This is far from how you fix this team; a myriad of overpaid contracts and mercenaries will only sink us.
Olofsson definitely still has value due to his scoring prowess.
Crouse is far from worth a 1st and Mitts to effectively get Mitt's production.
Crouse is signed for 4 more seasons (at only $4.3) and is better than Jeannot. I think Arizona considers him untradeable. His trade value is immense. Crouse/Cozens/Quinn would be an elite 2nd line (might take them another full season to get to that elite level) and Crouse is a 60+point player with those two. But with Crouse it's way more than just points.
Olofsson has some value at half-retention, not at $4.75 million.
Bjugstad/Graves/Hathaway/Hill/Mayfield/Mikkola. I could see a bidding war for Graves. 5x5 would be ideal, 6x6 more likely. Would settle for someone like Soucy as 3LHD, and admittedly that's a more likely COA.
But to get a 3rd pair stud locked up really protects us, just to stabilize the entire defense, and as insurance if Dahlin/Power are injured. Graves massively impacts our PK as well. Strong case can be made that Graves at 6x6 is a smart signing, and he would only be 33 at the end of the 6th season.
For everyone else above, we simply wouldn't overpay for any of them, how about that? 2 or 3 year deals for all the others listed. Mikkola wouldn't cost much, and the other four should be in the 2 to 3 million a year range. Bidding war for Mayfield? Maybe? 3x3 is ideal, is anybody going to offer Mayfield 4 million a year? You say no to that of course. Would be OK with Clifton instead of Mayfield. Or maybe you do have to make a trade for a 2RHD type.
And what's the alternative, roll out the same crew again? Signing UFAs mean you don't trade any of the precious kids, and you don't rush Kulich/Savoie to the NHL. You move on from Olofsson and Bryson who are sub-replacement players, Hill is a bettter goalie than Comrie and won't break the bank, he would be the #1 who would play for his next contract, on a 2-year deal. The defense *needs* to be fixed. Bjugstad and Hathaway are needs, a legit bottom-6 center with size who can with faceoffs and has a solid all-around game, and a wing who can play dirty and be an energy guy. I'm not seeing that those two will get offers that will be outrageous. This is the last offseason where there is still a serious cap crunch in the league. This is the offseason to make some smart UFA signings.
Hesitancy to sign Graves to a long-term deal at high salary...I get that, But he is worth 5 to 6 million a year.
