Salary Cap: The Endless Speculation Edition

[Riptide]

How would people feel about a JJ-Kovalchuk swap?

And why would we do this?

 

[Dennis Reynolds]

And why would we do this?

Give him 1:15 of ESTOI per game and leave him out there for the entirety of every power play so that there's someone who can do something from the left side?

There's only like.. 10 percent of me that would do it. But it's fun to think about.

 

[Randy Butternubs]

Who is the fastest?

Granlund, I think. But I've been a bit out of touch with non-Pens players the last few seasons.

 

[molon labe]

How would people feel about a JJ-Kovalchuk swap?

Net-even impact to this Pens team? Sid loses a friend -> Geno gains a friend.

JJ's bad hockey is replaced by Kovy's bad contract - where he performs like a slightly better AHL call-up for 7x the price. Both are overly criticized...but both equally deserving of criticism. One is good on the PP - one is good on the PK.

----

The Russian I've wanted here for a while now is Radulov. Can't stress that enough so I try not to bring him up outside of Summer conversations. But if Dallas were ever struggling/willing to play ball we should be all over that - like yesteryear.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Net-even impact to this Pens team? Sid loses a friend -> Geno gains a friend.

JJ's bad hockey is replaced by Kovy's bad contract - where he performs like a slightly better AHL call-up for 7x the price. Both are overly criticized...but both equally deserving of criticism. One is good on the PP - one is good on the PK.

Johnson is 100% a better player in his role than Kovalchuk is in his role. Johnson is 100% not worth criticism this year if he's being overly criticized.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

Reup McCann before his price gets too high. Trade JJ(package ZAR) and give him that money....4.5 mil a year.

Or we wait it out til end of year and take that risk. But all signs are pointing towards him continuing to improve.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Jared McCann is exceeding expectations


Btw I can see Bjugstad but why would we give up on AG this quick? It took All of HBK half the year before they started playing better individually and as a line....becoming the x Factor in our first cup after the dark years of Bylsma.

AG will be fine. And it doesn't hurt to wait it out a few months anyway if he doesn't fit here. We need his shot...unless we are getting Mike Hoffman instead then just keep him.

Wr have others to trade to improve the team. Bjugstad for starters. ZAR can be added as a sweetener. To the Wild only tho.

And if they need to choose between Kahun/Simon....im taking Kahun. He can finish. This is when id take advantage of moving Simon for a solid rental, even tho I know it won't be a popular idea. But we cant keep all of these guys currently on the team. While also having many more not far off from joining..

Need to make the right moves. I dont see losing Simon/ZAR coming back to hurt us....where they end up 30+ goal scorers. But do see that in McCann. And even Kahun if he gets more PT. Way better hands than Simon

 

[WayneSid9987]

Not much on Friedman's 31 today.
Said TOR may be in search of a back up. Mentions Jarry/CDS with Comrie, etc.

Said teams have inquired about Donato from MIN but mentions they(Billy) are gonna be patient with him. Friedman says a case of other GM's trying to poach a potential stud from the new regime while it was the old regime that acquired him.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

Johnson is 100% a better player in his role than Kovalchuk is in his role. Johnson is 100% not worth criticism this year if he's being overly criticized.

Id rather give Our top AHL player Stefan Noesen a contract than bring in Kovalchuk.

 

[molon labe]

Johnson is 100% a better player in his role than Kovalchuk is in his role. Johnson is 100% not worth criticism this year if he's being overly criticized.

Not sure what you mean by the second part. He still deserves criticism - there hasn't been one game in a Pens uniform where he hasn't had his back to the play or made poor defensive decisions....they just haven't all led to goals. He is rarely 'overly' criticized this year though - when people try to crucify him after Pens' losses and such. I'm certainly okay with his play so far - albeit I'd still trade him in a heartbeat. My biggest criticism is how Pillsbury-soft the guy is for his size. Bjugstad levels of soft but with the occasional pointless hit in the middle of the ice.

