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Isle be darned, Boston is out. With the second round wrapping up, Boston’s exit was somewhat surprising to many. The Islanders just came out in full force (and kudos to the fans for bring a lot of excitement). If I’m posting this, then the shock of Colorado’s departure is still setting in.
Yes, I remember the vicious rivalries of the 90s and early 2000s. The guys from those teams are impacting the league now, and the vitriol has melted away into respect. I honestly saw Colorado as the most exciting team of the post season. What Sakic put together, kept cost controlled ( though that may be changing) and made important additions to is a fast, heavy and skilled team that works. It’s a bit of a throwback to those Wings/Avs championship team, but at today’s speeds and skills. in all fairness, I don’t think players from 20 years ago could hold up to the kind of training mixed with speed an strength. These kids cut their teeth on high skill and took it to another level.
One of the bigger changes may be Kadri’s departure. The team has 20 million in space, and Landeskog could easily grab Rantanen’s 9.25 million. MacKinnon is due for a raise in 2 seasons as well. Those three could have similar cap consumption to Toronto’s top 3 guys, and it will change the landscape a bit. Kadri’s suspension (twice upheld) can’t have sat well with management. He made it through last year’s bubble without incident, but made himself a target of player’s safety once again. Joe should have a conversation with Seattle about that particular player.
Here is Colorado’s Cap Friendly page Sakic has 15 UFAs to work with. Saad may not want to take a cut from his current 5 million dollar hit. He’s inching toward 30, but may want to make it work to stay with a team that has a chance to win. He’s seen the “sunny side of the street” and it’s a lot more fun to win and probably worth a discount. Tyson Jost has arbitration, and was brought up in the past as a possible trade candidate (depending on the ask). Cale Makar doesn’t have arbitration but should still get a healthy raise. I wouldn’t mind seeing Jost come to Detroit at all.
There’s the smattering of older veterans on friendly deals that can be renewed or replaced. This is a team that should just keep getting stronger in the post season. Grubauer and Dubynyk both expire as well. For a team that wants to win, the goalie slot is going to be looked at closely. Gibson should have daily deliveries of goodie bags and “wish you were here” post cards.
Other than Jost and possibly Toews (multiple mentions by readers there) it might not be possible to grab a much better piece than those. Joe only has picks in rounds 1, 3 and 7 this season. He will want 2nd round access if it can be gotten. That may be Yzerman’s most popular ask from teams that need to move assets. You’ll hear many, many times that this draft and internal scouting is all over the place. Someone will fall to the second round that will be highly sought after.
What (if anything) would you pay to get Jost or Toews on board? Is there anyone else you’d take a look at? Nemeth was fine in Detroit, I’m not sure if they’ll look to bring him back or not.
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Check out some of my previous posts
Isle be darned, Boston is out
Carolina has cap space and a young core
I asked how your brackets are doing after Montreal swept Winnipeg
(M)Over Achiever - Seider getting accolades
setting the limits on trades
Moritz Seider reminds me of Jiri Fischer
Mo Seider is getting good ice time at the IIHF Worlds Championship.
There may be some blockbuster deals coming.
Yzerman signs Wyatt Newpower
Carly has coffee with Joe Veleno 
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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