Trades and Free Agency 2021 | Trade Deadline 6 weeks away

[LeafSteel]

Derek Grant from anaheim? Obviously, not a sexy name like Eric Stall but could be a cheaper option.

Good at faceoffs, good defensively, big and gritty.

been wanting Derek Grant since last TDL....

 

[LeafChief]

I'm on the Eric Staal 50% train.

We can likely even convince him to stick around next year and be a big upgrade on Spezza's role. Wouldn't mine seeing Spezza stick around in a skills coach type of job with the Leafs after this season.

 

[Fogelhund]

Like the post, I highlighted Woods, Zacha and Stall as the best value for need propositions.
Miller, Buchnevich, Rakell and Forsberg are going to cost too much IMO.
I like Getzlaf as a UFA in the summer, but right now we would mostly be paying for name vs play.

Why would Woods, Zacha, Buchnevich even be available, barring massive overpayments?

Staal will very much be available though, so that's a decent 3C option, depending on what Dubas is looking for, and what Buffalo is asking.

 

[Cor]

I'm on the Eric Staal 50% train.

We can likely even convince him to stick around next year and be a big upgrade on Spezza's role. Wouldn't mine seeing Spezza stick around in a skills coach type of job with the Leafs after this season.

No reason why Spezza can't be on the 4RW again next season.

Staal would more replace Thornton next year.

 

[Fogelhund]

No reason why Spezza can't be on the 4RW again next season.

Staal would more replace Thornton next year.

I think that there is room for all three really...

Thorton if he can continue to play with Matthews and Marner.
Staal at 3C
Spezza at 4RW

 

[Cor]

If we can head into the playoffs with;

Thornton - Matthews - Marner
Kerfoot - Tavares - Nylander
Mikheyev - Staal - Hyman
Simmonds - Boyd/Engvall - Spezza

I'd be pretty happy. Even Barabanov has started looking better with more opportunity.

 

[Albus Dumbledore]

eric staal vs ryan getzlaf? hmmm

 

[SeaOfBlue]

If we can head into the playoffs with;

Thornton - Matthews - Marner
Kerfoot - Tavares - Nylander
Mikheyev - Staal - Hyman
Simmonds - Boyd/Engvall - Spezza

I'd be pretty happy. Even Barabanov has started looking better with more opportunity.

That's pretty solid, but you can have a bunch of guys in there for Staal. I would give up Engvall so we don't need to give up a 2nd though. We have Vesey who can fill a similar role (except play center, which is not a strength for Engvall anyways) and then we have Galchenyuk, Petan, Boyd, and Barabanov (although I think we trade him too) as depth.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

Staal or Getzlaf would be great additions if they want to keep Kerfoot on the wing.

Not sure about the advanced stats but it would be kinda neat to bring in Staal since he was a Leafs fan growing up.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

I think that there is room for all three really...

Thorton if he can continue to play with Matthews and Marner.
Staal at 3C
Spezza at 4RW

I think Joey Anderson has the inside track for the 4RW job next year. He needs waivers and I think the Leafs are rightfully high on him. He has the making of being a very effective piece, and he has been really good on the Marlies thus far.

If the Leafs lose Kerfoot to expansion and trade Engvall, which is what I think could end up happening:

Thornton (PP) - Matthews (PP) - Marner (PP/PK)
Hyman (PP/PK) - Tavares (PP) - Nylander (PP)
Robertson (PP) - 3C (PP/PK) - Mikheyev (PK)
Simmonds (PP) - Spezza (PP/PK) - Anderson (PP/PK)

Petan and Brooks for depth and competition. Malgin should compete with Robertson for that 3rd line job. Sign some more bargain bin UFA's like Vesey and Boyd for more competition and depth. Done.

 

[SprDaVE]

If we can head into the playoffs with;

Thornton - Matthews - Marner
Kerfoot - Tavares - Nylander
Mikheyev - Staal - Hyman
Simmonds - Boyd/Engvall - Spezza

I'd be pretty happy. Even Barabanov has started looking better with more opportunity.

Yeah I'm warming up to that idea quite a lot. Staal makes a lot of sense. Fits the veteran/experience check box. Fits being efficient and still producing. Fits the size and physical aspect of it as well. He can play up in the lineup. He can play down if needed. Not expensive either.

 

[TMLAM34]

To Toronto: Anthony Mantha + Tyler Bertuzzi (50% retention)
To Detroit: William Nylander + Travis Dermott + 1st Round draft pick

To Toronto: Nick Cousins
To Nashville: Pierre Engvall


Hyman - Matthews - Marner
Bertuzzi - Tavares - Mantha
Kerfoot - Thornton - Mikheyev
Cousins - Spezza - Simmonds

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Holl
Lehtonen - Bogosian

Andersen - Campbell


Next season, we replace Kerfoot in the lineup with Robertson which saves us about 2.6 million, we make a side deal with Seattle for them to pick Kerfoot over Holl.

