trading two 1st rd picks plus lupul and sbisa for pronger at age 34
that deal looks bad now but it did get them going in the right track
and didnt ruin the present or future - they got a fair chunk of that back for richards and carter
would BB get incarcerated for trading two 1st rd picks plus for Nash ?
albeit a higher pick, but for a player age 27 not 34
If I'm the GM and all I did was talk playoffs and being confident in my group and we have a great core that CAN make the playoffs and blah blah blah. Then I'm sitting on the TSN draft lottery panel and James Duthie is smiling at the pure laughable way that it came to this. I am RE-THINKING my core.
-I would trade Phaneuf and sign Suter....Sign Suter first then trade Phaneuf (Phaneuf only goes if a Suter calibur D comes)
-Nash for Kessel straight swap...Most think Kessel would not be enough. He will probably pass Nash's career high in points this season and is a Star that Columbus can sell with Yakupov.
- Draft a Center. This is a NO BRAINER. We need a 1C. We finally will have a pick to draft one. Many diffrent opinions on who but...who cares we can draft one.
- Sign a veteran goalie. Nabokov, Harding just not another year of a Gus/Reimer combo
-Dump the deight weight( Connolly, Armstrong, Komisarek, Lombardi, I don't care how you do it. JUST DO IT.
-Let the kids play. I think Kadri, Colborne, Frattin, Holzer have learned all they can in the AHL. Time to see what they are made of on an 82 game NHL season. No more back and fourth. Lets see what we got.
If I'm the GM and all I did was talk playoffs and being confident in my group and we have a great core that CAN make the playoffs and blah blah blah. Then I'm sitting on the TSN draft lottery panel and James Duthie is smiling at the pure laughable way that it came to this. I am RE-THINKING my core.
-I would trade Phaneuf and sign Suter....Sign Suter first then trade Phaneuf (Phaneuf only goes if a Suter calibur D comes)
-Nash for Kessel straight swap...Most think Kessel would not be enough. He will probably pass Nash's career high in points this season and is a Star that Columbus can sell with Yakupov.
- Draft a Center. This is a NO BRAINER. We need a 1C. We finally will have a pick to draft one. Many diffrent opinions on who but...who cares we can draft one.
- Sign a veteran goalie. Nabokov, Harding just not another year of a Gus/Reimer combo
-Dump the deight weight( Connolly, Armstrong, Komisarek, Lombardi, I don't care how you do it. JUST DO IT.
-Let the kids play. I think Kadri, Colborne, Frattin, Holzer have learned all they can in the AHL. Time to see what they are made of on an 82 game NHL season. No more back and fourth. Lets see what we got.
This guy basically nailed it. Whether I'd trade Kessel for Nash straight, I don't know. I'd probably ask for more from Columbus.
As for the return for Phaneuf, this is an interesting topic. Let's say the leafs can acquire.... Ryan O'Reilly from Colorado. (Completely hypothetical, but I'd LOVE). Maybe make some other moves to aquire a guy like JVR... (Schenn+ Mac let's say.)
Give the player the $ and term and they will sign , there own self confidence and self worth will have them believe they would be above such fates.
Sooner or later this franchise needs to stop passing up on the true star FAs when they hit the market. BB has to change his 5 year term rule or gtf outa town, this is the new landscape of the NHL Brain, grown up and get with the times.
I completely dissagree here. All indications are that these contracts cause nothing but harm to the team that signs them. Ask NYI about Dipietro, or ask about the value for quality of play from Gomez, Redden, or Briere. In a few years the Kovy and Richards contracts will come back to burn those teams.
It's short sighted thinking, and just saying "bury them in the minors" doesn't work as the top UFA's you're referring to all seem to get NMC with those stupid contracts.
I think this coming offseason the Leafs should really focus on signing depth players to workable contracts and giving them flexability to slide these newly signed players around the roster once they're able to sign/trade for upgrades in the Top 6.
Overpaying this summer shouldn't be an option as once next season is complete, the amount of players scheduled to be UFA's that can make an impact on the Leafs roster is really one of the better offseasons to come.
Realstically, if we believe this team can compete without even signing a single player, we may see that happen.
Options to Move or use: Macarthur, Connolly and Lombardi
Can we get by on that and then give this teams offensive core a complete overhaul in the 2013 offseason?
