Rumor: 2022-2023 Free Agency and Trade Rumors: STILL searching for a 2C

[Gatorbait19]

The smart move would be to take a still decent player that’s overpaid on a bloated expiring contract or even a cap dump that improves the roster. Team gets better and free assets.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

The smart move would be to take a still decent player that’s overpaid on a bloated expiring contract or even a cap dump that improves the roster. Team gets better and free assets.

How sad is it that the Avs never ever did this. Even when they had tons of cap space and sucked they always refused to stock up on assets.

 

[Hasbro]

And Burakovsky is not?

Some years.

 

[Avaholic29]

And Burakovsky is not?

He’s not send your team to the finals in overtime twice in two years and score the cup clinching goal in the finals killer.

 

[The Abusement Park]

He’s not send your team to the finals in overtime twice in two years and score the cup clinching goal in the finals killer.

I mean Burakovsky has the 3rd highest GPG in potential elimination games in NHL history…

 

[Ararana]

I'd be pretty excited if ROR was being targeted by the Avs. I know he's not the player he was but I still think he'd be a great stopgap 2C between Landy and Nuke, and those three would make a super solid defensive shut down line still capable of producing points. I personally like ROR over Toews as deadline rentals.

When you're talking 5v5 groups

Lehkonen - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Toews - Makar

Landeskog - ROR - Nuke
Byram - Manson

Either one of those groups could manage other team's top lines.

He's not the perfect center to replace Kadri, but he might be the best center actually available. No one wants the Avs to punt on the season so ROR might be the best option this deadline.

The only question is if ROR does come back how do we talk him into taking 37 instead of 90? Because 37 ROR >>> 90 ROR.

 

[Bill Peckerskull]

LeBrun rumblings: What I'm hearing about Timo Meier, buyers/sellers, the Habs and more

It's stress time in the NHL, as every win, loss and injury changes the math on decisions for teams like the Predators ahead of the deadline.

theathletic.com

If this weekend goes poorly for the Predators, my understanding is that veteran GM David Poile will be ready to open the phone lines and listen on almost anyone.

We really haven’t heard about any Predators players on the trade front the past several weeks. That’s because Poile keeps things close to the vest, and he wants to give his team a chance. But if it doesn’t get going right now, I believe Nashville will be ready to listen, with an open mind.

Mattias Ekholm, Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, Mikael Granlund, Nino Niederreiter … if the Predators fall out of it over the next week, I truly believe the team will be ready to listen on all those players and more.

The fly in the ointment is the Predators don’t have any pending unrestricted free agents of note — the type of players who normally get dealt at this time of year.

The players I mentioned all are signed past this year. Most players on the Nashville roster are. So if the Predators become sellers, they’ll be trying to make hockey deals, not rental deals, which in some ways are harder to make in-season. On the other hand, it opens it up to teams looking for players signed past this year.

 

[Gumballhead]

I'd be pretty excited if ROR was being targeted by the Avs. I know he's not the player he was but I still think he'd be a great stopgap 2C between Landy and Nuke, and those three would make a super solid defensive shut down line still capable of producing points. I personally like ROR over Toews as deadline rentals.

When you're talking 5v5 groups

Lehkonen - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Toews - Makar

Landeskog - ROR - Nuke
Byram - Manson

Either one of those groups could manage other team's top lines.

He's not the perfect center to replace Kadri, but he might be the best center actually available. No one wants the Avs to punt on the season so ROR might be the best option this deadline.

The only question is if ROR does come back how do we talk him into taking 37 instead of 90? Because 37 ROR >>> 90 ROR.

He's so annoying to play against, I would welcome him back too for the stretch run. I haven't seen him play this year, maybe one game? He can't be slower than Stastny. Guys like Lehky, Nuke, Landy, ROR, Cogs - they all are a huge pain in the ass to play against and in the playoffs you can't have enough of that. ROR would probably be aces on our PP too.

 

[Balthazar]

LeBrun rumblings: What I'm hearing about Timo Meier, buyers/sellers, the Habs and more

It's stress time in the NHL, as every win, loss and injury changes the math on decisions for teams like the Predators ahead of the deadline.

theathletic.com

I though RyJo had only one more year left and was gonna suggest going after him at 50% but no, he has 2 more years. Would cost too much in assets if we ask them to retain 4M for 2 more seasons.

If we were to trade Girard though the Preds could be a team that would take him back, especially if they end up trading Ekholm.

G is young enough and still signed for long enough to sustain a retool/rebuild.

 

[The Abusement Park]

RyJo with retention… that’d be a decent option at 2C.

 

[Balthazar]

RyJo with retention… that’d be a decent option at 2C.

He had a good season last year but he's back to meh numbers this year. I don't know what's left in the tank here.

