GDT: Free Agency Day 1: You're from Boston? Come on down

[Gurglesons]

 

[66-30-33]

Man Malkins value is tanking hard...not even worth Sam Bannett. SAM FRIGGIN BENNETT!!!!

 

[Gurglesons]

Man Malkins value is tanking hard...not even worth Sam Bannett. SAM FRIGGIN BENNETT!!!!

cats fans are obviously still drunk.

 

[canadianguy77]

If we re-sign Petts I’ll be so confused what we are doing.

That guy is probably going to keep getting better. I’ve seen it quite a few times before with lanky dmen who just keep getting better as overall players. They don’t really hit their primes until their late 20s-early 30s. If they sell him now, we’ll be seething in a season or 2.

Defensive liability.

Anaheim’s forward group without him is still stacked.

He’s not that great of a player despite the theatrical plays.

He hasn’t put it all together yet. But tbf, he only really started to focus on defense this season. Might be too late for him though.

 

[Dipsy Doodle]

Man Malkins value is tanking hard...not even worth Sam Bannett. SAM FRIGGIN BENNETT!!!!

Hardly surprising fans of the reigning Cup winner wouldn't want to mess with a big part of their identity, even if it is an upgrade in a vacuum.

 

[Gurglesons]

Hardly surprising fans of the reigning Cup winner wouldn't want to mess with a big part of their identity, even if it is an upgrade in a vacuum.

Sam Bennett isn’t even the 8th most important player on the Cats.

 

[AuroraBorealis]

That guy is probably going to keep getting better. I’ve seen it quite a few times before with lanky dmen who just keep getting better as overall players. They don’t really hit their primes until their late 20s-early 30s. If they sell him now, we’ll be seething in a season or 2.

The cap hit's 4.025M now though. What's it gonna be at the time of trading him? That affects the return.

He was pretty great last year. Imo he just peaked and we're rolling the dice here. But maybe that's some pessimism creeping in.
There will be retention spots later I guess, but those are precious. Only get 3.

 

[Jacob]

Anyone in here talking about Necas? I haven’t noticed. But he’s the age and skill level we should be calling about.

I’ve assumed we don’t have the assets but the way it’s dragging out maybe he doesn’t have as much value as expected.

To add, if fitting in his next contract is the issue, we could do what Rutherford did with Pettersson: a lesser 1 year deal with the promise of an extension once we’re allowed (Jan. 1st?). So like 1x$4 today and then 6x$6 once we can. Or just dump Graves or Rakell (with an asset).

 

[Gurglesons]

Anyone in here talking about Necas? I haven’t noticed. But he’s the age and skill level we should be calling about.

I’ve assumed we don’t have the assets but the way it’s dragging out maybe he doesn’t have as much value as expected.

To add, if fitting in his next contract is the issue, we could do what Rutherford did with Pettersson: a lesser 1 year deal with the promise of an extension once we’re allowed (Jan. 1st?). So like 1x$4 today and then 6x$6 once we can. Or just dump Graves or Rakell (with an asset).

I imagine with Jake walking they sign him.

 

[Pancakes]

Whether Dubas is a bad GM or not in a vacuum is kinda irrelevant to me because bad GMs have good runs all the time and good gms have bad ones.

JR was f-ing awful in Carolina and then had the run of his life here (before promptly sucking ass again) and has had another hot run in Vancouver.

Dubas doesn't have to be a mastermind he just has to have a good run to set us up for a while. Hopefully he can put one together.

 

[DearDiary]

Whether Dubas is a bad GM or not in a vacuum is kinda irrelevant to me because bad GMs have good runs all the time and good gms have bad ones.

JR was f-ing awful in Carolina and then had the run of his life here (before promptly sucking ass again) and has had another hot run in Vancouver.

Dubas doesn't have to be a mastermind he just has to have a good run to set us up for a while. Hopefully he can put one together.

Dubas was unwilling to make changes while the team struggled for most of the year. I think a lot of it is because he's running 2 roles, while other GM's are only focusing on trading and drafting.

 

[DesertedPenguin]

Yawn. Idle speculation with no actual information.

 

[Gurglesons]

Whether Dubas is a bad GM or not in a vacuum is kinda irrelevant to me because bad GMs have good runs all the time and good gms have bad ones.

JR was f-ing awful in Carolina and then had the run of his life here (before promptly sucking ass again) and has had another hot run in Vancouver.

Dubas doesn't have to be a mastermind he just has to have a good run to set us up for a while. Hopefully he can put one together.

Some GMs just suck.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

Anyone in here talking about Necas? I haven’t noticed. But he’s the age and skill level we should be calling about.

I’ve assumed we don’t have the assets but the way it’s dragging out maybe he doesn’t have as much value as expected.

To add, if fitting in his next contract is the issue, we could do what Rutherford did with Pettersson: a lesser 1 year deal with the promise of an extension once we’re allowed (Jan. 1st?). So like 1x$4 today and then 6x$6 once we can. Or just dump Graves or Rakell (with an asset).

I expect him signed but in an alternate world.

Let's say we did a 1 year cheaper deal.

The next deal would be 8x8

 

[Kristopher Letang]

This is the type of player we should be after…though we have nothing of interest to trade…

https://x.com/i/web/status/1808657270009389511

I’m sure Tortorella and Zegras will get along You really gotta be a special type of weirdo to hate on Michigan goals.

