HF Habs: Out Of Town Thread: 2026 Play-off edition

[The Great Weal]

If Ottawa gets Robertson though....they become better.

I can't see why he would extend with the Sens

 

[CHfan1]

I think it sucks.

Sad to see small market Canadian teams not able to hang onto star players.

Players want to win. Tkachuk has played 8 seasons for the Senators and they have made the playoffs twice and in those two playoff seasons they won a total of 2 games. It’s similar to Larkin in Detroit. Unfortunately it, seemingly, has happened more in Canadian markets. I do think Americans wanting to leave for American teams is a factor but those Canadian teams being poorly managed and unable to win is more of a factor in my opinion.

 

[SpeedyPotato]

Caufield did. Don't acquire worthless losers like Tkachuk and you will be alright.

Or Quinn Hughes? I agree I shouldn’t generalize but we often hear that they’d rather play south of the border

 

[habinthepeg]

The cope in here is pretty pathetic.

Brady will be insulated on a great team. He shouldered too much responsibility on Ottawa - they didn't have elite scoring talent. Now he can play his game without needing to be one of the top scoring forwards.

Florida is now easily the class of the division and we probably will have to beat them in the first or second round to get back to any conference finals in the next two or three years. Yet Florida can play the same game that TB played against us, but put the puck in the net better and more efficiently.

This is bad news for us.

If we don't somehow acquire a marquee or elite center that isn't soft, at the very least, we will not win the cup during our window. There isn't really a debate here.

 

[salbutera]

If Ottawa gets Robertson though....they become better.

Robertson’s agent is apparently not budging from $13M+ price tag. That means Sens would need to offer $15M to entice him = 4 1st rounders as offer sheet compensation

I don’t see it happening, however, MacTavish grew up on the outskirts of Ottawa, I could see that deal happening w Ana.

 

[salbutera]

No why? How in the world RIGHT NOW that we are better than Buffalo? Or even TBay? What have we done to be?

It’s more about who Buf are about to lose (Tuch) and who TBay has lost (Raddysh)

 

[WatchfulElm]

Journalism, come on, this isn't important, it's hockey for Pete's sake. Who cares....

It's a business worth billions of dollars. It’s not because it’s an entertainment business that it doesn't deserve professional and ethical coverage.

 

[BigDaddyLurch]

The cope in here is pretty pathetic.

Brady will be insulated on a great team. He shouldered too much responsibility on Ottawa - they didn't have elite scoring talent. Now he can play his game without needing to be one of the top scoring forwards.

Florida is now easily the class of the division and we probably will have to beat them in the first or second round to get back to any conference finals in the next two or three years. Yet Florida can play the same game that TB played against us, but put the puck in the net better and more efficiently.

This is bad news for us.

If we don't somehow acquire a marquee or elite center that isn't soft, at the very least, we will not win the cup during our window. There isn't really a debate here.

...calm down, amigo...Florida will be Top 9 heavy with a pretty weak D and no goaltending unless Zito can pull a few more monkeys out of his arse with only 7 mill to spend...and in two, maybe three years, that team will be in Cap Hades with old, broken down players with NMCs and NO prospects or picks...our window is just opening and we have one of the best GMs/Presidents in the NHL and one of its Premier prospect pools...please, amigo, step away ffrom the ledge; we are gonna be fine...

 

[donghabs98]

Their core is really only Sanderson and Stutzle. They're 23 & 24, respectively and have 5 years left on their contract.

Pinto & Cozens are both 25 with 4 years left.

It depends who they take at #9, I guess. If they manage to get Smits, Bjorck or Verhoeff, they're a year away.

It's not great in terms of getting no NHLer back, but it's not bad if the plan is to retool.

2027, they could bring in a stud from the 2027 draft if they land top 10, and add Smits/Verhoeff to back end. It'll be much more talented team.

Sens must really either value picking top 10 or believe in their ability to flip the picks as not getting a roster player back or close to ready NHL prospect isnt ideal.

 

[donghabs98]

I do agree, I think NHL GMs are caving in too much these days. Brady had 2 years left, tell him to deal with it while the Sens work out a good deal or be more open to expanding his list. Same thing with Larkin. I think trade protections should loose if a player actively requests for a trade. Demanding a trade and then being selective on where you go is a double whammy, especially when the player has term left.

