One year later: how do you feel about the Lucic/Neal swap?

[Vinny01]

Originally Posted by TheScorpion

I will say this about Lucic. He's the first guy in the last few years (since Versteeg, I'd say) to lock down a role on the Flames' third line. The last couple years, it's sort of existed in flux with guys like Bennett and Jankowski occupying spots there without really establishing themselves as a unit.

Lucic helped make that line a reliable unit. He, Ryan, and Dube were an effective third option that brought a different dynamic to the ice whenever they had a shift. I really enjoyed watching them.

I don’t know I think credit for that goes to Ryan who was able to accomplish the same thing the year previous and basically elevate the 4th line of Hathaway-Ryan-Mangipane to from our 4th line to our 3rd line and he did the same with Lucic and Dube this year.


I am excited to see if Looch can be a factor for us in the playoffs. When he crushes guys he destroys them and Dmen get scared when he is headed their way in the corners.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

If they are both junk then why is it one of the all time worst trades? Wouldn't giving up assets for junk be worse? (Which we have done)

I think what you really mean is that the Neal signing is one of the all time worst UFA contracts we've dealt out, and was easily the bigger no-no than the trade.

It's a terrible trade because Neal actually did contribute for the Oilers this season and while the Lucic contract is buyout proof the Neal one is not. He was a difference maker for therm early in the season and wins in October/November count as much as they to in February/March. You will not find a single Oilers fan today that regrets the trade yet Flames fans are still divided. There's a reason for that. If you want an objective viewpoint just go outside Alberta and see what hockey media thought about the trade. They all think it was a major win for the Oilers.

Also the justification used by many here was that Neal and Peters didn't get along but low and behold we find out Lucic also didn't get along with Peters to the point he was thinking of packing his bags and going home (nothing says warrior like quitting when times get tough). It seems to me Neal took a lot of heat when Peters was likely the root of most problems with the team. At the end of the day what I have learned from this entire mess is that I no longer trust the judgement of this GM to hire a head coach or sign players in free agency as time and time again he's failed on both of these GM tasks.

[Buff]

Lucic is a positive for the Flames because he isn't Neal.

Sometimes you want a player to work out so badly that you don't see how truly bad he was until he is replaced with another bad player. Lucic hasn't been good but he's been better than Neal which has exposed how bad Neal was for Calgary.

[TheScorpion]

Meh. He scored a couple hat tricks in October and then got sent to the fourth line and didn't score a goal after the new year. Sounds more like Mason Raymond than Alex Ovechkin to me.

Hockey isn't all about scoring powerplay goals (although Lucic scored a fair few of those this year)... there's a defensive and physical aspect to it, too.

If I'm grading both players...

Neal
5v5 offense: 6/10
PP offense: 8/10
Defense: 1/10
Physicality: 2/10

Lucic
5v5 offense: 5/10
PP offense: 6/10
Defense: 6/10
Physicality: 10/10

[Geeoff]

I think the player is a slight upgrade but this was a swap of bad players and we got stuck with a NMC.

[AC]

I really like Lucic, he found great chemistry with Ryan and Dube in particular.

It was interesting hearing how much Lucic credits Dube with saving his season and ultimately his career this year, and on the flip side how much Dube values having Lucic to learn from as well.

Lucic as a Flame is miles ahead of Neal as a Flame. I'm not too concerned about his NMC come the Seattle draft either, I think it gets resolved without much hassle from either side.

[nik-]

Still awful. People can grasp to minor details to justify that Lucic was "playing better", but he's bad and the contract is atrocious.

[djsFlames]

If he could play like he did in that recent road trip through California even half the time then the cap hit would not hurt at all.

He showed he's still got jam and some mitts, just has to work on not disappearing for too long at a time.

I do think that if he went into big bad patrol mode in the playoffs it might actually make a difference for our skill guys.

