Quote:
Originally Posted by stemit14
I would be so happy if Conroy can pry 10th overall from New Jersey for Markstrom. That would be such a fleecing even if the flames retained 50% IMO. I agree that Markstrom is a solid #1 goalie and that he could be a big piece to getting New Jersey back to the playoffs but I think the smartest teams are ones that traverse the ups and downs of building a team a rather than force it. There is a decent chance this will be the highest pick New Jersey makes for the next 4-5 years and the player picked at 10th overall has a good shot at being an impact player for them in 2-3 years… right in their contention window when they will need cheap, young talent to step in. To trade that pick would be very short-sighted of their GM and would feel like a bit of a panic move. If it were the flip side, I would not want Conroy trading a top 10 pick for a 34 year old goalie.
I understand that the desire to get back in is strong… but pretty much everything that could go wrong did go wrong for New Jersey this year and they were still fighting for a playoff spot till the last two weeks of the season. And goaltending is voodoo… their two goaltenders might both put up better numbers than Markstrom next year. One year ago today, the flames would likely have had to attach a first round pick to get a team to take on Markstrom… now, there are legit discussions about getting 10th overall for Markstrom.
All this is just to say how incredible it would be if Conroy pulls it off. Really hoping he can. It would be a monumental step to kick off this rebuild.
|
Agree with your sentiment that a top 10 pick is a steeo return for Markstrom and a deal that I wouldn't want to see the Flames make, but last season was a cautionary tale for the Devils. A young team can become disjointed without solid goaltending to help them gel, and the wheels literally came off the Devils in the last quarter of the season. The components are there, but without quality goaltending some of those players could begin to regress. As many who have played or coached, the game is much easier to play moving forward and having a constant worry about what can happen once the puck gets into your zone weighs on a team.
Not saying that Markstrom is the only potential solution, but given what happened last year the Devils have to effectively address the goaltending situation or risk stunting the development of the group they have assembled. In their situation I would think a team having the answer to that problem (potentially Markstrom) would be wanting this year's first, at a minimum. If Jersey thinks they can address the situation for less, good luck to them, but they'd be fools to risk a repeat of last year.
Think of the Hamonic deal as a comparison. The Flames felt they were poised to enter a window and paid a premium to acquire a player who was capable of providing some needed stability. In retrospect, they made a bad call, but I understand the logic. I believe the Devils find themselves in similar straights, and they have a better collection of talent then that Flames team possessed. Paying the 10th for a top tier goalie may be a necessity, or they can try do it on the cheap and see how that works out......