Toggle sidebar

Trades & Free Agency Thread: 2024-2025 - Trade Deadline Approaches

hamzarocks said:
We need to acquire a strong 2LW and 2C in a package deal

Cowan + Minten + 1st on the table

For

Good 2C and Great 2LW

Who are targets?

Get the 2LW and 2C and run

Knies - Matthews - Domi - 19 mins a game

McMann - 2C from trade - Marner 18.5 mins a game

2LW from trade - Tavares - Nylander 18 mins a game
Click to expand...
Where are you getting the cap space from.
2025-26 Knies needs a new contract 7 mil
2026-27 McMann will need a new contract he has a 60 pt season next yr 7 mil

We need another dman before LW

You need entry level contract
Cowen and Minten
 
Fogelhund said:
I mean... that's a poor argument at best... It's making an assumption that Pietrangelo gets those Cups here too... and that's weak...

Of course we'd trade two cups for one series win, but... I mean.. that's just a strange way to choose between players.
Click to expand...
A serious question, could it have been worse?
 
horner said:
Where are you getting the cap space from.
2025-26 Knies needs a new contract 7 mil
2026-27 McMann will need a new contract he has a 60 pt season next yr 7 mil

We need another dman before LW

You need entry level contract
Cowen and Minten
Click to expand...
McMann should have no future with the leafs outside of next year.

If we are proactive we deal him this summer if he impresses in playoffs or next deadline depending on his season.

He can be an attractice asset to add a better and younger player. McCann is like 28 now and I have no interest in long term committment for him at more than 3M AAV.

Cowan and Minten likely will be the next Sandin and Lilijgren. Assets hyped very high by team, do great in limited role but we cant afford to be patient and develop them and try to contend so we drop there value down to point where we have to move them for less than peak value.

Be proactive and identify a 2C or 2Lw who has 2-3 year term and gives us a shot to contend better next few years as we are likely extending the core again.

The cap will be 20M higher 3 years from Now. So Knies at 8 years 6.5M can be fit in pretty easily
 
horner said:
Where are you getting the cap space from.
2025-26 Knies needs a new contract 7 mil
2026-27 McMann will need a new contract he has a 60 pt season next yr 7 mil

We need another dman before LW

You need entry level contract
Cowen and Minten
Click to expand...

Knies should have been bridged at 2x4.5 or something, so yeah we'll have to pay him but I don't say sadly here; I'm happy he's an impact player. You draft a guy 2nd round and you're giddy he turns out like Knies has.

McMann getting 60 points? Lol lmao even. He currently has 25 in 47, he gets his goals, he's not an assist guy. With more ice time, maybe I could see it but I think he's got the perfect role here as a middle 6 energy guy. I seem him more as a 35-45 point guy with more G than A, not to mention when his next deal kicks in he's going to be 30.

McMann at the absolute most gets 5, but more likely 4. Maybe he'd give the team a deal at 3 if he got 6 or more years term.

I love Bobby McMann because he's big, fast and has a rocket, but also because every game he gets out there and puts in his work. Matthews would be on his way to another Hart if he had that effort level. I certainly wouldn't hold anything against him if someone offered him 6x4.5 and he took it, but I wouldn't throw him that deal (I'd do 6x3or 5x3.5).

I think one of Cowan or Minten goes in a deal, ideally Cowan since we have enough undersized wingers and Minten looks like a great tweener 2-3C in the making.

EDIT:

Coming off the Cap we have:

Maxpac 0.874
Lorentz 0.775
Dewar 1.18
Holmberg 0.8
Robertson 0.875
Timmins 1.1
Hakanpaa 1.47

Of those I'd keep only Lorentz, give him 1.1, which frees up 5.974. I'd try to trade Robertson, Holmberg and Timmins for any picks we could get. Maybe Robertson and Timmins get a 3rd and Holmberg a 6th.

Woll's raise goes into effect which eats 2.9 of that.

If the Cap is 95.5, that's an almost 7 mil bump which brings them to almost 10 to play with.

JT makes 11, I'm hoping his new deal is 3x6 but it's likely 3x7. 3 mil.

Marner is the straw that stirs the drink, maybe I'd want him at 12, but who knows what he's asking for. Should he make more than Willy? Yes but not a full million more. That's a kick of 1-1.5 which leaves 1-1.5.

Buying out Reavo saves 450k, which is good but not enough. Buying out Jarnkrok if they can saves like 500k. They have to move someone to make room for Knies.

