Quote:
Originally Posted by ricardodw
Will the Panthers be better or worse with Yandle 6.35 replacing Campbell @ 7.14 AND Matheson @ 925k replacing Gudbranson @ 3.5M?
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Only going to address this because the other question you asked has been answered....and it was a little on the silly side too.
IMO, they will be better, but that's mostly because Matheson is a much better all-around defenseman than Gudbranson. Yandle for Campbell is a wash, but at least Yandle is about a decade younger, and the deal is cheaper. However, I've been looking at the expiration of Campbell's contract as a moment where this team could start to finally get out from some of the bad contracts it's had over the years just to fill out a team, only to find the team go right back to handing out bad contracts.
I get that you might have to pay more to get a UFA to play in Florida, but handing out NMCs right before the upcoming expansion draft makes me question whether the management has been keeping up on current events in the NHL. Unconscionable. Here's the defense for the Panthers unless something changes before the next year.
Ekblad: Requires protection
Kulikov: Requires protection
Matheson:
MAY require protection depending on the interpretation of the rules. Last year was technically his 2nd pro season, but he had all of 8 games between both years due to injury.
Petrovic: Requires protection
Yandle:
Protection mandated
I assume the Kulikov trade rumors are true, because otherwise you're giving up a great young defenseman one way or another, simply because you added the NMC. Brilliant.