Around the NHL 2024-2025

[bleedblue1223]

Really tough to know how good he is going to be. I'm guessing if Columbus had full confidence in him, he would have gotten more opportunities by now. Then again as we've seen with Broberg, some guys need more time to become legit NHL players. Doesn't make sense that Columbus would risk alienating their top young D prospect unless they had a good reason.

I'm interested but cautiously interested.

I think a big thing is putting high-end prospects in situations to succeed. You'll naturally do it with lesser prospects because you know to take it slow, but teams struggle with either giving them way too big of a role or if they aren't an immediate star, they give them reduced minutes where they don't develop or bounce them around between pros and minors. That's why I like our plan with Dvorsky, when he's ready, he's ready.

Broberg with Faulk on a pair that both gets big minutes, but also offensively tilted minutes is huge. And at the same time, we aren't really built around a heavy offensive producer from the back-end, so if he has stretches of lesser production, it's not really a huge deal, where other teams might panic or be reliant on a young defenseman scoring points.

With Columbus, he played with Jack Johnson in his first game, and they played defensive 3rd pairing minutes. Part of the issue is they give Werenski a ton of offensive minutes, so because he gets offensive usage, and it's high usage, there isn't as much offensive minutes for everyone else. It just makes for a tougher situation to develop someone in, Broberg is an example here. The concern that I would have is that they say skating is one of Jiricek's issues, but as long as it's NHL adequate, that just becomes something that the coaching staff should build around. Don't put him in situations where you need elite skating to be successful. Train him on when to pinch and get down low offensively and when to hang back at the point.

While I do get frustrated at how we use Parayko in some of the toughest minutes in the league, it's also a luxury in that we can much more easily develop defensive players. I'd be relatively aggressive in taking advantage of that luxury while we still can, and Broberg is an example of that. I know people want Broberg with Parayko because it makes sense on paper, but Broberg having a great season next to Faulk in an easier role than with Parayko will do wonders for his development IMO. Tougher assignments can come in time. If a Jiricek is available for a reasonable price, putting him with Suter or Leddy on a 3rd pair where he can be sheltered and given an opportunity to shine would be great.

 

[STL fan in MN]

I’d love to get David Jiricek as he still has high potential but it’s admittedly a little concerning he hasn’t really improved his skating deficiencies yet. His transitions, particularly from forward to backward, are bad as is his gap control (which isn’t surprising as those two things are pretty highly correlated). My guess is he’ll eventually work it out but he’s a cautionary tale as well.

He may need a change of scenery though. But not sure the Blues are the best spot for him. We’re already breaking in Broberg and adding D.Jiricek would essentially block Kessel so he’d likely need to go the other way as a part of the package, traded elsewhere or he becomes a lost asset.

 

[bleedblue1223]

I’d love to get David Jiricek as he still has high potential but it’s admittedly a little concerning he hasn’t really improved his skating deficiencies yet. His transitions, particularly from forward to backward, are bad as is his gap control (which isn’t surprising as those two things are pretty highly correlated). My guess is he’ll eventually work it out but he’s a cautionary tale as well.

He may need a change of scenery though. But not sure the Blues are the best spot for him. We’re already breaking in Broberg and adding D.Jiricek would essentially block Kessel so he’d likely need to go the other way as a past is the package, traded elsewhere or becomes a lost asset.

Yep. It's something I wouldn't necessarily do right now, but if we are 41ish games through the season, and Broberg is still looking strong, I'd be much more aggressive about it.

 

[bleedblue1223]

While applying historical examples to current cases isn't the best analysis for decision-making, it would be interesting to look at young dmen that were drafted top 10 and traded, and how it turned out. Guys like Erik Johnson or Jack Johnson and others. Those 2 were much more proven though.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

If Broberg proves to be a top pairing guy at the front end of his prime (and still under team control after this contract) it will go down as a brutal mistake for Edmonton.

I’m not sure it will trigger more offer sheets though. I think it may cause GMs to be more circumspect in their handling of eligible RGAs. Maybe the players will have more leverage negotiating these bridge contracts?

