NHL 2017 -Official Discussion Thread

[Smitty-48]

Sorry, Kadri at $4.5 for the next five years... wow, that's turning out to be a great contract actually, he could easily be making Duchene money right now.

If he keeps putting up numbers like he did last year, or close to it, that will turn into a steal indeed. Just two years ago that looked like a terrible deal, hurray for Babcock.

I didn't think it was a terrible deal, because the year before Kadri had an abnormally low shooting percentage against his career average, and he was playing with PA Parenteau, so I was still willing to bet on him bouncing back, but still I wasn't expecting 32 goals, nobody was expecting that.

[Smitty-48]

See, I'm hoping for a similar bounceback from Rielly, because it's the same situation with Rielly this past year as it was with Kadri the year before, in that Babcock is forcing them out of their comfort zones and getting them to take on a new two way role, and I think that it may simply take a full season and offseson, for all that to be fully processed.

[StCapps]

Fake News says rumor is Chiarelli trying to get Draisaitl to sign an eight year deal like McDavid, he's hearing $9.5 million AAV, that sounds less fake.

[Smitty-48]

22 for both Draisaitl and McDavid? That sounds about right, which is good, because Matthews will prolly get 12.5, but no way Marner or Nylander are getting 9.5, so the Oilers wont be blowing the market up here, if they get both those guys for 22, if Draisaitl is a 9.5, then Marner and Nylander are around a 7 and a 6, which is doable.

If Drasaitl were to go over 10, then the market jumps a Marner and a Nylander up over an 8 and a 7, which then starts to be a problem.

12.5, 7.5, 6.5, still OK, 12.5, 8.5, 7.5, now that's starting to squeeze, if they can get all three for under 33% of the projected cap, can keep all three, over 33% of projected cap, they're taking a slot from another good player, with the PA cap elevator 2.5% plus inflation, I project the cap in three years to be around 82.5 million, so around 27 for all three, still doable.

[SilverEagle]

22 for both Draisaitl and McDavid? That sounds about right, which is good, because Matthews will prolly get 12.5, but no way Marner or Nylander are getting 9.5, so the Oilers wont be blowing the market up here, if they get both those guys for 22, if Draisaitl is a 9.5, then Marner and Nylander are around a 7 and a 6, which is doable.

If Drasaitl were to go over 10, then the market jumps a Marner and a Nylander up over an 8 and a 7, which then starts to be a problem.

12.5, 7.5, 6.5, still OK, 12.5, 8.5, 7.5, now that's starting to squeeze, if they can get all three for under 33% of the projected cap, can keep all three, over 33% of projected cap, they're taking a slot from another good player, with the PA cap elevator 2.5% plus inflation, I project the cap in three years to be around 82.5 million, so around 27 for all three, still doable.

Matthews still needs to prove himself over the next two years, but yeah if he continues the up trend then he'll get 12.5 all day long.

[Smitty-48]

22 for both Draisaitl and McDavid? That sounds about right, which is good, because Matthews will prolly get 12.5, but no way Marner or Nylander are getting 9.5, so the Oilers wont be blowing the market up here, if they get both those guys for 22, if Draisaitl is a 9.5, then Marner and Nylander are around a 7 and a 6, which is doable.

If Drasaitl were to go over 10, then the market jumps a Marner and a Nylander up over an 8 and a 7, which then starts to be a problem.

12.5, 7.5, 6.5, still OK, 12.5, 8.5, 7.5, now that's starting to squeeze, if they can get all three for under 33% of the projected cap, can keep all three, over 33% of projected cap, they're taking a slot from another good player, with the PA cap elevator 2.5% plus inflation, I project the cap in three years to be around 82.5 million, so around 27 for all three, still doable.

Matthews still needs to prove himself over the next two years, but yeah if he continues the up trend then he'll get 12.5 all day long.

Matthews I'm not too worried about, the kid seems driven like a generational player, I'm assuming 12.5 basically, I'm not worried too much about Marner neither, because he has a two way game to him, Nylander on the other hand, his two way game has a long way to go, so if there is one of the three where I would drive a hard bargain, he would be the one.

Nylander is the most one dimensional of the three, unlike Matty and Marns, Nylander does fuck all in his own zone, so if we had to jettison one, he would be the one I would trade.

Like, Marner can get bigger stronger, work on his shot, and he is already outstanding defensively as well, but I don't think Nylander is ever going to transform into a Pavel Datysuk if you know what I mean, with the puck, he's mind blowing, but without the puck, he's fuckin' useless.

Marner may be the smallest guy on the team, but he checks, he blocks shots, he comes back hard in his own zone, he's positionally sound without the puck, he is complete in every sense of the word except for mass, but he punches well above his weight class, he basically plays the two way game of a centre, just from the wing, and even though Nylander was a centre converted to the wing, Marner is so good defensively, he could play centre right now, whereas Nylander, no way. Babs will train him up, but I don't see Nylander ever being a dominant two way player who you could rely on in all situations, as I do with Matty and Marns.

[Smitty-48]

I'm not sleeping on this Miro Aaltonen kid that the Leafs signed out of the KHL, I don't know if he will pan out to make the Leafs, but he's definitely got top end skill, like, poor man's Panarin actually, he might need some seasoning on the Marlies for a year or two, but he basically presents as a free second round pick... he wasn't really on my radar, but once I started to look at him, he's much better than I was expecting.



Like I said, they have a lot in the pipeline, Brown, Hyman, Leivo, Rychel, Soshnikov, Kapanen, Aaltonen, Johnsson, Bracco, Grundstrom, Korshkov, Carrick, Dermott, Liljegren, Rasanen, Borgman, Rosen, Nielsen, on top of the big three, so if two years from now they have to ship out some veteran contracts to make room for Matty's $100 million dollar contract, with Nylander, Marner, Kadri, Rielly and Zaitsev, I still think they will be able to ice a pretty good group of young players around him to grow into the future.

They're just into the final days of Bozak, JVR, Komarov, Gardiner, I don't see any of them being resigned long term, and the clock is ticking on Andersen, so might as well just add what they can on a two year window, see what they can do with it, then in year three, out with the old in with the new again, the team gets younger and cheaper by default, even with the Matthews contract.

Old Leafs is fake news, they are loaded up with talent, and there are at least six or seven regular NHLers coming, to go with the eight or nine young ones they already have, the problem right now is that they actually have at least 16 forwards who could play in the NHL this year, with only 12 slots, and even more to come over the next couple years, and that's a good problem to have, Leaf hater stalker concern trolls notwithstanding.

I don't see Lou getting extended, I see Dubas taking over in two years, and Shanny is not going to let Lou run amok, but if he wants to try to go for it this year and next, that's fine by me, the future is now, Lou, take the shot, the Shanaplan carries on, but while the youngsters are growing, might as well take a run at it, let's go.

[Smitty-48]

Rumour control; "Leafs are pursuing Tanev, Vancouver wants JVR, a D-man, and a pick."

[Smitty-48]

Sources say; what Sakic wants for Duchene; top pairing RHD, on ELC or RFA, 25 and under. Asked Brandon Carlo from Boston; Boston said take a lap.

Get this, Islanders put Travis Hamonic on the table for Matt Duchene, Sakic didn't take the deal, because; over 25, not ELC nor RFA

[TheReal_ND]

Fuck. My forehead is bleeding from a stupid sunburn. That's not normal is it? I wear a hard hat or baseball cap though. I feel like my receding hair line has caused a new skin condition.