Oh, and McCabe also gets a 2.5 per hike as well...

Honestly, and I like him a lot and have been a big fan and he's been here forever, but with his subpar backend play this year, there looks like only one obvious choice here...
 
Last edited:
At the time, Nylander for Pietrangelo is a no brainer. With hindsight, glad that trade did not go through. He was not the difference we needed as our stars have no clue how to show up when it’s needed.

With that said, with no hindsight, if Dobson is available we have to go have for him. Really would not like to include Knies because I think that kid is a gamer, but I’d do whatever else. Cowan + Danford + 1st is a solid offer to start. Maybe add a bit to even it out. Doubt Lou goes for that though even if they value is there because he wants to compete I’m sure.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ToneDog
horner said:
Where are you getting the cap space from.
2025-26 Knies needs a new contract 7 mil
2026-27 McMann will need a new contract he has a 60 pt season next yr 7 mil

We need another dman before LW

You need entry level contract
Cowen and Minten
Click to expand...
I could see McMann leaving after his current contract ends. He is going to have a lot of suitors.
 
Voodoo Child said:
Knies should have been bridged at 2x4.5 or something, so yeah we'll have to pay him but I don't say sadly here; I'm happy he's an impact player. You draft a guy 2nd round and you're giddy he turns out like Knies has.

McMann getting 60 points? Lol lmao even. He currently has 25 in 47, he gets his goals, he's not an assist guy. With more ice time, maybe I could see it but I think he's got the perfect role here as a middle 6 energy guy. I seem him more as a 35-45 point guy with more G than A, not to mention when his next deal kicks in he's going to be 30.

McMann at the absolute most gets 5, but more likely 4. Maybe he'd give the team a deal at 3 if he got 6 or more years term.

I love Bobby McMann because he's big, fast and has a rocket, but also because every game he gets out there and puts in his work. Matthews would be on his way to another Hart if he had that effort level. I certainly wouldn't hold anything against him if someone offered him 6x4.5 and he took it, but I wouldn't throw him that deal (I'd do 6x3or 5x3.5).

I think one of Cowan or Minten goes in a deal, ideally Cowan since we have enough undersized wingers and Minten looks like a great tweener 2-3C in the making.

EDIT:

Coming off the Cap we have:

Maxpac 0.874
Lorentz 0.775
Dewar 1.18
Holmberg 0.8
Robertson 0.875
Timmins 1.1
Hakanpaa 1.47

Of those I'd keep only Lorentz, give him 1.1, which frees up 5.974. I'd try to trade Robertson, Holmberg and Timmins for any picks we could get. Maybe Robertson and Timmins get a 3rd and Holmberg a 6th.

Woll's raise goes into effect which eats 2.9 of that.

If the Cap is 95.5, that's an almost 7 mil bump which brings them to almost 10 to play with.

JT makes 11, I'm hoping his new deal is 3x6 but it's likely 3x7. 3 mil.

Marner is the straw that stirs the drink, maybe I'd want him at 12, but who knows what he's asking for. Should he make more than Willy? Yes but not a full million more. That's a kick of 1-1.5 which leaves 1-1.5.

Buying out Reavo saves 450k, which is good but not enough. Buying out Jarnkrok if they can saves like 500k. They have to move someone to make room for Knies.

Oh, and McCabe also gets a 2.5 per hike as well...

Honestly, and I like him a lot and have been a big fan and he's been here forever, but with his subpar backend play this year, there looks like only one obvious choice here...
Click to expand...
Thanks for this. I see your numbers, and they mostly make sense. I think your math on Marner and Tavares might be a little off. If I understood correctly, re-signing them at $12.5M and $7.5M would save us $2M.

The main issue is that just bringing this team back will likely take us right to the cap, with any real improvement coming from internal growth—our core players maintaining or even improving their performance. The exception is Tavares, where we'd hope for a slower decline.

We do have solid goaltending that could continue to improve, plus another year for Berube’s impact to take hold. Any major changes will require the kind of move you were discussing. Domi seems like a prime candidate to move for space, along with Kampf and Järnkrok. Moving all three would clear around $8M, which could allow us to replace some of them with younger, cheaper players. Holmberg as a 13th or 14th forward at the right number—say, $900K—seems reasonable.