Off the books would be: Connolly, Lupul, Lombardi, Macarthur, Armstrong, Bozak and Steckle
Remaining: Kessel, Grabovski, Brown (plus prospects like Kadri, Ashton etc)
Potential UFAs if they're not re-signed: Crosby, Perry, Getzlaf, Ribiero, Nick Backstrom (G), Jordan Staal, Morrow, Derek Roy, Nathan Horton, Travis Zajac, Tobias Enstrom, Ryan Clowe, Alex Edler, Stephen Weiss, David Clarkson, Teddy Purcell, Troy Brouwer, Jimmy Howard, Mike Smith (G), Chris Neal, and Matt Cooke.
The point is, if this team takes a reasonable approach and doesn't hand out poor contracts, they can really give themselves a face lift, with the good pieces they'll already have in place (Kessel, Grabovski, Brown, Kadri, Ashton etc) in the offensive core.
Excellent post, Chuck.
This is what I figured Burke envisioned. Problem is the goaltending let him down this year. The fact that this team probably won't make the playoffs again, may have Burke under the gun. I hope he sticks to his plan but I'm afraid that the pressure of making the playoffs and a new coach may force him to make some drastic moves. Short sighted fans and media who have a hard time understanding this "plan" may really turn up the heat next year.
On a different note:
I'm wondering what people would think of getting a goalie like Theodore for next year. He may come cheap and I think he has done well for a stop gap in Minny and now Florida. A one year deal may allow Reimer to develop properly as well as give flexibility going into 2013. The only thing is, would he want to play in such a big market again.
I completely dissagree here. All indications are that these contracts cause nothing but harm to the team that signs them. Ask NYI about Dipietro, or ask about the value for quality of play from Gomez, Redden, or Briere. In a few years the Kovy and Richards contracts will come back to burn those teams.
It's short sighted thinking, and just saying "bury them in the minors" doesn't work as the top UFA's you're referring to all seem to get NMC with those stupid contracts.
The standings can change on a nightly basis, so we'll be updating the draft order more frequently from now until the end of the season. Our Draft Order is based on the actual standings as of Mar. 5th.
Team needs and tendencies haven't been taken into consideration.
We've added videos for many of the prospects we have in our 1st round mock.
Submit a written Player Profile to us and we'll publish it -- Click Here..
Updated Mar. 5th
1
Nail Yakupov
Ht/Wt:5'11"/189 lbs
Position:RW
Team: Sarnia (OHL)
2
Mathew Dumba
Ht/Wt:6' 0"/175 lbs
Position
Team: Red Deer (WHL)
30
Stefan Matteau
Ht/Wt:6' 1"/207 lbs
Position:LW
Team: USNTDP (USHL)
2012 NHL Draft Notes
1st Round Traded Draft Picks
# 13 - Washington receives Colorado's 2012 1st round pick and a 2012 or 2013 2nd round pick (Capitals choice) for Semyon Varlamov.
# 26 - Buffalo receives Nashville's 2012 1st round pick for Paul Gaustad and 2012 4th round pick.
# 27 - Tampa Bay receives Detroit's 2012 1st round pick for D Kyle Quincey. Tampa had just acquired Quincey from the Avalanche in a trade for Steve Downie.
* - Columbus receives Los Angeles' 2012 1st round pick (lottery protected in 2012. If the Kings miss the playoffs, Columbus decides if they want to use the pick 2012 or 2013 ) and Jack Johnson for Jeff Carter.
If I'm the GM and all I did was talk playoffs and being confident in my group and we have a great core that CAN make the playoffs and blah blah blah. Then I'm sitting on the TSN draft lottery panel and James Duthie is smiling at the pure laughable way that it came to this. I am RE-THINKING my core.
-I would trade Phaneuf and sign Suter....Sign Suter first then trade Phaneuf (Phaneuf only goes if a Suter calibur D comes)
-Nash for Kessel straight swap...Most think Kessel would not be enough. He will probably pass Nash's career high in points this season and is a Star that Columbus can sell with Yakupov.
- Draft a Center. This is a NO BRAINER. We need a 1C. We finally will have a pick to draft one. Many diffrent opinions on who but...who cares we can draft one.
- Sign a veteran goalie. Nabokov, Harding just not another year of a Gus/Reimer combo
-Dump the deight weight( Connolly, Armstrong, Komisarek, Lombardi, I don't care how you do it. JUST DO IT.
-Let the kids play. I think Kadri, Colborne, Frattin, Holzer have learned all they can in the AHL. Time to see what they are made of on an 82 game NHL season. No more back and fourth. Lets see what we got.
i like some of your ideas. drafting a center being the best. i also want to see holzer. he should have been playing on big club long ago.
Komi (with less salary than cap hit) + 2012 5th to NYI for 2012 2nd
MacAurther + Gustavsson + Blacker + NYI 2012 2nd to LA for D. Brown and J. Bernier
Philly wants Nash - so to help - Franson + Kadri + Owuya + 2013 2nd + 2013 3rd for B. Schenn + S. Harntell ($7.3 mil cap hit)
Draft Alex G.
