Proposal: Free agency edition Trade Rumours/Proposals [MOD - Stay on Topic] 5

[Xspyrit]

Wait, why is there talk about Kurashev? He's a bad player, ala Kubalik, probably even worse defensively.

4 teams have now moved on from Brannstrom, two of which he didn't even get into a game for. He has consistently been one of if not the most sheltered Dman every team he plays for under 3 different coaches. At some point, are we ever going to see people admit he just isn't good enough?

Did you read my post? It is explained in it...

"Brannstrom is not sought after" because :

- He is undersized.
- He doesn't produce enough offense for a team to justify making a spot for him.
- There is not a lot of D-men under 6'0 in this league.
- Most modern D-men can move the puck these days and they are all much taller/bigger.
- Vancouver already have Hughes (or team X already player Y)... so they don't really need/want a guy like Brannstrom as you will want Hughes (player Y) out there on every OZ start.
- Usually, NHL staffs don't play D-men on their off-side. Brannstrom is a LHD and the league has a surplus of LHDs and a shortage of RHDs

I finish saying : If Brannstrom was just a bit faster, or just a bit taller, or just a bit more productive or even just a RHD, he would have a regular spot by now.

Am I supposed to provide more reasons for what you just mentioned in your post or should that be enough? He's lacking one of these 4 factors to solidify a spot. He's actually a very similar player to Matt Grzelcyk, however not as good of a skater.

Many Canucks fans would rather have him over Juulsen, Desharnais or even Soucy, but 2 of them are RHDs so same situation as here vs Hamonic or JBD.

All that said, it makes you wonder why stupid Dorion targeted him for Stone (who has the 9th best PPG so far this season) as he is an undersized LHD. Almost only elite ones end up sticking (like Hughes, Hutson)

Also, see this :

The Decline Of Small Defensemen In The NHL Draft - HockeyProspect.com

Ryan Ellis was drafted 11th overall ny Nashville in 2009. Photo by Aaron Bell/OHL Images

hockeyprospect.com

You bring up all kinds of nonsense, fancy stats & players that are irrelevant. None of that matters. Brannstrom is too small, too soft & too weak for the NHL, period. He is not elite, he's an average skater & doesn't produce enough pts to warrant a roster spot in the NHL. He'll eventually be back in Europe where he belongs.

Tell me you don't have a clue of what I am talking about without telling me lol

It's not because you don't understand some stuff that it is nonsense, everyone has limitations. As for reasons why Brannstrom isn't sticking, I listed 6 of them, 3 of them are reasons you also just mentioned, which is is really weird because when it happens, it means people are agreeing lmao.

Edit : I find it so ridiculous in 2025 when people refer to expected goals as "fancy stats" like it was NOT REAL... I mean, it's data based on scoring chance quality & quantity. It's a more evolved statistic than the simple number of shots (which is USELESS in comparison). Time to evolve.

 

[HoweHullOrr]

Why dream small? Staios wants best in class, so make Ottawa a desired location and go get some talent.

Ya, nothing abhorrent about dreaming. I’d like Ottawa to be a destination of choice, but it hasn’t been one for a long while (maybe since inception). I don’t understand the reasons except for taxes. Can’t even use the cold climate reason as there’s plenty of teams located in the U.S. that have snow & cold weather.

 

[LuckyPierre]

With quality goaltending and the defensive core locked up beyond this year, the supposed Norris move is the critical transaction for this offseason.

Other Norris trade takes I see don't address the 1st PP unit adequately, in that if he was moved, we wouldn't receive a high calibre offensive weapon in return. I can't accept a downgrade in that area as although it's top ten league wide, it needs to make up for even strength scoring issues.

I still think a Norris for Stamkos swap opens up some possibilities for Ottawa. Unpopular take, I know. I'd do it in the offseason. It would give Stutzle a shooter on the wing who can score 30 and take draws for the next year or two before Stamkos' legs really slow down and he takes on less even strength responsibility. As mentioned, also replaces a PP threat (Norris) with another.

Stammer's contract would expire with Tkachuk's in three more years - that's our contention window. And it's essentially dollar in/out for Norris, with a year less of term.

Tkachuk Stutzle Stamkos
XXX Pinto Batherson
Giroux Greig Amadio
Gregor Ostapchuk MacEwen

 

[Micklebot]

Wait, why is there talk about Kurashev? He's a bad player, ala Kubalik, probably even worse defensively.



Did you read my post? It is explained in it...

