Gorbachav55

I disagree there. The Kings' pipeline looks a lot better than the Ducks' at this point, and a trade for Eichel would make that difference even starker. I'm okay trading for Eichel, because I think you always add elite talent if you can. But that's also why I don't want to include a 2022 1st round pick in the deal. We're going to need more talent after Eichel. The Ducks still have a long way to go to get there. We've argued about this ad nauseum, though, so we're not going to get anywhere. You think the team is a lot closer than I think it is, and the difference lies in how much we think we're going to get out of the veterans going forward. The Kings traded a lot of their veterans; the Ducks mostly re-signed theirs or cut them. The Kings got Bjornfot, Moore from those trades (or iterations thereof) - the former is the only real important piece, but it's not nothing. Mostly, though, they also got extra picks, some of which they used and some of which they packaged in other deals. Brendan Lemieux, Tyler Madden, Lias Andersson, Samuel Fagemo - all guys they could draft or acquire because of those previous trades. You could say the same about Arvidsson. They could trade for him because they had so much depth in their system that they could afford to throw away a couple of extra picks to take a flyer on him.

The Ducks just aren't in the same place, though. The Kings' elders with immovable contracts have aged much better (Kopitar and Brown and Doughty) while the Ducks pulled the cord too early on one of theirs (Perry), another had a career-ending injury (Kesler), and Getzlaf just faded. Meanwhile, the Kings avoided giving extensions to their aging middle-6 guys, giving them more flexibility to add this offseason and more roster spots for some of their young guys, not to mention the ability to weaponize cap space. And it gave them assets that they will be able to use going forward (trades of Martinez, Muzzin, Carter, Toffoli, Campbell, Clifford landed them a bunch of assets, some of which are now contributors, and will be for a while). The Kings have managed their rebuild well. They are moving into the next tier and making moves associated with that, while having incoming young players to supplement and replace anyone they get rid of. The Ducks have not, and I think doing the same things the Kings did this offseason would have been a feeble attempt to make the playoffs and would have been unsustainable. Acquiring a long-term, elite asset like Eichel is one thing. Acquiring middle-six guys for questionable money and contract length (like Danault and Arvidsson) would have been a huge mistake.

I'm not crowning them kings of anything yet, and of course it's very early, but their play in the preseason and now against Vegas has really impressed me (blech). Kopitar is still playing at a high level, and drags everyone else upward. They have a decent second line, and that third line looks like it's going to be really good. You mentioned Byfield, but they've also got Fagemo and Turcotte in the system, not to mention some other depth guys who could get into the lineup over the next year. Their defense is also improving with Anderson and Bjornfot. Their goaltending is suspect, but you never know if a guy like Petersen can put it all together in his late 20s. Again, they're not "there" yet, and not particularly close, but they're on their way. They still need several prospects to pan out before they're back competing for the top of the division. But it looks like the moves they've made (acquiring Danault and Tkachev) and the growth of their youngsters (Vilardi, Kaliyev, Kempe finally coming into his own, plus whatever they get from Byfield) could put them firmly in the playoff hunt this season, especially in a weak Pacific. They're well positioned to let Brown walk and use his money to acquire a significant upgrade on offense or defense, and to allow Kopitar to age gracefully while his production is replaced by Vilardi or Byfield. I just think they're taking that next step. Bottom feeder -> Rebuilder -> Playoff Team -> Division Contender -> Cup Contender They look like they're moving from rebuilder to playoff team. Time will tell.

Yeah, the Kings look like they might be taking that step this season.

Wait, Detroit lost that game?!?!? I turned it off at 6-3 Detroit and Tampa looked like they didn't care.

I feel the exact same way. I guess you hope that a stud center comes along who can bring even more out of Tkachuk, but that still seems like a misallocation of resources. I would have tried to get him on a $4 - $5 million deal for a couple years to see if he takes it to another gear. If he doesn't, that's not a great contract. That's life in Ottawa, I guess.

