Speculation: Roster Building Frenzy Part XX

[Kravtsov420]

Getting a bunch of tough guys got us high for about two weeks and we're already having the "too soft" convo again.

HF.

Got any of those,*scratches neck*, enforcers ?

 

[Block More Shots]

Question...to be honest, I haven't followed a guy like Christian Dvorak very closely. As I'm reading more about him, it seems like he could be traded for reasonably (compared to Eichel) and he could be a solid young 2nd line center who's good on faceoffs. Cost controlled with his contract. I also wonder if he has room to improve.

What's the general consensus on him? Worth it if we end up passing on Eichel?

 

[WojtekWolski86]

I guess its been a few pages since the Laf/Krav to center posts...

At this point I don't think any more big moves happen. Drury prolly feels Krav can replace Buch in the top 6. The Strome decision will get kicked down the road. If we suck he is a nice TDL chip, if we are in contention than we can trade him for a 3rd/4th for a team that wants to get an early negotiation.

Kreider/Laf Ziba Kaako
Panarin Strome Krav
Laf/Kreider Chytil Goodrow
Barron Rooney Blais/Reeves/Hunt

Lindgren Fox
Miller Trouba
Nemeth Lundkvist

Hajek/Tinordi

Igor
Headcase

 

[EdJovanovski]

If I were coach I'd roll with...

Lafreniere - Zibanejad - Kakko
Panarin - Kravtsov - Goodrow
Kreider - Chytil - Strome
Blais - Barron - Reaves

Lindgren - Fox
Miller - Trouba
Nemeth - Lundkvist

Shesterkin
Veteran backup, trade Georgiev for a 7th get him outta here

Goodrow could be that grinder type Panarin likes having on his line and could take some draws for Kravtsov as he adjusts to his rightful position of center.

 

[NYblades]

If I were coach I'd roll with...

Lafreniere - Zibanejad - Kakko
Panarin - Kravtsov - Goodrow
Kreider - Chytil - Strome
Blais - Barron - Reaves

Lindgren - Fox
Miller - Trouba
Nemeth - Lundkvist

Shesterkin
Veteran backup, trade Georgiev for a 7th get him outta here

Goodrow could be that grinder type Panarin likes having on his line and could take some draws for Kravtsov as he adjusts to his rightful position of center.

I don't think Gallant centers the Panarin line with Kratsov. It'll likely be Strome if he's not traded.

 

[EdJovanovski]

I don't think Gallant centers the Panarin line with Kratsov. It'll likely be Strome if he's not traded.

Perhaps it could be Panarin-Strome-Kravtsov and Kravtsov & Strome could sort of split positions as time goes on. IIRC people say Gallant is pretty open minded in regards to not having rigid positions. I think Strome already plays like a winger even though he's a center, and Kravtsov plays like a center even though he's a winger. Kravtsov always cheats to the center of the ice, if you didn't watch the face-off people may very well assume he was the center. He's also always the first man back on the backcheck, like 90% of the time he's the first forward, and about 55% of the time he's back before the second defenseman even is

 

[pld459666]

Would it be nice if our No 1 center could throw the dick-beaters sure.

Do I think its wise? Not at all.

Should he have totally skated away from tjat scrum against the Caps, absolutely not.

I do think that what Panarin did carries a ton or weight with the boys in the room. But was very dangerous for him personally.

I'm not worried about one or two guys not being overly physical in the rough stuff aspect, but its when the rest of the team follows the lead of the softer players that concerns me.

I think we are going to see a more aggressive style from this team and I think its going to change the opinion of some folks here about the overall level of compete this team has.

 

[Synergy27]

That was strength in action not toughness.

Toughness isn’t the opposite of softness to me. Zib is not a soft player. He’s not a particularly tough player either but he engages physically and plays hard.

 

[EdJovanovski]

Would it be nice if our No 1 center could throw the dick-beaters sure.

Do I think its wise? Not at all.

Should he have totally skated away from tjat scrum against the Caps, absolutely not.

I do think that what Panarin did carries a ton or weight with the boys in the room. But was very dangerous for him personally.

I'm not worried about one or two guys not being overly physical in the rough stuff aspect, but its when the rest of the team follows the lead of the softer players that concerns me.

I think we are going to see a more aggressive style from this team and I think its going to change the opinion of some folks here about the overall level of compete this team has.

