Trades & Free Agency Thread: Off-season Edition

[Fogelhund]

Gentle reminder:

We had Adam freakin’ Brooks and let him go for nothing!!!!

Yup, a guy who hasn't played a NHL game since April 2022. We sure do miss him.

 

[Sypher04]

I know people want core changes but it’s still disingenuous to act as though upgrading half the D core, half the goaltending, swapping out nearly the entire coaching staff and graduating a potential impact rookie is the same team. And that’s assuming they are done which they’ve already indicated they aren’t.

The D improvements and coaching changes will bear out over time but I think the potential impact they could have is being really undersold

 

[Apex Predator]

Lindholm at $7.75 mil? We couldn't afford that. That means no upgrades on D at all... none. Probably means we have Boosh and Gustafsson instead of OEL and Tanev.


I'm not sure they are better trading Marner either... just different.

it sounds like they want to punt this year, resign Marner and work around nylander:Marner/matthews when they are 30/29/28. Hopefully they’ve got it figured out by then.

I know people want core changes but it’s still disingenuous to act as though upgrading half the D core, half the goaltending, swapping out nearly the entire coaching staff and graduating a potential impact rookie is the same team. And that’s assuming they are done which they’ve already indicated they aren’t.

The D improvements and coaching changes will bear out over time but I think the potential impact they could have is being really undersold

They’ve made changes around the core many times. Why should this time anyone expect anything different? It’s at the point where it’s I’ll believe it when I see it. I don’t blame fans for being frustrated.

 

[LeafSteel]

Yup, a guy who hasn't played a NHL game since April 2022. We sure do miss him.

 

[MarMarSab3]

Pearson, Kubalik, Sprong, Blais are guys I'd take a flyer on

 

[Rare Jewel]

Keeping in mind that there isn't any top 6 scorer available in Free Agency at this point, and nobody who is really an upgrade on anyone we have in the top 9 either. It's basically Daniel Sprong, who likely wants more than we can afford anyway. Otherwise it's trades.. and we don't have much to trade for a top 9 upgrade, and there isn't likely many people selling at this time of year anyway.

Kubalik or Vrana, if they find form, could fit that role. And, of course, if Marner does move, a top 6/9 forward coming back would be likely.

Liljegren is another option for returning a forward, even if I'm more inclined to keep him. I'd hope for a center, but who knows?

I think more so. Is another offseason going to pass without Tre making a trade? I find it unlikely, so I think there's still some stuff to happen, so I'm unsure how Cowen or Robertson will figure into the team.

 

[Kiwi]

I don’t really see it the same way.
A lot of money thrown around by all the teams July 1, we had a decent bit of cap space, but not as much as other teams so while we were gonna be a player we had limitations others may not. We also knew coming in we needed multiple D and that’s where the focus was placed.

Clearly they targeted Tanev early on and the got him. They also were in on Zadorov until he chose Boston, and in on Roy until he chose Washington. OEL was the next guy on their the list. So barring any other guys they targeted they got #1 and #4. Could be better but you can’t control guys choosing other teams.

Obviously they also wanted one of the better goalies available which they got.

Domi re-signing is good. Letting Bert walk is good. The forward group will need to be addressed via trade I assume. Tre already specifically said that they still see a lot of work to be done, so you have to assume that’s the forwards.

I think there clearly was a plan. Address the D first and goaltending. Remains to be seen if it was a good plan or not, but I don’t see the ‘flying by the seat of our pants’ sentiment personally.

Currently our top 9 scoring option is a guy who wants us to trade him and won't resign, there's almost nothing left in UFA and the trade market looks pretty barren

Our 3C is either Domi, who's better as a wing and Holmberg who can't really score at a top 9 level

That isn't good planning for a team that struggles to score in the playoffs

 

[LeafEgo]

Tre was too focused on his blue line

It kinda makes sense if Marner is indeed in limbo.

If they can move him they can fix up the forward group. If they can't, then he has to make up for those deficits.

