I think MS covered all this a few pages back. Opening up capspace really shouldn't be a huge issue assuming they're open to buyouts, retention and moving some picks here and there. The issue will be a lack of assets(those picks needed to move contracts also come in handy acquiring players) to actually constructively build the team.
Copying
@MS here, and it builds on your comment as well, but I can see how we can clear space with this team. But it does sound like we would need to trade picks to do so (in the case of guys like Garland, Myers and Pearson) and these wouldn't be insignificant picks or have future dead cap space tied up in buyouts, or trade Boeser for perhaps a late pick. But the result is a team that has cap space, with an OK core, with basically no prospects in the system, in need of filling a ton of spaces with good to very good players, and having future dead cap space. Perhaps we could sign one or two good UFAs (e.g., defensemen) to expensive contracts where they probably wouldn't significantly outperform their cap hits, but even then, we are assuming that these type of defensemen will even be available and willing to sign in Vancouver, and I think this assumption is very questionable. If not, we are looking at expending significant draft capital to acquire these players (if they are even available) - and this would be from our draft stock which would likely already be depleted in order to ship out a bad contract or two.
So, to me, the option isn't viable at this point as we are essentially going to need to do expend significant draft capital (both to move bad contracts and acquire good contracts), incur future dead cap space, and/or sign UFA's to contracts that will likely age poorly (and you can through Horvat in here), all in order to just go from a bad team to an average team? Like, the trade off is that we get to not be bad and can be average for a few years, but then we are going to be really terrible for several years because we expended a bunch of draft capital, signed UFAs to contracts that aged poorly and/or are carrying dead cap space from buyouts. It just doesn't seem like a great trade off.
I am fine with spending draft capital if we are going to be a competitive or top ten team, but in the above context it really doesn't make sense to me. But I also don't think Hughes, Miller (@8 by 7), Demko, Pettersson and perhaps Horvat @8 by 7) are some incredible core that can't be wasted or something.
As a note, I am talking about what I think we
should do, not what I think our ownership wants management to do, or what management wants to do.