Sign Gaustad for 2.5 cap hit
Next January - when Connelly and Lombardi have re-bounded - Trade both for 1st round picks (it's called asset management - both are legit player capable of playing, next year in the last year of their deals, there will be a lot of teams (as always) looking to boost their top 6 / top 9 )
Trade Armstrong for a 2013 2nd.
Then you have:
Lupul Colborne Kessel
Schenn Grabo D. Brown
Kulemin Gaustad Hartnell
Frattin Steckle M. Brown
People wouldnt know what hit them if we just let Bozak go for basically nothing like everyone on these boards are implying. Kid brings everything we need to the table outside of flashy offensive skills. He hits hard on the forcheck (Made Marchand eat some crow), wins important faceoffs, out muscles other players in puck battles, is young, and has a decent knack for the net. Hes a fantastic 3rd line center on a contending team. Would like to see how he does as a second liner.
Here are the 3 things I'd get for the Leafs, were I GM:
1) Bonafide goalie. I love Reims and Gustie's been good in spurts, but sadly, they are not reliable.
2) Get some grit. I'm talking Raffi Torres type players. I'm talking Cal Clutterbuck type players. Scottie Hartnell, etc. Players that make the team coming in think to themselves "awww, crap, we have to deal with THAT guy". I would take all 3 of those players in a heart beat
3) Assuming 1 and 2 are achieved, let the kids play. None of this taxi-cab jockeying between Ricoh and the ACC, if you're in the long term plan, and you can contribute, you're up. This would involve getting rid of some driftwood, most likely.
Have we seen when they play? We've seen 3-5 game stints definitely but the only marries I've seen are the tim Brents and daryl boyces of the world who are decidedly not kids.
Consistent goaltending is what this team needs. The months in which they get decent goaltending, they are a playoff team. When goaltending is sub-par, like February, they struggle.
Have we seen when they play? We've seen 3-5 game stints definitely but the only marries I've seen are the tim Brents and daryl boyces of the world who are decidedly not kids.
Kadri has been back and forth
Schenn has had good and bad seasons
Colborne has had a couple games, but shown nothing spectacular
All are considered kids and all have struggled. So what happens when the kids we bring up struggle? Bring up more and just add fuel to the fire? Its like putting newspaper over a spill and not cleaning it up. You know the problem is still there, but haven't made the proper steps to clean it up.
I won't include signing someone like Parise or Suter, because I think it's highly unlikely. I also won't have us trading Komisarek, because I think he'd be nearly impossible to move.
1) Draft Galchenyuk, hope he's our long term #1 C, but leave him in the OHL next season. Bozak will do until he matures, and I actually wouldn't be surprised if we see Grabo play with Kessel. Wilson never really gave them a shot together, but with a new coach comes a new system and new ideas, I could see Carlyle giving Grabo a serious run with Kessel
2) Trade Schenn for Schneider, sweetening the deal if necessary
3) Sign a #3 C who's a top notch penalty killer, someone like Chris Kelly
4) Trade Lombardi, Connolly and Army for literally anything. They're all on expiring contracts, I could see them being movable to teams looking for bandaid fixes. I'm talking like conditional 7th round picks in return here, and if any of them prove unmovable, consider waiving them
Team for 2012/13:
Lupul - Bozak - Kessel
Kadri - Grabovski - Kulemin
MacArthur - Kelly - Frattin
Ashton - Steckel - Brown
Something like that would be my ideal offseason, I'd be very optimistic about the future, and think we'd have a good shot at making the playoffs in 2012/13 too.
Colborne has had a couple games, but shown nothing spectacular
All are considered kids and all have struggled. So what happens when the kids we bring up struggle? Bring up more and just add fuel to the fire? Its like putting newspaper over a spill and not cleaning it up. You know the problem is still there, but haven't made the proper steps to clean it up.
I'd throw Reimer and Aulie in to the disappointing "kids" group as well.
Also, anyone saying they want Colborne as our #1 C next year, that would IMO be one of the worst moves we could make. Watching him when he was up with the Leafs, he wasn't bad offensively, but in terms of his skating and defense he really could not keep up with the play at all. As an example, watch this shift:
That was probably the team's worst shift of the season, everyone was tired and nobody was playing well, but the main liability out there is Colborne. The Bruins consistently give the puck to whoever is close to him, and he's beyond useless, he puts zero pressure on the puck at all, the opposing players get whatever they want against him. Not all of his shifts were this bad, but he consistently struggled badly to skate with the opposition on defense, and unlike most big/slow guys he doesn't play the body either. We're a bad enough defensive team as is, we don't need to throw in a liability like Colborne IMO. Grabo, Bozak and Connolly (yes, Connolly) are all much better options.
