Quote:
Originally Posted by mikephoen
Yeah, what is with all these posters unhappy about losing one of the most valuable assets of any of the 30 teams in the expansion draft? It's not like there was any forewarning about there being an expansion draft this summer. It was a complete surprise to all the teams, so what can you do?
|
So what was the alternative? Lose a younger D on a longer term contract? Give up a 1st and a 3rd to keep him and still lose another player? Trade him to another team who not only have to give up assets to the Flames to acquire him, but also have to expose one of their current top 3 D in the expansion draft in order to protect him? Trade another young but established NHL-calibre D on a team-friendly contract who still has room to grow for some magic draft beans?
Quite simply, the Flames' options were all bad, and they were always going to be as a result of having a young D core who still have room to grow and are worth protecting. Gio is a diminishing asset due to his age and contract, especially when most teams are near the upper limit of the flat cap. His best seasons are likely behind him. When his contract was signed, most posters on this board would have given their eyeteeth for it to be one year shorter, and that is exactly what they got.
The 6.75M in cap space can be put to very good use in a flat cap year, as UFA contracts should be more team-friendly with not much cap space to go around. Time to pursue a top 6 RW, or trade Monahan+ or Backlund+ (I prefer the latter although there is the NTC to deal with, because I think Monahan will be quite undervalued right now) to get a true 1C. Hanifin and Andersson looked good together, and I think Tanev can support Valimaki and elevate his game. Kylington is OK for a 3rd pairing D, maybe matched with Stone on a league-minimum contract.