 

[STL fan in MN]

If Broberg proves to be a top pairing guy at the front end of his prime (and still under team control after this contract) it will go down as a brutal mistake for Edmonton.

I’m not sure it will trigger more offer sheets though. I think it may cause GMs to be more circumspect in their handling of eligible RGAs. Maybe the players will have more leverage negotiating these bridge contracts?

Yeah, maybe. Still, it took a team putting themselves between a rock and a hard place for it to really even be a possibility. Perhaps going forward, teams will now be more likely to prioritize their own RFAs than to sign UFAs like Jeff Skinner and then hope you can get the RFAs signed for super cheap.

 

[bleedblue1223]

If Broberg proves to be a top pairing guy at the front end of his prime (and still under team control after this contract) it will go down as a brutal mistake for Edmonton.

I’m not sure it will trigger more offer sheets though. I think it may cause GMs to be more circumspect in their handling of eligible RGAs. Maybe the players will have more leverage negotiating these bridge contracts?

I think Edmonton was a really unique case of terrible cap management on day 1 of free agency. And that's the issue of getting rid of a GM and not have a replacement hired in time for start of free agency. Like Army said, every other team had room for their RFAs, Edmonton put themselves in a position where they only had room for very cheap deals. They didn't have to be that aggressive with the older vet forwards.

Take us next summer with Neighbours and Hofer. If we don't have them signed immediately, I imagine we'll have $9-11M saved in case an offer-sheet comes while we are negotiating a deal. Didn't put much thought into those numbers, but really just ballpark reasonable high-end numbers that they could get, and that's what we'll budget.

I don't think we actually see more offer-sheets because I don't see many teams doing what Edmonton did. Maybe what this did was send a reminder to GMs that a Broberg type offer-sheet will be a massive overpayment, but doesn't cost much in terms of picks, so if you have a high potential, but struggling prospect, you shouldn't just bank on signing them cheap.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

That's a pretty good summary. Edmonton overreacted to not having enough offensive firepower to beat the Panthers so they freaked out and added two wily veterans who can score goals. It was a classic short-sighted, reactionary decision. Not only that but they felt the need to retain Corey Perry at $1.4 for what? Emotional support?

The problem is they were already one of the best offenses in the NHL last season. They added to what was already a team strength instead of addressing the needs they have on the back end that are the weakpoint of their roster. It got even worse when they not only couldn't keep Broberg, but they inexplicably dealt Ceci. So you're already taking a flimsy defense and stripping it down even further for the cap space to potentially add someone better than Cody Ceci, and probably worse than what they saw out of Broberg in the playoffs (and what we've seen so far this season).

Can they add a defensive piece at the deadline? Maybe. They better hope so, but to this point it looks like an offseason full of gafffes.

Their goaltending is also meh, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them lock up Skinner to a 8/$8M deal that completely backfires too. If they can't find a way to add a stud D-man and probably another cheap vet on D before the playoffs, I feel like we've already witness their Cup window closing. Once McDavid, Bouchard, and Skinner get paid, assuming they stay in Edmonton, it's game over for that team being able to compete as it won't be possible to ice a deep enough roster.

I also don't see more offer sheets coming because teams are typically smarter than this. It was an ugly body of work for the Oilers this offseason. Though honestly, if Jeff Jackson was still making roster decisions, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Oilers to make the reactionary decision to sign Neighbours to a huge RFA deal in retaliation, not realizing that they'd owe the Blues four 1st Rounders in compensation.

 

[Memento]

I’d love to get David Jiricek as he still has high potential but it’s admittedly a little concerning he hasn’t really improved his skating deficiencies yet. His transitions, particularly from forward to backward, are bad as is his gap control (which isn’t surprising as those two things are pretty highly correlated). My guess is he’ll eventually work it out but he’s a cautionary tale as well.