It's not just that action during the scrum, it's a reflection of his mindset as a player. My biggest gripe with him isn't his lack of physical toughness, it's his lack of mental toughness. He's someone who just doesn't seem to live & breathe hockey like other elite players do. Lafreniere & Kakko have that Crosby type mindset. Zibanejad just seems so milquetoast and like he doesn't even care at times, he's always been extremely streaky even back to his Ottawa days. I remember watching him on a podcast where he said hockey wasn't even his favorite sport, that he wanted to quit and play soccer but his parents made him keep playing. Just the lackadaisical way he talks about hockey, the fact he doesn't come into camp in good shape, the lack of intensity; I find it baffling that so many people wanted him to be named captain. I'd almost rather TROUBA be captain and we all know how much of a fan I am of Trouba lol.

Panarin plays with WAY more heart than Zibanejad, despite being one of the smallest players in the entire league

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Lol Buch plays with this so called heart but has gone ghost mode when ever the games matter even the slightest bit.


Can we please stop this stupid convo. The buchettes just need to get over it. He’s gone, he isn’t coming back.

 

[Barnaby]

Just to confirm, Panarins wife is very attractive. I say this objectively cause she’s not my type.

I just figured it out, Shesty has a Sinestro head

She's got that plainish model face where they dress up and use make up really well. She reminds me a bit of a European Beth Stern.

 

[GoAwayPanarin]

Soft Zibanejad carried this team for an entire second half last year before the covid pause.

Buch had a 20 game stretch where he was great this year.

 

[EdJovanovski]

Lol Buch plays with this so called heart but has gone ghost mode when ever the games matter even the slightest bit.


Can we please stop this stupid convo. The buchettes just need to get over it. He’s gone, he isn’t coming back.

I will make fun of you when he signs with us as a UFA

 

[smoneil]

I had this crazy dream a few hours ago. I was watching TSN and Bob McKenzie said Alexis Lafrenière is an offer sheet candidate to watch. Two years down the road. The Rangers have run out of money and Lafrenière has become a top-line NHL player in the NHL. He wants to be paid like other top NHL players.

Not good.

This is one of the reasons I want the team to keep a close eye on the salary cap. Offer sheets are rare, but Montreal has shown themselves to be more than willing to use them. You can be certain that they have a countdown clock to the very second they can offer one to Laf.

 

[Barnaby]

Lol Buch plays with this so called heart but has gone ghost mode when ever the games matter even the slightest bit.


Can we please stop this stupid convo. The buchettes just need to get over it. He’s gone, he isn’t coming back.

The value coming back was underwhelming.

With that said, this last week I've read that he's "the grittiest Ranger," and "one of the top penalty killers in the league."

Buch has done a great job improving and I came to appreciate his style more as I initially wasn't a big fan, but let's keep things in perspective here. It's kinda like when Zucc was traded for all the right reasons and some people were having an absolute melt down. If there was any chance that Buch was a long term Ranger, it ended the day Kreider signed his massive extension.

 

[effen]

Ziba's physicality has always come and went but last year was a new level of it being practically nonexistent. Even after the COVID start, he plays very much like a guy who was either told explicitly or thinks explicitly that he's one hit away from [something]. I don't blame him, especially with the last big contract of his life coming up next year. Protect ya neck.

He can power through bodies just fine. It makes him a bit of a weird player stylistically.

 

[Barnaby]

Question...to be honest, I haven't followed a guy like Christian Dvorak very closely. As I'm reading more about him, it seems like he could be traded for reasonably (compared to Eichel) and he could be a solid young 2nd line center who's good on faceoffs. Cost controlled with his contract. I also wonder if he has room to improve.

What's the general consensus on him? Worth it if we end up passing on Eichel?

Probably not as AZ probably wants a significant overpay as he's young and their only legitimate center. Half the other teams in the league are also looking for a center. However, there's some people arguing strongly for him here while simultaneously trying to convince everyone that he's going for .50 on the dollar. They're likely to want a 1st and a significant prospect like Lundkvist or Schneider. Best lowest scenario would probably be 1st, Jones, and Barron... even then, I'm not sure that does it. Also, there's no guarantee he's better than Chytil going forward and I'm not a particularly big Chytil fan. Naturally people here argue strongly for him while also saying "maybe they'll take 2 2nds instead of the 1st" and maybe they want our spare parts.

 

[jay from jersey]

I guess its been a few pages since the Laf/Krav to center posts...

At this point I don't think any more big moves happen. Drury prolly feels Krav can replace Buch in the top 6. The Strome decision will get kicked down the road. If we suck he is a nice TDL chip, if we are in contention than we can trade him for a 3rd/4th for a team that wants to get an early negotiation.