But a deal centered around Girard for RyJo w/ 3M retained (so the cap hits match) could be something to look at, perhaps.

 

[The Abusement Park]

He had a good season last year but he's back to meh numbers this year. I don't know what's left in the tank here.

But a deal centered around Girard for RyJo w/ 3M retained (so the cap hits match) could be something to look at, perhaps.

Ahh I didn’t realize he was pacing for 41pts. I assumed he was around 60 like usual.

 

[SuperJoe]

Ahh I didn’t realize he was pacing for 41pts. I assumed he was around 60 like usual.

Even at 55 points pace is not really good with the offence up like it is, but 41 is abysmal.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Even at 55 points pace is not really good with the offence up like it is, but 41 is abysmal.

I mean some of that is due to the fact that Nashville just sucks. But RyJo is a tough one to analyze due to his effort problems. There’s a very real chance he’s just declining at this point. Or he could just be totally phoning it in. Either option is very likely lol.

 

[Azrael89]

I mean some of that is due to the fact that Nashville just sucks. But RyJo is a tough one to analyze due to his effort problems. There’s a very real chance he’s just declining at this point. Or he could just be totally phoning it in. Either option is very likely lol.

And neither option is great for a team hoping to contend for a Cup. Lol

 

[Bender]

I mean some of that is due to the fact that Nashville just sucks. But RyJo is a tough one to analyze due to his effort problems. There’s a very real chance he’s just declining at this point. Or he could just be totally phoning it in. Either option is very likely lol.

Yeah he's way too inconsistent and -in my opinion- just doesn't seem to care. He's the kind of guy who will have 2 bad years and then 1 good year to kind of keep you guessing but nah, I wouldn't trade anything of significance for him even retained at 50%.

He's pretty good at spearing goalies in the head and getting away with it though.

 

[henchman21]

I'm probably the guy's biggest cheerleader here, but I'd pass on RyJo. RyJo is all effort related... if you get it, he's great. If you don't, he's a net negative. The assets required to get him with enough retention would be too much combined with too much risk of him being a pumpkin. A lower ceiling, but much higher floor guy in say Hayes would be a much more preferable option.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

I’d actually love a retained RyJo as an asset but the cost is a huge variable. Both in terms of how much they’d be willing to retain and in what we’d have to trade to get him.

 

[Gatorbait19]

How sad is it that the Avs never ever did this. Even when they had tons of cap space and sucked they always refused to stock up on assets.

We certainly could use those extra assets right now, but I’m a firm believer in the butterfly effect and wouldn’t trade anything for last year’s cup. With that said, I banged my head against the every time we refused to make the most of every dollar of cap space.

 

[Gatorbait19]

If we get ROR, this team is built incredibly well/tailored for playoff hockey. I still think we’d need another goal scorer for the middle 6 though.

 

[Colorado Avalanche]

And Burakovsky is not?

He wouldn't even play

 

[ABasin]

A big part of the reason the team is struggling this year 5v5 is replacing Kadri and Burkie with lower producing players. Burkie getting 'replaced' by Lehky is a significant part of the reason the team has regressed 5v5. In other words, the Avs' regression from 2.41 goals 5v5 per game to 1.74 goals 5v5 per game is due in part to that ~.33 goals per game lost from Burkie to Lehky.

The defense as a whole is down on 5v5 scoring also.

 

[henchman21]

We certainly could use those extra assets right now, but I’m a firm believer in the butterfly effect and wouldn’t trade anything for last year’s cup. With that said, I banged my head against the every time we refused to make the most of every dollar of cap space.

The Avs have typically been a very cheap franchise when they aren't winning. When they are winning selling out the the arena at a decent rate, it seems the purse strings loosen. When they are bad or mediocre, they tighten way up. And anything that seemingly doesn't improve revenue gets pushed to the side, like the practice facility...

My biggest tin foil hat thing with the Avs that I 100% believe... the Avs avoided drafting Euros for a long time mostly due to transfer fees. I also think that plays a role into the Avs drafing more players out of Russia, even today (no transfer fee there). Doesn't sound like much (2-300k), but doing that enough times adds up.

The defense as a whole is down on 5v5 scoring also.

Avs are a little more stingy 5v5 about ~.15 goals, but I'd argue that lies more in goaltending than anything else. It exists though, not nearly as dramatic as the goals for though.

 

[The Abusement Park]

The defense as a whole is down on 5v5 scoring also.

Outside of Makar(who hasn’t been as good as he can be) that’s very much tied to the offense being significantly worse this year.

 

[ABasin]

Avs are a little more stingy 5v5 about ~.15 goals, but I'd argue that lies more in goaltending than anything else. It exists though, not nearly as dramatic as the goals for though.

Sorry, I didn't word my post very well.

I was talking about the Avs defensemen scoring 5v5.