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2020-21 State Of The Habs


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7 hours ago, jennifer_rocket said:

In addition, when you look at the top three highest paid players in the league (McDavid, Panarin, Matthews) it feels like they are massive difference makers. It just doesn't feel like Price is anymore. And that's not to say there aren't other players in the top-10 who are underperformers compared to their salary (e.g. Doughty, Toews), but I don't want to aspire to be like those teams. I want Montreal cap dollars spent in a way that helps us win. Not hinders us. Price needs to be better or we need to consider leaving him for Seattle to take in the expansion draft. I feel like each season Price's value continues to crater and we need to stop waiting around for him to "rebound" just because NHLPA members and NHL team managers still believe he's amazing.

I share your sentiments - I hope it is Price warming up to get back into the flow as he was pretty solid in the post-season rounds but to see him not rise up against the leafs was disappointing. Unfortunately Price has a NMC clause so he's auto protected for the Seattle draft unless he elects to waive it as some people like to think he would be closer to home and might do so.

It has even got me hoping that Burke in Pitt might do something nutty like trade Crosby / DeSmith for Price, Mete and draft choices where Pitt is woefully weak, and Habs retain some Price salary to make it work for cap purposes - a guy can dream

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8 hours ago, jennifer_rocket said:

In addition, when you look at the top three highest paid players in the league (McDavid, Panarin, Matthews) it feels like they are massive difference makers. It just doesn't feel like Price is anymore. And that's not to say there aren't other players in the top-10 who are underperformers compared to their salary (e.g. Doughty, Toews), but I don't want to aspire to be like those teams. I want Montreal cap dollars spent in a way that helps us win. Not hinders us. Price needs to be better or we need to consider leaving him for Seattle to take in the expansion draft. I feel like each season Price's value continues to crater and we need to stop waiting around for him to "rebound" just because NHLPA members and NHL team managers still believe he's amazing.

Part of that is luck though. Panarin was a huge gamble (it was pretty safe he'd be a top 25 player but paying him as one of the top 5... that was a risk (that paid off) NY was, for a while, the king of bad contracts, so i think they got lucky with this one.  Likewise Matthews is probably earning his money but is it prudent to have Matthews, Marner and Tavares all in the top 10 money-wise?

I know im talking about something a little different from you (and im not disagreeing with your thought process either tbh) but i think that as is often the case, we compare our team with 30 other teams, not just 1 on 1 against another team.  in reality, one of the things MB has done well for most players is contracts - Price and Byron are both stinkers imho, but he seems to love to pay for what has happened vs. a player's potential (Anderson excepted). 

Thats said, i 100% agree with you about Price.  Right now he's still looked at favourably by a lot of teams. I think you could get a decent return on him still, but for how long? 

1 hour ago, claremont said:

I share your sentiments - I hope it is Price warming up to get back into the flow as he was pretty solid in the post-season rounds but to see him not rise up against the leafs was disappointing. Unfortunately Price has a NMC clause so he's auto protected for the Seattle draft unless he elects to waive it as some people like to think he would be closer to home and might do so.

It has even got me hoping that Burke in Pitt might do something nutty like trade Crosby / DeSmith for Price, Mete and draft choices where Pitt is woefully weak, and Habs retain some Price salary to make it work for cap purposes - a guy can dream

I think Price waiving his NMC is more likely than MB asking him to, tbh.  MB seems to get these ideas in his head & I think the chances of him trading Price are basically nil at this point. 

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6 minutes ago, maas_art said:

Part of that is luck though. Panarin was a huge gamble (it was pretty safe he'd be a top 25 player but paying him as one of the top 5... that was a risk (that paid off) NY was, for a while, the king of bad contracts, so i think they got lucky with this one.  Likewise Matthews is probably earning his money but is it prudent to have Matthews, Marner and Tavares all in the top 10 money-wise?

I know im talking about something a little different from you (and im not disagreeing with your thought process either tbh) but i think that as is often the case, we compare our team with 30 other teams, not just 1 on 1 against another team.  in reality, one of the things MB has done well for most players is contracts - Price and Byron are both stinkers imho, but he seems to love to pay for what has happened vs. a player's potential (Anderson excepted). 

Thats said, i 100% agree with you about Price.  Right now he's still looked at favourably by a lot of teams. I think you could get a decent return on him still, but for how long? 

I think Price waiving his NMC is more likely than MB asking him to, tbh.  MB seems to get these ideas in his head & I think the chances of him trading Price are basically nil at this point. 

Its hard to blame MB for the Price contract. We're you really going to let him walk? He would have got more in the open market. I don't like paying for goalies in this league as its currently constructed but every rule has its exception and Carrey was one of them. 

