Around the NHL 2024-2025

[ezcreepin]

There's a lot that can be said about the contract to Draisaitl, but to pretend like he and McDavid aren't arguably the best players in the league is a bit goofy. The cap is due to go up pretty significantly over the next few years, but it makes sense to have McDavid the highest paid player in the sport with Drai right behind him. And to be fair to Draisaitl, he might be even more clutch in the playoffs than McDavid, which adds to his value (or any team planning to make the playoffs). Discounts are nice and great, but NHL players are handsomely underpaid athletes.

 

[Frenzy31]

There's a lot that can be said about the contract to Draisaitl, but to pretend like he and McDavid aren't arguably the best players in the league is a bit goofy. The cap is due to go up pretty significantly over the next few years, but it makes sense to have McDavid the highest paid player in the sport with Drai right behind him. And to be fair to Draisaitl, he might be even more clutch in the playoffs than McDavid, which adds to his value (or any team planning to make the playoffs). Discounts are nice and great, but NHL players are handsomely underpaid athletes.

I think in a year or two we will be thrilled with the Kyrou and Thomas contracts.

And understand, I am not blasting the Oilers for the deal. The contact is fair and represents the correct value based on the cap. But in many ways we got lucky with the contracts being signed a few years ago.

There are a lot of top line wingers who will be paid 11-12 million per year next year.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

I think in a year or two we will be thrilled with the Kyrou and Thomas contracts.

And understand, I am not blasting the Oilers for the deal. The contact is fair and represents the correct value based on the cap. But in many ways we got lucky with the contracts being signed a few years ago.

There are a lot of top line wingers who will be paid 11-12 million per year next year.

I was thrilled with those contracts at the time because we all knew that the cap was going to rise and the relativity thang and aww dat. Now we see that the relative pain is less than before.

 

[Reality Czech]

Thank god he took that huge discount that Oiler fans said Broberg and holloway were greedy for not taking.


Does this include the 50% tax rate in Canada?


Absolutely not. You don't build a contender around one superstar unless it's Gretzky and Leon is not Gretzky. Thomas + parayko >>>>>Leon and Perunovich.

Leon is great no doubt, but it bugs me to see people call him a top 5 player in the league. There are probably 15-20 other guys I'd pick over Draisaitl. Gotta wonder what he'd look like trying to lead as team on his own but we may never get to see that. Seems fairly one dimensional to me and pads his stats on the power play. I would have traded him for a haul to acquire the depth that the Oilers have struggled to find in the McDavid era

 

[Xerloris]

Leon is great no doubt, but it bugs me to see people call him a top 5 player in the league. There are probably 15-20 other guys I'd pick over Draisaitl. Gotta wonder what he'd look like trying to lead as team on his own but we may never get to see that. Seems fairly one dimensional to me and pads his stats on the power play. I would have traded him for a haul to acquire the depth that the Oilers have struggled to find in the McDavid era

I agree. IMO and that's al this really is is that Leon without McDavid is an 80~ point player. It's ridiculously lucky that he clicks so well with McDavid and can ride his coattails.

 

[STL fan in MN]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1830978579485843471

Not exactly sure what all this guy is measuring but it matches what I see - Drai isn’t very good defensively. I mean, he doesn’t need to be as he’s THAT good offensively but I do think he’s slightly overrated as people forget about the defensive side and it certainly helps with the teammates/linemates he has.

 

[Brian39]

There's a lot that can be said about the contract to Draisaitl, but to pretend like he and McDavid aren't arguably the best players in the league is a bit goofy...And to be fair to Draisaitl, he might be even more clutch in the playoffs than McDavid, which adds to his value (or any team planning to make the playoffs). Discounts are nice and great, but NHL players are handsomely underpaid athletes.

Agreed.

In the last 6 years, Drai has finished 2nd, 4th, 4th, 2nd, 4th, and 14th in goals. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in goals and 7th in even strength goals over the last 6 years.

In those same 6 years, Drai has finished 4th, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 2nd, and 7th in points. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in points and 3rd in even strength points in the last 6 years.

