Thanks for your work throughout the season, Todd. I agree that things are in reasonable shape. I eagerly await an article by you entitled 'Let's talk Quinn Hughes'...
Trade Palat to a team which has cap space. Retain half. They'll eat another million and trade him to a 3rd team which will use him. We'll add a 3rd rounder to make it palatable (pun intended).
Same thing with Haula but include only a 4th rounder.
We'll get back 6th round picks for these guys. Or filler for Utica. This is much better than buying them out.
These two moves save us roughly $4.5M this year.
Package Mercer and Casey. Before the playoffs I would've said to trade Mercer and Nemec, but maybe Nemec showed enough to keep him.
I think we'll be able to get an unproven but ready for the NHL 3rd line play driver and a 4th line right winger or another guy who can be tried at third line left wing.
This should save us another $3M.
Sign Allen for 1x$3M.
Sign Luke on a bridge, which will be roughly $3M less than it would cost to sign him long term. To make it up to him, sign both his parents as coaches and pay them a lot of money. I'm only half joking here.
This leaves us with a lot of cap space.
Sign Matt Duchene for 2 x$5M to play first or second line left wing. He can also take Jack's faceoffs, or he can, if the situation fits, he can be the best third line center in the league.
Then sign one other forward at around $2-3M for a third line left winger. Not sure who yet.
I think, as currently constructed, the Devils hands are tied. Roughly $13M of cap space which includes dead weight Macdermid and they need to sign Luke ($8M?). They would only have $5M left for four forwards (Meier, Hughes, Bratt, Hischier, Palat, Mercer, Haula, Noesen, Cotter are the nine signed, I refuse to count Macdermid among them). I'm sorry but I'm sure guys like Palat and Macdermid are highly regarded in the locker room but this is a business.
Is Nemec really going to be a seventh defensemen? I still don't understand why Kovacevic needed to be signed during the season (and even more so now). This does NOT mean I didn't want them to sign him but they lost all leverage for any trades as other GM's now know the position the Devils are in either to trade Nemec or to make room to keep Nemec.
I have little faith in Fitzgerald, hope he surprises me.
Well, with Kovacevic's long-term injury and at least *some* uncertainty with Dillon and Hughes the D will likely sort itself out in that there'll be an everyday spot for Nemec come October.
What happens after will depend on injuries, performance, etc.
Thanks for your work throughout the season, Todd. I agree that things are in reasonable shape. I eagerly await an article by you entitled 'Let's talk Quinn Hughes'...
How's this:
Trade Palat to a team which has cap space. Retain half. They'll eat another million and trade him to a 3rd team which will use him. We'll add a 3rd rounder to make it palatable (pun intended).
Same thing with Haula but include only a 4th rounder.
We'll get back 6th round picks for these guys. Or filler for Utica. This is much better than buying them out.
These two moves save us roughly $4.5M this year.
Package Mercer and Casey. Before the playoffs I would've said to trade Mercer and Nemec, but maybe Nemec showed enough to keep him.
I think we'll be able to get an unproven but ready for the NHL 3rd line play driver and a 4th line right winger or another guy who can be tried at third line left wing.
This should save us another $3M.
Sign Allen for 1x$3M.
Sign Luke on a bridge, which will be roughly $3M less than it would cost to sign him long term. To make it up to him, sign both his parents as coaches and pay them a lot of money. I'm only half joking here.
This leaves us with a lot of cap space.
Sign Matt Duchene for 2 x$5M to play first or second line left wing. He can also take Jack's faceoffs, or he can, if the situation fits, he can be the best third line center in the league.
Then sign one other forward at around $2-3M for a third line left winger. Not sure who yet.
Thoughts?
I think, as currently constructed, the Devils hands are tied. Roughly $13M of cap space which includes dead weight Macdermid and they need to sign Luke ($8M?). They would only have $5M left for four forwards (Meier, Hughes, Bratt, Hischier, Palat, Mercer, Haula, Noesen, Cotter are the nine signed, I refuse to count Macdermid among them). I'm sorry but I'm sure guys like Palat and Macdermid are highly regarded in the locker room but this is a business.
Is Nemec really going to be a seventh defensemen? I still don't understand why Kovacevic needed to be signed during the season (and even more so now). This does NOT mean I didn't want them to sign him but they lost all leverage for any trades as other GM's now know the position the Devils are in either to trade Nemec or to make room to keep Nemec.
I have little faith in Fitzgerald, hope he surprises me.
Well, with Kovacevic's long-term injury and at least *some* uncertainty with Dillon and Hughes the D will likely sort itself out in that there'll be an everyday spot for Nemec come October.
What happens after will depend on injuries, performance, etc.
Thanks for your great analysis all year!