As for being "100%" better...idk - that's obviously subjective. They're both overpaid for what they bring - one is just in a different tier of 'overpaid'. The headlines and jersey sales for Kovy may outweigh that in the business aspect though (surely nobody is buying JJ jerseys). Would Kovy produce more on a Pens' power play than JJ can prevent on a Pens' PK? Who knows..

 

[molon labe]

Reup McCann before his price gets too high. Trade JJ(package ZAR) and give him that money....4.5 mil a year.

Or we wait it out til end of year and take that risk. But all signs are pointing towards him continuing to improve.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Jared McCann is exceeding expectations


Btw I can see Bjugstad but why would we give up on AG this quick? It took All of HBK half the year before they started playing better individually and as a line....becoming the x Factor in our first cup after the dark years of Bylsma.

AG will be fine. And it doesn't hurt to wait it out a few months anyway if he doesn't fit here. We need his shot...unless we are getting Mike Hoffman instead then just keep him.

Wr have others to trade to improve the team. Bjugstad for starters. ZAR can be added as a sweetener. To the Wild only tho.

And if they need to choose between Kahun/Simon....im taking Kahun. He can finish. This is when id take advantage of moving Simon for a solid rental, even tho I know it won't be a popular idea. But we cant keep all of these guys currently on the team. While also having many more not far off from joining..

Need to make the right moves. I dont see losing Simon/ZAR coming back to hurt us....where they end up 30+ goal scorers. But do see that in McCann. And even Kahun if he gets more PT. Way better hands than Simon

Trading AG isn't about giving up on him.

He is purely a rental on this team - so keeping him (Schultz too, for that matter) means you have faith that what he will bring come playoffs will certainly outweigh a piece or pieces you can bring in a trade for him.

 

[Louis Hensler]

Trading AG isn't about giving up on him.

He is purely a rental on this team - so keeping him (Schultz too, for that matter) means you have faith that what he will bring come playoffs will certainly outweigh a piece or pieces you can bring in a trade for him.

Speaking of Schultz, is it just a coincidence that he's on ice for so many goals against?

 

[EightyOne]

Speaking of Schultz, is it just a coincidence that he's on ice for so many goals against?

Yes.

 

[molon labe]

Speaking of Schultz, is it just a coincidence that he's on ice for so many goals against?

Yes.

...well he has been....not good - to say the least. It's been up and down though so I'm not ready to give up on him. He'll go from an iffy set of shifts - to a fantastic slide play or get a stick on a puck that you think is going to be on net. His goal the other night was also a great show of patience and offensive touch (though it was put on a T).

With regards to his contract....I'm just not sure how much I'm willing to pay him. Pettersson is nearly on his level already and Marino isn't THAT far behind. They're both good at moving the puck - Marino is about equal skating with the puck - and are going to make combined what he makes / will make.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

Trading AG isn't about giving up on him.

He is purely a rental on this team - so keeping him (Schultz too, for that matter) means you have faith that what he will bring come playoffs will certainly outweigh a piece or pieces you can bring in a trade for him.

Both are tricky situations. But we know more with Schultz and def shouldn't give him 7+ mil. AG is 25 years old and already making 4.9...i could only see him asking for 6mil for few year extension(only 1.1 mil raise, barely impacting us) anyway if he does workout here. Or he'd be going to his 4th team before turning 26. I can see him staying for 2-3 years while trying to win a cup and then cash in if all goes well. Hes not putting up the reg season numbers right now that would land him that longterm contract. So We cant assume hes strictly a rental yet either.

We could have a completely diff view on him come Jan/Feb. With Schultz, we should move since we also have Bjugstad and more cap to replace him in a separate trade.

1. We have the cap to go for it this year...but we need to get healthy and stay that way at some point.

2. Without that impacting on who we can re-sign in the off-season. And..

3. We have the luxury to decide who to keep and whos worth taking the risk on
To re-sign because of the prospects in our system finally. By then they will know if McCann/Kahun are top priorities and ZAR/Simon are the Expendables. Hopefully.