Yeah, and this is where I get hung up. The top of the first round in the upcoming draft is very strong, even past Wright. The Ducks could really use one of those guys. Now, whether one of those guys turns out better than McTavish is up for grabs. I'm not a prospect hound by any means, but it looks like there are several guys in the upcoming draft who would have been rated ahead of McTavish. Essentially, if the Ducks get a top 8 pick in 2022, you've got a better than 50/50 shot that guy ends up a better player than McTavish. Of course, this is all fraught with variability. I am 99% sure the Ducks can't get Eichel without one of Zegras, Drysdale, McTavish or their 2022 first going the other way. You might be able to get away with top 2 protection on the first as you suggest, but I doubt much more than that. It's a tough call. I'm more inclined to include McTavish in such a deal than the 2022 first, even top 2 protected. But it depends on how well you think the team is going to do this year.

I have no idea what other teams are offering, but Buffalo is asking for several 1st round talents in exchange for Eichel. Originally, the report was four assets. I'm sure that's come down now, but I imagine two first round assets are the minimum. Buffalo is going to want at least one actual player. I can imagine the Ducks escaping without Drysdale and Zegras included, but without McTavish as well? There has to be some team that can beat that offer. The Ducks don't have any other high level prospects. Kevyn Adams would be run out of town on a rail if he traded Eichel and didn't get one top-of-the-first-round talent.

Wow, Brady Tkachuk signs for seven years, $8.2 million per year. That's an awful lot for a guy who's scored at a .65 ppg pace over his three-year career, and hasn't gotten more productive since his rookie season. I know there's still potential there, and we have to take the COVID seasons with a grain of salt, but it seems like Ottawa really has to overpay to keep these guys around. I don't blame them - they had to do this as part of their rebuild (and they can afford to), but it's going to make negotiations with some of their other guys more difficult down the road, assuming they blossom into stars. For all the flak I give Murray, he's usually handled RFA negotiations really well. It will be interesting to see if it's any different now that Solomon is here.

I think Lindholm could make that bet; from his interviews he seems like an extremely confident guy. He could also back it up with a 4 x $4.5 deal and come ahead. You're right he doesn't get many points, but GMs will love his defensive value, and I think he'll hold onto that well into his 30s. This is also assuming money is the only thing that matters. Hampus could see his path to a Cup running through a different place and take a little bit less money to chase it. And a shorter contract gives him flexibility to do so if his next place doesn't work out. I am higher on some of the Ducks' LHD prospects than you are, but there is significant risk there, and none project to be as good as Lindholm. That said, Lindholm isn't a true #1 d-man himself, so maybe the Ducks hope that they can make up for his absence with better depth. I'd rather keep him than not, but it's not looking great at this point.

Two things: 1. If the Ducks were to let Hampus walk, they would have to replace him through trade. There is not much going on as far as LHD on the free agent market. A 38-year-old Giordano? Nick Leddy? Calvin De Haan? The only one who makes sense is Morgan Rielly and I don't see Toronto letting him go if they can help it. 2. Given the dearth of good defenseman hitting the market, I could see Hampus willing to walk, particularly if the Ducks trade/don't re-sign Rakell. They're very good buddies. It doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to the same place, but that if Rakell is gone, it's one fewer reason for Lindholm to be loyal. And it seems there are always a few teams willing to overpay someone they think is a top pairing d-man. Hampus certainly fits in that category. I could see a team going up to $8 million for five years, which means Hampus is only 33 when he gets his next contract and could make more money overall. We'll see what happens, but given that we know the Ducks could really use him on the roster, and we know they have plenty of cap space, the fact that he hasn't re-signed yet is worrisome. There could be a lot of turmoil within the Ducks' organization next summer with Murray and Eakins both on expiring contracts.

And thank God we exposed Fleury, otherwise Seattle might have selected Volkov or Milano.

True, but the Samuelis have bought some of the other property in the area and are developing it into a nice spot for people to spend an evening. So while the arena is old, it's not ancient and the surroundings are being upgraded significantly over the next few years.

