Proposal: Mtl / LA

[wetcoast]

LA's center depth
Kopitar
Byfield (LA has already stated that they intent to use him at center)
Danault
Lewis/Turcotte (who looks ready to play full time in the NHL)

no need for another 4th line Center at this time.

Came here to say this.

 

[Habssince89]

LA's center depth
Kopitar
Byfield (LA has already stated that they intent to use him at center)
Danault
Lewis/Turcotte (who looks ready to play full time in the NHL)

no need for another 4th line Center at this time.

That's fantastic depth. Kopitar is still very valuable, then you have the offensively gifted Byfield who has room to grow, and rounding it out his Danault, who is just about as ideal a 3C as a team could ask for. I don't know enough about Lewis/Turcotte to comment but that top3 is solid

 

[Rorschach]

I agree, but it's still a reasonable conversation to have. If LA badly needs a center, maybe the return is there for an immediate move.

The level of center we need, your team doesn't have.

 

[biturbo19]

we dont really need 3rd or 4th round picks so i rather just keep Evans

Yeah. I get the motivation of trying to "make room" for a young guy looking good in camp...but these aren't necessarily the sort of things you need to be in a huge rush to do. Looking good in camp doesn't always mean that guy is fully ready for the long grind of an entire NHL season.

And on the other end, more layers of depth > less depth. Inevitably, injuries will hit. Plus, Evans isn't a spectacular player, but he's at least a solid, reliable vet with some versatility and ability to take on some less cushy offensive minutes, eat PK duties, etc. I think that's a guy you'd want to keep around for a bit to help continue to insulate some younger players if you can.

And finally, i think Evans is probably the sort of player who is worth a little bit more at the deadline anyway. Where teams will actually pay a better draft pick/prospect for defensively reliable 3rd/4th line depth Centers who can kill penalties and aren't an utter black hole offensively. Where they like to stack that sort of depth as deeply as they can. Where they often have injuries and more "effective cap space" to work with in building that up.