DarthEbriate

The shield is down! (belated about 5 or 6 minutes, had a call)

Woo, thanks for fanning on that Duclair. That was about to get gnarly.

Game.... on hold?

Game on! I guess

Well blergh.

Ok Victor, Jack... you may fire when ready.

You know... looking at his stats.... he's got 20 goals for the first time. He's never broken 50 points. He's playing top-line minutes. Some GM could totally overpay. But maybe they don't get silly and he considers being on an uprising Eichel-led squad with Skinner on his wing...

Slick little pass, Risto.

Wooooooo!

Well, yes. But any hot UFA is going to be overpaid. And if you wait a couple weeks you're not likely to get an actual 2C. Those are the lower tier guys who aren't going to break the bank. And Pageau is going to want to sign quick before GMs have less money and start thinking with their noggins.

Oh, and good job pinching in Montour to net it, too.

Woot woot, good work on Skinner to get that going

Is he good enough to be a 2C with an elite 1C in front of him?

Whoops! Check that --- that's what I get for not verifying my wild lies. Thanks!

And Dahlin too (for 5), though he prefers playing on the left.

Ceremony for... Phillips?... in Ottawa I think I read

Yeah. But yuck. A player without a 4.3 cap hit and a NMC could have been found to "Reasonably Replace Sobotka" (band name!) and we could have kept Scandella for future trade. Or if you need to move Scandy, then make it a real trade and add an asset and go get a player who can kill penalties and add more than ... <look up Sobotka + Frolik stats> 2 goals and 3 assists in 31 combined games.

I'm glad Olofsson's back in the lineup after that non-contact knee. Now, let's get Skinner off the skid and make this run to the trade deadline (and beyond) some fun.

He's torn: Larsson isn't a fast forechecker... but he is Swedish.... Larry isn't JBot's guy.... but he is good on the GLO line...

I'll record a hologram. But yes, we can call it the Boyes rule. Or the Raffi Torres rule. A guy you're going to plug into your playoff roster gets at least a 2.

JBot needs a reference chart for the remaining assets if he's going to sell. Rule 1: A proven NHL-caliber UFA rental at the trade deadline is a 2nd and then start adding more as player's skill increases or is considered more vital to the new team. McCabe, Larsson, Vesey, even Sheary, they're all 2nds minimum from here on out.

Every GM in the land has to be on the phone with JBot at this point looking for a great deal. Edit: But now at the deadline, a guy like Marco is really valuable for a playoff roster. And retaining salary to toss in the conditional 4th (or bump a 3rd up to a 2nd)? Well played.

Cynical me actually questions any UFA on our team who doesn't test the market, especially Girgs and Larry. Why ever would you stay in Buffalo where you've been a bottom dweller your entire career if there's a chance you could join a contender? That's not to say Buffalo can't be a contender, too. But... if you could be a 4th liner on a team that's been to the semis a couple times and has a talent-laden roster, vs. be a 3/4 on the Sabres where there's no guarantee of anything... I'd check out free agency.

If Angry Larry is going to test free agency anyway, then the GM can reward him for years of service on a bad roster by shipping him to a true contender. Likewise, if some team thinks Sheary can be a role player in the playoffs for a 4th and we've got no plans to re-sign him, then go get that 4th. You can always use it to trade up or toss in as a sweetener in a trade. Or... maybe the pick is a hit. But to just let all these expiring contracts walk isn't good GM-work. Now -- some will just walk. And some we'll re-sign. But that has to be planned for, because in general, the FA signings in the offseason cost more, so selling at the deadline is a chance to stockpile assets.

Olofsson got hurt on 1/2/2020. Skinner was already in a funk. I could have seen nabbing Kovalchuk then as a stop-gap (then demoting/cutting if need be when Golofsson returned). Instead, the Habs signed him on 1/3. It would have needed to happen fast.