the cap without making any real moves. That’s without even discussing possible trades, I think its likely that there is a D trade of some sort on the way, which could create even more cap space.

Even if his contract was a 950K 1-way deal, it doesn’t affect the cap if he is playing in the AHL. Also, everyone worrying about the cap needs to stop. Buffalo is going to be a couple Mil under with no real problems at all. There is no need to buy anyone out. The Ullmark and McCabe contracts are going to bring them right up to, or just slightly over the cap, but they can only have so many players on the NHL roster. Demoting a couple of guys to the AHL will bring them well under the cap.

This is basically my view as well. I don’t personally have any emotional stakes in the success of Rochester. At the same time, I don’t want them to suck because I want the young guys there to be having a positive, challenging experience that helps them grow. I want Rochester to be a good team full of good people in order to create the best possible environment for any prospects there. If Remi Elie is part of that (I think he is), then I’m glad he was signed.

A one way deal obviously is less favorable than 2-way, but it’s not as if it would have impacted the cap. The arbitration was initiated by Elie, that means that Buffalo gets to decide if the contract is for 1 or 2 years. I just don’t think there was any downside of consequence at stake here.

$700k, one year, 2-way contract

If that was the system, the two figures submitted probably would be a lot closer together.

I’m not saying anything definitively, but I don’t think it’s obvious that Lazar is better than Elie at either level. Al least not enough for me to care at all whether Pegula is paying them 700k or 800k when it’s not going to impact the cap.

They probably actually like Elie as a quality AHL forward and a guy they are comfortable with on the 4th line or as 13th guy when there is an injury. The AHL team is going to be good again.

Blue didn’t even say that those “people” are wrong, let alone stupid or anything like that. This is such a lazy and tired argument. No one here has played in the NHL, so I guess none of us have a clue then. I guess if you guys want to go make a forum or club only for poster who played at a certain level of hockey, excluding everyone else, I guess now would be a good time to go do that.

Other teams want McCabe???

You are of course correct in some instances, however, it’s probably more difficult than it looks from my couch.

Murray got 3 full years, more than Botterill has had so far. Also, I think it was pretty clear that his firing was less a result of the team’s on ice performance and more a result of the general dysfunction of the organization that he had constructed.

Yes, I remember that he was basically Poile’s right hand man for a number of years, but also that he is especially unpersonable, and that was the main reason that he went so long without getting a GM job. So, yes, I also wonder if a big part of this was a personal problem Fenton and either the owner or others high up in the organization.

That is absolutely incredible. What a disaster for that franchise.

The NHL.com article on Samuelsson was nice, but I think the only reason it was written is because his father is Kjell Samuelsson. It doesn’t really give any new info or discuss any improvements as a hockey player. He is big, he is a leader, his dad played in the NHL, his coach is Andy Murray. It was far from in depth. I hope his skating, passing, and decision making end up being good enough to allow his size and defensive attributes to play to their fullest an the NHL level. I think he has at least one more NCAA season and one full season in the AHL to go before he gets any real look in the NHL. Maybe a good amount of NHL time in 2021-22 and a full time NHLer in 2022-23. He is probably quite a ways out still.

You think to Tampa specifically, now that they have moved out Callahan’s money, or just anywhere because some things are starting to happen?

A shell corporation.

I feel pretty confident that Tampa is not doing that. If those are the options, I think it would be nothing. Personally, I would be fine if the main pieces were Risto and Cirelli, but I don’t think that makes any sense for Tampa either.