Add a player at 0$ cap hit - who do you pick? McDavid vs Crosby vs Kucherov vs Ovi vs Price

[bobholly39]

Going into the 2021-2022 season, you can add any of these players to your team with a 0$ AAV through some sort of salary retention magic. Who do you pick and why?

Here's the catch:

1. If you add McDavid - you get him for 1 season only
2. If you add Kucherov - you get him for 2 seasons only
3. If you add Crosby - you get him for 3 seasons
4. If you add Ovechkin - you get him for 4 seasons
5. If you pick Carey Price - you get him for 5 seasons

All players will come with a 0$ cap hit - but you only get to keep them for that amount of time. No cheating and implying "i'll just re-sign him after the term" - no, assume player will leave.

Who do you pick, and why?

Obviously McDavid is the best - but 1 year only. Still - add him to your team 1 year and it might be enough to win that cup. The older guys - the longer term is nice to keep for longer, but they're also getting older and will probably be declining quite a bit during those years.

Feel free to rank them, 1 to 5 in terms of who you pick first.

Click to read more...

 

[Mugzy97]

Good poll, hard to choose. I feel like it depends on the team you're adding them to and what holes they have.

 

[Treb]

Crosby for 3 years - Great C for the longest term.
McDavid for 1 year - Even better C but would have to be all in this year.
Kucherov for 2 years - We need C more
Ovechkin for 4 years - We need C more
Price for 5 years - We already have Price, so...

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

From Caps POV, Crosby for 3 seasons. We need help at C, Kuznetsov doesn’t get the job done anymore. He’d fit into the timeline for the rest of the core and he offers more term than McDavid.

 

[T REX]

Crosby - 3 years

McDavid has proven he needs more than one year

 

[bobholly39]

Crosby for 3 years - Great C for the longest term.
McDavid for 1 year - Even better C but would have to be all in this year.
Kucherov for 2 years - We need C more
Ovechkin for 4 years - We need C more
Price for 5 years - We already have Price, so...

From Caps POV, Crosby for 3 seasons. We need help at C, Kuznetsov doesn’t get the job done anymore. He’d fit into the timeline for the rest of the core and he offers more term than McDavid.

If possible - if your team already has one of those players, when considering that player try to vote 'in a vacuum'. For Price especially - since I guess there might be value in cloning Ovechkin and having 2 wingers like him in Washington, but the idea of having 2 goalies is redundant, as you only play one.

Good rankings though

 

[missionAvs]

Came into this poll expecting an easy McJesus vote but given the time ranges, give me Crosby for 3 years on the Avs. Good poll.

 

[Gurglesons]

McDavid at 0$. You could win the cup.

 

[TGWL]

If you're the Oilers this is an easy choice

If you're another team, I guess it becomes a little more complicated based on your roster.

 

[Dion TheFluff]

give me Kuch. Been a clutch playoff performer the last 2 years and the Leafs desperately need that

 

[bobholly39]

If you're the Oilers this is an easy choice

If you're another team, I guess it becomes a little more complicated based on your roster.

I honestly don't know who you mean lol.

I assume you mean McDavid - but I could see it as wanting Kucherov with actual recent playoff success + a winger instead. Or Crosby for leadership/added depth. Or Ovechkin for a 1-2 punch with McDavid for goals, and 4 years. Or even Price, as Oilers desperately need a strong goalie.

 

[The Moose is Loose]

A free McDavid would all but guarantee a lot of teams the cup

 

[Sky04]

A free McDavid would all but guarantee a lot of teams the cup

No it absolutely wouldn't.

Crosby at 3 years easily, you never know what can happen in a single year, I'd take my chances with multiple shots.

 

[Regal]

I think I'd take Kucherov. Close enough to McDavid that the extra year is worth it. I'm not sure what you're going to get out of the older guys after 2 years is worth the initial downgrade

 

[Varan]

Crosby. Kuzy has fallen off a cliff since 2018 and Backstrom is getting there in age.