Does he benefit from having McDavid as a teammate? Absolutely. But he plays about two-thirds of his even strength minutes away from McDavid. Over the last few years, MacKinnon has played a substantially higher number of his minutes with Makar and Rants than Drai has with McDavid. Matthews has played a substantially higher number of minutes with Marner. Looking at the last 3 years (what I'm limited to as a non-paying customer at Natural Stat Trick), Drai has about 1200 5 on 5 minutes with McDavid. Mac has 2700 minutes with Rants and 2200 minutes with Makar. Matthews has 2000 minutes with Marner. McDavid is better than these guys, but is he so much better that 1200 minutes with him pads the stats more than 2000+ minutes with Rants/Marner/Makar? I'd argue no.

Drai has absolutely produced at an elite level both at even strength and away from McDavid. McDavid being on the ice for some of his minutes and drawing defensive matchups on another line certainly contributes to Drai's production. But it isn't like Drai is the only elite player who benefits from having elite teammates.

It is also worth noting that his playoff performances have been incredible. In the last 3 years, he is top 5 in the playoffs in all of goals, assists, points, even strength points, power play points, power play goals, 5 on 5 goals, 5 on 5 assists, and 5 on 5 points. He is 2nd in most those categories. He's top 5 in 5 on 5 points per 60 as well (minimum 150 minutes), so it isn't just racking up gaudy totals due to a games played advantage. He's been an absolute playoff stud.

I genuinely don't see an argument that he isn't a no-doubt top 5 center in the game.

 

[Xerloris]

Agreed.

In the last 6 years, Drai has finished 2nd, 4th, 4th, 2nd, 4th, and 14th in goals. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in goals and 7th in even strength goals over the last 6 years.

In those same 6 years, Drai has finished 4th, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 2nd, and 7th in points. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in points and 3rd in even strength points in the last 6 years.

Does he benefit from having McDavid as a teammate? Absolutely. But he plays about two-thirds of his even strength minutes away from McDavid. Over the last few years, MacKinnon has played a substantially higher number of his minutes with Makar and Rants than Drai has with McDavid. Matthews has played a substantially higher number of minutes with Marner. Looking at the last 3 years (what I'm limited to as a non-paying customer at Natural Stat Trick), Drai has about 1200 5 on 5 minutes with McDavid. Mac has 2700 minutes with Rants and 2200 minutes with Makar. Matthews has 2000 minutes with Marner. McDavid is better than these guys, but is he so much better that 1200 minutes with him pads the stats more than 2000+ minutes with Rants/Marner/Makar? I'd argue no.

Drai has absolutely produced at an elite level both at even strength and away from McDavid. McDavid being on the ice for some of his minutes and drawing defensive matchups on another line certainly contributes to Drai's production. But it isn't like Drai is the only elite player who benefits from having elite teammates.

It is also worth noting that his playoff performances have been incredible. In the last 3 years, he is top 5 in the playoffs in all of goals, assists, points, even strength points, power play points, power play goals, 5 on 5 goals, 5 on 5 assists, and 5 on 5 points. He is 2nd in most those categories. He's top 5 in 5 on 5 points per 60 as well (minimum 150 minutes), so it isn't just racking up gaudy totals due to a games played advantage. He's been an absolute playoff stud.

I genuinely don't see an argument that he isn't a no-doubt top 5 center in the game.

Those stats are amazing. How many cups did he get with those stats?

 

[i aint Dunn yet]

utah home jerseys are lame

 

[mk80]

utah home jerseys are lame

It goes without saying but, they are certainly a steep downgrade from the Yotes Kachina jerseys (honestly the Utah HC branding all is compared to the Coyotes identity and logo)

But I do expect that after this season we will get something good once a permanent identity for the franchise is established. Overall SEG is a major upgrade over Meruello, and Utah has been able to lay good groundwork for the franchise off the ice in a few short months.

I do hope in any future expansion the Coyotes can be revived, I do think with an actual stable owner and the right arena location AZ could thrive as a franchise.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

utah home jerseys are lame

I wish theyd just dine their Yetti thing and not had this generic year.