He may need a change of scenery though. But not sure the Blues are the best spot for him. We’re already breaking in Broberg and adding D.Jiricek would essentially block Kessel so he’d likely need to go the other way as a part of the package, traded elsewhere or he becomes a lost asset.

From what I've seen from the lone Columbus fan who mentioned something during the Saad-to-Columbus thread on the trade forums, he was asking for Neighbours in return for David Jiricek, not Saad or Kessel. They desperately need young, top-flight wings.

Personally, if Snuggerud, Holloway, and Bolduc (and possibly another younger winger as well) hit and if Broberg proves to be everything he's thought to be, I'd probably entertain it, if only for two brothers to be on the same blueline.

 

[bleedblue1223]

Ceci highlights the issue even more. They had to trade Ceci regardless. People kept making the assumption that Kane was LTIRetirement, but that was never the case, it was just that he'd be out awhile, so they had very short-term room, but they still needed to have room for when he returns. The Ceci/Emberson deal was sort of like use acquiring Bozak and Perron. While to outsiders it seems like we were out on ROR, it was us acquiring the replacements for Berglund and Sobotka. Edmonton moving Ceci was getting their replacement, while they still had some amount of leverage.

 

[PocketNines]

I'm on a glide track to a Neighbours jersey but emotionally he would be amazing for Columbus fans. To me Neighbours is the most important non-Stenberg and non-Dvorsky we have up front so I hold him precious. (This is a good time to remember we need to corner the future Stenberg market with Ivar and Knut. I think Otto Stenberg is going to be a Blue we integrate into Blues lore, I just believe that kid is special)

But if David Jiricek is salvageable you absolutely have to get a cornerstone and Neighbours is a pay to play name. That is the kind of player if he hits you don't think "why get him he's just blocked" you think "get him and deal with the fallout of moving good players down the depth chart" because sometimes that fallout is scary playoff depth. I am a big Kessel fan, concerned with what I am seeing, confident he will get it going, but if it's his minutes getting taken away by a high end piece oh well.

We should observe the situation and I agree time will help us sort out what we have now with Broberg settling in.

 

[STL fan in MN]

I’d probably rather trade Snuggerud than Neighbours in any trade for Jiricek. But I’d part with either.

That said, this talk is likely all just nonsense. Columbus would have to have serious concerns about Jiricek to even consider it. In the end, it’d likely end up looking as dumb as when Boston traded Seguin.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

I would need more information than we have as fans, but I would definitely consider Neighbours for Jiricek.

If I had to choose between Neighbours and Snuggerud, it would be Neighbours that goes too.

 

[bleedblue1223]

I’d probably rather trade Snuggerud than Neighbours in any trade for Jiricek. But I’d part with either.

That said, this talk is likely all just nonsense. Columbus would have to have serious concerns about Jiricek to even consider it. In the end, it’d likely end up looking as dumb as when Boston traded Seguin.

I think it would lean more towards the Johnsons than Seguin. Seguin was in my view already a top player, Boston just didn't think he had the "Bruin" personality/style to his game, he's not the only top player that they were fine with getting rid of.

A move would be more plausible if it was a Johnson/Pietrangelo situation and they had someone of a similar profile performing ahead of him. He's still their future on the back-end. Even if Mateychuk has an exceptional season and climbs ahead of him, they profile as different players, so a move still wouldn't make that much sense.

It would basically have to be a burned bridge situation between Jiricek and the org since this management group didn't draft him and might not be as high on him as the Jarmo group.

 

[Dr Robot]

Even if other Jiricek was available, i feel like we’d get out bid pretty quick. I think someone would probably offer a high end forward prospect we couldn’t match.

 

[Reality Czech]

I’d probably rather trade Snuggerud than Neighbours in any trade for Jiricek. But I’d part with either.

That said, this talk is likely all just nonsense. Columbus would have to have serious concerns about Jiricek to even consider it. In the end, it’d likely end up looking as dumb as when Boston traded Seguin.

Me too. I have doubts about Snuggerud while we already know what kind of a player Jake is. He can be a big part of our team and culture for a long time.