Kreider/Laf Ziba Kaako
Panarin Strome Krav
Laf/Kreider Chytil Goodrow
Barron Rooney Blais/Reeves/Hunt

Lindgren Fox
Miller Trouba
Nemeth Lundkvist

Hajek/Tinordi

Igor
Headcase

They didn’t not trade for Blais to split time as a 4th line RW. They also didn’t sign Goodrow for 3.6 a year to play 4th line. Strome, like it or not is not in this teams long range planning. I expect at least 1 more trade before or after camp. Still too heavy at RW and Center beyond Zibby, for the foreseeable future is a mystery for the top 3 spots. Resigning Zibby to a new deal isn’t even a forgone conclusion yet, but imo it’s looking more and more like the likely scenario

getting adequate minutes for kakko, kravtsov, Goodrow, and Blais is very difficult with the way this team is currently constructed. Not to mention Barron and Gauthier.
Something is going to have to change in the near future. I love that there’s a lot of competition going into camp but things aren’t going to stay this way too long.

whether it’s a move for Eichel, an overpay for Larkin or Dvorak, something is coming

Our 4th line is going to be guys like Rooney, Reaves, Hunt, Richards, etc. if Barron doesn’t grab a top 9 spot out of camp he’s likely AHL bound

 

[bl02]

Lol Buch plays with this so called heart but has gone ghost mode when ever the games matter even the slightest bit.


Can we please stop this stupid convo. The buchettes just need to get over it. He’s gone, he isn’t coming back.

Or at least wait a month into the season and give Blais a chance to see if he can fit and help give us a legit forechecking 3rd/4th line?!

 

[bl02]

This is one of the reasons I want the team to keep a close eye on the salary cap. Offer sheets are rare, but Montreal has shown themselves to be more than willing to use them. You can be certain that they have a countdown clock to the very second they can offer one to Laf.

Hard to say. Right now they are literally right up against the Cap and not sure how vigilant MB is gonna be going forward saving money to make room for a big offer sheet $. I am sure he is under pressure to spend and compete right now.
Having said that I agree I would like to keep a close eye as well.

 

[WojtekWolski86]

They didn’t not trade for Blais to split time as a 4th line RW. They also didn’t sign Goodrow for 3.6 a year to play 4th line. Strome, like it or not is not in this teams long range planning. I expect at least 1 more trade before or after camp. Still too heavy at RW and Center beyond Zibby, for the foreseeable future is a mystery for the top 3 spots. Resigning Zibby to a new deal isn’t even a forgone conclusion yet, but imo it’s looking more and more like the likely scenario

getting adequate minutes for kakko, kravtsov, Goodrow, and Blais is very difficult with the way this team is currently constructed. Not to mention Barron and Gauthier.
Something is going to have to change in the near future. I love that there’s a lot of competition going into camp but things aren’t going to stay this way too long.

whether it’s a move for Eichel, an overpay for Larkin or Dvorak, something is coming

Goodrow isn't on the 4th line.

Blais isn't better than Laf, Kaako, Kreider, Bread, Krav, Goodrow. So yes Blais is on the 4th line and may even get scratched.

 

[effen]

I don't know why we make line combos, chemistry is wonky.

 

[smoneil]

Hard to say. Right now they are literally right up against the Cap and not sure how vigilant MB is gonna be going forward saving money to make room for a big offer sheet $. I am sure he is under pressure to spend and compete right now.
Having said that I agree I would like to keep a close eye as well.

Drouin and Chiarot will both be off their cap by then (~9 million). And while Montreal always wants to compete, I've seen them do dumber things in the name of bringing another French Canadian into the fold. If Laf breaks out as a star in the next two years? Montreal will 100% make the attempt.

 

[Fitzy]

Lol Buch plays with this so called heart but has gone ghost mode when ever the games matter even the slightest bit.


Can we please stop this stupid convo. The buchettes just need to get over it. He’s gone, he isn’t coming back.

It's an interesting point.

Since Buchnevich joined us right around the time the rebuild started out, we never really got a good look at his performance in playoffs or key moments.

 

[jay from jersey]

Goodrow isn't on the 4th line.

Blais isn't better than Laf, Kaako, Kreider, Bread, Krav, Goodrow. So yes Blais is on the 4th line and may even get scratched.

You, may think that, I may think that, but they don’t. Most likely why they didn’t take a different offer. They wanted Blais for a reason.it is most likely to take over the Fast/ Blackwell role with panarin. He’s going to get an opportunity there as a dirty work guy. He has pretty goods hands/ talent. He’s not just a 4th line grinder that hits, barring any long term injuries were still too heavy. Odds are with LaF, Panarin, Kreider on the left, Goodrow will be primarily a RW that’s helps at the faceoff dot. I don’t see him as a 3rd line C with chytil strome and Barron in the mix. Keep him in the role he’s fantastic at.
Again, with kakko, Kravtsov, Goodrow, and Blais plus Reaves and Gauthier. on the right, somethings gotta give soon

they are not taking all of those guys on the roster into the season the way it sits.