 

[Pancakes]

Some GMs just suck.

You're not wrong there. Hopefully Dubas is in the JR mold of hot and cold gm rather than just bad gm lol

 

[DesertedPenguin]

Two items of note from Dejan, beyond saying that Eller likely won't be moved.

There's a massive difference between signing a bunch of borderline late-20s vets and blocking the kids. If Valtteri Puustinen, Sam Poulin or even Brayden Yager wants to make the team out of camp, then make the team out of camp. Beat those new guys out. Be better. That'd be an ideal scenario, actually. This coming season, I'm told, will keep such doors wide open. But passing out roster spots based on age is a great way, for example, to not fully impress upon Puustinen that he needs to shoot the bleeping puck.

• Tired of writing this week after week, but the goaltenders are the goaltenders. There'll be no further change there. Because the same has to apply to Joel Blomqvist: He's got to be good enough not just to be in Pittsburgh but to play regularly in Pittsburgh. Can't have him sit on the folding chair and stunt his development.

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[Kasperi kapanen]

Two items of note from Dejan, beyond saying that Eller likely won't be moved.

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Bullshit. I’ve seen this movie too many times lol.

 

[Turin]

So what happened to this kid? He was great in NYI, extremely annoying to play against and young. He’s still young, so why did he fall off a cliff?

 

[Gurglesons]

View attachment 892479So what happened to this kid? He was great in NYI, extremely annoying to play against and young. He’s still young, so why did he fall off a cliff?

Someone had to score on the Island.

Two items of note from Dejan, beyond saying that Eller likely won't be moved.

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If our coach actually gave them a chance I’d say great concept.

It’s hilarious to see our media say we have no young talent and crucify Puustinen. Just has great underlyings and solid raw points.

 

[DesertedPenguin]

If our coach actually gave them a chance I’d say great concept.

It’s hilarious to see our media say we have no young talent and crucify Puustinen. Just has great underlyings and solid raw points.

And a slow as shit release.

Wild that you're skeptical about Koivunen, who has outperformed Puustinen at every age level and outproduced him in every league where they played a similar amount of games. Yet you're complaining about critiques of Puustinen's game.

 

[Ulf5]

And a slow as shit release.

Wild that you're skeptical about Koivunen, who has outperformed Puustinen at every age level and outproduced him in every league where they played a similar amount of games. Yet you're complaining about critiques of Puustinen's game.

Always talking out of both sides of his a, ahh, mouth.

 

[K Fleur]

I was able to trade Ryan Graves and a 2nd to SJS for William Eklund and a 3rd last night in NHL24 Franchise mode.

Get it done Dubas.

 

[Jag68Sid87]

Bullshit. I’ve seen this movie too many times lol.

This is how I feel, too. Just because the players we acquired are not big names entrenched in the lineup, that does not mean Mike Sullivan will prefer them over the kids. If you give the man a choice, he chooses wrongly. Dubas had one job this summer: do NOT give the coach a choice.

We showed some promise down the stretch last season largely because Sullivan ran out of options. He had no choice but to play Jack St. Ivany, and we discovered a third-pairing defenseman. Puustinen played more because he had no choice. Puljujarvi was not as fortunate. He is probably toast now. O'Connor looked good next to Crosby because Sullivan ran out of options.

So, if the plan was to bring in shitty players because they won't block the kids, then we will be left with shitty players, Kyle. It is the Sullivan way.

We need a top-six winger. That was our biggest need of the off-season and it is the biggest priority now. Not because we need a left-winger for Crosby, per se. Not to block the kids. The kids are blocked anyway. It is to FIX the MFing power play!

If you don't acquire a right-shooting winger, then Bryan Rust is on PP1 (on top of his role as PK1 and L1).

Does that sound like a recipe for success?

 

[Victor Z]

The Pens' #1 need is still a #1 LD. Kicking POJ out was addition by subtraction, because Sully is SO much of an idiot he thought that a guy who isn't a legit #1 *AHL* defensemen was somehow a legit #1 at the NHL level.

But.... Matt Grizzledick and The Other Sebastian Aho? LOL.

Ryan Graves was last year's misfit toy, who has never been the type of player to shoulder the defensive burden on his pairing and never had a reasonable expectation of meshing with Kris Letang & His Brain Farts, and we had no one here who he COULD mesh with.

Grizzledick is hardly appropriate for the old Dumoulin role either and therefore is THIS year's misfit toy, albeit with a much smaller contract and far less term than Graves (same with Aho, who is an even worse option). So the people who judge players more by the size of their wallet than their impact on the ice won't scapegoat this year's misfit as much as they hated on last year's misfit. But the new guys are still bad fits and don't actually solve any problem.

Why doesn't our oh-so-smart GM understand that a little DEFENSE is an acceptable thing on the blue line, and you don't always need to maximize the number of small, weak, "puck moving" defense-less types back there? Our goalies need a lot more help than they're getting, and of course the forwards aren't exempt from contributing to the problem either.

If the idea is to allow as many goals as possible then I suppose Gryz/Aho are good moves, but the only plan Dubas seems to have is "try to convince people there is a plan" when there clearly isn't one.