Proposal: Habs - Devils trade

[Bleedred]

When I saw the thread title I knew this was gonna be about Jack Eye. Every time I see a Devils/Canadiens proposal at this point I just assume that’s who it’s about. And I was correct again.

It’s always a Canadiens fan trying to pawn him off on us for overpayment. I don’t think many Devils fans are actually interested in him.

 

[Junohockeyfan]

Felt to me that it was implicit that it was a meh trade, but you sure loooove picking useless fights all the time eh!

He can't help himself! The hate is strong. lol

 

[dgibb10]

When I saw the thread title I knew this was gonna be about Jack Eye. Every time I see a Devils/Canadiens proposal at this point I just assume that’s who it’s about. And I was correct again.

It’s always a Canadiens fan trying to pawn him off on us for overpayment. I don’t think many Devils fans are actually interested in him.

Exactly, while the physicality would be nice, NJD needs legitimately effective NHL dman if we add at LD, ideally one who's a number 3/4 guy. Xhekaj is a number 7/8 who also is an enforcer

 

[HabzSauce]

Romanov got 13th OA from NYI.

Xhekaj + 1st and Value is close. Depends how much the devil's like Xhekaj. Maybe Habs add a little more like a 2nd.

With that said I wouldn't do this trade.

 

[dgibb10]

Romanov got 13th OA from NYI.

Xhekaj + 1st and Value is close. Depends how much the devil's like Xhekaj. Maybe Habs add a little more like a 2nd.

With that said I wouldn't do this trade.

Romanov was a 2nd pairing dman.

Xhekaj plays 15 minutes a night and spent a large portion of time in the AHL. He's a 7/8 dman and enforcer

If you're looking for a Romanov comp, the closest one is Guhle, not Xhekaj

 

[HabzSauce]

Romanov was a 2nd pairing dman.

Xhekaj plays 15 minutes a night and spent a large portion of time in the AHL. He's a 7/8 dman and enforcer

If you're looking for a Romanov comp, the closest one is Guhle, not Xhekaj

Romanov was nothing special when he was with the Habs. He was a 2nd/3rd pairing defenceman. We had him scratched most of the playoffs too back in 2021 in favor of guys like Kulak, Merrill, Gustavsson, etc...guhle is far better than what Romanov was when we traded him. Not a good comparison.

Xhekaj is also better than what you're giving him credit for and I don't even think you've been paying much attention to him. He's played 17 AHL games lol how much did you think he played when you said a large portion? He's one of the top enforcers in the league with good skating and a good shot. Rare skillset. Still very young with lots of room to grow. He definitely has value.

 

[dgibb10]

Romanov was nothing special when he was with the Habs. He was a 2nd/3rd pairing defenceman. We had him scratched most of the playoffs too back in 2021 in favor of guys like Kulak, Merrill, Gustavsson, etc...guhle is far better than what Romanov was when we traded him. Not a good comparison.

Xhekaj is also better than what you're giving him credit for and I don't even think you've been paying much attention to him. He's played 17 AHL games lol how much did you think he played when you said a large portion? He's one of the top enforcers in the league with good skating and a good shot. Rare skillset. Still very young with lots of room to grow. He definitely has value.

Romanov played the exact same minutes as Guhle does now. 22 year old 2nd pairing dmen. I agree guhle is better than Romanov was.

But Romanov is about 3 tiers above Xhekaj.

Xhekaj is a great enforcer. Like Ryan Reaves or Deslauriers. How much value does that get them?

Xhekaj plays some of the most sheltered minutes in hockey (about 18% of his minutes come against elite competition), which makes the lives of Matheson and Guhle much harder (they have to play 40+% of their ice time against elite competition).

He can't kill penalties.
He doesn't provide value on the PP
And he isn't particularly good 5v5.

Adding Xhekaj adds as many problems as it solves, such as:

Which of the devils LD do you now give ridiculous minutes to in order to continue to shelter xhekaj, or do you put xhekaj into a role he is not built for?
Do you play Luke Hughes against the ridiculously tough matchups? That may work for MTL putting Guhle through the ringer but NJD isn't trying to make lives a living hell for their guys as they develop. Do you play siegenthaler in that role coming off a down year? Does that then mean you split up siegs and Hamilton?

