If they were smart they'd capitalize on that now, when trading away said veterans. Knowing this management group they'd screw up their leverage and have to pay teams draft picks to take on their salary since they'd know the Sens have to reach the floor.
- david22
So, here is another thought that the guy who knows a guy told me. Dorion has a great reputation for evaluating talent. There is huge talent coming through the Ottawa pipeline. At the same time, high end players are coming off their entry level deals and immediately asking to be paid full value. So, it is no accident that McDavid, Draisaitl, Nylander, MacKinnon, Eichel, Matthews, Marner, Laine et. al., are not waiting until free agency for full payment. Chabot will be asking big money soon enough.
So, the existing big dollar, long term deals for UFA's start to become problematic for all teams over the summer months. Really good veteran players will be available from teams (eg., Toronto, Winnipeg) that need to clear cap space to sign younger players. It is not a case that anyone has done anything wrong. It is really about the transition taking place around the management of Cap.
I am not a fan of Dorion or what the Sens are doing. But, interesting to hear someone talk about how the pain of this year in making the full rebuild break will pay dividends far faster than what the casual fan believe.
As you know, I believe Melnyk is on his way out. The actual terms of his departure are interwoven into the LeBreton dance. Really important to understand that purging expenses is standard practice for any corporation cleaning up its books and getting ready for an actual sale (in this case, I think it will be explained as a recapitalization). Therefore, I don't believe that the player rebuild strategy will change even if we were to wake up next month and know that Melnyk was no longer the sole owner of the Ottawa Senators.
