Trade Rumors and Free Agent TalkTrade rumors, transactions, and free agent talk. Rumors must contain the word RUMOR in post title. Proposals must contain the word PROPOSAL in post title.
A serviceable 2nd line center (arguable) with a contract of decreasing salary each year for 3 more years. [At this point, cap hit means very little.] Gomez is young enough (31), but still greatly overpaid, so acquisition would likely come with some extra incentive to pick up his contract. Thought it would be a good chance for Dallas to pick up a decent player and also some other assets at perhaps little cost.
Montreal would probably be glad to be rid of his contract
And would add some incentive to get rid of it, right? That's the point. Why not, I guess? It's not like any top FA's are gonna be banging down doors to come to Dallas right now. Why not get a decent player and get compensated for carrying his bad contract?
Only way I would take Gomez as a fan of Dallas is if Subban+++ comes with him. Otherwise it's just one of the 5 worst contracts in the NHL and absolutely no reason Dallas would want him.
At first, and maybe still now, I thought "this is crazy talk". But I think most that have responded are not addressing the original statement.
How bad would Montreal want to get rid of Gomez? Would they make the deal good enough that it would be worth it for Dallas?
Maybe this:
Dallas gets:
Gomez
Top Prospect
2nd in 2012
Montreal gets:
Mid level prospect
6th in 2012
Those might not make any sense at all, as I have not idea what the value would be, but I think that is what JesusNPucks is asking.
If Gomez had 1 or 2 years left, then maybe, but no for Dallas since he is signed until 2013-2014. Too many years. I also think the only way this might work is ownership doesn't get resolved and Richards does not sign. Dallas will be near the cap floor waiting on ownership and will get enough assets in the trade that they would have time to develop until a new owner arrives with direction for this team.
Hate to be GM Joe, trying to make the best out of a bad situation.
At first, and maybe still now, I thought "this is crazy talk". But I think most that have responded are not addressing the original statement.
How bad would Montreal want to get rid of Gomez? Would they make the deal good enough that it would be worth it for Dallas?
I think Lance78 is getting the idea. It really has more to do with, "How bad would Montreal want to get rid of Gomez? How much are they willing to part with (throw in) to get rid of his contract?"
As for the comments about re-signing Richards, I think the two are not as comparable as you think. Richards will be wanting probably $7M+ for several years. After all, we are hearing news on THN that he could command up to $8M for 7-8 years. Gomez's contract over the next three years:
This is very different. There is no way you get Richards for that. So, to compare the two doesn't really work. And yeah, the cap hit stinks, but you are realistically looking at it only affecting the final two years of his contract (Dallas won't spend to the cap next year).
So, back to the point, what would Montreal offer and would it be worth it to Dallas?
Gomez is a decent player with a terrible contract coming off a terrible season. For some reason, people think he's gonna get dump with asset just for the shake of getting dump.
He is part of the leadership core for the habs and has done wonders for team spirit and team chemistry. The only think wrong with Gomez is the money he gets via his numbers offensively.
By no means I say he's worth the money he's got but what I do say is that he has value....may not be every team's dream to get him but there are suitable team and Dallas could be one of them. I see Florida and Columbus has other potential destination or even the Atlanta/Winnipeg. One thing is for sure, Montreal will buy out/ bury his contract before giving up asset along with him to some other team.
habs would certainly consider trading gomez, but forget the 2nd round picks as an 'incentive'. when was the last time any sane GM would consider giving away such a high pick as incentive. never
In the salary cap world the name of the game when it comes to determining the value of a player is production vs contract value. With that said, Gomez is a financial anchor on an otherwise solid Montreal team and is holding them back from adding the necessary pieces that would propel them to "contender" status.
If I were their GM and I could shed his contract for a couple second rounders and an OK prospect I would do it in a second.. especially considering you could immediately spend that cash on a player like Brad Richards.
Replacing Gomez with Richards along with adding Laich and a healthy Markov would likely put the Habs in position to compete for the Stanley cup next year without giving up any significant assets. Provided the assets going to Dallas isn't anyone off their current roster (Dallas seems to be building for 2 years down the road when Benn, Eriksson, Glennie and Goligoski have nearly reached their potential, so picks in the 2nd round of a very deep 2012 draft will likely be welcomed) I don't see why Montreal fans would be hesitant to do this.. unless they have no clue about how the salary cap works and how important it is for contenders to have players whose salaries match their production... or in the case of the BlackHawks last season, players that far out perform their cap hit (Kane, Toews).
Buying out Gomez is another bad idea.. just look at the Leafs and Darcy Tucker.. they're still paying 1M each year towards the cap to pay for that buyout and that contract was far less than Gomez's.
Could they send him to the minors? Sure.. and this is probably the best route for them if their owners are cool with paying a player a lot of money to ride the bus.
