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

[dahrougem2]

A Girard trade in the summer for a 2C allows for a competent 3rd line to be built. And if you can run 3 lines deep and a solid top 4, you are well on your way.

The Avs just have to ensure that Byram doesn't cost much, the 3rd pair is cheap AF and the 4th line has LOC as the most expensive player.

If the Avs can bridge Byram for 2 years hopefully the cap rises a decent amount by then and he can rightfully if healthy get paid.

But yeah, keeping Girard as a 5M 3rd pairing defensemen is not how this team can ensure success next season. He has to go.

 

[Avsboy]

Keep Girard. No one knows what is happening with Byram. Girard just has to go on a fish and vegetable diet. Cut down on muscle mass.

 

[Pokecheque]

Can’t trade Girard. The Avs will not contend with Josh Manson as their third-best defenseman. And any replacement for G will cost as much if not more. If Byram could be relief upon for a full season, sure, but he can’t be so until that happens, can’t trade Girard.

 

[Pierce Hawthorne]

Its a tough spot though.

If you dont trade Girard or any of our LHD again this summer, we're gonna have absolutely no space to build the forwards.



Even if Byram signed for just 2x$3M... We'll be looking at:


$4.5M - $12.6M - $9.25M
$7.0M - ???? - $6.125M
???? - ???? - ????
$1.05M - ???? - ????

$4.1M - $9.0M
$5.0M - $4.5M
$3.0M - ????
$1.0M

$3.4M
$2.0M

This would be the roster for next year as of today. $72.5M spent. Basically 8 roster spots left to fill and just $11M left to fill it. A 2C is going to cost us $5M+, basically the only scenario where it doesn't is if we somehow get Hayes at 50%.

So then you're talking $6M or less to fill an entire 3rd line, two 4th liners, a #6D, and either a 13th forward or 7th Dman. Not even $1M per player. You can get away with paying the 4th line guys and the two depth Dmen $900k.... But you cant get away with building a quality 3rd line paying every guy $900k each.

Not unless things all of a sudden click for Ben Meyers this year, and Foudy actually takes that big next step as well.



But if you trade Girard and replace him with a bottom pairing, $1M sort of guy(Best case scenario IMO is we sign Behrens at the end of this year and he plays really well in some late games for us).... That creates another $4M in space. All of a sudden you can get a $6-7M Center for the 2C spot, and still have $8-9M leftover to build the depth with.


It still wouldn't be a lot, but it would be enough to potentially build a decent 3rd line. Perhaps allowing the Avs to bring back Rodrigues and snatch some sort of UFA for ~$2M.

 

[CobraAcesS]

A Girard trade in the summer for a 2C allows for a competent 3rd line to be built. And if you can run 3 lines deep and a solid top 4, you are well on your way.

The Avs just have to ensure that Byram doesn't cost much, the 3rd pair is cheap AF and the 4th line has LOC as the most expensive player.

If the Avs can bridge Byram for 2 years hopefully the cap rises a decent amount by then and he can rightfully if healthy get paid.

But yeah, keeping Girard as a 5M 3rd pairing defensemen is not how this team can ensure success next season. He has to go.

Can’t trade Girard. The Avs will not contend with Josh Manson as their third-best defenseman. And any replacement for G will cost as much if not more. If Byram could be relief upon for a full season, sure, but he can’t be so until that happens, can’t trade Girard.

Have to find a way to do both of these things. It's very important that they make the right choice, and I think that's why we're locked up. These two are the fork in the road that could make or break the next era for this team.

 

[CobraAcesS]

The cap implications and where you want to dedicate money to vs where it is easy to find help cheap at the level you need to and still be able to draft and develop a pipeline basically dictates it. If they choose to keep both they're choosing a more difficult path.

 

[Vaslof]

Byram isn't injury prone. What he's had could happen to anyone. It's just luck.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

Keep Girard. No one knows what is happening with Byram. Girard just has to go on a fish and vegetable diet. Cut down on muscle mass.

They basically are forced to trade G or go into the season without any #2C plus a weak bottom six.

Considering how underwhelming G has been for 2 years he is not worth keeping in this scenario.

 

[Colorado Avalanche]

Technically you could find a new #2 center every trade deadline but it's very expensive strategy and you never know how the players adjust during 20-40 games, so might be some total flops.

It's like this season, this team can contend, if they can add players on trade deadline. They need help but few additions and this team is legit contender again .

