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...
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?