 

[Dreakmur]

Currently our top 9 scoring option is a guy who wants us to trade him and won't resign, there's almost nothing left in UFA and the trade market looks pretty barren

Our 3C is either Domi, who's better as a wing and Holmberg who can't really score at a top 9 level

That isn't good planning for a team that struggles to score in the playoffs

They didn't have enough cap space to address all the needs, so they had to prioritize. Without trading Marner, they can't really address their balance problems, but I think moving Robertson for one of the RFA Cs evens out the forward group, even if it isn't spectacular. I'm not sure Cole Sillinger is available, but he'd be my top target. After that, Jack Drury and Joe Veleno still have potential to grow offensively.

Domi - Matthews - Nylander
Knies - Tavares - Marner
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok
McMann - RFA - ELC / Reaves

2 good scoring lines. 1 good defensive line. 1 kinda energy line

OR

Knies - Matthews - Domi
McMann - Tavares - Marner
ELC - RFA -Nylander
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok

3 decent scoring lines and 1 good defensive line.

 

[Kiwi]

They didn't have enough cap space to address all the needs, so they had to prioritize. Without trading Marner, they can't really address their balance problems, but I think moving Robertson for one of the RFA Cs evens out the forward group, even if it isn't spectacular. I'm not sure Cole Sillinger is available, but he'd be my top target. After that, Jack Drury and Joe Veleno still have potential to grow offensively.

Domi - Matthews - Nylander
Knies - Tavares - Marner
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok
McMann - RFA - ELC / Reaves

2 good scoring lines. 1 good defensive line. 1 kinda energy line

OR

Knies - Matthews - Domi
McMann - Tavares - Marner
ELC - RFA -Nylander
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok

3 decent scoring lines and 1 good defensive line.

We can't score, that's why we get punted from the playoffs every year and I doubt that's going to change looking at those lineups

Our top pair D and tandem goaltender cost 7M combined, there was plenty of money for the forward group if we hadn't fixated on the defense at the cost of upgrading other positions

It's poor planning and making trades now to fix pretty stark problems is going to take some doing

 

[MarMarSab3]

Domi Matthews Nylander
Knies Tavares Marner
McMann Holmberg Sprong
Pearson Dewar Blais

Reilly Tanev
OEL Liljegren
Benoit McCabe

Woll
Stolarz

Jarnkrok, Kampf for futures

 

[darrylsittler27]

f***

running it back what is it now? version 5.0?

https://x.com/i/web/status/1807884906350919959

Politics.

This isn't the same team. Is it good enough to win a cup? No! Can they win 2 rounds.. Maybe

 

[darrylsittler27]

Politics.

This isn't the same team. Is it good enough to win a cup? No! Can they win 2 rounds.. Maybe

Marner isn't worth that much. He is RW playing with Mathews, Nylander and had Keefe as a coach. When Berube demands accountability his points will go down. No one wants to pay this guy $12 million.

 

[Dreakmur]

We can't score, that's why we get punted from the playoffs every year and I doubt that's going to change looking at those lineups

If you spend 46.5 million for forwards that can't score when it matter, that's the problem. You don't solve that without addressing it directly.

Our top pair D and tandem goaltender cost 7M combined, there was plenty of money for the forward group if we hadn't fixated on the defense at the cost of upgrading other positions

So you think the 6.5 million that we spent on Liljegren and Ekman-Larsson was all we needed to fix the whole forward core?

Would we be better off signing a 6.5 million dollar forward and having a blueline of Rielly-Tanev, Benoit-McCabe, Webber-Timmins?

It's poor planning and making trades now to fix pretty stark problems is going to take some doing

What part of the plan was missed?

Unless the plan was to add several UFAs for well below market value, there's isn't a solution until Marner and Tavares are off the books.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

I know people want core changes but it’s still disingenuous to act as though upgrading half the D core, half the goaltending, swapping out nearly the entire coaching staff and graduating a potential impact rookie is the same team. And that’s assuming they are done which they’ve already indicated they aren’t.

The D improvements and coaching changes will bear out over time but I think the potential impact they could have is being really undersold

To be fair, the same thing is said every year.

