conundrumed

If my recall is correct, it was the goalie coaches that loved Vladar is why we acquired him.

Which is great and I know he's young, but he plays 3rd line RW. So he's not getting C reps and not facing the other team's best. If he was at C I'd understand that maybe he'll never overcome the phenomenal Hischier or Hughes. But his C is normally Haula. So why is everyone under the impression that Mercer would be a great top 2C? None of that has happened so far. Yet that's the guy that everyone is crowing for. There's likely 20 guys hiding in or around the league that are equal. Example, why is Nashville so effing good right now? Dawson Mercer's are around, why can't we get away from NJ? Buffalo really, really needs a goalie. As does Ottawa, maybe Detroit, Toronto, Carolina, LA, of Markstrom's calibre if we trade him. Maybe he won't waive for some, but options at least. If you're going to waive for Newark frigging New Jersey where wouldn't you waive for. Then if ours becomes a nightmare, don't say that I didn't warn you. lol

I prefer those odds vs Vladar and Wolf. I much, much, much prefer removing Vladar any way necessary. We've maneuvered cap space, added picks and prospects yet still want to throw all caution to the wind on goaltending. Absolute suckers for punishment. Wolf should have been the backup this year. HAVE to do it next year now because we waited. Very very few goalies walk into a seat successfully and I'll be downright shocked if Wolf is Vasilevsky. You have to fight through a lot for that seat. Vladar isn't much fight. And I don't see a Plan B. Plan A is only as good as Plan B.

The infatuation with Dawson Mercer echo chamber is nothing short of fascinating. We ripped Sharangovich already. The better of the 2. Is Dawson Mercer going to really explode here soon? What am I missing?

How old is Fleury? Wasn't Roloson 36 during the oilers cup run? There are others. Goalies aren't skaters. What if he's good at 36 and we extend? What's up with these foregone conclusions? So many questions.

Great analogy!

WOW you're not. 🤷‍♂️

Glass is empty?

Or more.

Because a goalie coach isn't living it. A heavily experienced goalie KNOWS how 400 different players have tricked them and keep trying the same tricks. It's the old saying, "Those that can't do, teach".

@phoenix66 quite eloquently described surfer-dude Kidd(there's a jr backstory I'll spare you) and what went wrong. Wolf should be Markstrom's backup. Markstrom can tell him the tendencies of every shooter in the league. If you need to figure it out for yourself, you could get in big trouble. Goalie coaches can't teach that. Experienced goalies can. Not unlike great young Centers that rock a 36% FO% to start. They need the experienced Cs to explain everyone's tendencies. Left alone, it takes forever. So I get that Markstrom gets a good return. The "but" is that goalies aren't skaters. I don't think aging is the same equation. Can Markstrom be great at 37-38? Maybe he can, I just can't 100% say he can't. If he stays the same, he extends to retirement for cheaper as a backup/1A-1B? I just hate the scenario where Kipper leaves and our goaltending becomes an endless quagmire of hot garbage. With Markstrom, options are still on the table. Without him we have no options.

I love you for that!! The echo chambers would be fire. lol

Trade Vladar and Wolf gets a great mentor, or gets to deal with this fanbase alone. Screaming now doesn't add jack-Satoshi Nakamoto btw. Nice try at effect though. I missed nothing but you pretending that your opinion is the all-encompassing truth. "Likely" and "maybe" statements contradict what you're trying to purvey.

Not to be offensive, but if anyone knew the proper way to do things, they'd be worth 1,000 times their weight in gold. Instability at goal, we're watching it with NJ, Toronto, Carolina etc. Maybe we should trade stabilities? We already picked NJ the proper way. Take the guy that needs a chance. Mercer and Holtz get nothing but chances. We literally already ripped them off for that guy. We should wait and see if that's a trend. Maybe our scouting team is really nailing it for Conroy on finding players that need chances? I'm willing to make that bet. Never heard of Grushnikov? Me neither. But I'm willing to bet a Flames scout not only knew of him, but got a 2nd scout to audit, then they told Conroy he's a hidden gem that needs to be targeted. Start with Stankoven, but your real intention is Grushnikov. Let the other GM think that he really put you through the grinder. That's just me surmising, but I doubt that I'm far from the truth. Professional bullSatoshi Nakamototers. I'd imagine the Toffoli trade ended with, "look, I think I'm giving you more than a good enough player for Mercer, but I'll settle on Sharangovich, but I want your 2nd this year. You're killing me, man. Alright, a 3rd".

That return kinda sucks actually. That 1st is going to be a 2nd is my guess. It is a lot of names though. None of those prospects scream NHLer, though there's some potential. I was mistaken as Ponomarev being drafted by Dubas. But that return looks weak. Bunting the only definitive 3rd line NHLer and likely no 1st rder. Conroy got quality, Dubas went for quantity.

Oof. A 2nd that moves to a 1st in the unlikely event the Canes reach the finals. Guentzel for quantity over quality.

bs. It's the one not racing to a minimum 5yr basement. Mercer would be more important than Markstrom? LOL

Had to know Guentzel would take a, "back up the truck". So is it both Bunting AND Ponomarev that are ex-Dubas? Not sure what those conditions are, but that 1st needs to be rock solid.

We're still in love with drama are we? Let's trade Markstrom? Because one media hack named Darren Dreger rolled out these nightmare scenarios that must be true? Because, you know, Conroy has no personal access to Markstrom to have a heart-to-heart and clear the air. Or is it that we all see that Markstrom is in a steep decline? We collectively know that past the age of 35 goalies stop training and just kinda stand there? What a fanbase. The volume of hate from the Oilers loss through last year was at 11. Now, guess what, he is a great goalie so let's trade him because we all know for a fact that he's nails one year and is horrible the next? Because with some obscure reasoning that makes sense. So should I, "think of the return", or should I think of how near impossible it is to find a definitive #1 goalie in this league? "Wolf's ready". For what? He's shown zero signs of that in his call ups. But that was likely the team's fault, like it never is for Markstrom, according to fans. If he were to be traded, I'll guarantee I'll spit venom in any, "Markstrom Appreciation Thread". He's been appreciated by this fanbase like I appreciate a doormat for my muddy boots.

If you want to attract Russians/Belarussians, Milstein is your best friend.

I can say at least one amateur scout absolutely loves it.lol BT almost put them out of work. They have a ton of work ahead of them now.

That's exactly my take on him. Interested to see how Hanifin slots/performs for them. Totally different structure/demands on that squad. McCrimmond use to spit his chew on his players backs on the bench when he was pissed.lol But of course, that type of behaviour is hearsay nowadays. He loves puppies and kittens and cries when a child scrapes his knees.

Decent return for Hanifin. 1st, either 2nd or 3rd, and a developed O-minded large RSD who can't get a chance to play regularly on a team of constantly adding bodies in the way. Fans seemed to think Hanifin is worth a Seider-like return when he is actually a Walman-level Dman. Expecting a top A-level prospect AND a 1st is unrealistic. Did no one notice Hanifin was NEVER paired with a 5 or 6 Dman to boost? He was the one getting the Tanev or Andersson boost.

Oof. My OCD is seriously kicking in. 20 pages of Hanifin-surmising and other TDL deals all mashed into one. I need to go play Stairway to Heaven, using Suck My Kiss lyrics, then use Hey You to Back in Black lyrics for the chorus. Is that OCD, ADD, or both?

Bingo! Annoying af.