Roster Building/Team Building/Future Trade/Drafting thread.

[Legion34]

Good call on the rehab! I almost forgot about that. He lived in Port Credit area. My friend texted me multiple times to let me know when he saw Kane at "Cousin's" grocery store. LOL

So he's familiar with the city and his dad - who hates flying - would probably love this location as an alternative to Buffalo.

Is that enough to sway Kane? I don't know. It's something though.

I think it would make some sense.

1.) better chance to win
2.) closest to dads home
3.) top line RW spot.
4.) Toronto has money to offer a 1 year deal.
5.) I thought he and Matthews were buddies? I don’t know that
6.) we are interested in Toews.

I don’t see a better spot for him really?
Which eastern team is a contender?

We are farther along than Detroit/boston/nyi/pitt/philly/buffalo.

Maybe jersey?

Seems like the most logical fit

 

[ULF_55]

I dunno, Ulf, he’s pretty greasy. Happy to take the body.
I’m torn abit because I always want draftees to flourish here, but he’s always the first lineup casualty.
If the Leafs had a RS defensively responsible centre, I’d staple Robertson to him.

Coaches just don't like him.

All the platitudes in the world are meaningless when they keep taking him out of the line-up.

He'll be (only/already) 24 when the next season starts.

Just wondering about defensively responsible centers, so looked at Selke voting this year. Suzuki got more Selke votes than Matthews. Draisaitl more than marner.

Full breakdown of the 2025 Selke Trophy voting.

A full breakdown of every player who received a vote for the 2025 Selke Trophy.

www.hockeyfeed.com

WTF:
Knies - Matthews - Robertson

Earn that fricken contract Matthews.

 

[Tony Romo]

Domi on the 1st line is objectively a lot better than Domi on the third line for a few reasons.

1) You can make the argument the best Matthews we've seen was the stretch he had Domi on his line.
2) Domi isn't Marner level of playmaker, but he's an above average Playmaker
3) It allows you to spread out your cap more on line 2 and 3.
4) It allows Matthews to get more OZ starts in the playoffs which there is a HUGE gap between him and other stars that are putting up big numbers.
5) We don't need 30m in forwards on 1 line. If Knies gets 8m. You could've had Knies (8m) - Matthews (13.4) - Marner (13m) on 1 line if we he accepted the deal.

Every big line in hockey basically has two good guys and one person that isn't in the same tier. Let Knies and Matthews be the good guys. Domi probably puts up 60+ points on Matthews line for an entire year.


unless you're getting someone good defensively. Adding Kane and keeping Domi probably gives us the worst set of defending RW in hockey with a stack of Kane - Nylander - Domi.

 

[rumman]

With the cap rising significantly, you truly underestimate the stupidity of GMs league wide.

No, I fully realize all GM’s will gladly overpay UFA’s but there’s a limit to their stupidity……..

 

[Ports]

Morgan Rielly is not a buyout candidate.

While you might be able to argue that he's not a $7.5m defenceman, pretty much every single team in the league would take him at a $4m cap hit. To "burden yourself" 4 years down the road, to save $4m and not have him, makes absolutely no sense.

Ultimately, if you want to fix "struggles in transition", you don't look to replace your best / only puckmover. You need to look to replace/upgrade your worst puckmovers... which are probably Tanev, Carlo and Benoit.

That being said, I'm not so sure the Leafs are all that intent on fixing the transition game as much as they are focused on trying to get bigger and stronger upfront; with a "back of mind" need to get a PP QB given the loss of Marner will mean no more 5-forward arrangement.

To me, that's where a guy like Burns might come in handy, although I can also see Rielly / OEL getting a huge confidence boost by being put into a position where they are actually able to quarterback the powerplay, which Marner has been doing for a while.

How many confidence boosts does Rielly need ? They’ve had him as a PP quarterback for most of his career and he’s just not good at it. Search for a better playing partner for him. Done that several times. Wishing Rielly to be something he’s not is like fools gold. It’s only going to be downhill from here. At some point they’re going to have to have the balls to stop putting him out in key playoff games / situations. His game 7’s the last two seasons should be the final straw.

 

[LeafChief]

A few different ideas here:

Domi - Matthews - Kane
Knies - Bennett - Nylander
Marchment - Tavares - Cowan
Jeannot - Laughton - Tanev

Knies - Matthews - Kane
Laughton - Bennett - Nylander
Marchand - Tavares - Domi
Jeannot - Toews - Raddysh

 

[Brown Dog]

So you want To go back to bringing back dinosaurs. Toews is even beyond the victory lap farewell tour season.

Tough to say. The way I see it, they have 3 options when it comes to adding impact players.