We didn't have all of these things previous years. Just hope its handled right. For example...what if we added Evander Kane instead of Brassard. And against Caps we have Kane on line 1 or 2 while also having Ian Cole preventing some of those odd man rushes that killed us(start and the end of each period).

They got hung up on finding that 3C. Yeah Bones made a huge impact(could have just signed him but hindsight) but would have been nice if we went that other route. I can see JR not obsessing about the 3C model as much as before. So more hopeful in them adding the best option available. Best options would be adding rentals at both forward and D. Getting better players in return for this season. We can decide if we want to make room for them in offseason or just move on and go with our own

 

[ronduguayshair]

How would people feel about a JJ-Kovalchuk swap?

I would ask why we are assembling hockey cards not a hockey team.

 

[chethejet]

Schultz is a commodity that brings demand into the equation. RH shot and PP guy and is still young enough to sign a 5 year deal. But Pens have to consider his real worth and extending him with Marino and potentially another FA as well. Galchenyuk was seen as a player who could mature and gain traction with the Pens. He may not and if not he is gone and Pens go another route. All in all, pens have flexibility to sign or walk after this year if not earlier.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

If Schultz struggles, he'll still get offers of $6 million+ this summer for half a decade or more. Don't match that. If Schultz somehow pulls a 180 and goes back to the offensive threat he used to be and has an exceptional rest of the season, he'll get offers for more than Letang makes. Don't match that either.

He should walk either way, and I think he will, whether we want him to or not. We should try and get a big return for him at the deadline. Especially now that Sid's status is up in the air for the rest of the season, our odds of making the playoffs have been put on pretty shaky ground, and the odds of making a deep run are even worse.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

If Schultz struggles, he'll still get offers of $6 million+ this summer for half a decade or more. Don't match that. If Schultz somehow pulls a 180 and goes back to the offensive threat he used to be and has an exceptional rest of the season, he'll get offers for more than Letang makes. Don't match that either.

He should walk either way, and I think he will, whether we want him to or not. We should try and get a big return for him at the deadline. Especially now that Sid's status is up in the air for the rest of the season, our odds of making the playoffs have been put on pretty shaky ground, and the odds of making a deep run are even worse.

Personally don't want them to bring back Schultz unless he comes at a discount. I don't think he's a $6 million defenseman, and certainly not at any sort of long term.

I also don't buy the argument that we need him as insurance for when Letang goes down. If Letang goes down for a long stretch, I think Schultz being our best offensive defenseman is going to hurt anyways.

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

Personally don't want them to bring back Schultz unless he comes at a discount. I don't think he's a $6 million defenseman, and certainly not at any sort of long term.

I also don't buy the argument that we need him as insurance for when Letang goes down. If Letang goes down for a long stretch, I think Schultz being our best offensive defenseman is going to hurt anyways.

Exactly. He's a good 2nd pairing guy when we're healthy and he's playing at his best, but A. we're never healthy for very long and B. he's been playing well below his potential since the second of the back to back Cups, 2+ years.

I'd take the potential 1st rounder or 2nd + good prospect and run. He's gonna walk either way, imo, and we should let him. He's not gonna be the guy to make or break our chances--not with Sid's season about to be done with surgery (likely) and guys like Geno and Letang always on the edge of going down with injuries of their own at any moment.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

Exactly. He's a good 2nd pairing guy when we're healthy and he's playing at his best, but A. we're never healthy for very long and B. he's been playing well below his potential since the second of the back to back Cups, 2+ years.

I'd take the potential 1st rounder or 2nd + good prospect and run. He's gonna walk either way, imo, and we should let him. He's not gonna be the guy to make or break our chances--not with Sid's season about to be done with surgery (likely) and guys like Geno and Letang always on the edge of going down with injuries of their own at any moment.

To clarify, I'm not particularly in a hurry to move him. I don't think moving him in-season is a smart move because I don't think JR will be able to find an upgrade by the TDL for him. I just don't think he's someone we should be committing to long term after this season, not unless he is willing to take the kind of discount that makes it palatable to play him as your 4th or 5th defenseman instead of as a top 3 guy.

