Speculation: Roster Building Frenzy Part XX

[mas0764]

That would give us a top 20 center (Zib replacement in your 2nd point), two second line centers (your 1st and 4th points), and three line-driving wingers (Kakko, Laf, Panarin). That team would be more stacked than TB, which itself was only able to take the ice because of a once-in-a-lifetime set of circumstances that let them go several million dollars over the cap.

Point - Mika Replacement
Cirelli - the "better all around than Strome"
Gourde - the Chytil keeping developing

Panarin, Laf, Kakko - Kucherov, Stamkos, Killorn? Ish.

I think it kinda lines up well that way.

If my projections are off, I'm overshooting to be on the safe side. But they aren't far off. A team like Tampa is who you are going to have to be BETTER than.

The point that needs to be hammered home is that we aren't as close as we think we are. Panarin, Zibanejad, Kakko and Lafreniere does not mean "rebuild over." We are not deep enough or talented enough yet at forward, and not all these guys are going to stick or turn out as we want. We are good if we want to be a second round playoff exit or maybe a conference finals pest. We should not be looking at this pipeline, though, and thinking "Here is a team that should be a favorite to win Cups." Maybe if Kakko and Laf both turn into 90 point players, then we can revisit.

Again, I think we cut off the rebuild a year or so too early. Kreider should have been moved for assets to allow us to get a center, and we should have been able to monetize Buch for the assets to get a center instead of a grit winger. If we had done that, the rebuild would be over, we could have signed Blake Coleman or something as grit instead of Blais, and there would be no need to be discussing trading for Eichel.

 

[Levitate]

also "never seriously in" could be taken in different ways...like he said "yeah we made an offer we thought was fair but Buffalo didn't like it and didn't seem like there was a serious chance of a deal there"

 

[IDvsEGO]

Zibanejad's agent? Why would he be telling agents that?

Potentially to reassure Mika that we have cap space to offer 8m and keep the core together.

 

[Guyute]

This is a god damn soap opera

This is 100% not true lol

More like not seriously interested in Eichel at Buffalo's asking price

 

[NYR Viper]

 

[TheBloodyNine]

It's complete horseshit to say the Rangers haven't been in on Eichel since last year. You can differ about the degree of interest but Larry wouldn't have been writing all those articles back to back if that wasn't the case. He's flipping the coin and playing the other side now. It's what he does.

 

[JohnC]

Best drunk food ever.

Barely get that drunk to enjoy it anymore though.

I feel this. I don’t smoke pot anymore but it used to be all time great munchies.

 

[Thirty One]

Potentially to reassure Mika that we have cap space to offer 8m and keep the core together.

Yeah, that I get. Can't see any reason to tell other agents though.

 

[LokiDog]

Zibanejad's agent? Why would he be telling agents that?

Right. Telling agents? Why? Which agent is there a benefit in saying "We were never really interested in Eichel anyway" to? Clearly, the Rangers have kicked the tires at least as hard as almost any other team. What kind of tweet is this, Larry?

 

[TheBloodyNine]

Yeah, that I get. Can't see any reason to tell other agents though.

Exactly. What agents? Was he reassuring Patrick Nemeth's agent about Eichel? Makes no sense.

 

[duhmetreE]

wtf. Can these people wait until Fox signs.

ruining everything

 

[Edge]

If the Rangers are in on Eichel, it's going to be at or very close to their own terms.

I don't get the sense they've upped any offers.

So either Buffalo is coming closer to what's actually on the table, or a bunch of guys are desperately trying to draw attention to their "Brands"

 

[Clark Kellogg]

Professor Robert Langdon?

 

[LokiDog]

Ken Holland... give Darnell Nurse 9.25M after Makar and Heiskanen took sub 9M contracts. I know... less UFA years, but still... Nurse isn't on that planet. Don't drive up the cost of guys like Fox with this crap signing.

 

[Bacon Artemi Bravo]

Drury has a weekly call with all the agents to let them in on everything he’s working on. Makes total sense Larry.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Before anyone even mentions it.

he is a year away from UFA, has NOTHING in common with Fox.

It won't stop the hoards of "Fox is getting 12 million LMAO" posts but throwing it out there before I have read them all.

 

[Off Sides]

How could Drury say he was interested in Eichel to anyone (sans Buffalo's GM) without it being tampering?

 

[Greg02]

Exactly. What agents? Was he reassuring Patrick Nemeth's agent about Eichel? Makes no sense.

Drury doesn't want the Men in Black messing up the deal.

 

[NoQuitInNewMexico]

Exactly. What agents? Was he reassuring Patrick Nemeth's agent about Eichel? Makes no sense.

Guys on the Rangers who think they can get shipped to the worst team in the league might want reassurance. But part of a GM's job with the media/speculation/negotiation stuff is just lying

 

[Thirty One]

How could Drury say he was interested in Eichel to anyone (sans Buffalo's GM) without it being tampering?

Tampering isn't a thing anymore.

 

[haohmaru]

Nurse north of 9M? There goes the budget.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

How could Drury say he was interested in Eichel to anyone (sans Buffalo's GM) without it being tampering?

I think this only applies if/when players are mentioned publicly.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

It's complete horseshit to say the Rangers haven't been in on Eichel since last year. You can differ about the degree of interest but Larry wouldn't have been writing all those articles back to back if that wasn't the case. He's flipping the coin and playing the other side now. It's what he does.

I mean, he's not really. He is just reporting what Drury is telling people, it's not really an opinion piece.

 

[bobbop]

I like Dvorak more than a lot of posters here. I believe there’s another gear in his game that’ll elevate his production as well.

But like others have said, I’m not risking a 1st round pick in next years draft for him.

There’s going to be a first going back to Arizona in any Dvorak deal. They are rebuilding and a) they need the pick and b) they need the perception they won the trade. So far they have moved a lot of freight and gotten back firsts for Garland/OEL and Kuemper. They will move Kessel at the deadline to maximize return.

 

[duhmetreE]

.....( hey, what do these charts mean )?

Dvorak has better metrics in 'similar' situations