Layout Your Offseason Plan

[Weave]

There is no way KA trades for Ulmark after he chose to sign with Boston.  Adams first rule is, they have to want to be here.

[Thorner]

29 minutes ago, Weave said:

There is no way KA trades for Ulmark after he chose to sign with Boston.  Adams first rule is, they have to want to be here.

How much of that is actually a hard line philosophy of KA’s and how much of that was a more general comment notably borne out of the time period where KA was going out of his way to detail the disconnect w/Jack Eichel? To me it was more of a stance against guys who absolutely had/have no interest in being here. Cutting yourself off from all but the absolutely thrilled would severely cut down the trade/draft/FA pool: id guess it’s a bit of a sliding scale. Greenway, for example, didn’t seem thrilled, but open to it. He did say he was excited for a change of scenery, in general. We want high character guys so anyone needs to have that mindset coming in, but personally I don’t think it’s strictly true when KA says things like “we only want guys who are *DYING* to be here.”

you could absolutely be correct on Ullmark as there’s that baggage. Just speaking more generally 

Edited May 28, 2023 by Thorny

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

If Boston has to move Ullmark I think he would be a much more economical acquisition than Hellebuyck. 

You would have him for 2 more years at $5 million. Perfect timeline for Levi to develop. I don’t think him leaving before would be a big deal. 

Last year was a special year for him but his overall career he hovers around a .917 sv% which would be a big upgrade for Buffalo. Ullmark/Levi for 2 years would put them in the playoffs.

I would go after Tanev to play with Power. He has one year left and Conroy says they want to get younger. 

I would move Olofsson and UPL for picks and then use those picks as part of packages for Ullmark and Tanev. If Tanev has more then one year then I would move Joker for him but for a one year rental I wouldn’t. Maybe if Tanev agrees to an extension before hand.

Why would Boston want to move Ullmark? If they are under severe cap pressures, they would make the necessary adjustments elsewhere. Moving Ullmark makes no sense at all, especially after the season he just had. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

48 minutes ago, JohnC said:

Why would Boston want to move Ullmark? If they are under severe cap pressures, they would make the necessary adjustments elsewhere. Moving Ullmark makes no sense at all, especially after the season he just had. 

Depends.  They need cap space and they need warm bodies in their empty prospects pool.  Ullmark’s value might never be higher.

[JohnC]

15 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Depends.  They need cap space and they need warm bodies in their empty prospects pool.  Ullmark’s value might never be higher.

When you have a player who is so instrumental to your team's success you look elsewhere to make cuts. From a productivity to salary standpoint he should be considered a good value. I just don't see him being moved under any circumstances, at least right now. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

21 minutes ago, JohnC said:

When you have a player who is so instrumental to your team's success you look elsewhere to make cuts. From a productivity to salary standpoint he should be considered a good value. I just don't see him being moved under any circumstances, at least right now. 

That might be true if they didn’t have the younger, cheaper and probably just as good goalie in Swayman already on the team and ready to be a No. 1 guy.  Goalie is where their depth is.  They need centers and D and don’t have much room to pay them.

[Flashsabre]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

Why would Boston want to move Ullmark? If they are under severe cap pressures, they would make the necessary adjustments elsewhere. Moving Ullmark makes no sense at all, especially after the season he just had. 

It has been put out there a couple times now. Boston are in a cap crunch and they like both Swayman and Bussi who they believe is ready to come up. Getting $5 million off the books would be huge for them.

https://985thesportshub.com/listicle/bruins-know-theyre-staring-down-an-absolute-salary-cap-nightmare/

Edited May 28, 2023 by Flashsabre

[thewookie1]

7 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

If Boston has to move Ullmark I think he would be a much more economical acquisition than Hellebuyck. 

You would have him for 2 more years at $5 million. Perfect timeline for Levi to develop. I don’t think him leaving before would be a big deal. 

Last year was a special year for him but his overall career he hovers around a .917 sv% which would be a big upgrade for Buffalo. Ullmark/Levi for 2 years would put them in the playoffs.

I would go after Tanev to play with Power. He has one year left and Conroy says they want to get younger. 

I would move Olofsson and UPL for picks and then use those picks as part of packages for Ullmark and Tanev. If Tanev has more then one year then I would move Joker for him but for a one year rental I wouldn’t. Maybe if Tanev agrees to an extension before hand.

If it weren’t for the past baggage, Ullmark would be a perfect target but I just can’t see it happening based on how his exit went down. 

[Taro T]

16 hours ago, JohnC said:

When you have a player who is so instrumental to your team's success you look elsewhere to make cuts. From a productivity to salary standpoint he should be considered a good value. I just don't see him being moved under any circumstances, at least right now. 

Personally don't expect Ullmark gone, but stranger things have happened.

And, in 1990, the heart of the Bills D Fred Smerlas was left exposed to Plan B free agency; the leader of the OL Joe Devlin was too.  That loss of leadership sent the Bills to the next 4 Superbowls.

Heck, the Presidents Trophy winning Swamp Cats sent Huberduberdeau, Weegar, and their coach packing and now are playing in the Stanley Cup Final for only the 2nd time in their history.

