[Prototype]

The CPHL has been known to fire a GM or two who weren't interested in bettering their roster, so I'm not trying to imply that I'm expecting that everything comes cheap around these parts. Everyone should be trying to do the best thing for their rosters.

But with the whole trade deadline thing this year, and everyone trying to classify themselves as "buyers" or "sellers", I've gotten mixed signals from some GMs. I have talked to a few "sellers", and I'm not lumping everyone together here, but I have had a few go after players like Shane Doan.

If I were to trade Shane Doan, that would make me a "seller" as well, when I'm trying to pick up pieces to get back into the playoff picture. Doesn't quite make sense to me.

So, for clearifications sake... I'd like to know what you guys think the definition of "buyer" and "seller" is.

To me, a "seller" is someone who has pieces that will either not be with the club the following season, or would like to move specific pieces for cap purposes, depth chart issues, etc. A seller should get some value, but for players with larger contracts, or UFAs, they shouldn't expect equal value.

One GM tried to use another trade to show what value he or she was expecting for their player. I can respect that, but it turned the deal sour, cause the price tag was a little too high.

A "buyer" on the other hand is looking to pick up those pieces that "seller's" are trying to move, buy possibly moving picks, prospects, younger assets, cap space, etc. In my definition, a "buyer" shouldn't be expected to move a core guy, but isn't limited to non-core moves.

The bottom line is the deal has to make sense for both sides. For the Nordique right now, moving a core guy doesn't make sense, because there's a big discrepancy between a core guy, and a non-core guy. I'm limited on the other assets I do have, but there's some stuff there that I'm willing to move to get a deal done.

I'm sorry if this came across soap-boxy... but I just wanted to get a good idea of what other GMs were expecting when they became "buyers" or "sellers".