Speculation: Isaac Howard & Tampa's Cap Crunch
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Power Surge
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I do like Drysdale but again we have no cap space and can't add a roster player until the off-season.
I suppose we could package him along with someone else to free up space in the offseason if it makes it that far
Zwui21
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- Aug 31, 2019
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All this thing about Howard seems to come down to JBB not being willing to burn a year of his ELC and Howard wanting to do it.
I still feel like it's dumb, sign him and trade him on his ELC for a prospect that still has a 3 years ELC if that's the problem of burning a year.
But now we'll have to trade his unsigned rights. Wew
I still feel like it's dumb, sign him and trade him on his ELC for a prospect that still has a 3 years ELC if that's the problem of burning a year.
But now we'll have to trade his unsigned rights. Wew
Why didn't Tampa just sign him and burn the 1st year like every other team does with a promising NCAA player? The cap is irrelevant when it comes to ELC players.
Empoleon8771
Registered User
The McGroarty/Yager trade makes me wonder if the NYR 2025 1st in the 13-15 range for Howard would be a reasonable basis for a deal.
I think the prospects projected to go in that range are similar prospects to Howard, I personally really like Lakovic but guys like Carbonneau, Bear and Aitcheson are also solid as well. The Penguins have NHL minutes to give Howard immediately if that's something he's looking for.
I think the prospects projected to go in that range are similar prospects to Howard, I personally really like Lakovic but guys like Carbonneau, Bear and Aitcheson are also solid as well. The Penguins have NHL minutes to give Howard immediately if that's something he's looking for.
Reports were that was the plan once the season ended, sign him to an ATO and burn a year.
Hockeyville USA
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If BriseBois didn't have interest in giving Howard 3-4 games to end the regular season, he should have traded Howard's rights at the deadline. There was ZERO way Howard was going to willingly sign an ATO to end the regular season in the A after having an elite NCAA season.
If Howard doesn't want to spend any time in the A next year, then BriseBois has to trade him ASAP or somehow get a guarantee Howard signs in March/April 2026 after State is done, but I feel like the bridge is completely burned
If Howard doesn't want to spend any time in the A next year, then BriseBois has to trade him ASAP or somehow get a guarantee Howard signs in March/April 2026 after State is done, but I feel like the bridge is completely burned
Hockeyville USA
Registered User
Signing an ATO means you don't burn a year. Signing him to an ELC would have burned a year
I haven't seen it mentioned in the thread yet, but Howard just won the Hobey Baker Award:
Hockeyville USA
Registered User
They allegedly wanted to sign him to an ELC, didn't have the cap space to do so when State was eliminated, so then discussions began between both parties, they hit an impasse, now we're here.
KingsOfCali25
Start up the Bandwagon!
Never in a thousand years. LA isn't moving any of Clarke, Byfield or Laferriere per the GM at the TDL.
Per Brisebois at the deadline we were going to sign Isaac Howard and last year we were going to keep stamkos
KingsOfCali25
Start up the Bandwagon!
And your point?
My point was the GM of the Kings literally coming out and saying that those three players are the future of the Kings core and won't be moved.
Zwui21
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Bolts social admins are beyond clueless and bad at their job.
Major fumble on this one, what a shitshow of a situation this whole Howard thing.
Pisses me off because I was so eager to see how Howard would do at the NHL level alongside our Fcore.
All this not to burn an ELC year? So stupid. Now we are gonna lose him/trade him.
JTBF81
Registered User
None of that is known, and since he's still a Tampa prospect, the social media guys celebrating his Hobey Baker is what any team would do, and it's far from indicative that they are bad at their job.
Howard simply isn't good enough to dictate to JBB how Tampa was going to do things with him. If he didn't realize or like how Tampa does things with thelr prospects, he could have always done what he did. Since no one but him, his camp, and JBB know why they weren't seeing eye to eye, who knows. In the end though, there's no fumble by JBB based on the info out there, and it's just as possible Howatd said he doesn't want to spend time in Syracuse next season.
No one is getting handed a roster spot because of what they did in college, so he stayed at MSU and will probably make more from. NiL than he'd get from an AHL deal. If he really felt he was that amazing, he could've taken whatever was offered for the rest of this season, helped Syracuse potentially win something while also impressing the coaches and management, then giving the team no choice but to give him a full roster spot with a great camp and preseason. He's not a blue chip, can't miss player, and he was never getting any guarantee of a roster spot or not having to play for the Crunch next year just because he doesn't like that scenario.
trick9
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It's not ridiculous value-wise but there's zero chance Capitals consider it either. Caps are already loaded with winger prospect and if anything they'd be closer to moving one for D prospect themselves, rather than moving their very good D prospect for another winger.
Korchinski is propably a good shout.
TLEH
Pronounced T-Lay
if he gets back to MSU I feel like his value is way down. Korchinski is on the table for me but only if it’s this week.
It's ridiculous value-wise. Hutson's D+1 was just in the same ballpark as Howard's D+3, he has 3 more years of team control, and he didn't come out and say he plans on playing NCAA until he hits UFA
Honour Over Glory
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Technically the Bolts could trade Atkinson and a pick to a team to just take him and if it’s a playoff team he wouldn’t be eligible to play if I can remember the rule but if it’s a non playoff team it doesn’t matter. It’d take the cap hit off (pro-rated etc).
Tampa might not like losing a veteran player for the playoffs though, depth matters and Cam knows the system, so just waiving him would be fine.
Zwui21
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Having just won the Hobey Baker, I'd say he's earned himself a chance to be tested on the main roster as soon as possible. How many Hobey Baker winners don't jump straight to the NHL but get sent to the AHL?
If I was Howard and saw both Leonard and Buium go straight to the show (not by joining desperate bottom feeders that need all the help they can get btw, but two playoff teams) and I wasn't, I'd be pissed as well.
Also, the AHL rite of passage has been in place because our prospect pool has been garbage (in term of top end talent) for the past 9 years. Obviously if you don't have blue chip prospects but just bottom 6 F and 3rd pair D, you can go that route.
This time is different, yet we decide to stick with this policy instead of being more pragmatic and act based on the possibility that Howard could make the jump to the NHL straight away.
Howard shouldn't be "handed" a roster spot period. But he should be handed the chance to show if he's worth a roster spot in the NHL, just like Leonard and Buium have.
What could possibly be the downside? I'd rather take a chance and "lose" an ELC year, than lose an asset with top line upside.
Scenario 1) You sign him, he's great and you gain a good player for the playoff run + the next two seasons with his ELC.
Scenario 2) You sign him, he's not impactful enough and decide whether to work with him during the summer or to trade him away (while signed to an ELC, being a more valuable asset on the market).
Scenario 3) You don't sign him, you make yourself a very bed publicity for all future NCAA free agents or picks, and then you either trade his unsigned rights away this summer for half his value (especially if he's already signed to commit to Michigan State) or you keep him to try and negociate again with him in April 2026 (with the result of likely losing him for nothing to UFA).
I sure as hell know what scenario I'd rather not go through, but it seems that JBB doesn't feel the same way.
We'll see, but to me how this thing is being handled and how it seems it will play out is just bad asset management.
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