Edited May 29, 2023 by Taro T

[Crusader1969]

Criminally underrated even by some of our posters 

no way he should be traded for any goalie, let alone one with 1 year left till UFA

 

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, Taro T said:

Personally don't expect Ullmark gone, but stranger things have happened.

 

I agree with you that if Ullmark is dealt it would be strange. If you are making a bet it isn't financially wise (even for a degenerate gambler) to place a bet on something weird happening, even if the stupendous odds could give you a glorious windfall if you hit the jackpot. That's just me and my tight wallet perspective on this issue. 

[kas23]

3 hours ago, Crusader1969 said:

Criminally underrated even by some of our posters 

no way he should be traded for any goalie, let alone one with 1 year left till UFA

 

I don’t know if it was the same dude, but whoever in the scouting dept was clamoring to pick JJP and Kulich should get a fat raise. 

[Flashsabre]

48 minutes ago, JohnC said:

I agree with you that if Ullmark is dealt it would be strange. If you are making a bet it isn't financially wise (even for a degenerate gambler) to place a bet on something weird happening, even if the stupendous odds could give you a glorious windfall if you hit the jackpot. That's just me and my tight wallet perspective on this issue. 

Normally they wouldn’t trade him but they are in a real bind with the bonus overages for Bergeron, Krejci and Swayman coming due adding more to their cap and Swayman is a RFA. They could look to move Swayman but that would be less cap being freed up. 

[French Collection]

The Toronto Star had a poll asking who the Leafs should trade from their core 4 and what the return should be.

They posted some of the replies. One was Matthews to Buffalo for TNT and Dahlin. I can’t believe that newspaper would think KA would even entertain that one. Talk about overvaluing your players.

[nfreeman]

3 minutes ago, French Collection said:

The Toronto Star had a poll asking who the Leafs should trade from their core 4 and what the return should be.

They posted some of the replies. One was Matthews to Buffalo for TNT and Dahlin. I can’t believe that newspaper would think KA would even entertain that one. Talk about overvaluing your players.

Well, that was just a fan suggestion, right?  Probably not the views of the Star.

It does make for an interesting question though, because if Mathews doesn't sign an extension before the draft (or at least agree to one in principle by then -- not sure whether he can sign before July 1), there is a real likelihood that Toronto trades him as he is now one season from UFA.

Mathews IMHO is the 2nd-best player in the NHL.  If he told KA that he would sign here for, say, 7 years x $11.5MM per year -- what would KA do?  What would Sabrespacers do?

Who here would give up Quinn, Cozens and a #1 for Mathews?  (I would not.  I'm not trading TNT, Cozens or Dahlin, and probably not Power either, for any trade that doesn't yield McDavid.)

How about Quinn, Power and a #1?

Or:  Quinn, Tuch, Kulich and a #1?  Now you've gotta think seriously about it.

Just BSing around on Mem Day afternoon.  And I hope everyone is having a great one.

 

[Randall Flagg]

15 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Well, that was just a fan suggestion, right?  Probably not the views of the Star.

It does make for an interesting question though, because if Mathews doesn't sign an extension before the draft (or at least agree to one in principle by then -- not sure whether he can sign before July 1), there is a real likelihood that Toronto trades him as he is now one season from UFA.

Mathews IMHO is the 2nd-best player in the NHL.  If he told KA that he would sign here for, say, 7 years x $11.5MM per year -- what would KA do?  What would Sabrespacers do?

Who here would give up Quinn, Cozens and a #1 for Mathews?  (I would not.  I'm not trading TNT, Cozens or Dahlin, and probably not Power either, for any trade that doesn't yield McDavid.)

How about Quinn, Power and a #1?

Or:  Quinn, Tuch, Kulich and a #1?  Now you've gotta think seriously about it.

Just BSing around on Mem Day afternoon.  And I hope everyone is having a great one.

 

The gap between MacKinnon and Matthews is significant, and if you weight most recent performance heavily, Matthews was probably not even a top 10 NHLer in the 2022-23 season. 

Significant is the wrong word, I don't mean big gap, just distinct/measurable 

[thewookie1]

20 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Well, that was just a fan suggestion, right?  Probably not the views of the Star.

It does make for an interesting question though, because if Mathews doesn't sign an extension before the draft (or at least agree to one in principle by then -- not sure whether he can sign before July 1), there is a real likelihood that Toronto trades him as he is now one season from UFA.

Mathews IMHO is the 2nd-best player in the NHL.  If he told KA that he would sign here for, say, 7 years x $11.5MM per year -- what would KA do?  What would Sabrespacers do?

Who here would give up Quinn, Cozens and a #1 for Mathews?  (I would not.  I'm not trading TNT, Cozens or Dahlin, and probably not Power either, for any trade that doesn't yield McDavid.)

How about Quinn, Power and a #1?

Or:  Quinn, Tuch, Kulich and a #1?  Now you've gotta think seriously about it.

Just BSing around on Mem Day afternoon.  And I hope everyone is having a great one.