His consistency is really bad lately but he seems to play well when it counts... I hope thats still the case

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19 hours ago, habsisme said:

Its hard to blame MB for the Price contract. We're you really going to let him walk? He would have got more in the open market. I don't like paying for goalies in this league as its currently constructed but every rule has its exception and Carrey was one of them. 

His consistency is really bad lately but he seems to play well when it counts... I hope thats still the case

If not, at what point do we take a closer look at Primeau's progress?  

 

 

 

 

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16 hours ago, CANADIENS27 said:

If not, at what point do we take a closer look at Primeau's progress?  

 

 

 

 

For sure, at the end of the season. CP and his immovable contract will be here for a while. Especially, if the Kraken pickup Jake Allen. $8M difference. Ron Francis is a pretty sharp person, as exhibited by his on ice play, as a player. I don't expect any difference as a GM. Plus, as of now, JA is the better player.

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4 minutes ago, BigTed3 said:

Habs have waived Paul Byron and assigned him to the practice squad.

Not surprising. Another prime example of why you don't tie up bottom 6 guys to long term deals. The guy had one excellent season on a weak team that had little choice but to use him in a role over his head and they reward him with a 4 year deal. A smart GM would have given him the raise, which he deserved, without the term in a cap world. A lot of people were thrilled we tied him up long term. I just cringed and hoped it wouldn't come back to bite us.

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Just now, H_T_L said:

Not surprising. Another prime example of why you don't tie up bottom 6 guys to long term deals. The guy had one excellent season on a weak team that had little choice but to use him in a role over his head and they reward him with a 4 year deal. A smart GM would have given him the raise, which he deserved, without the term in a cap world. A lot of people were thrilled we tied him up long term. I just cringed and hoped it wouldn't come back to bite us.

Yup. Look at who we have or could have in our bottom 6 this season...

- Perry 750k

- Frolik 750k

- Evans 750k

- Kotkaniemi 925k

- Poehling 925k

- Lehkonen 2.4M impending RFA

- Armia 2.6M impending UFA

 

with other options like Vejdemo, Ylonen, Teasdale, Belzile, Dauphin, Weal, etc. available if needed. None of those guys are locked in long-term right now. Really no reason to have to give term to pluggers.

 

 

 

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2 minutes ago, habsisme said:

I don't like losing Byron, myself. He's overpaid but he's still a great player for us

I love Byron too. At his best he's an exciting player to watch. I have serious doubts he gets claimed with that contract. If he goes to the taxi squad we save very little in Cap room as most of it still counts. We don't have that luxury this season.

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3 hours ago, habsisme said:

I don't like losing Byron, myself. He's overpaid but he's still a great player for us

 

2 hours ago, H_T_L said:

I love Byron too. At his best he's an exciting player to watch. I have serious doubts he gets claimed with that contract. If he goes to the taxi squad we save very little in Cap room as most of it still counts. We don't have that luxury this season.

This is going to be interesting to watch.  If he wasnt signed for 2 more years after this one, i think he gets claimed but those 2 extra seasons at $3.4m... might be tough.

If he clears he does save us more than any of the other players on the taxi squad.  He'd be max you can bury (just under $1.1m) which is more than guys like Perry or Frolik make of course. 
 

 

 

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1 hour ago, BigTed3 said:

FWIW, some Ottawa media apparently pulling for the Sens to claim him. He's from the Ottawa area and they have the cap space. They're just cheap.

I think he will get taken by someone which in the short-term, to me, is a disaster. In the long run we might be better off without his cap hit

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I really hope Byron gets claimed, only because of that cap hit.  No doubt he'd made most teams that pick him up a better team on the ice.

Toffoli-Crosby-Gallagher
Drouin-Suzuki-Anderson
Lehkonen-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Poehling-Evans-Perry

Crosby for Danault, Tatar, Mete, Caufield, another prospect not named Primeau or Guhle, and some picks (probably next year's 1st). 
 

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43 minutes ago, Windoe said:

I really hope Byron gets claimed, only because of that cap hit.  No doubt he'd made most teams that pick him up a better team on the ice.

Toffoli-Crosby-Gallagher
Drouin-Suzuki-Anderson
Lehkonen-Kotkaniemi-Armia
Poehling-Evans-Perry

Crosby for Danault, Tatar, Mete, Caufield, another prospect not named Primeau or Guhle, and some picks (probably next year's 1st). 
 

Interesting, but I don't think that gets it done. UFA,UFA, small RFA, smaller unproven prospect, maybe it depends what the + is.

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