Speculation: Most beneficial for this team vs your preference: Run for a WC spot, or a high pick?

[salbutera]

They’re not. They miss pieces and still need to draft. They won’t make a run in the playoffs anyway. They need to think long term.

Successful teams draft well - did TBay become that dominant team because of Connolly, Namestnikov, Koekkoek or because of Kucherov (late 2nd round), Point (4th round), Cirelli (3rd round) along with their two generational picks in place (Hedman & Stamkos)?

Who did the Stars draft in top-10 for the team they have now?

Hutson may very well turn out to be the best of the 2022 draft cuvée… need to do more of that

 

[Sterling Archer]

The team definitely needs to learn how to win in pressure situations when games count. That to me is the difference between a teams rebuild being successful or not. Habs showing they can string along some wins and getting some confidence, but if they ever want to truly be a contender, they need to learn how to be winners. Drafting 5-10 OA won't help them with that, and the draftee is no guarantee of panning out.

I'll take the experience for a team that's gotten too used to losing.

 

[LaP]

I'll take this opportunity to reiterate that we should sell the the TDL for one last time.

 

[Habs7631]

I'll take this opportunity to reiterate that we should sell the the TDL for one last time.

Depends on the returns and where the team is. If we’re in the mix and the only things we’re getting back is 3rd rounds picks and mediocre C level prospects then no, we don’t need more of those. Can’t be preaching “in da mix” since pre-season just to sell in the middle of it. Management gotta walk the talk, told the players to be in it and if they are, HuGo have to hold their end of the deal and back them up. Not necessarily by buying, but at least don’t screw them over. Would send a bad message to the guys in the room. And playing meaningful games for our core players is more valuable than some mid picks that most likely won’t amount to anything, especially when we have a bunch of them already.

Now if a team gets desperate and we’re offered 1st rounds picks or prospects like say Nemec/Yager/Willander/Lekkerimaki/... then that’s a different story.

But if Guhle is out for an extended period of time, the choice will be made for us. This team will not stay in the hunt without Kaiden.

 

[DAChampion]

But if Guhle is out for an extended period of time, the choice will be made for us. This team will not stay in the hunt without Kaiden.

A team that can't withstand a single major injury was never in the hunt to begun with.

 

[Habs7631]

A team that can't withstand a single major injury was never in the hunt to begun with.

Other than contenders with deep lineups like the Panthers/Stars/Devils/Jets/Knights, what teams can withstand a major injury? Guhle is our #1 shutdown Dman playing though minutes against other teams best lines.. Take away that type of players to most bubble teams and they probably struggle as well unless some of their other players stand up or their management goes and get a replacement.

Health to core players is a major factor in hopes of a successful season for almost every team in the league.

 

[DAChampion]

Other than contenders with deep lineups like the Panthers/Stars/Devils/Jets/Knights, what teams can withstand a major injury? Guhle is our #1 shutdown Dman playing though minutes against other teams best lines.. Take away that type of players to most bubble teams and they probably struggle as well unless some of their other players stand up or their management goes and get a replacement.

Health to core players is a major factor in hopes of a successful season for almost every team in the league.

Remember those three years that Markov was injured but the Habs made the playoffs twice because of Hamrlik, etc?

And at the same time, all the other defensemen are healthy, all of the top six forwards are healthy, both goalies are healthy.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Remember those three years that Markov was injured but the Habs made the playoffs twice because of Hamrlik, etc?

That was a single season, Subban's rookie season, but your point still stands. The year before, Habs made the playoffs because of Markov's return, where he played 45 games and had like 34 pts. If Markov hadn't returned, they would've likely missed the Halak 2010 run. And in Subban's sophomore season, Habs crashed, fired Gauthier and we hired Bargainbin.

That's why I want a bonafide top pairing RD, no matter if Reinbacher becomes good. If Rein is good, then all the better, you move on from Carrier.

 

[Toene]

I'll take this opportunity to reiterate that we should sell the the TDL for one last time.

If there's a taker on Anderson, Gally, Dvorak, Armia, sure. But Evans should not be traded imo.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

If there's a taker on Anderson, Gally, Dvorak, Armia, sure. But Evans should not be traded imo.

Need to push hard to move Evans to NJ with Nemec coming the other way imo

 

[Toene]

Need to push hard to move Evans to NJ with Nemec coming the other way imo

We'd need to add big time.

 

[Kaiden Ghoul]

Would rather make the playoff or be in the hunt till the end

Next year they come back with the knife between their teeth with the addition of Demidov and hopefully one top 4 RD or a LD that can play RD

 

[expy]

Voted "Better for the team: Playoff race (but lost)" as it's then closest to "keep playing and competing, but fail to make the playoffs since the team just isn't good enough yet".

