I really like this trade.
I think when we missed the playoffs, our mandate was to change the make up of our core. Management for whatever reason probably viewed this as absolutely necessary and I'm on board. There's so much stuff behind the scenes we don't know about. Maybe certain players just didn't fit anymore. Maybe we have a Hoffman in our room and it just hasn't come out yet. We just don't know. When you trade core players, it's very hard to come out of it with an improved roster, if nothing else than for the reason that there are not a lot of core players on other teams available for trade. At most you hope the new core is just as good skill wise, but maybe fits together better.
Speaking specifically about the players involved:
Hamilton - best player in the trade skill wise, but something must be a bit off. Boston got rid of him and now us. On the ice, he's a great offensive threat. Skates well, puts up points etc. He has all the sexy stats. But honestly he's not that great on defence. His defensive decision making is not elite (I'm not saying it's bad), he's a little soft, doesn't engage in the corners and has a kind of mellow attitude on the ice. For a top pair guy, I'd like to see a little more fire, a little more passion on the ice and a better all round game.
Hanifin - not as good as Hamilton right now, but honestly I think he's going to be a better all round defenceman than Hamilton, if he isn't already. He skates just as well as Hamilton, he defends really well, engages in one-on-one battles a little more than Hamilton and I think he can still improve offensively. At worst I think he's a solid #3 or 4.
Ferland - fan favourite, chemistry with Monahan and Gaudreau is well documented, physical presence. But the one thing that sticks out when he plays on the top line to me is that he's not a top line player. Sure, 20 goals is great, but I remember being frustrated by his play because he is so inconsistent. Some days he'll bury feeds from Gaudreau like a 50 goal scorer, other days plays die constantly on his stick. Add to that, he disappears a bit when he's not on the top line. I think we sold high on him.
Lindholm - really big fan of this guy. I think he still has some untapped potential. I see him as a 60 point 1RW. Right handed shot which we don't have a lot of. And he has the pure skill to be a top 6 guy.
Fox - this is the guy that tips the scale for me in terms of Carolina winning the trade (for now), obviously because of his potential. But if rumours are true that he's not too keen on signing here, and if including him tipped the scale enough to get the deal done, then I'm totally ok with it.
Overall I think we came out pretty well in this trade. Moving forward, we now have a young core of Gaudreau, Monahan, Tkachuk, Lindholm, Bennett and Jankowski. We have Hanifin, Gio, Brodie and soon Valimaki. I personally love this core, especially the forwards. I don't think we got better today, but we definitely did not get worse. And if the dynamics in the room and the make up of the team changes today, maybe that's enough to put us into the playoffs next season and make us a cup contender down the road.
Can't wait for the next move and for the season to start.
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