True, which is why I keep saying that bad moves are bad moves regardless of motivation. But flipping Kerfoot+2nd+ for Zucker and/or our 1st+Morrison+ for Hayes would not have been bad moves; while also being proactive moves that left less on Joe's plate for the summer
The package he ultimately got could still end up working out just as well (if not better) than the Chabot + Zibanejad + capspace for Radulov scenario that Joe had facing him in the summer of 2016
*...but without Ottawa's collapse turning that pick into the centerpiece of the deal, I don't think we'd be able to say that. Love me some Girard, but Chabot is on another level. I like both Kam & Bowers as bottom 6 & potentially even middle 6 Center prospects, but if either of them ever reaches Zibby's level I will **** about our dev staff for good. And if that pick was just a mid-to-late 1st, that wouldn't tilt those scales in favor of the package we did end up with -- even if we ignore the Radu dimension -- ya know?
*which admittedly came with a 2nd big trade that Sakic nixed, that was part of opening the cap space for Sasha. But if we're trying to follow all of the ripples of Joe's decisions that offseason as far as we can trace them; then we should also keep in mind that Roy was pushing heavily for us to draft a blueliner instead of Jost...with a pick at which both Chychrun & McAvoy were still available...