 

[The Real Timo]

playoffs. I am so done with this rebuild BS. There is zero reason to not keep team competitive while turning over "key pieces". The "high" pick isn't going to be top 5. It will be some mid or the road pick that will turn into another Jake Evans. Go for the playoffs! Spend money, Kenny! They are not yours anyway. Give your young guys some much needed help. And get rid of the dead weight on the team. That's why Kenny gets paid 5M per... not to sit on his hands but to make hard trades.

 

[Bottomshelf]

I think we will be a light seller at the deadline but let’s bet honest, we really don’t need a lot more mid round picks so ideally we would be trading of prospects that are developing well or 2nd or first rounders. Ideally we sell a bit remain in the mix the rest of the way and then at least have some positive momentum into next year. The last thing we need is a tank to the bottom, players will only take loosing for so long before they become used to it or want out. We have a great bunch of prospects but you only have so much roster space before you have to start chasing quality over quantity

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

Tank , the little run was nice and good for moral , time to blow it up and get a top 10 pick at least boys yup

 

[LaP]

A team that can't withstand a single major injury was never in the hunt to begun with.

I agree. The Avs had line half their lineup miss a good amount of games.

Miles Wood missed 34 games
Drouin missed 33 games
Nichushkin missed 31 games
Lenkonen missed 12 games
Josh Manson 12 games
Colton 7 games
Toews 4 games
Girard 3 games
Kylington played only 8 games

 

[Ozmodiar]

The more games they win, the easier it will be to pinpoint, then address, their needs.

If they tank, blame can be spread across coaching, RD, center depth, grit, goaltending, etc. more likely to get the “fix” wrong.

 

[Bottomshelf]

We'd need to add big time.

Agreed, like Beck or another positive trending prospect. I imagine the devils will want forwards as they have a very nice looking D corp and a few nice d prospects close.

 

[LaP]

The team definitely needs to learn how to win in pressure situations when games count. That to me is the difference between a teams rebuild being successful or not. Habs showing they can string along some wins and getting some confidence, but if they ever want to truly be a contender, they need to learn how to be winners. Drafting 5-10 OA won't help them with that, and the draftee is no guarantee of panning out.

I'll take the experience for a team that's gotten too used to losing.

The team is missing more than just experience. It's missing some big pieces. A top pairing RHD. Matheson is not a top pairing guy on a contending team. A solid 2nd line center ideally a 1B nearly as good as Suzuki. If Laine doesn't work it's also missing a big top 6 winger who is a legit one not a middle six Gallagher type. That's some big pieces to acquire. Needs lot of assets to get those in their prime. You don't get those with just Mailloux, Beck, Engstrom and Roy specially not if you don'T show them at the NHL level cause the lineup is full.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

We'd need to add big time.

I would add a 1st this year and Mailloux/Beck and any other pick needed

 

[DAChampion]

I asked DeepSeek to estimate the costs to acquire Simon Nemec and Elias Petersson. Can you find the mistakes?

Proposed Package for Elias Petersson.

• NHL-Ready Player: Kirby Dach (young, cost-controlled center with top-6 upside) or Cole Caufield (elite goal-scoring winger).
• Top Prospect: David Reinbacher (RHD, near NHL-ready) instead of Lane Hutson (higher injury risk due to size).
• Draft Picks:
  • 2024 1st-round pick (top-5 protected): Protects Montreal if they underperform.
  • 2025 conditional 1st-round pick: Becomes unprotected only if Pettersson plays 70+ games in 2024–25 or scores 80+ points.
• Conditional Mid-Round Pick: 2026 3rd-round pick upgrades to a 2nd if Pettersson plays 75% of games in two seasons.

Simon Nemec (D, New Jersey Devils)​

Context: Nemec, the 2022 2nd-overall pick, is a future top-pairing defenseman. The Devils value him highly but might entertain offers for a significant overpayment.
Minimal Package:

• 1st-Round Pick: A top-10 protected 2024 1st-round pick.
• Top Prospect: A forward prospect like Joshua Roy (NHL-ready) or Adam Engström (high-ceiling defenseman).
• Additional Pick: A 2025 2nd-round pick.

Rationale: Similar to the Seth Jones trade (1st + prospect), adjusted for Nemec’s youth and upside. New Jersey might push for an unprotected 1st or a higher-tier prospect, but this package balances value and necessity.

 

[Sterling Archer]

I asked DeepSeek to estimate the costs to acquire Simon Nemec and Elias Petersson. Can you find the mistakes?

Proposed Package for Elias Petersson.

