Quote:
Originally Posted by Flash Walken
I'm just saying, the reason we are considering moving on from Gaudreau and Monahan is in large part because they have struggled so mightily in the playoffs and Mike Richards was a point per game playoff player who was exactly what the absolute ceiling we had all hoped Bennett would be.
Having them locked up for a decade was a massive part of their value.
If Monahan had 8 years left on his deal at 6.3 and had a career high of 46(!) goals, you could probably expect a return like that.
I think Monahan for Ristolainen might be a lot closer in terms of perceived value out there than we'd like to believe because as much as we are saying Ristoleinen has bad stats, everyone else around the league is looking at Monahan and Gaudreau and asking if these guys can actually get it done when it matters.
I'm not disagreeing that the Flames should trade both Monahan and Gaudreau, I'm just saying temper your expectations on what you're going to get back in return for a player who is basically the exact opposite of what Mike Richards was at the time in Gaudreau and a significantly worse player with 7 years left on their deal in Monahan.
Also, while there's no dry island in Calgary, there are also significant off-ice concerns for Calgary's duo as well.
I also take considerable umbrage with the idea a 10 year deal for a 26 year old player would be perceived as bad or risky when every team in the league is offering their best players max term and would be offering them a longer term than 8 years if it was possible. At the time it was definitely NOT a concern and was a major, major, MAJOR component of their value.
you're just not going to get an elite prospect and a top 5 or 10 pick for 2 years of johnny G at 6.75 after a 58 point regular season and playoff flameout.
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I think you are downplaying what these guys are worth and how similar their pedigree was as players at the time of the trade.
Carter the season before the trade: 36 goals, 66 points
Richards the season before the trade: 23 goals, 66 points
Gaudreau this last season (prorated): 21 goals, 68 points
Monahan this last season (prorated): 26 goals, 56 points
Plus while Richards was a playoff performer, it’s not like Jeff Carter was at the time of the trade, he was actually worse production wise than Gaudreau and Monahan were.
Carter- GP:47 G:12 P:21 -14
Monahan- GP: 29 G:10 P: 21 -4
Gaudreau- GP: 29 G:7 P: 18 -7
And positioning the 46 goal season is like saying, “Gaudreau had a 99 point season!!”. You look at the entire body of work, and the most recent season to assess value, not cherry pick a single season that was clearly an outlier.
The contract thing is the biggest difference for sure and that’s where the rub lies. It’s also why the Flames should be targeting a team that things they have a shot to re-sign either of these guys, because then they will get better value back.
I never said they should expect the same value as the Flyers got in those trades, but more about that’s the type of deal they should be looking at. Higher draft picks and young pieces. Not a lateral move or a downgrade to save some money.
And if you can’t then don’t move them, especially Monahan who IMO has a better chance of re-signing here. If you’re not getting fair value for Gaudreau then you might as well wait and hope he has a bounce back year and try to move him during the season, or next offseason.