travel_dude

It's simply in order of number.

I think that the Flames are lacking in RHS, more than lacking in RW depth. As long as you have LHS that can play RW as well as they do LW, the point is moot. What we are truly lacking is RHS C's. Maybe I am jumping ahead, but if we sign Milano, then we just need Mangiapane to be able to play RW on the Hubie line. That leaves Milano-Kadri-Toffoli as #2. I'm not super happy with the 3rd line of Coleman-Backlund-Dube, but that's the way it looks unless we make a trade or Use Ruzie-Backlund-Coleman. I think Sutter prefers a bigger winger than Dube up there. But I could be wrong. That way you have Lucic-Dube/Rooney-Lewis as your 4th. Enough big guys to help out Dube with possession.

Yeah, wasn't snapping at you. I assume you thought Ruzie was exempt. No way does he manage to clear waivers, so I don't think he is bound for the farm.

That makes no sense. Ruzicka is a rookie, and right now including him we have 12 signed waiver eligible players signed. Ritchie makes 13 and Milano makes 14. Pelletier is listed on the cap as part of the main group, but he's exempt. If they sign Ritchie and Milano, Pelletier starts on the farm. Same way Ruzie was sent down at the TDL.

Cap friendly had a weird look to it. May just be because they don't have full details yet.

Ruzie signed a 2 year deal. Close to league minimum. Y1 - $750k, seems like one way, since no minors salary mentioned. Y2 - $775K same NHL and minors value. Good to have him signed.

So, you consider taking Weegar and bumping him down to play with Hanifin on the 2nd pair. Some unmentioned trade to get a top LD to play with Andersson. And Tanev playing with a rookie D. Beyond the obvious of we can't afford another top D, in cap nor in trade assets going out, we also have two D that are signed that have not even been mentioned; Kylington and Zadorov. Weegar played with Ekblad in a top pair on the best team in the NHL last year. Hanifin has played well with 2 D over the last few year; Andersson (top pair) and Tanev (2nd pair), so I don't get the need to play him with Weegar on the 2nd pair. At some point, you have to stop changing the D and let them grow a bit. Weegar and Andersson seem to have the highest ceilings on the team. Hanifin and Kylington have been suitable to very good in a limited usage. Zadorov brings the toughness that we sorely lacked two years ago. At some point, you need to accept that Tanev is the best pure defensive D we have and accept his limited speed. 6 guys that are capable of being part of the deepest D in the NHL. On the other hand, we have a decent top 9 at F - Hubie, Lindy, Mange, Toffoli, Kadri, Backlund, Coleman. Two spots with fillers. Beyond that, we have a 4th line of suitable grinders, no real standouts. Our greatest need is middle 6, so that the 4th line is a mix of heavy players and ones with speed/skill. We have addressed C depth, but not RW depth. And we only have D depth to use in a trade, since we don't have a ton of picks or prospects we can use in trade. To a certain extent, we have to send money out to bring money in. Hanifin, Kylington or Valimaki are the only players we could possible use, since (the first two anyway) they allow us to bring in a $4m to $6M F. There won't be any TDL deals to get better, since we don't have the draft capital or cap space. This is our team for the year unless we trade now.

It's more than just prospect ceilings though. It's also asset mnagement. We traded for a top D, already having 5 signed that played last year. Mackey got a game or two in, while Valimaki toiled on the farm. We signed Meloche to replace Guddy. We are set to sign Stone as the guy we can park in the AHL or waive to stay here. While we don't really have an idea of Valimaki's new ceiling after injuries, we also have no immediate place to play him without waiving him. At the very least, this situation will last this year, while possibly longer before Valimaki even gets a chance. Injuries occur, but then again he is as likely to be injured as being the guy that takes a spot for an injury. Perhaps the only reason why he's still on the team is they are waiting to see how he starts camp. A poor showing means he's bound for the farm. A good showing puts him as #7. I'm not in favor of trading Kyl for Pooly. It may be a fair trade to the Oilers, but I think it's a poor deal for us. Kyl showed that he is a NHL player capable of top 4. We need to explot that, not trade him away. I would be comfortable with Valimaki for Pooly, because both need resets. The ceiling of both are middle to top of the lineup. 2nd pairing or top 6. EDM does not have to waive anyone to keep Vali on the roster. Better option for them than Demers. The cap savings helps them more. For us, it reduces the need to sign bottom 6 players from PTO's. Milano gives us some depth in the middle 6, so I am okay with him. Probably means we start Pelletier on the farm which is okay. Lewis might end up being waived as well. Not the end of the world. For context, here is a possible lineup: Hubie-Lindy-Toffoli Mangiapane-Kadri-Milano Coleman-Backlund-Pooly Lucic-Rooney-Dube Ruzicka

So, the issue with Pooly is that he can't play with the top two players. They are frustrated with him and basically ignore him on the ice. The coach responds by moving him down the rotation. Not many teams have the lines decided by the top 2 players. The thing is, I don't think he is a reclamation project, just that he is one in EDM. I know that sounds funny, but he can't seem to get better there. He's taken off the PP in favor of the little guy. Because McD likes the little guy. And because he blames Pooly whenever he blows a pass. That's what I have seen. It's been called out by others. We are at least a team that egos go to die. Even Tkachuk had to check it at the door. The room doesn't allow you to be that high on yourself.

I didn't mean to suggest that at all. I was looking at what he was and will be in EDM and what value they could get for him. Valimaki is more value to them in terms of cap savings than Dube or Kyl. I have been promoting the trading for Puljujarvi for some time, just not overpaying for it. He probably should be worth what we paid for Jarnkrok or what we got for Bennett, but no team seems willing to step up. And we can't really afford a trade like that now. I am okay with Valimaki, since he's going to be hard pressed to get a NHL gig here. Rather than waiving him, I would like to see some value come back. Waste of $500k sending him to the NHL or $1.5M to play 5 NHL games.

