GDT: Trades & Free Agency Thread - Off-Season Early Edition

[ShaneFalco]

Taylor Hall anyone?

TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger said Wednesday that while the Boston Bruins would like to re-sign Taylor Hall before he hits the open market on July 28, the Maple Leafs are among the team with interest in the 29-year-old winger.
"(Bruins general manager Don Sweeney has) engaged in discussions about an extension for Taylor Hall with his agent Darren Ferris," Dreger said. "This shouldn’t come as breaking news, there was interest from the Boston standpoint prior to making the trade with the Buffalo Sabres.
"But there’s outside interest as well, including from the Toronto Maple Leafs, which may surprise some. Toronto has interest, I’m sure, if they can’t get Zach Hyman signed, or depending on what happens with Freddy Andersen.

NHL Rumours Toronto Maple Leafs Taylor Hall - TSN.ca

His agent is a problem, the Leafs cap is a problem and not sure he'd be the answer. Bruins re-sign is my guess

 

[fahad203]

Taylor Hall anyone?

TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger said Wednesday that while the Boston Bruins would like to re-sign Taylor Hall before he hits the open market on July 28, the Maple Leafs are among the team with interest in the 29-year-old winger.
"(Bruins general manager Don Sweeney has) engaged in discussions about an extension for Taylor Hall with his agent Darren Ferris," Dreger said. "This shouldn’t come as breaking news, there was interest from the Boston standpoint prior to making the trade with the Buffalo Sabres.
"But there’s outside interest as well, including from the Toronto Maple Leafs, which may surprise some. Toronto has interest, I’m sure, if they can’t get Zach Hyman signed, or depending on what happens with Freddy Andersen.

NHL Rumours Toronto Maple Leafs Taylor Hall - TSN.ca

His agent is a problem, the Leafs cap is a problem and not sure he'd be the answer. Bruins re-sign is my guess

Only way I see Taylor sign is if we match what Boston is paying. I can see Hall's interest as he does live in Toronto(apparently he lives in Etobicoke)
I can see him wanting to be close to his family and friends

I would welcome Hall. He can still skate and players like him can always bring something even at checking level. At 6million I'll take him over Hyman and Kerfoot

 

[OVO16]

Zach Bogosian played extremely well last year. His puck-moving abilities were eye-opening. Played way better than Justin Holl. People forget that Bogosian was once a touted highly prospect who was a top 4 D-man in Winnepeg until Injuries killed him. He's def gonna ask for a raise this year and I would give it to him.

I wouldn't be opposed to giving Zach Bogosian a top 4 role.

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Bogosian
Sandin - Hankanpaa

Good mix of grit and skill on the backend

 

[hamzarocks]

Zach Bogosian played extremely well last year. His puck-moving abilities were eye-opening. Played way better than Justin Holl. People forget that Bogosian was once a touted highly prospect who was a top 4 D-man in Winnepeg until Injuries killed him. He's def gonna ask for a raise this year and I would give it to him.

I wouldn't be opposed to giving Zach Bogosian a top 4 role.

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Bogosian
Sandin - Hankanpaa

Good mix of grit and skill on the backend

If this is the lineup we go with Timothy lilijgren should be done with the leafs organization

Next years his D+5 and if he can't Crack the bottom pairing then it's time to move on. Get the best LW prospect whose near NHL ready for him that you can

 

[Gabriel426]

I like the idea, but I don't think it'll happen. I'd be shooting for a Pacioretty to Vegas type return, Tatar+Suzuki+2nd. Which in Seattle's case could be something like Killorn+1st round pick prospect+2nd and then we also have 6.5 million in cap space to fill out the roster.

They do have a 2nd overall pick, so if that is in play and Killorn plus another 2nd rounder, thats not bad

 

[Budz]

Chances Riley Nash is back as our 4th C?

 

[OVO16]

Chances Riley Nash is back as our 4th C?

Probably zero. Spezza is most likely our 4th C.