 

They are just attempting to dump their newly disliked players anywhere that can give them better spread talent. 

To be frank not one of those trades even interests me in the slightest. Matthews is a great player but is certainly of the new school ideas in hockey is purely a business and damning your team in order to get a few more million is completely reasonable.

 

Additionally Tuch may not be our greatest player but he may actually be the most untouchable due to his importance to the team's makeup.

[Randall Flagg]

I keep thinking of Tuch as sort of old but he's only 27 for this upcoming season. Sweet

[Marvin]

23 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Well, that was just a fan suggestion, right?  Probably not the views of the Star.

It does make for an interesting question though, because if Mathews doesn't sign an extension before the draft (or at least agree to one in principle by then -- not sure whether he can sign before July 1), there is a real likelihood that Toronto trades him as he is now one season from UFA.

Mathews IMHO is the 2nd-best player in the NHL.  If he told KA that he would sign here for, say, 7 years x $11.5MM per year -- what would KA do?  What would Sabrespacers do?

Who here would give up Quinn, Cozens and a #1 for Mathews?  (I would not.  I'm not trading TNT, Cozens or Dahlin, and probably not Power either, for any trade that doesn't yield McDavid.)

How about Quinn, Power and a #1?

Or:  Quinn, Tuch, Kulich and a #1?  Now you've gotta think seriously about it.

Just BSing around on Mem Day afternoon.  And I hope everyone is having a great one.

 

I value ensemble play and depth more than you do.  I don't see a reason to help Toronto with their biggest weaknesses just for bragging rights for Matthews.

[French Collection]

2 hours ago, Randall Flagg said:

The gap between MacKinnon and Matthews is significant, and if you weight most recent performance heavily, Matthews was probably not even a top 10 NHLer in the 2022-23 season. 

Significant is the wrong word, I don't mean big gap, just distinct/measurable 

He can score 60 in the regular season but until he plays the same way in the playoffs he remains behind others on my list of top players. I value a guy like Brayden Point higher than Matthews because he plays even better in the playoffs.

Matthews 1.13 ppg in the regular season, .88 ppg in the playoffs.

Point .93 ppg in the regular season, 1 ppg in the playoffs. 2 Cups

MacKinnon 1.07 ppg in the regular season, 1.3 ppg in the playoffs. 1 Cup

Makar 1.03 ppg in the regular season, 1.07 ppg in the playoffs. 1 Cup

[Randall Flagg]

7 minutes ago, French Collection said:

He can score 60 in the regular season but until he plays the same way in the playoffs he remains behind others on my list of top players. I value a guy like Brayden Point higher than Matthews because he plays even better in the playoffs.

Matthews 1.13 ppg in the regular season, .88 ppg in the playoffs.

Point .93 ppg in the regular season, 1 ppg in the playoffs. 2 Cups

MacKinnon 1.07 ppg in the regular season, 1.3 ppg in the playoffs. 1 Cup

Makar 1.03 ppg in the regular season, 1.07 ppg in the playoffs. 1 Cup

I'm normally less skeptical of that sort of thing, but it's true that I've never seen Matthews take a step forward in the playoffs the way the greats can. You'd think that after 7 years it would have happened once just by chance

But even discounting that, I think it was fair to call Matthews the 2nd best player in the world for the 21-22 season, and maybe the one before it. But I think if you ask that question right NOW, he's not it, and if you sum the last 4 years, he's not it either

He's still awesome and if he was available I would probably inquire. And then move on after hearing asking price 

[RochesterExpat]

On 5/28/2023 at 3:30 PM, Weave said:

There is no way KA trades for Ulmark after he chose to sign with Boston.  Adams first rule is, they have to want to be here.

I agree about KA’s attitude, but we found out after the fact Ullmark wanted $6m to stay in Buffalo and the internal bean counters/statisticians said it wasn’t worth it. They were right with the data they had at the time. He didn’t exactly have a consistent healthy run in Buffalo…

So I don’t think Ullmark was a hard no or hating on Buffalo. I think he just wanted his payday and his agent oversold him on his value.

[Taro T]

5 hours ago, French Collection said:

The Toronto Star had a poll asking who the Leafs should trade from their core 4 and what the return should be.

They posted some of the replies. One was Matthews to Buffalo for TNT and Dahlin. I can’t believe that newspaper would think KA would even entertain that one. Talk about overvaluing your players.

Really like Mittelstadt.  Would offer him & a '25 protected 1st for Matthews.  That's about it.  With, or without an extension in place.  Matthews is a great individual talent, but don't see him making others around him significantly better. 

[Flashsabre]

https://www.nhltraderumors.me/2023/05/nhltr-mock-trade-jets-connor-hellebuyck.html

I just threw up in my mouth🤢

[Marvin]

41 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

https://www.nhltraderumors.me/2023/05/nhltr-mock-trade-jets-connor-hellebuyck.html

I just threw up in my mouth🤢

Way, way, way too much without an extension.  Quinn is off-limits even with an extension.  Not to mention that goalkeepers don't cost that much anyway.