I'll summarize that aspect then :

"Brannstrom is not sought after" because :

- He is undersized.
- He doesn't produce enough offense for a team to justify making a spot for him.
- There is not a lot of D-men under 6'0 in this league.
- Most modern D-men can move the puck these days and they are all much taller/bigger.
- Vancouver already have Hughes (or team X already player Y)... so they don't really need/want a guy like Brannstrom as you will want Hughes (player Y) out there on every OZ start.
- Usually, NHL staffs don't play D-men on their off-side. Brannstrom is a LHD and the league has a surplus of LHDs and a shortage of RHDs

I finish saying : If Brannstrom was just a bit faster, or just a bit taller, or just a bit more productive or even just a RHD, he would have a regular spot by now.

Am I supposed to provide more reasons for what you just mentioned in your post or should that be enough? He's lacking one of the 4 factors I just mentioned at the end to solidify a spot. He's actually a very similar player to Matt Grzelcyk, however not as good of a skater.

Many Canucks fans would rather have him over Juulsen, Desharnais or even Soucy, but 2 of them ate actually RHDs so same thing as here vs Hamonic or JBD.

All that said, it makes you wonder why stupid Dorion targeted him for Stone (who has the 9th best PPG so far this season) as he is an undersized LHD. Almost only elite ones end up sticking (like Hughes, Hutson)

Also, see this :

The Decline Of Small Defensemen In The NHL Draft - HockeyProspect.com

Ryan Ellis was drafted 11th overall ny Nashville in 2009. Photo by Aaron Bell/OHL Images

hockeyprospect.com

Alternatively, he just isn't as good as you or the many nameless vancouver fans you mention think, and his fancy stats are in part a result of every coach he's ever played for sheltering him to make up for his deficiencies..

Don't care about if this or if that, he isn't any of those things.

Brannstrom just isn't an NHL player, he isn't good enough to be in your top 4 and coaches want someone they don't need to shelter for their bottom pair, especially on the road. Bonne voyage.

32 teams in the league agree, Brannstrom isn't NHL caliber even with a league min contract. It's not just Vancouver that doesn't need him, nobody does.

 

[bicboi64]

Alternatively, he just isn't as good as you or the many nameless vancouver fans you mention think, and his fancy stats are in part a result of every coach he's ever played for sheltering him to make up for his deficiencies..

Don't care about if this or if that, he isn't any of those things.

Brannstrom just isn't an NHL player, he isn't good enough to be in your top 4 and coaches want someone they don't need to shelter for their bottom pair, especially on the road. Bonne voyage.

32 teams in the league agree, Brannstrom isn't NHL caliber even with a league min contract. It's not just Vancouver that doesn't need him, nobody does.

We have to shelter Hamonic, Kleven, and JBD as well. Hamonic has has some games where's he's serviceable but moved up in the line up, he's just awful.

Brannstrom on the roster at league minimum would've been a better depth option than what we've had to ice before, a much more solid choice as a 7th D that can play up and down the line up. He was fine at times when Chabot went down (granted it was garbage time).

I wouldn't want him on Ottawa though. Even if he was here, its not like Green would play him just like how Green goes with his vets like Hammer over JBD with no reason other than his subjective confidence in Hamonic.

 

[Micklebot]

We have to shelter Hamonic, Kleven, and JBD as well. Hamonic has has some games where's he's serviceable but moved up in the line up, he's just awful.

Brannstrom on the roster at league minimum would've been a better depth option than what we've had to ice before, a much more solid choice as a 7th D that can play up and down the line up. He was fine at times when Chabot went down (granted it was garbage time).

I wouldn't want him on Ottawa though. Even if he was here, its not like Green would play him just like how Green goes with his vets like Hammer over JBD with no reason other than his subjective confidence in Hamonic.

DJ played Hamonic over JBD too, maybe it's your subjective confidence in JBD that's the issue not Green's in Hamonic.

Like I said, 32 teams don't see a spot for him even when he's free to acquire. It's not just Green that won't play him, no team is interested. He doesn't really fit into todays game.

 

[Cosmix]

I am not a big fan of Brannstrom and he is not what we need; however, I feel the same about JBD and Hamonic. We need a better defenseman!

 

[bicboi64]

DJ played Hamonic over JBD too, maybe it's your subjective confidence in JBD that's the issue not Green's in Hamonic.

Like I said, 32 teams don't see a spot for him even when he's free to acquire. It's not just Green that won't play him, no team is interested. He doesn't really fit into todays game.

For what its worth I critiqued DJ for his use of Hamonic as well, but DJ playing Hamonic over JBD had some semblance of logic considering JBD was still developing. My concern with Hammer over JBD is that JBD has developed enough to warrant getting more minutes than Hamonic. Not that it matters now with JBD's injury, but Green clearly has his favourites as all coaches do and Hamonic seems to be that.