Crosby and OV would work perfectly since OV isn’t a puck-carrier anymore, that would allow Crosby to have it more and make Crosby-type decisions (which usually work out spectacularly)

 

[treple13]

As a Flames fan, I'm taking the McDavid option. Crosby for 3 is probably the smartest choice, but this pick hurts the Oilers more.

Grab McDavid, throw a ton of futures at getting Eichel (if healthy) at the deadline, and go for it

 

[The Moose is Loose]

No it absolutely wouldn't.

Crosby at 3 years easily, you never know what can happen in a single year, I'd take my chances with multiple shots.

But you’re getting Crosby ages 34-37.

1 season of a 24 year old McDavid, which is around the age he’ll likely have his peak season, for free is so overpowered there’s nothing comparable.

Imagine Edmonton running McDavid-Draisaitl-McDavid down the middle. Or Vegas with a 150 point center completing their already very well balanced roster. Any top 10 team would win the cup adding McDavid, because in the real world during the salary cap era there is simply no way to add a 1.9 PPG center to their roster without gutting it.

 

[The Grim Reaper]

3 years of a playoff beast with three cups or 1 year of a player that struggles in the first round. Seems like an easier choice than I thought, Crosby.

1.) Crosby
2.) Kucherov
3.) Ovechkin
4.) McDavid
5.) Price

#2/#3 are very close imo. Two extra years of Ovechkin is tough to pass up on.

 

[bobholly39]

But you’re getting Crosby ages 34-37.

1 season of a 24 year old McDavid, which is around the age he’ll likely have his peak season, for free is so overpowered there’s nothing comparable.

Imagine Edmonton running McDavid-Draisaitl-McDavid down the middle. Or Vegas with a 150 point center completing their already very well balanced roster. Any top 10 team would win the cup adding McDavid, because in the real world during the salary cap era there is simply no way to add a 1.9 PPG center to their roster without gutting it.

I agree that peak McDavid at 0$ is an incredible add-on to any top 10 team, and comes as close as you can to guaranteeing a cup in today's league.

However - calling McDavid 'a 150 point player' is a bit of a stretch, as his career high is 116. I know he scored at a high clip last season, but unique circumstances and only 56 games - it's highly doubtful he repeats that. I'm sure he can do better than 116, but I wouldn't count on 150.

And also - look at Tampa Bay 3 years ago. One of the best regular season teams of all time, swept in round 1 against Columbus, a bubble team who had never had playoff success before. There is some worth to the argument that getting more than '1 kick at the can' might be worth it.

Not really saying McDavid is a bad choice though. Especially for a strong enough team, he is attractive, but it would have to be a super solid team who I have faith would win in year 1.

 

[jetsforever]

I wouldn't even take Price at $0

 

[Gains]

I wouldn't even take Price at $0

At least take him to get him off other teams, that way he can't sweep you in the postseason.

 

[AhosDatsyukian]

Canes would take Price and be one of the Cup favorites each of the next 5 years

 

[Hisch13r]

Kuch for 2 or Sid for 3 are the best options

 

[Hisch13r]

Canes would take Price and be one of the Cup favorites each of the next 5 years

Three good rounds really makes people forgot about multiple years of mediocre play for a who is 34 and just had another surgery this offseason.

 

[The Moose is Loose]

I agree that peak McDavid at 0$ is an incredible add-on to any top 10 team, and comes as close as you can to guaranteeing a cup in today's league.

However - calling McDavid 'a 150 point player' is a bit of a stretch, as his career high is 116. I know he scored at a high clip last season, but unique circumstances and only 56 games - it's highly doubtful he repeats that. I'm sure he can do better than 116, but I wouldn't count on 150.

And also - look at Tampa Bay 3 years ago. One of the best regular season teams of all time, swept in round 1 against Columbus, a bubble team who had never had playoff success before. There is some worth to the argument that getting more than '1 kick at the can' might be worth it.

Not really saying McDavid is a bad choice though. Especially for a strong enough team, he is attractive, but it would have to be a super solid team who I have faith would win in year 1.

Fair points. But if you slapped a free McDavid onto Tampa/Vegas/Colorado, I think 150 points would be more likely than the realistic scenario he is in now