From that 2.6 million, 1.75 would go into re-signing Hyman at a cap hit of 4 million per. The remaining would be used to re-sign Bertuzzi at a 4.5 million dollar cap hit.

Liljegren would replace Bogosian as our third pairing RH dman. Sandin and Lehtonen can rotate with one another or whoever steals that spot.

In net is where the biggest question mark is, I think it’s time to move on from Freddy. I’d sign Ullmark at a 3 x 3.5 contract.

 

[Critical13]

eric staal vs ryan getzlaf? hmmm

Won't Getzlaf be 4m with 50% retained?

That just feels unreasonable. He's better than Staal, but Staal would come in much lower.

Hyman - Matthews - Marner
Bertuzzi - Tavares - Mantha
Kerfoot - Thornton - Mikheyev
Cousins - Spezza - Simmonds

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Holl
Lehtonen - Bogosian

Andersen - Campbell

Joe Thornton is much more effective as a winger and probably doesn't want the workload of being a C anymore.

He's been so good on wing - why move him?

 

[TMLAM34]

Won't Getzlaf be 4m with 50% retained?

That just feels unreasonable. He's better than Staal, but Staal would come in much lower.



Joe Thornton is much more effective as a winger and probably doesn't want the workload of being a C anymore.

He's been so good on wing - why move him?

There’s a lot of pieces in that lineup that can be moved around. Hyman onto the third line LW with Kerfoot as the C and Mikheyev on the RW. Moves Thornton back up to the top line LW.

I just really like the idea of having a sniper like Matthews on the top line and Mantha on the second.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

To Toronto: Anthony Mantha + Tyler Bertuzzi (50% retention)
To Detroit: William Nylander + Travis Dermott + 1st Round draft pick

To Toronto: Nick Cousins
To Nashville: Pierre Engvall


Hyman - Matthews - Marner
Bertuzzi - Tavares - Mantha
Kerfoot - Thornton - Mikheyev
Cousins - Spezza - Simmonds

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Holl
Lehtonen - Bogosian

Andersen - Campbell


Next season, we replace Kerfoot in the lineup with Robertson which saves us about 2.6 million, we make a side deal with Seattle for them to pick Kerfoot over Holl.

From that 2.6 million, 1.75 would go into re-signing Hyman at a cap hit of 4 million per. The remaining would be used to re-sign Bertuzzi at a 4.5 million dollar cap hit.

Liljegren would replace Bogosian as our third pairing RH dman. Sandin and Lehtonen can rotate with one another or whoever steals that spot.

In net is where the biggest question mark is, I think it’s time to move on from Freddy. I’d sign Ullmark at a 3 x 3.5 contract.

The Leafs are in first place and are one of the best teams on offense. Why would they ever consider making that kind of large move up front at all, never mind in the middle of the season?

 

[BertCorbeau]

The Leafs are in first place and are one of the best teams on offense. Why would they ever consider making that kind of large move up front at all, never mind in the middle of the season?

Also if people are ragging on Nylander for his perceived lack of effort, what the heck are they going to think about Mantha? He was scratched this season and has been criticized for his low effort, lazy plays at times.

And that's outside the horrible value.

 

[Albus Dumbledore]

Won't Getzlaf be 4m with 50% retained?

That just feels unreasonable. He's better than Staal, but Staal would come in much lower.



Joe Thornton is much more effective as a winger and probably doesn't want the workload of being a C anymore.

He's been so good on wing - why move him?

Ur right. Hes in his final year of his deal. Didn't realize. Maybe he's someone we look at in the off season, if he's willing to sign cheap.

On the Staal train now lol

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Yeah I'm warming up to that idea quite a lot. Staal makes a lot of sense. Fits the veteran/experience check box. Fits being efficient and still producing. Fits the size and physical aspect of it as well. He can play up in the lineup. He can play down if needed. Not expensive either.

He makes sense for this year, but if we are looking for a guy to replace Kerfoot next year, Staal doesn't PK anymore. Kerfoot is a top 5 PKer in the league thus far (by the xGA/60 and many other metrics anyways) so that will be a huge loss we can't just ignore.

Since the supply for 3C's is a lot better than the supply for top 6 LW's, and it provides us a lot more flexibility, we should just look at the best deal we can get with Engvall and mid-tier prospects/picks. No need to break the bank for a rental 3C. Even just adding a Haula, Stepan, etc. would be more than fine for our 3C role, and we are not giving up a 2nd round pick for those guys.

 

[Critical13]

There’s a lot of pieces in that lineup that can be moved around. Hyman onto the third line LW with Kerfoot as the C and Mikheyev on the RW. Moves Thornton back up to the top line LW.