What do you do about the penalty kill? Do you keep brendan smith as a 4LW and on PK? Do you trust a guy who couldn't crack MTLs 74% PK over the last 2 years? do you play dougie hamilton on the PK again like he did in carolina (with 1 of Dougie, Nemec, or Marino on their off side)?

For a guy who's creating that many question marks, we should be discusssing a 3rd, MAYBE a 2nd round pick. Certainly not a top 10 pick.

I'd be happy to put Xhekaj into a 7D/enforcer role, replacing Brendan Smith and/or Kevin Bahl if we bring in a quality 2LD.

I would be terrified trying to play Arber Xhekaj for 18-19 minutes a night against tough competition and on the PK (the Kevin Bahl role currently)

 

[TBF1972]

View attachment 863746
Can't believe we're having conversations about 10th overall for this guy.

-Not good offensively
-Not good defensively
-Can't contribute on either special teams unit (couldn't crack the 29th ranked PK in hockey)
-Doesn't play hard minutes
-Can't stay out of the box

Acquiring Arber Xhekaj would result in either Luke Hughes or Dougie Hamilton (on his off side) PK time.

No it wouldn't.

He wouldn't make the NHL roster.

 

[TBF1972]

Now that Allen is in NJ, I don't think there's anything I want from the Habs.

there is. but slafkovski is not available for good reasons.

 

[viceroy]

I would offer Jets pick, AVs 2nd, and all rest of our picks for 10?

All of our picks? Mike Milbury, is that you?

Damn one will go off the ice other on like a tag team lol....Would like to get AX on d Devils he's getting sold short here he is a heavyweight that can play and is young he will only get better as a defenseman

Florian, the younger brother, is a Centre though.

sure. but it takes a rocket scientist to identify a sharks fan.

Whatevs, we're all just 3 sucky teams. None of us will probably make the playoffs next year as well. NJD, SJS and the Habs all have plenty of pain left to go through. We're all still trying to get better and was hoping to see in this thread plausible trade ideas that might get us all nearer the playoffs.

It's kinda sad seeing three bad teams in a d*ck measuring contest.

 

[NjdevilfanJim]

All of our picks? Mike Milbury, is that you?



Florian, the younger brother, is a Centre though.



Whatevs, we're all just 3 sucky teams. None of us will probably make the playoffs next year as well. NJD, SJS and the Habs all have plenty of pain left to go through. We're all still trying to get better and was hoping to see in this thread plausible trade ideas that might get us all nearer the playoffs.

It's kinda sad seeing three bad teams in a d*ck measuring contest.

Thought he was left wing....Ty.....

 

[Wayfarer13]

Why?

Hughes will be active and the haters will be insulted.

 

[jfhabs]

No need to speculate on the Devil's pick until the lottery anyway... Don't want to trade Xhekaj

 

[Oneiro]

there is. but slafkovski is not available for good reasons.

I don't want Slaf. I'm sure he'll be a good player and I'm not saying he's dumb but he's another tools-oriented guy finding his way. People are too in love with the package and forgetting the context of the team in NJ. Learning time is over for everyone but Luke and Nemec. If you're adding any kids, they have to end up doing what Stankoven and Johnston have done in DAL.

We need smart, experienced guys who can play with an edge but still have some speed. In UFA, maybe Stephenson makes sense.

I should mention that I like Suzuki a lot as well, but we again, need more size + those kind of brains. It's sort of a shame that Suzuki's prime will be wasted.

 

[MartyOwns]

sooo basically habs fans are saying they wouldn't trade Xhekaj for #10 OA straight up?
i'm kidding of course. what a gong show of a thread

 

[dgibb10]

I don't want Slaf. I'm sure he'll be a good player and I'm not saying he's dumb but he's another tools-oriented guy finding his way. People are too in love with the package and forgetting the context of the team in NJ. Learning time is over for everyone but Luke and Nemec. If you're adding any kids, they have to end up doing what Stankoven and Johnston have done in DAL.

We need smart, experienced guys who can play with an edge but still have some speed. In UFA, maybe Stephenson makes sense.

I should mention that I like Suzuki a lot as well, but we again, need more size + those kind of brains. It's sort of a shame that Suzuki's prime will be wasted.

