Thorny

Smythe odds heading into final https://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/amp/nhl_stanley_cup_final_bets_a_look_at_conn_smythe_odds/s1_13132_38869862 1: Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida (+210 DK) 2: Matthew Tkachuk, Florida (+360 FD) 3: Jack Eichel, Vegas (+425 DK) 4: Jonathan Marchessault, Vegas (+700 DK) 5: William Karlsson, Vegas (+700 DK) 6: Adin Hill, Vegas (+1200 DK)

Let me break it down a little further: we’d be trading a *draft pick*. You get a new one of those......every year! For free! The league just.. gives it to you. Our system is *loaded*. Already to the extent that it’s a *guarantee* that not all of the players in it are going to be able to play for the Buffalo Sabres. What we are doing, when trading a draft pick, is merely, essentially, trading back one year in terms of talent arrival. Adams will make another great selection next year that will merely enter our already overloaded prospect talent pool one year later than the pick THIS year, would have. Which is YEARS away. We’d be swapping getting a much less important talent influx at F, a few years down the line, a year sooner, for a MUCH LARGER, defined talent increase, for right now. It’s a no brainer. It’s 2023. The valuation of assets has changed. It’s time now. It used to be important to never miss an opportunity to add to the system because you *needed the system to reach critical mass*. Adding another pick adds much less value, now than it did when we had a barren system that NEEDED through law of averages to reconstruct the NHL roster. It’s a hack: we can totally fortify our roster for next season, that’s ready to win, by dealing that pick. That’s the opportunity granted to us because of the great situation KA has put us in.

Let’s just offer them VO and be done with it We have to be sure to both get one of the best goalies in the league for next year, but pay so little so as to feel like we aren’t giving up ANYTHING we care about. This is how trades work

It’s such an easy “yes” it’s not even funny *the only reason you can get one of the best players in the world for the pittance that is a draft pick is *because* there’s no locked in extension.*

Honestly, I don’t see it as all that contentious of a process. More so a standard business procedure/disagreement. Par for the course in this league. I’m not sure it would be as big of an obstacle/fraught with as much ill will as people think. Admittedly, I don’t take KA’s “dying to be Sabres” comments as Bible-literal as some take them

Ullmark negotiated with the team for a long time before Boston ever entered the fray. I don’t really buy the idea he wasn’t, at any point, open to staying. As you mentioned, KA wasn’t willing to match Boston’s offer

Already there was talk of an 85% league or whatever

Vegas potential disadvantage mitigated. Florida potential disadvantage intensified. VERY interesting.

Could be. Or, whichever G turns back into a pumpkin at the wrong time. That could also do it

Golden Knights is golden. Should be a good final

You guys all hate Eichel way, way more than I like him lol

Don’t look out of gas to me...

How much of that is actually a hard line philosophy of KA’s and how much of that was a more general comment notably borne out of the time period where KA was going out of his way to detail the disconnect w/Jack Eichel? To me it was more of a stance against guys who absolutely had/have no interest in being here. Cutting yourself off from all but the absolutely thrilled would severely cut down the trade/draft/FA pool: id guess it’s a bit of a sliding scale. Greenway, for example, didn’t seem thrilled, but open to it. He did say he was excited for a change of scenery, in general. We want high character guys so anyone needs to have that mindset coming in, but personally I don’t think it’s strictly true when KA says things like “we only want guys who are *DYING* to be here.” you could absolutely be correct on Ullmark as there’s that baggage. Just speaking more generally

He was going to speak for himself I think until he remembered he hasn’t actually won a cup, me thinks I am the very model of the modern Major general “in a way...you are both winners. In a more accurate way, Barney is the winner.”

Go on..

Canada ftw

Ya. Florida to mean seems to be another team in a long line of Cinderella teams we so often see who’s runs stall out come the final. Suppose we’ll see but I’ll take the West winner

More games? If anything I thought it was headed the other way

Krebs and Peterka battling to see who doesn’t get moved in the Hellebuyck trade

Could be an issue for Bob’s rhythm. If he comes back down to earth, Florida is toast

He absolutely should have stopped the 3rd goal regardless, the flow of play was about even and the shots were close Eichel is their best player Like just for the record. He was in the regular season, and he’s the betting favourite on that team for the Conn Smythe right now you are definitely correct depth is everything. Anyone that has to be THE guy is set up to fail. No matter the team

I don’t really think the burden is on fans to detail examples when we don’t have the connections and resources the GM does. All a fan can do is judge their team relative to the work of other teams. Someone who knows *literally nothing* about GMing or hockey can still expect an average performance from their GM relative to other GMs. They are the professionals - it’s their job. Fans are the consumer and can expect better regardless of whether they themselves can detail solutions...direct the film...edit the special effects, etc etc They create the product. We determine if the product meets market standard

It’s a series.

Hintz is so good. Don’t watch a lot of him Hard work forecheck set-up from Eichel for first Vegas goal.