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Old 03-12-2016, 03:37 PM   #29
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We aren't going to get rid of every veteran leader. Sure veterans usually look like bad deals in comparison to entry level players but we can afford to overpay a couple guys marginally.

I think Stajan is diminished in effectiveness lately but I still think they may keep him around for veteran leadership. There is some value to that. I think they really like Engelland's leadership too and I think that is one area he gets underrated in by some fans. I think he's been great on the bottom pairing and isn't really significantly overpaid IMO. I think it makes a ton of sense to keep Engelland as one of the vets on the backend along with Gio. Engelland and Jokipakka are the only two physical defensemen, it's important to have at least a couple guys who are big, strong and physical.

Bollig is harped on too much IMO. He's like our pseudo-enforcer, doesn't seem to complain about getting scratched, makes the little guys on the team feel safer. Isn't he a good 13th or 14th forward? 1.2 million is not that far ahead of guys on entry level deals, we don't save very much at all by replacing him and who would replace his role exactly? I'd rather he be sitting in the press box when everyone is healthy than some young kids.

Raymond I think we'd like to get rid of any way possible.

My stance on Wideman is well represented earlier in this thread. I think he makes the most sense to move of any of the veterans that have been mentioned.

Overall I think some fans get a little too concerned about having cap friendly deals at every single possible position and underrate the contribution to the room that having a few veterans brings. Because of the way the NHL system works veterans have less efficient, less cap friendly contracts. But that doesn't mean you can just get rid of all of them, or that they are all massively overpaid. A few of them are slightly overpaid IMO and that isn't a big deal. The Flames paying Wideman 5+ million to be a bottom pairing level defenseman for them is probably the biggest overpayment on our team right now.

Last edited by Flames Draft Watcher; 03-12-2016 at 03:40 PM.
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