^^ Nice summary! My two cents (in red)
Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverGS
Just some really quick notes I guess from what I remember.
- Someone asked what about trading Gio and Baertschi and the 4th to move up to no 1 to pick Eckblad and was told he probably has had too many beers. Treliving said Gio was going nowhere unless the trade made sense. Not that it matters, but I think the "offer" was Gio and Baertschi for the 1st (to pick Ekblad) and another player from Florida (can't remember). We would keep the 4th. When Treliving said Gio wasn't going anywhere, the crowd applauded.
- Sieloff had a couple of unfortunate years but is on the road to recovery and is skating again. They will take things slow with him to make sure he is ok. Burke thinks he is a bit small for the type of game he plays but that they will work with him to figure out what will work best. On that note, I think Burke suggested they might give him some time at forward? Burke said when they interviewed everyone on the junior team everyone said Sieloff was hands down one of the top guys to play with and a character guy.
- Ownership has given blessing to be a cap team but Burke just hasn't spent it because he has yet to see value to spend the money on. Made a big blurb about how he doesn't want to waste our money on contracts that would put a noose around the team. Burke also mentioend they've looked at ways to "monetize" cap space (i.e. by taking on bad contracts for assets), as recently as yesterday (likely the compliance buyouts).
- They reiterated on their focus to build through the draft and player development and that free agency would only be used to supplement the team. Mentioned that in this day and age there are very few top players that become UFA's in their prime. They are generally locked up to long term deals right after their entry level deals. Burke mentioned that the bridge contract is virtually gone and that most UFA available maybe an upgrade but that you will be overpaying for it most likely. Burke described how some teams (including when he was with the Leafs) would sign guys as a marketing ploy for season tickets. Isn't going to make that mistake here.
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Additional thoughts:
- Regarding the new arena -- King says it is very innovative and that fans will be impressed
- Treliving wants to emphasize development in the AHL like Detroit does -- makes players work hard and appreciate the NHL lifestyle more (i.e. riding the bus versus chartering planes)
- First time seeing Burke in person -- he did not seem as gruff or onery as others have suggested...