The difference is that one NHL club was willing to pay a 1st and 4th for a RHS D. And a RHS D vs RHS RW is not remotely the same. Calling Kylington a bottom pairing D doesn't make him one. Sure, Kyl could regress this year. But how is it that a player with as much NHL experience (almost) as Tkachuk is still struggling? How will another year in EDM make him any better? Trading a former 2nd pairing guy coming off a career year for a struggling RW seems off. Fair value for EDM, since they want to unload him for what they can get. He's not worth a 1st to any team. When Broburg is considered a top 6 D, then you know EDM is in trouble. Valimaki, even in his present funk, is still an upgrade.

Pooly has baggage. He hasn't been able to muster a good season yet. He struggles with consistency. When most every player in that draft top 10 (except Nylander and Juolevi) have improved year over year, Pooly has struggled to even match Dube. Dube is more versatile. EDM would really benefit from Dube for Pooly, but I wouldn't do that trade.

If you are looking at the playoffs as being an expose of Kylington, perhaps take into account that Tanev was injured in the first round and the D was exposed as a whole at that point. Hanifin and Zadorov were unable to handle any of the top lines. So it wasn't Kylington that was the only player getting walked. In fact, Kylington was one of the few that could get back to cover, without taking penalties. Pooly was unable to fit any line he played on, whether it was with McLeod or Draisaitl or McD. Even though Yamamoto struggled with NHL sized players, Pooly showed his lack of hockey IQ. I think he could be rebranded and get his game closer to the level of a top 3 pick, but right now he is unlikely to play in EDM. He's not worth even a 3rd pairing guy on a top 10 NHL team. Lundqvist got a 1st and 4th, so the value of a D shows what teams are willing to pay. Pooly isn't even close to that.

Oh, one further note. Ritchie was being pursued by EDM for a PTO, so that may have had something to do with why BT is making an offer.

I have a problem with suggestions of trading a guy that showed he can play with our most solid defensive D and put up career numbers. He took a minor step back after his first injury and never really looked the same, but I expect him to have a strong campaign this year, starting out strong like he did last year. In my mind the pairs (could change) seem strongest with the following: Weegar-Ras Kyl-Tanev Hanifin-Zadorov Hanifin is better left to wheel if Zadorov can take care of the D-zone net front. It's one of the areas that Hanifin was getting burned last year. Playing with Ras tended to have two guys thinking offense and Hanifin struggled getting back to cover. But it begs the question - do we need a top 4 D on a 3rd pairing? Wouldn't Meloche/Mackey/Valimaki be capable of playing a hard nosed D in that situation? We may not lose Valimaki to waiver claim, but we still have to use cap to have him play in the minors. I know Willie Nee is not a player you welcome, but his value is what we should expect in a Hanifin trade. I think the options for a trade like that are limited. Nonetheless, we should be exploring it, if only to improve depth in the top 9. Possibly Milano is the missing top 6 guy, but I'm not 100% sold. We are a different team than Anaheim. He could do really well with Kadri and Toffoli, as long as we aren't expecting Backlund level 2 way play.

The funny thing is that Pulju had similar results for the year. 14g 22a Kyl had 9g 22a. A top 6 player (mostly) that can barely score more points than a "rookie" D? Nobody is paying much for Pooly. He's not my first choice for a top 6 player for us, but he has some good traits. Big, fast, hard shot. Have to balance that with his "IQ" and other negatives. Worth Valimaki? Only because both need a reset and we have excess D.

I don't hate the idea, but how many 4th liners do we need? Where does he fit in the lineuip? He's not a face off specialist. He's tough, but I think he is reluctant to fight after the last injury. We have Lucic, Rooney, Lewis, possibly Eakin.

Considering that teams wouldn't even give up a 2nd for him... He's going to be a cap dump, so Kylington doesn't help really.

Francis is reporting that the Flames will be signing Brett Ritchie to a one year deal. We are flush with 4th liners as it is. Mid you, he scored 2 goals in the playoffs, while others scored none.

I wouldn't give them Kylington for Pooly. Valimaki would be a fair trade and they save enough to sign Jake.

Virtanen sucks. It's one thing to be a Kane type producer with baggage. It's another for a guy that can't do much. Don't need the distraction.

So, the Milano PTO is a bit of a relief. I was worried we would extend one to Virtanen. TF, EDM signed him to one. They seem to love guys that have questionable backgrounds. Anyway, I think Milano could help this team. Maybe he works best with special talent, but if he can make one player shine, it would be worth it.

I think there is a plan for Ruzicka. Sutter thinks he is ready, but needs to show other things. His defensive game and ability to play the wing. And faceoff %. Saying that, I'm not sure what the plan is for the roster. Too many D, not enough RW.. Top 6 right now includes Hubie, Lindy, Toffoli, Mangiapane, Kadri. Options for 3rd line include Backlund, Coleman, Dube, Ruzicka, Pelletier. Coleman and Dube can play RW. Ruzie and Pelletier could possibly take a spot. They have some work to do to make that spot. Ruzie and Pelletier could really benefit from Backlund bump. But I think Pelletier is a long shot right now. Has to have a killer rcamp. The D will get different looks. Right now, I think they can run Weegar as the top pairing with Ras. I don't think it matters as much who plays with Tanev - Hanifin or Kylington fit like a glove. The minutes will work themselves out.

The Kings really shouldn't have been there. They didn't have the goalie to face a good team. But, they almost stole the series.