 

[TruePowerSlave]

Byram isn't injury prone. What he's had could happen to anyone. It's just luck.

Doesn't matter how he gets injured. Some players just find ways to get hurt while others don't. Byram unfortunately is constantly out.

 

[Vaslof]

Doesn't matter how he gets injured. Some players just find ways to get hurt while others don't. Byram unfortunately is constantly out.

Must be his horoscope, or perhaps a lack of fengshui inside his mind palace.

 

[John Mandalorian]

Girards recent struggles affects all scenarios.

If Girard is struggling, what's his trade value and is it so diminished its not even worth it? If Girard is struggling are Byram and Toews the only viable trade pieces? But no one wants to lose good players to give ice time to a guy who is struggling.

Conversely, if Girard is playing well, suddenly his contract becomes team friendly and trades become more of an option.

The binary nature of this is kind of crazy. And it's kind of crazy how the level of play might be holding the Avs hostage.

And you can say something similar about Byrams health. But the situation with Girard is a big driver.

 

[Balthazar]

Not only dead last but alone in a tier of our own.

 

[Pokecheque]

Byram isn't injury prone. What he's had could happen to anyone. It's just luck.

But it doesn’t happen to everyone. That’s kinda the thing about luck, it just seems to be bad for some people.

Pascal Leclaire once got hurt getting a puck in the face while he was sitting on the bench. Injury prone players find ways to get injured. It’s just luck as you say.

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

Kinda surprised Olaussen is getting ranked ahead of Foudy at this point.

The last place team ranking is well deserved. The prospect pool is extremely weak.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Kinda surprised Olaussen is getting ranked ahead of Foudy at this point.

The last place team ranking is well deserved. The prospect pool is extremely weak.

My guess is it’s based on draft position more than anything. I think OO’s ultimate upside is better than Foudy’s, but Foudy looks to be on track to be a good 3rd liner where OO I feel is pretty top 6 or bust.

 

[TruePowerSlave]

Must be nice to be an amateur scout for the Avs. Zero requirement to hit any late picks for over a decade.

 

[Pokecheque]

Not only dead last but alone in a tier of our own.

Yeah that’s pretty brutal. He not only can’t think of a 15th legit prospect, he can’t even bring himself to say nice things about the 14th ranked prospect (Makar). Not surprising though.

 

[Pokecheque]

Kinda surprised Olaussen is getting ranked ahead of Foudy at this point.

The last place team ranking is well deserved. The prospect pool is extremely weak.

OO’s upside and talent level is superior to Foudy’s even though Foudy appears ahead of him in development due to his very long stint in the AHL. I’m not that bullish on either, but OO still has a chance to be a somewhat dynamic player. We’ll see if it happens.

 

[The Abusement Park]

OO’s upside and talent level is superior to Foudy’s even though Foudy appears ahead of him in development due to his very long stint in the AHL. I’m not that bullish on either, but OO still has a chance to be a somewhat dynamic player. We’ll see if it happens.

Yeah that wasn’t to say OO is a bad prospect or anything. He has really nice tools, but I think Foudy being further along in his development would jump OO for me. OO certainly has the tools to be a contributor, but there’s more risk with him than Foudy at this point I think.

 

[Pokecheque]

Yeah that wasn’t to say OO is a bad prospect or anything. He has really nice tools, but I think Foudy being further along in his development would jump OO for me. OO certainly has the tools to be a contributor, but there’s more risk with him than Foudy at this point I think.

Personally I'd rank Behrens ahead of both of them easily. I'm not sure how one factors in NHL readiness and how developed a prospect is vs. projected upside when ranking prospects. I can see why they put OO ahead of Foudy but I see what you're saying as well.

 

[The Abusement Park]

Personally I'd rank Behrens ahead of both of them easily. I'm not sure how one factors in NHL readiness and how developed a prospect is vs. projected upside when ranking prospects. I can see why they put OO ahead of Foudy but I see what you're saying as well.

I’d also have Behrens over both. I just think OO’s just favor is apparent enough that Foudy’s readiness would put him ahead. For me at least.

 

[Vaslof]

Any interesting prospect swap targets for guys like Kaut?

 

[Bill Peckerskull]

Interesting on 32 Thoughts this morning, EF said he's heard that Pat Kane has a chronic injury that he has been dealing with for some time, and insinuated that Kane might shut it down for the rest of the year, get whatever it is repaired, sign a 1-year extension with the Hawks, and then we get to do this whole thing with trading him again next year.

 

[Balthazar]