Speculation: Armchair GM - 2025 Offseason Thread

[Double-Shift Lasse]

For young players yes. For a 27 year old single guy in UFA status hunting college girls it's almost a bit creepy.

I think we've already established a reputation of being a great family city based on what players have said when coming here if they are already married like Foligno, Johnny and Sean Monahan.

But I know we've had a few young players come here, find their spouses and set up their lives like Cam Atkinson. (and maybe Z? Not sure if his fiancé is from Columbus or not)

I was making a joke by juxtaposing two things that would appear to be at odds with one another.

Honestly, it’s crazy to me how much energy gets spent talking about what motivates players to want to play/live in one place or another. As if it’s easy enough to say beaches = yes and zoo = no.

I see Kallio is saying this in a better way than I am.

 

[KJ Dangler]

Not to get political, but I can see Ohio joining the no income tax list list once the new Governor is elected .. Election is Nov of 2026.. that’s one of his major initiatives….


Also , saw the Rangers are looking for a 1st for Keandre Miller.. 6ft 5 215.. more of a defensive defenseman .. I could see Waddell using one of our firsts here on him , as he would fit nice in our top 4, bring size and nastiness

 

[CBJWerenski8]

Also , saw the Rangers are looking for a 1st for Keandre Miller.. 6ft 5 215.. more of a defensive defenseman .. I could see Waddell using one of our firsts here on him , as he would fit nice in our top 4, bring size and nastiness

Is Miller an upgrade defensively over Provorov? If they’re even, you might as well keep Provorov as he has familiarity with the system already and a rapport with the guys. Or go with a more defensive option like Gavrikov if he hits the market.

If he is better defensively and is willing to take a fair contract I’d be fine with it. I just don’t want to hold back Mateychuk.

 

[GoJackets1]

I haven't watched much of the playoffs but caught the game last night. Ekblad reminded me a lot of Provorov in terms of play style, but with more of a mean streak and a bit more offense. Would be interested to know if he's actually significantly more effective than Provorov or if it's due to playing for Florida.

Honestly, as the offseason for us goes on, the more willing I am to sign Provorov as long as it's in the $6-7.25m range and/or not max length. Even if he's not incredible in any particular aspect of the game, minute munching, ironman-type defenseman don't grow on trees and his ability to play 20+ min a night I'm sure takes a lot of pressure off of Zach. Without a guy like that next year I worry about how much our bottom 2 pairs can really play.

It's too bad Severson already has a big contract like that- wish we could just take that deal and give it to Provorov, or if we didn't already have to worry about a 6m+ defenseman playing 3rd pairing minutes, signing Provorov would be much easier cap-wise.

 

[Iron Balls McGinty]

Not to get political, but I can see Ohio joining the no income tax list list once the new Governor is elected .. Election is Nov of 2026.. that’s one of his major initiatives….


Also , saw the Rangers are looking for a 1st for Keandre Miller.. 6ft 5 215.. more of a defensive defenseman .. I could see Waddell using one of our firsts here on him , as he would fit nice in our top 4, bring size and nastiness

And I won't get any more political than this but there is also an initiative to eliminate or reduce property taxes. It can't be both. Government funding has to come from somewhere. We don't have the tourism funds of Florida and other states with no income tax generally have high property and sales taxes.

I could be down with Miller. He sounds like the kind of D we actually need but since he's a left shot I wouldn't say he's a necessity.

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

I was making a joke by juxtaposing two things that would appear to be at odds with one another.

Honestly, it’s crazy to me how much energy gets spent talking about what motivates players to want to play/live in one place or another. As if it’s easy enough to say beaches = yes and zoo = no.

I see Kallio is saying this in a better way than I am.

I have my moments.

I would also live near a beach if life presented me a reasonable opportunity to do so.

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

I have my moments.

I would also live near a beach if life presented me a reasonable opportunity to do so.

And I would not. Weird how people think differently about things.

 

[ColumbusTrill]

So we could easily get Rossi if we want him

 

[CBJx614]

So we could easily get Rossi if we want him

Wonder for much he wants

 

[stevo61]

Wonder for much he wants

 

[Iron Balls McGinty]

So we could easily get Rossi if we want him

If he's a "need" (which he may not be) and if his actually asking for what he's worth.

I still think our focus needs to be on fixing defense. We scored plenty with the exception of 3-4 weeks where they couldn't.

 

[CBJx614]

I mean.....seems pretty reasonable to me. If he hits his potential, having him locked up at that rate for the next 7 years on the top 6 seems like a win/win....

Rossi, KJ, Fantilli, Marchenko, Monny and Chinakov with guys like LDBB and Lindstrom pushing for top 9 and top 6 time in that same period seems like a damn good problem to have.

 

[alphafox]

If Seravelli's Buffalo reporting is accurate I take a run at a few of their players. Byram via trade and even though he would be an absolute luxury, but I drop an 7-9 million offer sheet on Buffalo for JJ Peterka too. Then try to figure out the rest of the roster.

 

[GoJackets1]

If Seravelli's Buffalo reporting is accurate I take a run at a few of their players. Byram via trade and even though he would be an absolute luxury, but I drop an 7-9 million offer sheet on Buffalo for JJ Peterka too. Then try to figure out the rest of the roster.

Man I would loooove to get Peterka here.

