Roger Mussa: Fitz at it again, Kulikov added to the back end

I'm not sure what the net effect is between adding Murray and Kulikov and losing Greene and Vatanen; but I'm glad Fitzy has addressed this need. My impression is we are better off is Murray can stay in the lineup. Vats certainly struggled with that in his time here.

I'd just like to get to a point where our goaltenders are not constantly put in a bad spot. Blackwood had some great games but this was not a good situation for a young goalie.

Matt Martin would surely help solidify the 4th line...

Definitely no to Galchenyuk. If it was Galchenyuk coming from Montreal or Phoenix, go for it. Galchenyuk couldn’t even make his mark with the Penguins, and that’s with an opportunity to ride shotgun with Crosby and Malkin.

Sure Galchenyuk is probably a 50 point player, but I’d rather see what the prospects can do and see if they can deliver a 50 point season. This upcoming season is going to be a wash, let’s see if the prospects are willing to fight for their roster spots.

Absolutely NO to Galchenyuk. The dude is terrible. Sucked with the Wild, sucked with the Pens who have much better offensive talent that he played with than here. He would set the players back that he would be paired with

Hard pass on Galchenyuk. If i had to make a guess, i would say Fitz is not done. I still think theres another move or two that will be made, but not in free agency. Maybe he makes another cheap depth signing but I think he's still active in the potential trade market and i think atleast one more move will get done in that aspect

You would give Galchenyuk a 3 year deal? Lmao

Chris Taylor is a fantastic hire for us! So surprised Buffalo let him go

Have fun watching Kulikov play great one game then look like a pylon the next.

Murray - PK
Butcher - Severson
Smith - Kulikov
-----
much better.

Still need that banger 4th line guy. We have Myles Wood but ........... and possibly Basitian or Mcleod.

Better and cheaper than Jack Johnson....

You would give Galchenyuk a 3 year deal? Lmao
- kfinl170

This Mussa character needs to watch a little more hockey....

And Kulikov is just a slightly better player than Matt Tennyson... we have seen enough of that.

I'm not sure what the net effect is between adding Murray and Kulikov and losing Greene and Vatanen; but I'm glad Fitzy has addressed this need. My impression is we are better off is Murray can stay in the lineup. Vats certainly struggled with that in his time here.

I'd just like to get to a point where our goaltenders are not constantly put in a bad spot. Blackwood had some great games but this was not a good situation for a young goalie.
- Queenie_5_hole

Kuli will have a very similar effect to Mueller/Greene. He can eat a ton of pucks. He may be slightly better offensively, but sometimes lacks discipline. If he can stay out of the penalty box, he will be a solid 3LD. Good to have in case our younger talent isn't ready to step up. Plus this can keep Smith at his preferred RD. I would have preferred Sbisa, but this is a decent addition nonetheless.

Murray could be our top D this season if he can just stay healthy. His career has been plagued by injuries. One of the best skating D in the league when healthy, and has a great IQ. When healthy, he is a slight upgrade from Vats.

The real x-factors will be Smith, and can P.K. learn to play a simple structured game again? Smith will be highly sheltered, but I hope to see signs of a potential star in this league for years to come. P.K. doesn't deserve to crack the roster based solely on his performance. Hopefully he can find some of that Norris winner from within and show us that he is still a top 4 D. I am certainly not getting my hopes up.

But Walsh/Bahl/Smith have high ceilings, and Severson and Murray are studs. We have the pieces for a quality core, just maybe not quite yet.

Murray - PK
Butcher - Severson
Smith - Kulikov
-----
much better.

Still need that banger 4th line guy. We have Myles Wood but ........... and possibly Basitian or Mcleod.
- thechezman

Smith plays RD, Kuli plays LD, and NO WAY P.K. deserves top line minutes.

Murray Severson
Butch Smith
Kuli P.K

Have fun watching Kulikov play great one game then look like a pylon the next.
- islansjet

Thanks! Totally excited to see someone play great defense 50% of the games! It will improve our defense bigly!

that Schneider buyout is so stupid. we may be looking to contend in the 3rd or 4th year and that 2mil will be just chillin there.. when we could've just dealt with it this year and the next.

that Schneider buyout is so stupid. we may be looking to contend in the 3rd or 4th year and that 2mil will be just chillin there.. when we could've just dealt with it this year and the next.
- MartysBetter88

It did save the owners $4 million out of pocket, in this environment I can understand it a little better.

It did save the owners $4 million out of pocket, in this environment I can understand it a little better.
- redmonsters

Sort of... except we are also paying Crawford $3.9M per year for two years so if you factor that in it's costing the owners money.

Not saying we should or should not have bought out Schneider. Just saying.

Would've much preferred to see them spend some cash on Ben Hutton rather than sign a defender that could best be described as marginally more reliable than Mueller.

I am going to miss Kulikov. I really liked him. Good Signing for the Devil's.

Have fun watching Kulikov play great one game then look like a pylon the next.
- islansjet

That’s our whole team

that Schneider buyout is so stupid. we may be looking to contend in the 3rd or 4th year and that 2mil will be just chillin there.. when we could've just dealt with it this year and the next.
- MartysBetter88

We won’t be contending in 3-4 years

Matt Martin would surely help solidify the 4th line...
- devs23jp

Boomer Esiason will veto that idea!!...lol

Sort of... except we are also paying Crawford $3.9M per year for two years so if you factor that in it's costing the owners money.

Not saying we should or should not have bought out Schneider. Just saying.
- Queenie_5_hole

Yes, so better use of cap, Crawford, in my opinion, is a big upgrade over Schneider, so the team and fans come out ahead, no increase to Cap, so I still see the Schneider buyout as a plus.

that Schneider buyout is so stupid. we may be looking to contend in the 3rd or 4th year and that 2mil will be just chillin there.. when we could've just dealt with it this year and the next.
- MartysBetter88

I agree. Sure we are a better team today with Crawford, but ultimately he is the backup on a non-contender as far as I am concerned. Hopefully the Devs prove me wrong, but this was not the best move for a rebuild that could hit cap issues in 2-3 years if our prospects start to become the players we hope they can be.