dudacek

Don’t let the shortened season fool you: Accounting for that Sam’s past three years are 65, 59 and 60, if I remember the math right. ROR’s at the same age were very similar. It took him 10 years to break 64 points. Like Sam, ROR was also frequently used on the wing prior to being traded from the Avs.

All-time Canadian high reported in Lytton BC. Of 46.7 C (that’s 116 F). Broke a record from 1937. About 8 or 10 degrees cooler here, but definitely the hottest 4-5 day run we’ve had here in my lifetime. Supposed to start letting up here tomorrow, but it’s heading @Thorny’s way.

Overall

Sam will probably be moved for roughly the value of 10 OA and 50 OA. Jack for 3 OA, 15 OA and 50 OA. Id say about double for Jack is ballpark.

So what you’re saying is if we offer him a UFA-type contract, we will almost certainly stay.

The report didnt indicate to you that the opposite of the bold is the case?

Minus Jack and Risto, and assuming no major contracts returning, Adams would have nearly $50 million in cap space. It will be very interesting to see how that is used.

And the youngest is Dylan Cozens.

What is unusual is for a co-worker to be disliked to the point that several people make a point of complaining about him to the boss.

Right, but watched him in the lead-ups. He was dominant.

I see him as almost identical to Dach, big, skilled but lacking the alpha dog quality. I know there is a huge age gap that explains it, but Dach was so much better than Byfield at the WJCs. I know that’s not the be-all, but the fact Byfield was just a face in the crowd there two years in a row nags at me.

If that’s what you got from my post, that certainly isn’t what I think. I see him as a top-tier prospect, whose game isn’t exactly what I prefer - very similar to Byfield. The centrepiece-level prospects in rough order for me: Lafreniere Zegras 3OA Dach Byfield Drysdale Turcotte Boldy Rossi Krebs Kakko 5OA Rossi might be ahead of Dach and Byfield if he hadn’t had the season he did. 5th is there (and vaults ahead of the players) only if Beniers or Eklund is available.

That is a very interesting choice. The "value" in terms of tiers is very close, IMO. Dach was a #3 pick who has generally lived up to that billing but hasn't proven himself to be more than say Dylan Strome. I think both elements still have a "mystery box" element, but the "nearly here" and 1st-line centre projection elements favour Dach. I don't think people tend to appreciate how Comtois is the best player of this bunch right now. He has proven the most in the NHL and is still young and experienced enough to have upside. I don't think people consider him in terms of being worth pick #12 but he is already at the level of what an average pick 12 becomes. Personally, I'd pick Reichel, but in terms of value, he and Perrault are almost impossible to separate. So if the Ducks are offer a 4th piece, that is very relevant In terms of what I like (which seems to be in line with what Adams talks), I like the Ducks offer. I covet a player like Comtois, I covet a player like Eklund, I covet a player like Beniers. I am a little worried that Kirby Dach is too passive a player and personality to be a 1C. I think he could be a Tyler Myers type who always leaves you looking for more. That said, the talent and the chemistry with Cozens is very tempting.

I think Granato is already done. Not sure why they have yet to announce. Perhaps there is something else (Eichel trade, other hires?) that they are waiting to click into place in terms of their messaging?

Zegras was 9, Dach 3 and Byfield 2. 3OA is in that tier.

As @thorny said, I'm not saying 3OA alone, 3OA as the centrepiece. I really don't think Dreger has a strong insiders grasp of the Eichel situation, other than he's been told Eichel will be traded, the price is high, and a number of teams are interested. Most of the rest of what he says seems to be of the "sound like you know something without really saying anything" variety. Separately,I think Sabrespace is underrating the value of 3OA, possibly because of the negative hype of this draft. A pick that high has never been moved for a player in the salary cap era. Pick 7 (Derek Stepan/Antti Raanta) Pick 8 (Jordan Staal, Jeff Carter) and pick 9 (Corey Schneider) are the only locked-in top 10 picks ever moved that wasn't in a "move up/down" type of trade.

Kevin Adams, cleaning out the culture and refreshing a core that needed it?

I think I understand your central point very well: That Adams will keep Eichel if he does not get the requisite return. It's not that I disagree, it's that my point is that Adams' baseline level of return is below what many are willing to accept. My perception is that you think a deal has yet to be made because the baseline has yet to be met. I think that if 3OA is on the table, the baseline is already met and Adams is trying to lever that into the best return possible. Those saying "It has to Zegras++ or it has to be Dach+++ or we walk away" are going to be disappointed. I hope you are right.

The idea of Eklund #1 is growing on me. The idea of Eklund and Beniers is why I’m warm to the Anaheim rumours. If we get “stuck” with Power at #3 or even Guenther, I can live with that.

Not saying you're wrong, I think you are seeing what you want to see. It is almost certainly true that the Sabres told them the offer wasn't good enough and they don't feel empowered to go further. But under the circumstances (the Sabres wanting to trade Eichel) it is more likely they are holding an auction and looking to lever the best offer, as opposed to setting a price and saying "first one to pay it, he's yours."

I'd advise people to read the original article. "A trade was believed to consist of the 5th overall pick, Elvis Merzlikins, either Texier or Peeke and Chinakhov or Marchenko" was clearly speculation on Portzline's part. Yet these leach sites that piggyback off the real reporters will be what people remember. So much this. I think we're getting close.

This might mean Krebs had squat to work with and put up as good numbers as Beniers who was propped up by those around him. It might also mean Krebs got a lot of extra ice time, including in garbage time where the opponent had turned off the jets, whereas Beniers got less ice time with more limited prime opportunities. Also Beniers was a rookie on a stacked team fighting to earn his ice time, Krebs was the obvious centrepiece of his.

Part of me is real happy for Caufield. Lesson for scouts. Look at what a player can do, not what he can't.

I don't see the flash in Krebs you refer to upthread. I see smarts, discipline, and courage. I see really good puck distribution, but i don't see Barzal-like puckhandling. To be clear I like the player a lot. IMO, Beniers has too much in terms of hard skill, work ethic and smarts do be anything less than a good 2nd line centre in the NHL. And good 2Cs get 50-55 points. He's not a slam-dunk #1 because teams don't think his ceiling is much higher than his floor. IMO it's a case of looking so hard at the tools, you miss the player and his capacity to keep growing as hockey player. They might be right about a low-cieling, but I can't see any GM ever regretting taking Matty Beniers; he's does too much right. Of course not. We're talking projections, not absolutes. I think Matt Beniers is a much smarter hockey player than Bennett ever was.

I think that's closer his floor than his ceiling. He's a 50-70 player. Krebs' ceiling is probably 60-65 unless he ends up on the wing of a star, and his floor is lower than Beniers. Did you know that Krebs' production in his D+1 year that got everyone excited is slightly less than what Jack Quinn put up in his draft year?