Leafs need to look at a different breed of bottom 6 guys. Guys like Sean Kuraly or Luke Glendening for example

 

[OVO16]

Warren Foegle is looking for a change of scenery, where he can land top 6 minutes. I think it's best if we move on from Hyman and replace him with Foegle. Would be half the cost and their games are very similar. Foegle got more of that Grit/Hustle factor I think the leafs need imo. I think he can break out if he played with some of our top guys. Only 25 yrs old too.

Foligno - Mathews - Marner
Foegle - Tavares - Nylander
Free Agent - Haula - Mikheyev
Kuraly - Spezza - Simmonds

 

[Budz]

Warren Foegle is looking for a change of scenery, where he can land top 6 minutes. I think it's best if we move on from Hyman and replace him with Foegle. Would be half the cost and their games are very similar. Foegle got more of that Grit/Hustle factor I think the leafs need imo. I think he can break out if he played with some of our top guys. Only 25 yrs old too.

Foligno - Mathews - Marner
Foegle - Tavares - Nylander
Free Agent - Haula - Mikheyev
Kuraly - Spezza - Simmonds

I don't think Foligno is coming back imo
I could see Gally back with the 2nd line - if they are not giving the role to Robertson.

I like Foegle

 

[Buds17]

Chances Riley Nash is back as our 4th C?

I would have liked the chances of that happening had the team progressed further and he played in more games. I'll guess that Hutton is the more likely of the two to re-sign.

 

[OVO16]

I don't think Foligno is coming back imo
I could see Gally back with the 2nd line - if they are not giving the role to Robertson.

I like Foegle

I think Foligno comes back cheap. There are reports saying he felt like he didn't come anywhere near to accomplish what he wanted with Toronto and the fact that he got injured right after getting traded apparently pisssed him off too. He wants a shot at redemption. My guess is a 1yr type of deal like Spezza

Galchenyuk wasn't bad but he's not a top 6 player. I wouldn't mind him back as one of the latter options as a bottom 6 forward. He still plays with speed and hustle which isn't bad. Leafs should look at other options first

 

[OVO16]

Also, minimal chance of happening....but Ryan Getzlaf would such a good target for that 3rd line. Too bad he doesn't wanna leave Cali.

 

[OVO16]

4th line Free Agent Targets that I believe we need to target based on Speed, Hustle, Ruggedness, intensity.

Marcus Sorenson
Sean Kuraly
Luke Glendening
Jordan Martinook
Michael Raffl
Cedric Paquette
Carter Rowney

 

[bossram]

4th line Free Agent Targets that I believe we need to target based on Speed, Hustle, Ruggedness, intensity.

Marcus Sorenson
Sean Kuraly
Luke Glendening
Jordan Martinook
Michael Raffl
Cedric Paquette
Carter Rowney

Except there are exactly 0 decent players on that list.

 

[613Leafer]

Chances Riley Nash is back as our 4th C?

Putting him and Spezza on the same line just seems like polar opposites in terms of the purpose of the line.

Spezza should be on a sheltered scoring line. Nash should be on a checking line you throw out in defensive situations.

This seemed to be a problem with our lines at times, that they were just sort of a mish mash of players/spare parts rather than a line with a purpose.

 

[hockeywiz542]

Could The Leafs Finally Beat Bruins At Something And Sign Taylor Hall? | Boston Hockey Now

Dreger is correct. Hall and the Boston Bruins have repeatedly expressed mutual interest in keeping Hall in Black and Gold past this season.

“Nothing’s changed since the last time I talked about this. But yeah, I see a fit and hopefully, they feel the same,” Hall said back on June 11 in his exit Zoom call with the media. “We’ll let the dust settle on everything this year, I’m sure they have a lot of stuff going on and some other guys that have been here longer than me that they have to worry about. Then we’ll figure that out, but hopefully, we can make something work. That’s my goal and like I said, hopefully, we can make that happen.”