If anyone is watching the brand new ESPN NHL commentary show (which just ended with a shaving cream "pie" to the face of one of the hosts - man I forgot how much I dislike ESPN), they just predicted Eichel to Anaheim by the end of the season. Although the shaving cream pie gag makes me question the professional bona fides of these two. They then followed that prediction up with a prediction that John Gibson would also be traded by year end. So...take all this with the biggest grain of salt you can find.

This could make sense, but I worry about the kid in a losing environment with Eakins at the helm. I just have no faith in Eakins to develop him properly or to keep the locker room from becoming a bad environment.

Yeah, Terry's a conundrum for me. I like his hockey skill - good vision, decent shot, decent skating, and plays really well defensively in the neutral zone. But his lack of strength and forechecking makes him an odd fit on a Getzlaf line, not to mention he and Getzlaf are both pass-first guys (Getzlaf moreso, but Terry's passing skills would be valuable with a more trigger-happy centerman). If McTavish develops into the center we want him to be, Terry could fit there. I do think Terry and Comtois work well on a line together. Those guys would look great alongside a certain trade target. But for now, they'll make up a somewhat odd second line with Old Man Getzlaf.

What if we cherry-pick many transactions over the course of his career?

Do you really think that Pateryn is as good as Fleury? Pateryn is 30, has been awful his entire career, and is right-handed (when we have three right-handers who are already guaranteed spots in the lineup). Fleury played well with the team last year, still has some upside left, and is left-handed. Neither have been point producers, but Fleury's possession stats are light years ahead of Pateryn's. Fleury is a good 3rd pairing defenseman, with the ability to play second pairing minutes if needed. Pateryn is an AHL player or 7th d-man on a bad team, at best. The "God status" is an absurd strawman. No one thought he was God. It doesn't matter why we acquired Fleury or for whom. Once we had him, it was up to Murray to make the best use of him. But instead of seeing that he would be a valuable asset to the team this year, he stuck with his original plan and left him exposed over several worse players. That's like picking up a rock and using it to hold down a tarp, finding out the rock is a precious metal, and then tossing the rock away after you're done using it to hold down the tarp because that's all you wanted it for. It's bad asset management, which has been a hallmark of Murray the last five years.

Congrats to McTavish, although I don't think he's quite ready. I wouldn't be surprised to see him sent to juniors before the 10-game limit. That said, while he's with the team, he needs to be in the lineup. I don't think this is their optimal roster, but there's not much they can do with what's in the system. I would have kept Carrick and Volkov up over Grant and Steel. And their defense is suboptimal, but that bird flew when they let Fleury get drafted. This is what I expect to see: Henrique - Zegras - Rakell Comtois - Getzlaf - Terry McTavish - Lundestrom - Silfverberg Jones - Groulx - Grant/Deslauriers I wouldn't change much about this. As I said, I think Carrick or Volkov should be on that 4th line over Grant or Deslauriers, but they're in the AHL. Steel will play if Lundestrom, McTavish, Groulx, or Jones struggle. I've also been against Terry playing with Getzlaf, but I don't know where else he plays in this lineup. If Steel were any good or if they wanted to play McTavish at center, I could see Terry playing alongside those guys and being an asset. But the Ducks are clearly breaking McTavish in like they did with Zegras - on the wing. And I'm okay with that. Lindholm - Drysdale Fowler - Manson Pateryn/Mahura - Shattenkirk I think this is the best lineup to develop Drysdale, which is the most important thing. It also relegates Shattenkirk to the 3rd pairing, which is good. We know that Fowler-Manson sucks, but who else are we going to pair Fowler with? Any of the other RDs would make that pairing too susceptible to size. I think this unit is going to struggle, though, especially given the lack of defensive help from forwards and the terrible defensive "strategies" that Eakins employs. And of course Gibson - Stolarz. I'm not nearly as optimistic as dts. I expect the team to be around 75 points unless additions are made or there's an unexpected contribution from a rookie. The team is going to struggle on offense and defense, and special teams look to be bad again, if the preseason is any indication.