I won't include signing someone like Parise or Suter, because I think it's highly unlikely. I also won't have us trading Komisarek, because I think he'd be nearly impossible to move.
1) Draft Galchenyuk, hope he's our long term #1 C, but leave him in the OHL next season. Bozak will do until he matures, and I actually wouldn't be surprised if we see Grabo play with Kessel. Wilson never really gave them a shot together, but with a new coach comes a new system and new ideas, I could see Carlyle giving Grabo a serious run with Kessel
2) Trade Schenn for Schneider, sweetening the deal if necessary
3) Sign a #3 C who's a top notch penalty killer, someone like Chris Kelly
4) Trade Lombardi, Connolly and Army for literally anything. They're all on expiring contracts, I could see them being movable to teams looking for bandaid fixes. I'm talking like conditional 7th round picks in return here, and if any of them prove unmovable, consider waiving them
Team for 2012/13:
Lupul - Bozak - Kessel
Kadri - Grabovski - Kulemin
MacArthur - Kelly - Frattin
Ashton - Steckel - Brown
Something like that would be my ideal offseason, I'd be very optimistic about the future, and think we'd have a good shot at making the playoffs in 2012/13 too.
What was the thinking about putting Ashton on the 4th line? Not trying to be a tool about it, just honestly curious. In my opinion, he's not a 4th liner, but if you think its for development then I don't mind.
What was the thinking about putting Ashton on the 4th line? Not trying to be a tool about it, just honestly curious. In my opinion, he's not a 4th liner, but if you think its for development then I don't mind.
I don't think he's a long term 4th liner, it'd just be a development idea, get him some low pressure NHL experience. Alternately, I'd be fine with Crabb in that spot, and Ashton developing in the AHL, could 100% go either way. Even keeping Army and playing him on the 4th line would be fine too, so long as we have the cap space.
Also, anyone saying they want Colborne as our #1 C next year, that would IMO be one of the worst moves we could make. Watching him when he was up with the Leafs, he wasn't bad offensively, but in terms of his skating and defense he really could not keep up with the play at all. As an example, watch this shift:
That was probably the team's worst shift of the season, everyone was tired and nobody was playing well, but the main liability out there is Colborne. The Bruins consistently give the puck to whoever is close to him, and he's beyond useless, he puts zero pressure on the puck at all, the opposing players get whatever they want against him. Not all of his shifts were this bad, but he consistently struggled badly to skate with the opposition on defense, and unlike most big/slow guys he doesn't play the body either. We're a bad enough defensive team as is, we don't need to throw in a liability like Colborne IMO. Grabo, Bozak and Connolly (yes, Connolly) are all much better options.
This was an example of how poor the defensive system was.
The Leafs have 5 players below the hashmarks. This becomes a problem when the puck goes to the blueline and there's a shot on net. The play continues and extends coverage in your own zone. And as any player knows, your legs are burning and the lungs are working overdrive.
If the zone is extended, this will atleast put more pressure on the point shot and not as much pressure on the wingers to retrieve the puck. You still want that element, but to be so dependent to be going back and forth from the corner to the point, it affects your break out as well.
Now Colbornes development will be seen especially staying another year in the AHL. If he can't change with the game, then its going to be the Kadri problem all over again. Bring him up and send him down.
Before Draft:
Kessel, Lupul, Phaneuf for Tavares, Moulson, De Haan, 1st, 2nd
Kessel-Tavares with edge to JT.
Lupul-Moulson, 2nd with medium edge to Lups.
Phaneuf-1st with a wash.
Draft:
5th overall(Galyenchuk), Ours and NYI's 2nds (34#,35#) +Liles and Kadri for Nash (Kadri-Galyenchuk-Yakupov line for CBJ)
Pick Murray at 4th()
Offseason:
Resign:
(All AHLers except Dupuis and Finger)
Franson 3 years, 2.5 mil per
Kulemin 3 years, 3 mil per
Rosehill 2 years, 1 mil per
Frattin 4 years, 2.3 mil per
Sign Penner to 2 years, 3 mil per
Sign Moen to 3 years, 3 mil per
Sign Vokoun to 4.75 mil for 2 years
With amnesty clause buy out Lombardi, Armstrong, Connolly, Komisarek
- Franson + Kadri + Owuya + 2013 2nd + 2013 3rd for B. Schenn + S. Harntell ($7.3 mil cap hit)