 

[Justin11]

I do agree, I think NHL GMs are caving in too much these days. Brady had 2 years left, tell him to deal with it while the Sens work out a good deal or be more open to expanding his list. Same thing with Larkin. I think trade protections should loose if a player actively requests for a trade. Demanding a trade and then being selective on where you go is a double whammy, especially when the player has term left.

Agreed, however in this particular situation, it sounds like Brady is toxic and management wanted to get rid of him much sooner than later.

 

[ExpatHabs]

Agreed, however in this particular situation, it sounds like Brady is toxic and management wanted to get rid of him much sooner than later.

That's the excuse peddled now but I can't imagine a well run club would be afraid of its player so much that they rush to trade him. The Sens are not a well run club and they probably have trade targets in mind, which explains the hastily made trade for a soft return.

 

[Justin11]

That's the excuse peddled now but I can't imagine a well run club would be afraid of its player so much that they rush to trade him. The Sens are not a well run club and they probably have trade targets in mind, which explains the hastily made trade for a soft return.

There is no doubt that they have a trade target that will “somewhat” replace Brady’s production. This is definitely not a reconstruction move.

 

[ExpatHabs]

I do agree, I think NHL GMs are caving in too much these days. Brady had 2 years left, tell him to deal with it while the Sens work out a good deal or be more open to expanding his list. Same thing with Larkin. I think trade protections should loose if a player actively requests for a trade. Demanding a trade and then being selective on where you go is a double whammy, especially when the player has term left.

In Europe, some signing bonuses are structured as loyalty payments over the course of the contract.

A formal transfer request explicitly relinquishes claims to future payments... but many players still refuse to send written requests and instead have their agents push for a transfer through the media, this gives the player plausible deniability and a point of leverage for when the divorce is due to happen while they're still technically owed the remaining payments.

The point is NMCs/NTCs are a serious point of leverage and many players with good representation will not easily relinquish their influence over their own career. A request for a trade is not the same as forcing a trade, one requires the consent of his team the other does not (and afaik cannot happen in the NHL).

No player can force a trade so I imagine a player with a full NTC/NMC had specifically this scenario in mind when he signs his contract: control over his career for the duration of the contract. It's a valuable clause and GMs should be aware of the downside risks. OTT could've kept Brady until his contract expired and if Brady dogged it during these two remaining seasons he would've only harmed his one prime in his one career and his one chance at a UFA payday... OTT preferred to take the easier, more constructive road -- the damage was already done by years of mismanagement and poor ownership, being a joke club with little authority is just one of the later consequences.

The lesson I take from it is: don't appear to waste the careers of star players because it'll bite your team's ass for years to come.

 

[ExpatHabs]

There is no doubt that they have a trade target that will “somewhat” replace Brady’s production. This is definitely not a reconstruction move.

Hughes' definition of rebuild helped me understand what GMs mean to accomplish when they sell veterans.

First off, veteran and reliable NHLers are rare and ever more rare given the shallow talent pool in the NHL these days. We have a LOT of bums on NHL salaries -- guys who really do not move the needle at all. The league if full of them. So when a team trades away a productive veteran, eg a Tyler Toffoli, they do it knowing the odds of replacing him with another affordable contract on the UFA market are practically non-existant.

So why do they do it? Other than the obvious 'tank' (weakening the roster to lose more and get a better draft pick), according to Hughes they do it to reconstitute a roster to be able to acquire players who play the style that fits them better... could be to pick up draft picks and acquire those prospective players through the draft or through trade/FA. IMO it can be viewed as re-branding more than re-building because it is rare that the whole roster is turned over.

All that to say OTT doesn't need to rebrand/rebuild right now so simple reasoning dictates they will make acquisition moves. I'm curious if the links to Mason McTavish bear fruit.

 

[ExpatHabs]

It’s more about who Buf are about to lose (Tuch) and who TBay has lost (Raddysh)

If TBL picks up John Carlson they will have adequately replaced Raddysh in the short-term. BUF losing Tuch could be 'absorbed' by young BUFs growth and experience but they still need more and better centremen.

We need significant roster improvements to keep up and ahead. Good luck to Hughes.