Hall, who vetoed a trade to the Vegas Golden Knights so he could be dealt to the Boston Bruins, even indicated that he would be willing to give the Boston Bruins a discount if they’re willing to lock him up for more than just one more season. At this point in his career and after the season he had in Buffalo before coming to the Bruins, stability, and winning are more important than money.

“I don’t even know what my value is, at this point. I feel like I had two different seasons. I’m not looking to absolutely maximize my value at this point in my career,” Hall said in the same Zoom call. “I’ve been fortunate enough to make some good money in this league, and at this point, it’s about more of a fit for me than maybe money or a long-term thing. You want to find a home for the next few years here and we’ll see what happens.”

That had to be music to Sweeney’s ears but if he’s not careful and waits too long, could Hall be singing a different tune? It will be an interesting balancing act for the Bruins since they’d prefer not to sign Hall until after the NHL Expansion Draft so they won’t have to protect him and eat up a spot on their protected list. Could the Bruins decide to trade for disgruntled St. Louis Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko and let Hall walk if the Leafs knock his socks off with an offer? Or, as Joe Haggerty wrote Thursday, could Sweeney swing for the fences, acquire Tarasenko and then sign Hall?

 

[Antropovsky]

Taylor Hall anyone?

TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger said Wednesday that while the Boston Bruins would like to re-sign Taylor Hall before he hits the open market on July 28, the Maple Leafs are among the team with interest in the 29-year-old winger.
"(Bruins general manager Don Sweeney has) engaged in discussions about an extension for Taylor Hall with his agent Darren Ferris," Dreger said. "This shouldn’t come as breaking news, there was interest from the Boston standpoint prior to making the trade with the Buffalo Sabres.
"But there’s outside interest as well, including from the Toronto Maple Leafs, which may surprise some. Toronto has interest, I’m sure, if they can’t get Zach Hyman signed, or depending on what happens with Freddy Andersen.

NHL Rumours Toronto Maple Leafs Taylor Hall - TSN.ca

His agent is a problem, the Leafs cap is a problem and not sure he'd be the answer. Bruins re-sign is my guess

Dubas on his way down his list again:
Spezza and simmonds re-signed... over the hill vets. ✔
Hyman walks... Let a work horse go. ✔
Pursue Hall .. sign offensive player reclamation projects - Work in Progress
Sign European free agents - Work in Progress
Sign an inexperienced assistant coach- Work in Progress

 

[Nylander88]

Zach Bogosian played extremely well last year. His puck-moving abilities were eye-opening. Played way better than Justin Holl. People forget that Bogosian was once a touted highly prospect who was a top 4 D-man in Winnepeg until Injuries killed him. He's def gonna ask for a raise this year and I would give it to him.

I wouldn't be opposed to giving Zach Bogosian a top 4 role.

Rielly - Brodie
Muzzin - Bogosian
Sandin - Hankanpaa

Good mix of grit and skill on the backend

Totally agree with this. Bogosian should be top 4. I read he wasn't happy with his limited role here, so he may not be back. But I agree he should be top 4. Assuming we protect Rielly,Brodie,Muzzin,Holl... I'd go with something like this.
Muzzin-Brodie
Rielly-Bogosian
Oleksiak-Holl

I think this offers really good balance. I'm not sold on Sandin as a full-time NHLer quite yet...even though he likely will be

 

[Nylander88]

I think Foligno comes back cheap. There are reports saying he felt like he didn't come anywhere near to accomplish what he wanted with Toronto and the fact that he got injured right after getting traded apparently pisssed him off too. He wants a shot at redemption. My guess is a 1yr type of deal like Spezza

Galchenyuk wasn't bad but he's not a top 6 player. I wouldn't mind him back as one of the latter options as a bottom 6 forward. He still plays with speed and hustle which isn't bad. Leafs should look at other options first