 

[BlueDream]

It goes without saying but, they are certainly a steep downgrade from the Yotes Kachina jerseys (honestly the Utah HC branding all is compared to the Coyotes identity and logo)

But I do expect that after this season we will get something good once a permanent identity for the franchise is established. Overall SEG is a major upgrade over Meruello, and Utah has been able to lay good groundwork for the franchise off the ice in a few short months.

I do hope in any future expansion the Coyotes can be revived, I do think with an actual stable owner and the right arena location AZ could thrive as a franchise.

I’m not at all confident we will get anything good from them, given how terrible their choices for their team name were.

 

[Reality Czech]

Agreed.

In the last 6 years, Drai has finished 2nd, 4th, 4th, 2nd, 4th, and 14th in goals. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in goals and 7th in even strength goals over the last 6 years.

In those same 6 years, Drai has finished 4th, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 2nd, and 7th in points. Taking this sample as a whole, he is 2nd in points and 3rd in even strength points in the last 6 years.

Does he benefit from having McDavid as a teammate? Absolutely. But he plays about two-thirds of his even strength minutes away from McDavid. Over the last few years, MacKinnon has played a substantially higher number of his minutes with Makar and Rants than Drai has with McDavid. Matthews has played a substantially higher number of minutes with Marner. Looking at the last 3 years (what I'm limited to as a non-paying customer at Natural Stat Trick), Drai has about 1200 5 on 5 minutes with McDavid. Mac has 2700 minutes with Rants and 2200 minutes with Makar. Matthews has 2000 minutes with Marner. McDavid is better than these guys, but is he so much better that 1200 minutes with him pads the stats more than 2000+ minutes with Rants/Marner/Makar? I'd argue no.

Drai has absolutely produced at an elite level both at even strength and away from McDavid. McDavid being on the ice for some of his minutes and drawing defensive matchups on another line certainly contributes to Drai's production. But it isn't like Drai is the only elite player who benefits from having elite teammates.

It is also worth noting that his playoff performances have been incredible. In the last 3 years, he is top 5 in the playoffs in all of goals, assists, points, even strength points, power play points, power play goals, 5 on 5 goals, 5 on 5 assists, and 5 on 5 points. He is 2nd in most those categories. He's top 5 in 5 on 5 points per 60 as well (minimum 150 minutes), so it isn't just racking up gaudy totals due to a games played advantage. He's been an absolute playoff stud.

I genuinely don't see an argument that he isn't a no-doubt top 5 center in the game.

Good stats as usual but I can at least see arguments that Drai isn't a top 5 center. He's clearly one of the best offensive players in the league but it's tough to quantify the McDavid effect. I bet a lot of guys would benefit from being matched against the #2 defensive unit as Drai is when not playing with McD.

For the sake of argument, where would I personally rank him? This is in terms of overall ability right now and not considering age, contract status, etc. I'm putting him below McDavid, MacKinnon, Matthews and Barkov for sure. Then you've got the next group, which is where it gets tricky. Where does Drai fit in compared to Crosby, Hughes, Point and Pettersson? If I need to win one game I might prefer Sid and Hughes over Drai as well but it's a matter of preference at that point.

Clearly Drai is a great player, I just wonder if he's overrated at times. A lot of people would say he's a top 5 player in the league simply based on his gaudy numbers but stats alone don't always tell the whole story. Of course other people may see it differently than I do and that's...ok.

 

[Stealth JD]

I’m not at all confident we will get anything good from them, given how terrible their choices for their team name were.

I was really, really hoping fans from across the league would have trolled them and stuffed the ballot box in a John Scott for the All Star Game kind of way and voted “Powder” as the top choice for team name.

That would have been glorious. If they were stupid enough to make that a choice, they deserved to have gotten stuck with it.

 

[Xerloris]

Good stats as usual but I can at least see arguments that Drai isn't a top 5 center. He's clearly one of the best offensive players in the league but it's tough to quantify the McDavid effect. I bet a lot of guys would benefit from being matched against the #2 defensive unit as Drai is when not playing with McD.