Last season it was the GM. This season they changed the coach.

Last season it was Klingberg. This season it's OEL.

Last season it was Edmundson + Lybushkin. This season's big boy is Hakanpaa.

Last season's big signing was Bertuzzi. This season it's Tanev.

Last season the hopes were with Samsonov. This season it's Woll.

Lots of new names and lots of new hopes. Some will do better like perhaps Tanev and some will do poorly. In the end, we are left with two deflating constants - the core and Shanny.

Maybe the optimists are right and 7th time is the charm.

 

[LaPlante94]

I feel like we could really use a right shot C. Dowd is one of the few that comes to mind. I feel like right shot centers are becoming as rare as right shot defenders these days. Maybe that's always been the case and I haven't noticed. Pageau is another but his cap hit is steep

 

[BertCorbeau]

Tre seems to have put a lot of cost certainty into the near future of the team on the blue line and in net. With JT and Marner expiring next year, there is cap to make 1 major blue line addition and revamp the core forward group.

Still, this offseason seems more the same.. which likely won't end well.

 

[Kiwi]

If you spend 46.5 million for forwards that can't score when it matter, that's the problem. You don't solve that without addressing it directly.



So you think the 6.5 million that we spent on Liljegren and Ekman-Larsson was all we needed to fix the whole forward core?

Would we be better off signing a 6.5 million dollar forward and having a blueline of Rielly-Tanev, Benoit-McCabe, Webber-Timmins?



What part of the plan was missed?

Unless the plan was to add several UFAs for well below market value, there's isn't a solution until Marner and Tavares are off the books.

You address it if you make a roster and you have a 4C at 3C and lack enough guys to fill all the open spots


With Hakanpaa it's 8M, I'm no professional mathematician but you did have the option of not throwing every available cap dollar at one position and nothing at the other area of need

We didn't need a 6.5M forward ffs, 3M probably would have been enough, that's what Skinner and Henrique cost

Well that's absolute bull****, we had 20M and made zero trades to free up money or change the look of the roster so you can **** right off with this Tavares and Marner crap

The GM and his boss are morons, just like the last clown of a GM we employed

 

[conFABulator]

You address it if you make a roster and you have a 4C at 3C and lack enough guys to fill all the open spots


With Hakanpaa it's 8M, I'm no professional mathematician but you did have the option of not throwing every available cap dollar at one position and nothing at the other area of need

We didn't need a 6.5M forward ffs, 3M probably would have been enough, that's what Skinner and Henrique cost

Well that's absolute bull****, we had 20M and made zero trades to free up money or change the look of the roster so you can **** right off with this Tavares and Marner crap

The GM and his boss are morons, just like the last clown of a GM we employed

We lost Brodie, Edmundson and Lyubushkin and upgraded them with three guys for less than those three signed for. We had to buy defensemen, and no I don't think Webber and Timmins are #5 and #6 on a contending team, I am concerned they are not #7 and #8. I guess the Leafs are too and that is why they signed Haakanpaa.

Skinner and Henrique wanted to be in Edmonton. Henrique said he turned down a larger offer elsewhere. Skinner said he chose Edmonton OVER Toronto also. Who are plan C and D then?

We do need more goals from our F at the important times. It's a weakness we need to address from within I guess, or at the TDL? We need Matthews and Nylander healthy for a whole series. We need a PP that works (OEL and Lily might help here). We need Mitch to show up. We need Knies, McMann, Robertson and Holmberg to continue to grow and develo, maybe Cowan or Grebenkin are pae of the answer?

 

[Stephen]

I know people want core changes but it’s still disingenuous to act as though upgrading half the D core, half the goaltending, swapping out nearly the entire coaching staff and graduating a potential impact rookie is the same team. And that’s assuming they are done which they’ve already indicated they aren’t.

The D improvements and coaching changes will bear out over time but I think the potential impact they could have is being really undersold

This level of change is pretty typical year to year though, although the focus on D is something fresh for sure.