 

[BigRig4]

With quality goaltending and the defensive core locked up beyond this year, the supposed Norris move is the critical transaction for this offseason.

Other Norris trade takes I see don't address the 1st PP unit adequately, in that if he was moved, we wouldn't receive a high calibre offensive weapon in return. I can't accept a downgrade in that area as although it's top ten league wide, it needs to make up for even strength scoring issues.

I still think a Norris for Stamkos swap opens up some possibilities for Ottawa. Unpopular take, I know. I'd do it in the offseason. It would give Stutzle a shooter on the wing who can score 30 and take draws for the next year or two before Stamkos' legs really slow down and he takes on less even strength responsibility. As mentioned, also replaces a PP threat (Norris) with another.

Stammer's contract would expire with Tkachuk's in three more years - that's our contention window. And it's essentially dollar in/out for Norris, with a year less of term.

Tkachuk Stutzle Stamkos
XXX Pinto Batherson
Giroux Greig Amadio
Gregor Ostapchuk MacEwen

Stamkos is dropping off really fast. I’d be worried about that.

 

[GCK]

If Brannstrom was just a bit faster, or just a bit taller, or just a bit more productive or even just a RHD, he would have a regular spot by now.

I think this sums it up.

 

[GCK]

Why dream small? Staios wants best in class, so make Ottawa a desired location and go get some talent.

The only way that Ottawa becomes close to a desirable location is being a Cup contender.

 

[bicboi64]

Stamkos is dropping off really fast. I’d be worried about that.

If we could somehow make Norris for O'Rielly work instead of Stamkos, that'd fit the roster so much better if we're trying to go all in within Tkachuk's contract. Beast on the dot, scores at a decent pace for a middle 6 centre, and his contract is very good. I doubt Nashville ever considers it though since he's their best centre and Norris isn't too much of an upgrade over ROR

 

[Xspyrit]

Alternatively, he just isn't as good as you or the many nameless vancouver fans you mention think, and his fancy stats are in part a result of every coach he's ever played for sheltering him to make up for his deficiencies..

lol why would you qualify Vancouver fans as "nameless"?

Did I ever say he was not sheltered? Of course you should not play Brannstrom vs MacKinnon and Rantanen. AFAIK, everybody here or on Vancouver board didn't ask Brannstrom to be more than a 3rd pairing D-man. We of course expected more for years since our ex GM got him in return for an elite 25 y/o player.

Just another instance that goes on to show how bad Dorion was as a GM, going for an undersized LHD without elite skating... against the odds, and Brannstrom didn't beat these odds.

Don't care about if this or if that, he isn't any of those things.

Why would you not care? I mean, you say yourself and I quote "are we ever going to see people admit he just isn't good enough?"

You don't think that listing these 4 things is "admitting he just isn't good enough?"

Brannstrom just isn't an NHL player, he isn't good enough to be in your top 4 and coaches want someone they don't need to shelter for their bottom pair, especially on the road. Bonne voyage.

32 teams in the league agree, Brannstrom isn't NHL caliber even with a league min contract. It's not just Vancouver that doesn't need him, nobody does.

Yes, and I explained all that in my first post that you quoted. It was already all there so not sure what we are even discussing here.

If I am not mistaken, there's only Hughes, Hutson, Krug (who has a 6.5 AAV and hasn't even played this season) and Grzelcyk as undersized LHDs in the league at the moment.

All that said, I perfectly understand why there's some fans who would rather have a guy like Brannstrom as their 6th/7th than a Hamonic or Juulsen, even on his off-side, despite their team's decision (and as we have witnessed for years, it can be not very smart)

I think this sums it up.

Sucks for him, seems like a nice guy you want to root for, a bit like Sokolov who also just misses a little something (skating in his case). Reminds me of Wiercioch, who also lacked the skating and/or physical strength. It's not that Brannstrom is a bad skater but he's only average for NHL standards and as an undersized LHD, it goes against the odds.

 

[Wallet Inspector]

Asking to move Norris and allocating that money for Boeser or Rantanen (+5 million) without first seeing how Norris (a proven 35 goal guy with great 2 way game, young and beloved in locker room) can do on the wing is bananas.

Guys like Norris breakout. The only thing stopping him is more injuries. That's it.

I'd only move Norris for a similar player of his that is more physical and hasn't shown maybe as much like Dylan Cozens.

Not saying we should move Norris but it is pretty clear that Rantanen is mountains above him as a player, I don't think Norris can prove otherwise.

