Quote:
Originally Posted by OptimalTates
In the off-season for the 2012-2013 season they traded a pick to sign Wideman and Hudler for almost 10M a year. They also resigned veterans, Sarich, Comeau, Jones and Stempniak while they only let Jokinen walk. Rebuilding teams would have traded their aging UFA star player instead of trying to win by signing/re-signing support players around him.
Just because they sucked, didn't mean they tried to rebuild.
And then they traded their 1st round pick in 2015 instead of drafting Barzal for the established older Hamilton. Then they traded Hamilton, Ferland and their top prospect for Lindholm and Hanafin. Yet we're counting 2015, when they moved their pick for an established player, as a rebuild year?
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They clearly didn’t start that year in rebuild mode but did you forget they traded Iginla, and Bouwmeester at the deadline and decided to embrace the rebuild? They entered the year with a new coach and hopes to compete. That team waited too long but on 2013 they decided to tear it down. Kipper also was shopped but refused to be moved.
Older Hamilton was freshly 22 years old and already an established top 4 Dman. The same age as their Calder nominated first line forward Johnny Gaudreau. They also had 20 year old Sean Monahan scoring 30+, 18 year old Sam Bennett looking good in the playoffs and won a round the year before. They added a 22 year old and 27 year old in free agency.
They ended up with the 5th overall pick in 2015 at the end of the day. It cost Hamilton who was great but the team took a step back 2 of the next 3 years so they moved him, and pending UFA and a 3rd round pick who had no desire to sign with the team and never would have for a 21 and 23 year old former 5th overall picks.