I just really like the idea of having a sniper like Matthews on the top line and Mantha on the second.

I think Mantha - Tavares - Nylander would be filthy. All three can score. Likely a pipe dream, though. Hyman being on the 3rd line would boost that line significantly, as well.

He makes sense for this year, but if we are looking for a guy to replace Kerfoot next year, Staal doesn't PK anymore. Kerfoot is a top 5 PKer in the league thus far (by the xGA/60 and many other metrics anyways) so that will be a huge loss we can't just ignore.

Since the supply for 3C's is a lot better than the supply for top 6 LW's, and it provides us a lot more flexibility, we should just look at the best deal we can get with Engvall and mid-tier prospects/picks. No need to break the bank for a rental 3C. Even just adding a Haula, Stepan, etc. would be more than fine for our 3C role, and we are not giving up a 2nd round pick for those guys.

I agree about the PK aspect and that is why I would love to bring in Granlund. I believe he is an excellent Pker as well.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Also if people are ragging on Nylander for his perceived lack of effort, what the heck are they going to think about Mantha? He was scratched this season and has been criticized for his low effort, lazy plays at times.

And that's outside the horrible value.

He is a big guy and drives the net. That's enough in people's eyes, even though Nylander is a much better player and Mantha is not overly physical in general.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Yeah I'm warming up to that idea quite a lot. Staal makes a lot of sense. Fits the veteran/experience check box. Fits being efficient and still producing. Fits the size and physical aspect of it as well. He can play up in the lineup. He can play down if needed. Not expensive either.

Exactly. A legit top 6 winger would be great but it doesn't provide the boost in the bottom six like a third line centre upgrade could do.

Besides of Thornton is doing the job beside Marner and Matthews, I don't see the need (yes the health aspect is big right now). Maybe if the Leafs had the cap space, maybe.

 

[BlueForever75]

Yeah I'm warming up to that idea quite a lot. Staal makes a lot of sense. Fits the veteran/experience check box. Fits being efficient and still producing. Fits the size and physical aspect of it as well. He can play up in the lineup. He can play down if needed. Not expensive either.

I too would love Staal at 50% retained as our 3rd line C. Where I would still like an upgrade is at wing position next to Tavares. We need another winger with size. How about we ask for Okposo as part of the deal with salary retained there as well. Have Buffalo retain 50% there as well and now we are talking. We add size on wing next to Tavares who was successful with him previously. And we add size at 3C. Everyone else moves down a slot and we become deeper.

Thornton-Matthews-Marner
Okposo-Tavares-Nylander
Kerfoot-Staal-Hyman
Simmonds-Spezza-Micheyev

If Micheyev needs to be included in deal along with Engvall. The Leafs should still do it:

Thornton-Matthews-Marner
Okposo-Tavares-Nylander
Kerfoot-Staal-Hyman
Simmonds-Spezza-Vesey/Boyd

Buffalo gets to youngish NHL ready forwards at reasonable contracts in Engvall and Micheyev. They pay 50% of both Staal and Okposo for durations of their contracts. Okposo if he doesnt work out slides down to 4th line at reasonable cost next season.

 

[TMLAM34]

Okposo.... lol

 

[4thline]

I wouldn't mind double dipping with either the Preds or Redwings. Haula+Cousins or Namestnikov+Ryan

Thornton-Matthews-Marner
Ryan-Tavares-Nylander
Kerfoot-Namestnikov-Hyman
Soup-Spezza-Simmonds

Thornton-Matthews-Marner
Hyman-Tavares-Nylander
Kerfoot-Haula-Soup
Cousins-Spezza-Simmonds

 

[SeaOfBlue]

I agree about the PK aspect and that is why I would love to bring in Granlund. I believe he is an excellent Pker as well.

Out of forwards who have played at least 15 minutes this year (166 forwards):

CA/60 - 149th
xGA/60 - 144th
GA/60 - 160th
SCA/60 - 143rd
HDCA/60 - 109th

Our worst PKer is in the 70's in pretty much all of those categories, and that is Spezza (whose main job is to just take draws and get off anyways).

Last year for guys who have played at least 50 minutes (which is all Granlund played on the PK last year) for a total of 173 forwards:

CA/60 - 91st
xGA/60 - 143rd
GA/60 - 91st
SCA/60 - 4oth
HDCA/60 - 78th

So definitely not an excellent PKer, and arguably not even a good PKer. I am not sure he is good enough to crack our PK rotation right now.

In a lot of ways, Granlund is a lot like Galchenyuk. Both have not been centers for 6 years now, they have struggled to produce for 3 straight years (based on their roles), and neither are great defensively. Granlund doesn't have the character issues, but Galchenyuk is already here, is cheaper, and we can send him up and down without waiving him so might as well just give Galchenyuk whatever chances you would have given Granlund.