 

[GCK]

Not saying we should move Norris but it is pretty clear that Rantanen is mountains above him as a player, I don't think Norris can prove otherwise.

Of course Rantanen is much better which is why he will make so much more than Norris.

 

[TheNewEra]

If we could somehow make Norris for O'Rielly work instead of Stamkos, that'd fit the roster so much better if we're trying to go all in within Tkachuk's contract. Beast on the dot, scores at a decent pace for a middle 6 centre, and his contract is very good. I doubt Nashville ever considers it though since he's their best centre and Norris isn't too much of an upgrade over ROR

dont need to trade norris for o'reilly, just trade for o'reilly and move norris to the wing

Norris-Stutzle-Giroux
Tkachuk-O'Reilly-Batherson
Perron-Pinto-Greig
someone-Ostaphcuk-Amadio

If the cap goes up that 9 million we can afford to add O-Reilly in with no real issue, especially if Yak makes the team as the 3rd RD. It would allow ottawa to either go long term with Kleven or spend about 4 million to fill that someone spot and an extra forward spot or to have a better insulating extra option for yak then JBD or Matinpalo

Essentially sens are no where near in as bad of a cap space shape as people are making it out to be lol

 

[GCK]

Sucks for him, seems like a nice guy you want to root for, a bit like Sokolov who also just misses a little something (skating in his case). Reminds me of Wiercioch, who also lacked the skating and/or physical strength. It's not that Brannstrom is a bad skater but he's only average for NHL standards and as an undersized LHD, it goes against the odds.

I’ve met many players at events over the years and I’d put Brannstrom in the top 2 nicest and most genuine people amongst them, along with Mike Fisher.

 

[bacon25]

dont need to trade norris for o'reilly, just trade for o'reilly and move norris to the wing

Norris-Stutzle-Giroux
Tkachuk-O'Reilly-Batherson
Perron-Pinto-Greig
someone-Ostaphcuk-Amadio

If the cap goes up that 9 million we can afford to add O-Reilly in with no real issue, especially if Yak makes the team as the 3rd RD. It would allow ottawa to either go long term with Kleven or spend about 4 million to fill that someone spot and an extra forward spot or to have a better insulating extra option for yak then JBD or Matinpalo

Essentially sens are no where near in as bad of a cap space shape as people are making it out to be lol

O'rielly is prpbably not coming to Ottawa, Nashville is treating him as if he has a no move clause and a list of teams.

 

[senswon]

Imo you gotta give Norris a chance at wing to see how he looks before looking for lateral moves.
Still not sure about the prospect of

Stu
Norris
Greig
Obstachuk

We need to find a way to get giroux on the 3rd line. Like to see more speed and size in the top6

 

[TheNewEra]

O'rielly is prpbably not coming to Ottawa, Nashville is treating him as if he has a no move clause and a list of teams.

Probably true. Was just more so pointing out the fact that if the rumor of the cap going up 9 million is accurate then we really dont have to trade Norris and we can easily add a piece.

In what i posted we can basically add up to a 7 million player in that O'reilly spot if we went league minimum for that 4th line spot and extra forward spot. I did a quick estimate with Giroux getting 4.5, kleven getting 2.3 million on a short term deal, yak making the team and Leevi getting a modest raise

Essentially if cap goes up 9 million we are in a fantastic spot. If cap goes up 6 million then we can still add a 4 million forward.

No need to make a panic move or sell low on a player unless we completely implode.

 

[frightenedinmatenum2]

O'Relly seems to fit what management goes after.

People are discussing where Norris would fit, but Norris would be the piece that goes the other way. Even know O'Reilly might not go for a massive package, I don't think we have the assets or cap flexibility to acquire him without moving out a contract with term.

I could see something like Norris and a warm body (MacEwan?) for O'Reilly and another roster player (top 6 D or top 9 F) in the 3M-4M range. Sens would get another veteran, which based on things Staios said and did last year was something they coveted and had a difficult time adding. They would also fill two roster spots during a time where their depth is taking a challenge.

 

[ReginKarlssonLehner]

Not saying we should move Norris but it is pretty clear that Rantanen is mountains above him as a player, I don't think Norris can prove otherwise.

Rantanen is unquestionably above him. Heads, knees and toes.

But if Norris works out as a 30+ 70+ winger at 25 years old at 8 million. Then we can spend another 5 million on like say Bjorkstrand for example.

Norris-Stutzle-Bjorkstrand
Tkachuk-Pinto-Batherson
Giroux-Greig-Amadio

vs

Greig-Stutzle-Rantanen
Tkachuk-Pinto-Batherson
Giroux-1 mil player-Amadio

 

[Loach]

Wish in one hand...