I'd be interested in a few of their guys.

Guhle would be expensive, and someone older may be preferred but he's NHL ready right now and able to help.
At a discount price I'd be willing to take Anderson 50% retained to play the miles wood role.
I'd take either Dvorak 50% or Evans to play 4C
I'd take newhook for his speed as a 3C/Middle 6 winger.

 

[Kosseca]

Xhekaj is a case of you'll have to grossly overpay to get him out of his team. Not become he's worth it, because his team see more much more value in seeing how he develop then trading him at is current market value. I dont think Xhekaj is being shop by MTL, so it is not up to MTL to come up with a fair deal, it is up to any team that wants him to blow Kent's socks off.

That said, Habs fan trying to use him in a trade, the above isn't true and then you have to expect a fair market value return.

 

[TBF1972]

I don't want Slaf. I'm sure he'll be a good player and I'm not saying he's dumb but he's another tools-oriented guy finding his way. People are too in love with the package and forgetting the context of the team in NJ. Learning time is over for everyone but Luke and Nemec. If you're adding any kids, they have to end up doing what Stankoven and Johnston have done in DAL.

We need smart, experienced guys who can play with an edge but still have some speed. In UFA, maybe Stephenson makes sense.

I should mention that I like Suzuki a lot as well, but we again, need more size + those kind of brains. It's sort of a shame that Suzuki's prime will be wasted.

slaf has a lot of size and skill. so he would be a nice fit. less of a need after getting timo. but still very useful player. guhle would also fit a need.

suzuki and caufield i don't see the fit. too small and too big at the same time. stature and contract.

 

[bud12]

slaf has a lot of size and skill. so he would be a nice fit. less of a need after getting timo. but still very useful player. guhle would also fit a need.

suzuki and caufield i don't see the fit. too small and too big at the same time. stature and contract.

You know that Suzuki is 5'11" and 212lbs right?

 

[TBF1972]

You know that Suzuki is 5'11" and 212lbs right?

in his case it is mainly contract. you can't pay your 3c what suzuki is making and i prefer the hischier/hughes combo.

 

[NikolaTesla]

slaf has a lot of size and skill. so he would be a nice fit. less of a need after getting timo. but still very useful player. guhle would also fit a need.

suzuki and caufield i don't see the fit. too small and too big at the same time. stature and contract.

I don't get the Suzuki is too small narrative. Hes 5'11 and 211 lbs. He plays big too, in a sense that he's very solid on his skates and more often than not, the guy hitting him is the one falling down. He is deceptively strong. Oh and he's an ironman too. He hasn't missed a game in what? 350 games? Even when the whole team caught Covid at the same time he didn't get it lol.

 

[pth2]

sooo basically habs fans are saying they wouldn't trade Xhekaj for #10 OA straight up?
i'm kidding of course. what a gong show of a thread

Can you find a single person saying that outright ?

Or is it just a deliberately disingenuous misinterpretation of the thread ?

 

[HabsAddict]

It's exasperating to keep repeating the same thing...

X, Mailman, Hutson, Reinbacher, Guhle are not on trade. To get them you are going to overpay, or don't bother.

Feel free to make an offer for Struble, Harris, Barron or our vets.

Kapish?

(If you are a Habs fan, just quit trading them nonsense)

 

[TBF1972]

It's exasperating to keep repeating the same thing...

X, Mailman, Hutson, Reinbacher, Guhle are not on trade. To get them you are going to overpay, or don't bother.

Feel free to make an offer for Struble, Harris, Barron or our vets.

Kapish?

and if the habs want the devils pick (like op) they have to overpay even more.

no devils fan is asking for these tweeners you have no use for. turning the thread upside down doesn't help your cause.

kapish?

 

[HabsAddict]

Xhekaj is a case of you'll have to grossly overpay to get him out of his team. Not become he's worth it, because his team see more much more value in seeing how he develop then trading him at is current market value. I dont think Xhekaj is being shop by MTL, so it is not up to MTL to come up with a fair deal, it is up to any team that wants him to blow Kent's socks off.

Which ends every trade conversation right there.

Invariably a Habs fan will ask for WAY more then he's worth right now, or another team fan thinks he can get him for used pucks...and the spit fights start.