• NHL-Ready Player: Kirby Dach (young, cost-controlled center with top-6 upside) or Cole Caufield (elite goal-scoring winger).
• Top Prospect: David Reinbacher (RHD, near NHL-ready) instead of Lane Hutson (higher injury risk due to size).
• Draft Picks:
  • 2024 1st-round pick (top-5 protected): Protects Montreal if they underperform.
  • 2025 conditional 1st-round pick: Becomes unprotected only if Pettersson plays 70+ games in 2024–25 or scores 80+ points.
• Conditional Mid-Round Pick: 2026 3rd-round pick upgrades to a 2nd if Pettersson plays 75% of games in two seasons.

Simon Nemec (D, New Jersey Devils)​

Context: Nemec, the 2022 2nd-overall pick, is a future top-pairing defenseman. The Devils value him highly but might entertain offers for a significant overpayment.
Minimal Package:

• 1st-Round Pick: A top-10 protected 2024 1st-round pick.
• Top Prospect: A forward prospect like Joshua Roy (NHL-ready) or Adam Engström (high-ceiling defenseman).
• Additional Pick: A 2025 2nd-round pick.

Rationale: Similar to the Seth Jones trade (1st + prospect), adjusted for Nemec’s youth and upside. New Jersey might push for an unprotected 1st or a higher-tier prospect, but this package balances value and necessity.

No thank you for EP.
Yes to Nemec.

 

[Habs7631]

I asked DeepSeek to estimate the costs to acquire Simon Nemec and Elias Petersson. Can you find the mistakes?

Proposed Package for Elias Petersson.

• NHL-Ready Player: Kirby Dach (young, cost-controlled center with top-6 upside) or Cole Caufield (elite goal-scoring winger).
• Top Prospect: David Reinbacher (RHD, near NHL-ready) instead of Lane Hutson (higher injury risk due to size).
• Draft Picks:
  • 2024 1st-round pick (top-5 protected): Protects Montreal if they underperform.
  • 2025 conditional 1st-round pick: Becomes unprotected only if Pettersson plays 70+ games in 2024–25 or scores 80+ points.
• Conditional Mid-Round Pick: 2026 3rd-round pick upgrades to a 2nd if Pettersson plays 75% of games in two seasons.

Simon Nemec (D, New Jersey Devils)​

Context: Nemec, the 2022 2nd-overall pick, is a future top-pairing defenseman. The Devils value him highly but might entertain offers for a significant overpayment.
Minimal Package:

• 1st-Round Pick: A top-10 protected 2024 1st-round pick.
• Top Prospect: A forward prospect like Joshua Roy (NHL-ready) or Adam Engström (high-ceiling defenseman).
• Additional Pick: A 2025 2nd-round pick.

Rationale: Similar to the Seth Jones trade (1st + prospect), adjusted for Nemec’s youth and upside. New Jersey might push for an unprotected 1st or a higher-tier prospect, but this package balances value and necessity.

The first obvious mistake is that none of Caufield, Hutson or Reinbacher would be part of a Pettersson trade.

Vancouver would never accept the conditions on that 2025 1st. And the conditions on that 3rd is like... why? Just give them one of our multiple 2nd this year or next, they’d probably want that too instead of waiting for a conditional one in 2 years.

Other mistake, neither Roy or Engstrom are “top prospects”.

Stupid AI still has a long way to go lol.

 

[HabsCode]

I asked DeepSeek to estimate the costs to acquire Simon Nemec and Elias Petersson. Can you find the mistakes?

Proposed Package for Elias Petersson.

• NHL-Ready Player: Kirby Dach (young, cost-controlled center with top-6 upside) or Cole Caufield (elite goal-scoring winger).
• Top Prospect: David Reinbacher (RHD, near NHL-ready) instead of Lane Hutson (higher injury risk due to size).
• Draft Picks:
  • 2024 1st-round pick (top-5 protected): Protects Montreal if they underperform.
  • 2025 conditional 1st-round pick: Becomes unprotected only if Pettersson plays 70+ games in 2024–25 or scores 80+ points.
• Conditional Mid-Round Pick: 2026 3rd-round pick upgrades to a 2nd if Pettersson plays 75% of games in two seasons.

Simon Nemec (D, New Jersey Devils)​

Context: Nemec, the 2022 2nd-overall pick, is a future top-pairing defenseman. The Devils value him highly but might entertain offers for a significant overpayment.
Minimal Package:

• 1st-Round Pick: A top-10 protected 2024 1st-round pick.
• Top Prospect: A forward prospect like Joshua Roy (NHL-ready) or Adam Engström (high-ceiling defenseman).
• Additional Pick: A 2025 2nd-round pick.

Rationale: Similar to the Seth Jones trade (1st + prospect), adjusted for Nemec’s youth and upside. New Jersey might push for an unprotected 1st or a higher-tier prospect, but this package balances value and necessity.

Draft pick 2024 for EP doesnt make sense since 2024 draft is already done.