1. Well-known difference-makers in their prime (e.g. Bennett, Ekblad, Boeser)
2. Past-their-prime veterans and reclamation projects who could potentially contribute but who are on the decline--and may be totally cooked (e.g. Kane, Toews, Giroux, Benn)
3. Undiscovered gems and post-hype sleepers--guys who haven't been impact players but who are primed to take that step (e.g., ???)

The first group is the costliest but also brings the greatest level of certainty as to what you are getting on the ice--at least in the short-term. The long-term risk is greater (though that is likely a secondary concern for a team desperately clinging to its contention window).

The last group is the most appealing from a cost/impact perspective. But while the acquisition cost would be attractive, these guys are by far the riskiest targets when it comes to knowing what to expect from them in terms of production.

So I can see the appeal of Group 2. A little cheaper and with a track record that theoretically allows for some projectability. That said, I expect these guys to still be overpriced on July 1. And our track record of getting production from this cohort (thinking of Giordano, Spezza, Thornton, Marleau, Pacioretty) is mixed at best--at least in terms of getting impactful performance.

 

[Dreakmur]

Someone a few pages back mentioned now being the time to move off of players like Benoit and McMann. I couldn't agree more.

With the way we have been bleeding picks, you can use the two of them as an opportunity to replenish some of those picks (3rd-6th rounders likely) while replacing the players in free agency.

McMann is super streaky and was invisible in the playoffs. If you're not going to score, I'd prefer a player like Jeannot who is going to f*** shit up.

Benoit played great in the playoffs but they really need a puck mover back there and he's the logical person to replace.

Completely agree with McMann. Rather than replenishing picks, I would use him to target our potential 2C.

Colorado has gotten into a cap crunch, and have an abundance of centers. MacKinnon and Nelson at 1/2, which leaves one of Charlie Coyle, Ross Colton, or Jack Drury pushed to the wing in the bottom 6. McMann for Colton seems to make sense for them.

I’ve mentioned William Karlsson before, and if they need to shed some cap space while still trying to win, McMann could be attractive.

Benoit still has two years on great contract. We also need puck movement on the top pair more than the bottom pair. McCabe is the logical one to move. He consistently gets exposed in the playoffs.

 

[Brown Dog]

Really feels to me like it's time to move on from Rielly. He's on the decline and has been here for all the failures. Changing the DNA starts with moving on from him (and Marner).

 

[Brown Dog]

I heard people say the "changing the DNA" catchphrase is just a rebrand of past calls to develop "killer instinct."

I disagree. I think the call for "killer instinct" was management saying that the core needed to learn that through hard experience. "Changing the DNA" sounds more like management acknowledging that something has to change with the core personnel.

 

[robertmac43]

I like the Patty Kane shouts. Would add some points and dynamism to the wing with low risk and cap hits.

 

[ULF_55]

How many confidence boosts does Rielly need ? They’ve had him as a PP quarterback for most of his career and he’s just not good at it. Search for a better playing partner for him. Done that several times. Wishing Rielly to be something he’s not is like fools gold. It’s only going to be downhill from here. At some point they’re going to have to have the balls to stop putting him out in key playoff games / situations. His game 7’s the last two seasons should be the final straw.

I think with Rielly you just have to consider his contract value sunk cost.
Rielly is a valid NHL defender, who has always had his warts, which IMO, have been exacerbated by aging. Maybe just looking too hard at his game, but isn't the "looking for his partner" an indicator that something is up?

I don't see why he would ever consider waiving, unless he'd like to continue his career at "home" in Vancouver?

Coach without looking at his contract.

 

[rumman]

I think with Rielly you just have to consider his contract value sunk cost.
Rielly is a valid NHL defender, who has always had his warts, which IMO, have been exacerbated by aging. Maybe just looking too hard at his game, but isn't the "looking for his partner" an indicator that something is up?

I don't see why he would ever consider waiving, unless he'd like to continue his career at "home" in Vancouver?

Coach without looking at his contract.

At this point Riley is a 3rd pairing D with defensive liabilities, not a good combination imo……

 

[Stephen]

A few different ideas here:

Domi - Matthews - Kane
Knies - Bennett - Nylander
Marchment - Tavares - Cowan
Jeannot - Laughton - Tanev

Knies - Matthews - Kane
Laughton - Bennett - Nylander
Marchand - Tavares - Domi
Jeannot - Toews - Raddysh

That's the right direction I think.