For all the intangibles that Foligno brings, on and off the ice, I'd offer him some term in exchange for salary. If it's down to Columbus or Toronto for his family, and Columbus is going the way of a rebuild...I think we can offer him something like 2.5m x 4yrs or 3m x 3yrs. We didn't get a good showing of what he can do outside of his 4pts in 4gms when he was healthy. He is a true leader who has been a captain for many years. He can PK. He can play net front on a PP. He can play Center and apparently excel in the faceoff dot. He hits and fights more than Hyman, and it's not really that close. Bang for buck I think he's the way to go, rather than overpay Hyman. Same as Hyman, you likely lose him 15 games a year to health, and you give a kid like Joey Anderson a shot. Just hopefully the injuries don't overlap with the playoffs like they did this past season for him. Being from the Sudbury area, he may be willing to come this way for even cheaper if he knows it's where he can put his roots back down.

 

[Torontonian]

Dubas on his way down his list again:
Spezza and simmonds re-signed... over the hill vets. ✔
Hyman walks... Let a work horse go. ✔
Pursue Hall .. sign offensive player reclamation projects - Work in Progress
Sign European free agents - Work in Progress
Sign an inexperienced assistant coach- Work in Progress

Letting Hyman and a work horse go is out Dubas's control if Hyman demands a number that is unreasonable for the Leafs, anything over 4.5m for Hyman is an over payment and a mistake waiting to happen. We saw with Clarkson what happens when you pay them more then they are worth, especially for the type of player Hyman and Clarkson were.

As for Hall, I wouldn't say he is a reclamation project, Hall is still a good player and played well for Boston. He's looked bad because he's had to play the main guy on every team so far, New Jersey / Arizona / Buffalo. Hall isn't going to succeed if your relying on him to carry your team, that's not who he is but put him in a postion were he is a secondary piece like on Boston and he looks good.. Playing him behind Matthews/Marner/Tavares/Nylander in a top six role I could see him playing well for us. He has the ability to shoot and is a good passer, his defensive play isn't very good though.

 

[Nylander88]

Chances Riley Nash is back as our 4th C?

Slim to none imo. Job is Spezza's and if Spezza goes wing, the job is Brooks. If we brought him back it'd be for 3C to run a shutdown line...but I don't see it happening

 

[Gallagbi]

Dubas on his way down his list again:
Spezza and simmonds re-signed... over the hill vets. ✔
Hyman walks... Let a work horse go. ✔
Pursue Hall .. sign offensive player reclamation projects - Work in Progress
Sign European free agents - Work in Progress
Sign an inexperienced assistant coach- Work in Progress

Are we really complaining about Jason Spezza? Honestly?

 

[Leaffan1991]

Is it possible to sign both Oleksiak and Bogosian? That would really solidify the defence.

Rielly Brodie
Muzzin Bogosian
Oleksiak Dermott

 

[Antropovsky]

Are we really complaining about Jason Spezza? Honestly?

Not specifically Spezza but we aren't even into unrestricted free agency and we already re-signed two guys at the end of their careers. Hard to bring in killer instinct when we keep filling out the roster with players at the end of their careers and 4 of the top 6 are locked in long term.Will keep an eye on guys like Barabanov and Verhaeghe who were passed on last year in favor of the old vets. Last season Brooks brought alot of energy to the team but he couldn't get the minutes. Sandin couldn't get minutes because of cap and roster spots.

 

[Brobust]

Warren Foegle is looking for a change of scenery, where he can land top 6 minutes. I think it's best if we move on from Hyman and replace him with Foegle. Would be half the cost and their games are very similar. Foegle got more of that Grit/Hustle factor I think the leafs need imo. I think he can break out if he played with some of our top guys. Only 25 yrs old too.

Foligno - Mathews - Marner
Foegle - Tavares - Nylander
Free Agent - Haula - Mikheyev
Kuraly - Spezza - Simmonds

Hope they find a more reliable finisher for the 1st line and move Foligno to the 3rd a part of a shutdown/forechecking line.