At his best, I think Gibson is better than both Giguere and Hebert. That said, Giguere would go on these hot streaks (particularly in the playoffs) when he would be unreal. I'll never forget his series against Detroit in 2003. Hebert was solid and had some great moments of his own, but I don't think he was as good as the other two, even at his best. If the Ducks can turn things around and get Gibson some help, I think he'll end up having a better Ducks career than Jiggy and Guy. But if the team continues to be putrid after this season, I think Gibson will be gone and that will leave him just short.

I'm on record as being okay with trading Gibson. But it is really, really difficult to find a good trade for goalies. It's easy to push your 12th forward out of the lineup and move everyone else down when you trade for a top line guy. It's a lot harder to trade for a starting goalie and push everyone else down a spot. Goalie trades where the trading team acquires full value for their asset tend to require perfect scenarios where there's a need and the acquiring team has the pieces you want in return. Going off that list from The Athletic, who are the teams most willing to trade for Gibson? Starting from the bottom up, the Sabres, Coyotes, Sharks, and Senators are all going through a rebuild of sorts so don't necessarily NEED Gibson this season. The Senators would probably love him for the long-term, but Matt Murray would be wasted money for three seasons. Moving up from there, Dallas has Bishop, and Pittsburgh doesn't have any prospects we'd want. The Oilers should be a real candidate, but their prospect pool is also rather weak, and I question whether the Ducks would trade Gibson in the division (the division question is true for the Kings, as well, who I honestly think might be the best fit for Gibson). The Leafs and Bruins don't have the cap maneuverability to make it work, etc. There is probably something out there that could work. The Senators might be an option if they start winning this year and want to eat some of Matt Murray's contract. There are some decent fits within the division (especially the Kings) if the Ducks want to go that route. If Nedeljkovic falters in Detroit, I think that would be a great fit for a Gibson trade, assuming Detroit is ready to rejoin the land of the competitive. But it's tough to find a situation where the Ducks can get what they want (probably a 1st round pick and a decent prospect) from a team that needs a long-term starting goalie.

The injury situation is the big question mark, of course, but as Lebrun reported, he expects any deal to have some conditions that mitigate the risk. Eichel will have games played goals that will affect draft pick compensation. So if Eichel doesn't play more than 50 games next season, the 2023 pick becomes lottery protected (or something like that). But this is another reason why the Ducks probably shouldn't be considered the favorites - this deal is going to need to be creative for it to work. Bob Murray is a lot of things - creative is not one of them.

Maybe they're slow-playing it, but the Kings have been reported as out for a while. They certainly have the youngsters to get it done, but those youngsters could also be really good. Byfield probably won't reach the same level as Eichel, but he could be a star, and the hope for the Kings is that he's ready to take over the #1 center spot when Kopitar is ready to move into a 2nd line role. Plus Byfield doesn't have the injury to worry about (although there is risk that he won't develop into a #1 center). The Kings path is the one Bombays is recommending (and it has merit) - just load up on high draft picks and trust that several of them are going to turn into studs. We'll see if it works out for the Kings. I'd rather have Eichel, even with the spine injury, than Kakko. We'll see what he does this year, but Kakko has been a pretty severe disappointment thus far. He's still young, so it's not too late for him to do something. But I think he needs to put up 40+ points this year to be someone I'd want to bank on going forward. Plus, Carolina and Montreal's peeing match notwithstanding, offersheets still aren't really a thing. I'd enjoy it if they were, but GMs are way too conservative about them.

You beat me to it. Also, this was not a group of writers ranking guys, although they had some input; this ranking was based on a poll of GMs, players, coaches, and other hockey insiders. John Gibson is considered a top 5 goalie in the game by people who matter in the game. He's really good. https://theathletic.com/2874600/2021/10/11/nhl-goalie-tiers-2021-22-anonymous-panel-of-gms-and-coaches-rates-all-32-starters/

Could Vegas get creative? I know they really want him. They'd have to dump Karlsson, most likely, and probably include Tuch in the deal. Unless they could get Buffalo to take Reilly Smith instead of Karlsson. Then they'd have to stash Eichel on LTIR until they built up enough cap space to put him on the active roster. They'd also have to give up Krebs and a 1st, I'm sure. But Calgary and Anaheim are the obvious options.