 

[Tony Romo]

A few different ideas here:

Domi - Matthews - Kane
Knies - Bennett - Nylander
Marchment - Tavares - Cowan
Jeannot - Laughton - Tanev

Knies - Matthews - Kane
Laughton - Bennett - Nylander
Marchand - Tavares - Domi
Jeannot - Toews - Raddysh

I think I like the first one the best, just with Marchand (if possible) over Marchment

 

[hamzarocks]

My current mock forward lineup is:

Knies-Matthews-P. Kane
Laughton-Bennett-Nylander
Pospisil-Tavares-Eberle
Haula-Sissons-T. Raddysh
Holmberg

Kane 2M base salary+2M performance bonus
Raddysh 2Mx4
Bennett 8.5Mx8

Jarnkrok+Robertson+something minor for Eberle - I can also see a mutual contract termination for Jarnkrok after his bonus is paid out. He will be owed league minimum after July 1 and could make more money if he goes to UFA and signs a 1Mx1 somewhere.

Domi+ for Sissons - maybe Nashville thinks he can fill their 2C hole and they take it 1-for-1

Kampf for Haula

McMann for D. Raddysh

Benoit for Pospisil

Besides the domi deal I like the lineup a fair bit

Id keep domi. Believer in his game and think this reg season he was misusedand had a down year.

He'll bounce back next season and give you good playoff production like he did this year. Dude wants to be TML and took a fair/discounted deal.

 

[hamzarocks]

W

Not sure how you came up with Domi being better than Perry. If I had to pick one of them to play in a playoff series deciding game, I take Perry every single time, no questions asked!

Why? One rides on a team with 2 top 4 players ever in the playoffs and a top 5 d-man in the playoffs while Domi plays with leafs core 5 losers.

Both are complimentary guys, but domi is younger, faster and more skilled.

Put him on EDM and his stats jump high with a core of generational talent

 

[Ports]

I think with Rielly you just have to consider his contract value sunk cost.
Rielly is a valid NHL defender, who has always had his warts, which IMO, have been exacerbated by aging. Maybe just looking too hard at his game, but isn't the "looking for his partner" an indicator that something is up?

I don't see why he would ever consider waiving, unless he'd like to continue his career at "home" in Vancouver?

Coach without looking at his contract.

There’s a salary cap unfortunately. If a player is not wanted and won’t be given the minutes he thinks he deserves, he will waive. At this point his defensive miscues are too critical to overlook if this team seriously wants to compete for a cup.

 

[Tony Romo]

Also another thing that's annoying about Matthews being attached to Marner, Johnsson-Matthews-Kapanen was a good line as well

 

[Tony Romo]

It's happening gif!

 

[ULF_55]

There’s a salary cap unfortunately. If a player is not wanted and won’t be given the minutes he thinks he deserves, he will waive. At this point his defensive miscues are too critical to overlook if this team seriously wants to compete for a cup.

Morgan Rielly Buyout - NHL Contract Buyout, Salary cap impact | Puckpedia

Morgan Rielly buyout calculations. Find out the total cap impact of buying out a player any year of their current contract, including a detailed explanation of the buyout cap hit math involved.

www.puckpedia.com

While he is not being bought out, and it isn't likely he'll waive, playing him on 2nd. pairing is probably about the same Cap Usage as buying him out and signing a $4mm defender in free agency.

 

[the real Fox mulder]

Would signing Kane and Toews be a bad idea? I think our goal should be to preserve cap space for next year, rather than getting locked into expensive, long-term contracts.


The players I would target are: Toews, Kane, Marchand, and Tanev.

 

[ULF_55]

Would signing Kane and Toews be a bad idea? I think our goal should be to preserve cap space for next year, rather than getting locked into expensive, long-term contracts.


The players I would target are: Toews, Kane, Marchand, and Tanev.

Toews won't get more than a year deal, kind of like Hakanpaa.
Kane has been doing 1 year deals.

So yes, Toews and Kane wouldn't tie up Cap Space going forward.

 

[thusk]

Not sure how you came up with Domi being better than Perry. If I had to pick one of them to play in a playoff series deciding game, I take Perry every single time, no questions asked!

Perry last 111 playoff game ( since he left anaheim)

Perry goal/ game 0,23
0,45 pts/game

Domi last 53 game ( since he left MTL)
Domi goal by game 0,19
0,57pts/game

The value of Perry is he cost nothing in salary so quality/price is great but if i have to take a player between Perry right now or Domi at same salary, i taking Domi all day long and its not even close. The fact mxdavid and draisaitl help his production change absolutly nothing

 

[rumman]

Would signing Kane and Toews be a bad idea? I think our goal should be to preserve cap space for next year, rather than getting locked into expensive, long-term contracts.


The players I would target are: Toews, Kane, Marchand, and Tanev.

neither player will be expensive and in Toews case I highly doubt he gets a contract with term..........