Projected Lineup:

Forwards
Knies ($5.5M) – Matthews – Marner ($12.5M)
McMann – Tavares ($7M) – Nylander
Steeves – Minten – Grebenkin
Lorentz – Dewar – Holmberg

Defense
McCabe – Tanev
Rielly – Myers
OEL – Benoit
Timmins

Goalies
Woll
Stolarz

This lineup costs roughly the same as this year’s roster, with some salaries increasing due to extensions but offset by Tavares taking a pay cut and moving out Domi, Kampf, and Järnkrok. Essentially, we have Minten replacing Domi, and either Steeves or Grebenkin stepping in for Robertson and Pacioretty, while Dewar and Holmberg take over for Kampf and Järnkrok. This is exactly the kind of move that developing bottom-six NHL players on ELCs or league-minimum deals makes possible.

With this setup, we should have about $7M left under the cap, plus whatever additional savings come from players moved out. That’s enough for either a 2C, 3C, or a top-four defenseman.

Is that why Cozens might be a target? Or maybe Brayden Schenn?
 
  • Like
  • Sad
Reactions: ToneDog and Voodoo Child
hamzarocks said:
McMann should have no future with the leafs outside of next year.

If we are proactive we deal him this summer if he impresses in playoffs or next deadline depending on his season.

He can be an attractice asset to add a better and younger player. McCann is like 28 now and I have no interest in long term committment for him at more than 3M AAV.

Cowan and Minten likely will be the next Sandin and Lilijgren. Assets hyped very high by team, do great in limited role but we cant afford to be patient and develop them and try to contend so we drop there value down to point where we have to move them for less than peak value.

Be proactive and identify a 2C or 2Lw who has 2-3 year term and gives us a shot to contend better next few years as we are likely extending the core again.

The cap will be 20M higher 3 years from Now. So Knies at 8 years 6.5M can be fit in pretty easily
Click to expand...

Disagree.

Pre-cap, the NHL skewed a lot older than in recent years and it seems like it’s harder and harder for kids to hit the star level at an earlier age these days. At 28-32, I don’t think McMann will be particularly old and if he’s productive we should hold onto him at a reasonable cap.
 
  • Like
Reactions: LeafSteel
conFABulator said:
Thanks for this. I see your numbers, and they mostly make sense. I think your math on Marner and Tavares might be a little off. If I understood correctly, re-signing them at $12.5M and $7.5M would save us $2M.

The main issue is that just bringing this team back will likely take us right to the cap, with any real improvement coming from internal growth—our core players maintaining or even improving their performance. The exception is Tavares, where we'd hope for a slower decline.

We do have solid goaltending that could continue to improve, plus another year for Berube’s impact to take hold. Any major changes will require the kind of move you were discussing. Domi seems like a prime candidate to move for space, along with Kampf and Järnkrok. Moving all three would clear around $8M, which could allow us to replace some of them with younger, cheaper players. Holmberg as a 13th or 14th forward at the right number—say, $900K—seems reasonable.

Projected Lineup:

Forwards
Knies ($5.5M) – Matthews – Marner ($12.5M)
McMann – Tavares ($7M) – Nylander
Steeves – Minten – Grebenkin
Lorentz – Dewar – Holmberg

Defense
McCabe – Tanev
Rielly – Myers
OEL – Benoit
Timmins

Goalies
Woll
Stolarz

This lineup costs roughly the same as this year’s roster, with some salaries increasing due to extensions but offset by Tavares taking a pay cut and moving out Domi, Kampf, and Järnkrok. Essentially, we have Minten replacing Domi, and either Steeves or Grebenkin stepping in for Robertson and Pacioretty, while Dewar and Holmberg take over for Kampf and Järnkrok. This is exactly the kind of move that developing bottom-six NHL players on ELCs or league-minimum deals makes possible.

With this setup, we should have about $7M left under the cap, plus whatever additional savings come from players moved out. That’s enough for either a 2C, 3C, or a top-four defenseman.

Is that why Cozens might be a target? Or maybe Brayden Schenn?
Click to expand...
This is bleak - 7M in cap space doesn't fix that bottom 6 and you still have 2/3 of Myers/Benoit/Timmins taking regular minutes. This is also assuming they can move off Domi/Jarnkrok/Kampf/Reaves.
 
I wonder if MTL could be enticed to move off Newhook. He has predominantly been a winger in MTL but he's still taken as many faceoffs as Domi this year. His production is not great although he produced at a 51 point pace last season. He could potentially benefit from high end offensive wingers. He is signed at 2.9M for this season and the following 2. He is an RFA at contract expiry.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Top Bottom