 

[stevo61]

If NY says you take Krieder if you want Miller do you do it? While not exactly a need he is a good bounce back candidate to some degree

 

[koteka]

If NY says you take Krieder if you want Miller do you do it? While not exactly a need he is a good bounce back candidate to some degree

I have been wondering if you can determine who is an actual problem in NY and who is just having a down year. Kreider seems like the kind of guy that is acquired as a cap dump that gets pissed off and (because he is pissed or because it is a contract year) has a really good season.

 

[stevo61]

I have been wondering if you can determine who is an actual problem in NY and who is just having a down year. Kreider seems like the kind of guy that is acquired as a cap dump that gets pissed off and (because he is pissed or because it is a contract year) has a really good season.

He had a hand injury since the 4 nations that may require surgery and battled vertigo, the potential definitely exists that a healthier Krieder is a better Krieder. Who knows how much better that player is but I dont expect him to be as bad as last year, one where he still scored 20 goals

 

[CBJWerenski8]

If Seravelli's Buffalo reporting is accurate I take a run at a few of their players. Byram via trade and even though he would be an absolute luxury, but I drop an 7-9 million offer sheet on Buffalo for JJ Peterka too. Then try to figure out the rest of the roster.

I’d love to get Tuch out of there if possible.

 

[alphafox]

I’d love to get Tuch out of there if possible.

I think you try for a major swap if you can. Tuch, Peterka, Power, Byram all help out the roster alot and could be had for picks, prospects and players.

Chinakov, Lindstrom/Sillinger, and Mn 1st for two of those guys could be a huge win

 

[cbjthrowaway]

If NY says you take Krieder if you want Miller do you do it? While not exactly a need he is a good bounce back candidate to some degree

1000%, absolutely, yes. the jackets should be looking for opportunities to pry away guys with two years left from cap-strapped teams anyway.

1. perfectly aligned to CBJ contract timelines (more below)
2. reduced acquisition cost, can be flipped for profit if things go sideways
3. more internal options to backfill in two years if they leave then (i.e. lindstrom, elick, marrelli)

any player they acquire with two years left will have their contracts expire in the summer of 2027, which is when marchenko, johnson and mateychuk will need new RFA deals. it's also when severson's no-trade clause goes down to an M-NTC and elvis, if still here, will finally come off the books.

some two-year cap relief targets:

• pure dumps that should come with assets
  • josh anderson
  • chris kreider (as you mentioned)
  • ondrej palat
  • brandon gallagher
• good players on cap-strapped teams
  • ross colton
  • william karlsson
  • phillip danault (i believe he as a NTC?)
  • tyler seguin (full NMC but you never know)
  • ryan hartman (not super cap-strapped but looking to make moves)
  • sam girard
  • justin faulk
  • ilya lyubhskin

k'andre miller could be a bargain if he lands in a good scenario where the system plays to his strengths – evason's system aligns really well to his skillset. so if the cost to add him is to also take on chris kreider, it's a no-brainer to say yes, even if kreider's somewhat cooked at this point.

 

[cbjthrowaway]

I’d love to get Tuch out of there if possible.

i've already talked a lot about power in this thread (big fan), and tuch is one of the best pure fits out there for a short-term add (not crazy about the idea of giving him a huge deal)

…but if buffalo's blowing things up, i would do some crazy shit to get zach benson on this team.

 

[3074326]

Regarding RD

What about Rasmus Andersson for y’all? I know he’s a little older than some of the other guys mentioned, but he isn’t old. I went back a few pages and didn’t see him mentioned, so apologies if he’s been discussed.

 

[KJ Dangler]

Is Miller an upgrade defensively over Provorov? If they’re even, you might as well keep Provorov as he has familiarity with the system already and a rapport with the guys. Or go with a more defensive option like Gavrikov if he hits the market.

If he is better defensively and is willing to take a fair contract I’d be fine with it. I just don’t want to hold back Mateychuk.

He’s 25.. rfa.. will be last year of 3.8 per season .. from what I heard hes looking for a 4 year deal around 5 mill per season , and that will get him to the pay day contract .. he’s 6ft 5 215 , plays physical and mean .

 

[Indy18]

And I won't get any more political than this but there is also an initiative to eliminate or reduce property taxes. It can't be both. Government funding has to come from somewhere. We don't have the tourism funds of Florida and other states with no income tax generally have high property and sales taxes.

I could be down with Miller. He sounds like the kind of D we actually need but since he's a left shot I wouldn't say he's a necessity.

They are gonna double down on the Shores & Island campaign and we are gonna base our entire tax burden on cedar point and kings island....and maybe the Columbus zoo!

/s

(but for real y'all don't want a 15% consumption tax)

 

[cbjthrowaway]

What about Rasmus Andersson for y’all? I know he’s a little older than some of the other guys mentioned, but he isn’t old. I went back a few pages and didn’t see him mentioned, so apologies if he’s been discussed.

personally, i have significantly less interest in him than most folks here probably do. whoever gets him is going to pay a big amount for a long time trying to get a version of him that's long gone.

i've said on this board that advanced stats are often overly harsh on guys who play big minutes on mediocre (or outright bad) teams. that's definitely andersson's situation. his advanced stats this year were very poor, and some of it might be usage, but i'd still balk at acquiring and extending a player who might already be on the decline.

he turns 29 this october, so if the idea is to extend him, that won't start until he's 30. so you're looking at big AAV and probably big term for a guy deep into his 30s.

and that's without considering the astronomical return that the flames are probably asking for.

i say either let another team make that mistake, or potentially re-evaluate as a pure rental at the deadline if calgary holds onto him.