For the sake of argument, where would I personally rank him? This is in terms of overall ability right now and not considering age, contract status, etc. I'm putting him below McDavid, MacKinnon, Matthews and Barkov for sure. Then you've got the next group, which is where it gets tricky. Where does Drai fit in compared to Crosby, Hughes, Point and Pettersson? If I need to win one game I might prefer Sid and Hughes over Drai as well but it's a matter of preference at that point.

Clearly Drai is a great player, I just wonder if he's overrated at times. A lot of people would say he's a top 5 player in the league simply based on his gaudy numbers but stats alone don't always tell the whole story. Of course other people may see it differently than I do and that's...ok.

Game 7 cup finals? Obviously not Mcdavid or Drai

 

[BlueMed]

Doug Armstrong has rationalized taking the best-player available at the draft given the option of making a trade later on. The one team that caught my attention was the NJ Devils. They have an abundance of defensemen with few young forward prospects making them a potential trade partner.

RHD Pipeline
Dougie Hamilton at 9.0 M AAV for 4 more years with NMC (becomes a M-NTC next summer)
Brett Pesce at 5.5 M AAV for 6 more years
Simon Nemec at 0.9 M AAV for 2 more years
Seamus Casey (2022 second round pick - currently with UMich)

LHD Pipeline
Luke Hughes at 0.9 M AAV for 1 more year
Jonas Siegenthaler at 3.4 M AAV for 4 more years
Brenden Dillon at 4.0 M AAV for 3 years
Anton Silayev (2024 first round pick - 10th overall - signed in the KHL until 2026)

The Devils are regaining their defensive identity from the 1990s. However, they won't be able to keep everybody. On the right side, the Devils just signed Pesce to play significant minutes, which will likely be on the second pairing. That leaves the top spot between Hamilton and Nemec. With Nemec projected as their top future RHD, Hamilton may be the odd-man out. Meanwhile, Seamus Casey is producing more than a point per game at the collegiate level. He's got too much upside for the third pairing. On the left side, Silayev could be ready for a top 4 role given his development in the KHL. They just signed Dillon this off season, so he is unlikely to be moved anytime soon. That leaves Siegenthaler without a spot. You can never have too many defensemen, but there's a clear log-jam here, and Doug Armstrong should be tuning into this. I'd still like to trade the lesser of Bolduc or Snuggerud for a big-minute defensemen, and New Jersey might be the team to call.

 

[joe galiba]

I was really, really hoping fans from across the league would have trolled them and stuffed the ballot box in a John Scott for the All Star Game kind of way and voted “Powder” as the top choice for team name.

That would have been glorious. If they were stupid enough to make that a choice, they deserved to have gotten stuck with it.

I still think they should go with a Joe Pesci theme and go with “yutes”

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Good stats as usual but I can at least see arguments that Drai isn't a top 5 center. He's clearly one of the best offensive players in the league but it's tough to quantify the McDavid effect. I bet a lot of guys would benefit from being matched against the #2 defensive unit as Drai is when not playing with McD.

For the sake of argument, where would I personally rank him? This is in terms of overall ability right now and not considering age, contract status, etc. I'm putting him below McDavid, MacKinnon, Matthews and Barkov for sure. Then you've got the next group, which is where it gets tricky. Where does Drai fit in compared to Crosby, Hughes, Point and Pettersson? If I need to win one game I might prefer Sid and Hughes over Drai as well but it's a matter of preference at that point.

Clearly Drai is a great player, I just wonder if he's overrated at times. A lot of people would say he's a top 5 player in the league simply based on his gaudy numbers but stats alone don't always tell the whole story. Of course other people may see it differently than I do and that's...ok.

And there is something to be said about the McDavid trickle-down effect. They could be separated for an entire game and there will still be the McDavid bump for Drai because of the matchup issue.

 

[Linkens Mastery]

Jordie Benn retired

 

[tfriede2]

Jordie Benn retired

Not sure if you could hear me say “meh” from my house.