 

[weems]

Agreed with others that are confused with running it back.
The biggest area for improvement can come from the coaching change tho.
I never felt like Keefe was getting the most out of this group, never felt they became a machine that was obsessed with winning a championship.
You'd see this trend over the past few years where we would go on a losing streak or have a embarrassing loss, the fans and media would start turning on the group and then, BOOM they would show up and play like berserkers with their hair on fire (this seasons game on the road against the LAK is a great example). I think the overall talent is there to get this done but I think there needs to be more buy-in from everyone starting from game 1 to potentially game 98+.

 

[seanlinden]

If we really are backing out of the Hakanpaa deal I hope the play is to let Mermis/Myers/Mattinen battle for the 7 spot. It worked well with Benoit last year (Lagesson was decent as well) and that 725k opens up some options up front.

Knies-Matthews-Domi
McMann-JT-Marner
Jarncrok-Holmberg-Nylander
Dewar (1m)-Kampf-Blais (800k)
Reaves

Rielly-Tanev
OEL-McCabe
Benoit-Liljegren
M/M/M

980k in cap space to accrue for the deadline / carry a 23rd man when we need. More if Jarncrok is traded and Robertson is in that LW spot for 1-1.5. Less if Jarn and Robby are packaged for a better 3C/3LW.

With you on this one.... can also throw Topi Niemla into games if needed... and honestly... maybe Berube can do something with Connor Timmins, and there's that Cade Webber guy too.

I think they should also put some consideration into seeing if they can do something with David Kampf. Move him for somebody that brings a little more offence to the table and can better embrace being a #3C. Then you've got an asssortment of Holmberg, Dewar, Steeves, and/or Minten as potential 4th line Cs.

 

[seanlinden]

They didn't have enough cap space to address all the needs, so they had to prioritize. Without trading Marner, they can't really address their balance problems, but I think moving Robertson for one of the RFA Cs evens out the forward group, even if it isn't spectacular. I'm not sure Cole Sillinger is available, but he'd be my top target. After that, Jack Drury and Joe Veleno still have potential to grow offensively.

Domi - Matthews - Nylander
Knies - Tavares - Marner
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok
McMann - RFA - ELC / Reaves

2 good scoring lines. 1 good defensive line. 1 kinda energy line

OR

Knies - Matthews - Domi
McMann - Tavares - Marner
ELC - RFA -Nylander
Holmberg - Kampf - Jarnkrok

3 decent scoring lines and 1 good defensive line.

I don't think Robertson on his own nets a Sillinger, Veleno, or Drury; but it probably shouldn't be that far off... and it's honestly probably a pretty well reasoned idea.

All 3 should have theoretical upside to be a #2 centre, if things work out. Being put in a #3 position, with Auston Matthews and John Tavares ahead of you, and David Kampf behind, is a pretty good place to be developed in... especially if you can get a linemate like William Nylander.

There's a lot to like about the 2nd group you've posted... even if it's a situation where that "ELC / RFA" pair are getting their ice time a little minimized because Nylander is taking powerplay shifts with the big guys.

 

[Knies iT]

I know people want core changes but it’s still disingenuous to act as though upgrading half the D core, half the goaltending, swapping out nearly the entire coaching staff and graduating a potential impact rookie is the same team. And that’s assuming they are done which they’ve already indicated they aren’t.

The D improvements and coaching changes will bear out over time but I think the potential impact they could have is being really undersold

It's also disingenuous to over exaggerate the work that's been done.

"Half the goaltending" = adding a backup with a career high 28GP.

"Half the D core" = a 33 year old and 34 year old, one of which is likely bottom pair. Hakanpaa, a likely 6/7, may not even play and if he does, is coming off a major injury at 32.

And if we're smart with their development, Cowan should return to London and Minten should bake in he AHL. Grebyonkin is a more likely option, but 15+15 would be a dream for any of them.

So the vastly different team (on-ice) you're describing is Brodie for Tanev + some tinkering at the peripheries of the roster.

 

[Jacquestrapless]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1749211113974038667

If Robertson gets moved, I wouldn't mind Sprong on the 3rd line. Throw in some Rogaine as performance bonuses