 

[KIRK]

Kahun may yet turn out to be a legit top six left wing. I think the bigger question at the moment is whether we still have a legit #2 center.

Yes, clearly that's the question to ask given that he only did enough for the Pens to earn 5 points in their last 3 games, but not 6.

lol.

Malkin+ for Krejci sound good?
Or Maybe we can trade Geno for Jordan Staal?

That plus of a 1st would be a tough pill to swallow.

But, no way you get Staal and his 5 points for Malkin. I mean, 5 points is all Malkin has to show for his last three games.

 

[KIRK]

Exactly. He's a good 2nd pairing guy when we're healthy and he's playing at his best, but A. we're never healthy for very long and B. he's been playing well below his potential since the second of the back to back Cups, 2+ years.

I'd take the potential 1st rounder or 2nd + good prospect and run. He's gonna walk either way, imo, and we should let him. He's not gonna be the guy to make or break our chances--not with Sid's season about to be done with surgery (likely) and guys like Geno and Letang always on the edge of going down with injuries of their own at any moment.

I get the sentiment, but the problem with that is you then have to flip the 1st as part of a deal to add back a defenseman.

Frankly, I'd rather just let Schultz ride it out.

Try to find a stud partner for Marino, make that your 2nd pairing, and make Pets-Schultz your third pairing for a cup run.

Add a few small tweaks up front, and a run isn't a pipe dream

(I feel so dirty having written that optimistic stuff)

 

[Big Friggin Dummy]

I get the sentiment, but the problem with that is you then have to flip the 1st as part of a deal to add back a defenseman.

Frankly, I'd rather just let Schultz ride it out.

Try to find a stud partner for Marino, make that your 2nd pairing, and make Pets-Schultz your third pairing for a cup run.

Add a few small tweaks up front, and a run isn't a pipe dream

(I feel so dirty having written that optimistic stuff)

Easier to flip the 1st as part of a package to land a stud LD or something than to let a valuable asset leave for nothing or try to trade said valuable asset for that LD, imo. Dumo-Letang, LD-Marino, Petts-Riikola

As far as the pipe dream stuff, it relies heavily on Sid's status. If he's gonna be battling a hernia all season or has to be shelved for a few months due to surgery, we're in deep shit.

Side note; what's Letang's deal? Do we know any specifics about his injury and/or when he'll be back? Last I read it was the vague "lower body, week-to-week" thing. I'm sure that won't end up being a nagging injury that bothers him until the off-season when he has to get it surgically repaired.

 

[KIRK]

Easier to flip the 1st as part of a package to land a stud LD or something than to let a valuable asset leave for nothing or try to trade said valuable asset for that LD, imo. Dumo-Letang, LD-Marino, Petts-Riikola

As far as the pipe dream stuff, it relies heavily on Sid's status. If he's gonna be battling a hernia all season or has to be shelved for a few months due to surgery, we're in deep ****.

Side note; what's Letang's deal? Do we know any specifics about his injury and/or when he'll be back? Last I read it was the vague "lower body, week-to-week" thing. I'm sure that won't end up being a nagging injury that bothers him until the off-season when he has to get it surgically repaired.

Riikola won't play over Johnson, but I like your optimism.

Letang? No clue. And truth be told, that's a big concern. You can miss one of them. Sid, Geno, Letang. But, two of them, with Horny also out and Galchenyuk and Bjugstad crapping the bed? Not a good spot.

 

[Flying Dego]

I get the sentiment, but the problem with that is you then have to flip the 1st as part of a deal to add back a defenseman.

Frankly, I'd rather just let Schultz ride it out.

Try to find a stud partner for Marino, make that your 2nd pairing, and make Pets-Schultz your third pairing for a cup run.

Add a few small tweaks up front, and a run isn't a pipe dream

(I feel so dirty having written that optimistic stuff)

I'd say that's most realistic with Schultz playing out the season here. It'd be awesome if we could find another PMD to pair with Marino as that would make our defense stellar.

I expect Bjug traded at some point for another NHLer to shuffle the forwards a bit.