The Avs looked like they felt they could do anything they wanted last year after game 2. That had to end.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Still hate it. Lucic is a no talent caveman that has a contract that greatly handicaps the team in addressing more pressing needs. If he would play his damn role and roll someone in the corner or beat the #### out of someone every now and then I might change my tune, but to stand around and not be the deterrent the Flames were hoping for is just not acceptable.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

It's a terrible trade because Neal actually did contribute for the Oilers this season and while the Lucic contract is buyout proof the Neal one is not. He was a difference maker for therm early in the season and wins in October/November count as much as they to in February/March. You will not find a single Oilers fan today that regrets the trade yet Flames fans are still divided. There's a reason for that. If you want an objective viewpoint just go outside Alberta and see what hockey media thought about the trade. They all think it was a major win for the Oilers.

Also the justification used by many here was that Neal and Peters didn't get along but low and behold we find out Lucic also didn't get along with Peters to the point he was thinking of packing his bags and going home (nothing says warrior like quitting when times get tough). It seems to me Neal took a lot of heat when Peters was likely the root of most problems with the team. At the end of the day what I have learned from this entire mess is that I no longer trust the judgement of this GM to hire a head coach or sign players in free agency as time and time again he's failed on both of these GM tasks.

Neal's ability to contribute to the Oilers is pretty much zero right now. He only succeeded when given prime time with McDavid and Drasaitl. He's now been displaced in that role and does nothing. Sure many writers were saying that it was a major win, at the beginning of the season, as Neal had chemistry with McDavid and was lighting it up. After the first 20 games or so of the season, Lucic and Neal have very similar point totals. Lucic is leading the Flames in hits. Neal is leading the Oilers in sucking up valuable ice time.

As far as the buyout option, that's not free. I'd take Lucic and his contributions for 2.5 million easily. So factor in the Neal buyout costs, plus the replacement cost for Lucic, and it's a wash.

Plus factor in that Flames ownership wasn't allowing a Neal buyout. At least the Flames have a physical presence now.

[Enoch Root]

I want to see how Lucic plays in the playoffs before I give him a final grade.

I know this much already: I won't miss Neal and i'm glad he's gone.

[TheScorpion]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

just has to work on not disappearing for too long at a time.

He wears 17, I'm pretty sure this is a prerequisite for wearing that number. Just ask Rene Bourque.

[Psytic]

[QUOTE=slcrocket;747796 quoted wrong person too lazy to edit this on a cell phone[/QUOTE]

He is looking for a type for sure, big gritty RW that can (/could ) score he just needs to aim younger I think. He even tried with Jagr on top of those other two.

[Fire of the Phoenix]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Hated it then and hate it now. To me it's on the list of all-time worst trades in the history of the franchise.

Really? We gave up negative and got negative. We'd be in a worse spot if we kept neal and there was no other way to get rid of him. Worst ufa signing in franchise history for sure but far from the worst trade.

Sent from my SM-G960W using Tapatalk

[bubbsy]

I will say that I was pleasantly surprised at Lucic's play. He was solid along the boards, particularly at the defensive blue line in being the initial outlet pass and always progressing the puck, not a costly turnover.

I wish he was a bit nastier to play against though, and made it a point to be in all the scrums to just wear down opposition players.

Definitely not worth the cap $ being spent, but that's a wash as neither was Neal . I'll be able to comment better once we see what happens in the expansion draft.

[Sainters7]

I don't like how we helped out Edmonton escape some cap hell, but I'll take Flames Lucic over Flames Neal any day. I'd say Lucic is the big body presence we need for the playoffs, but after the way he shied away from physicality in the BoA this year, I have little faith in him stepping up and throwing his weight around if we played the Oilers in the playoffs. Really annoying he's too nice to beat up on his former team, I notice Mike Smith had no such issues (and yes I realize him and Talbot never played together).

If he shows he can play physical against the Oilers, I'm more than happy with the result. But I really don't think he can, no matter how nasty it gets as long as its not directed at him.

[Bingo]

Originally Posted by nik-

Still awful. People can grasp to minor details to justify that Lucic was "playing better", but he's bad and the contract is atrocious.

And Neal is great and his contract is a bargain?

I think we all know neither player is very good and are over paid. We knew that soon after Neal was signed, we knew that the day they were traded for each other, we knew that when play was suspended and we know that now.

[AC]

^Exactly.

To me it boils down to Neal's play as a Flame, which was pure dog####. Most hated Flame by a long time.

Meanwhile Lucic as a Flame has been a positive overall. We'll see what happens with his NMC and the potential draft pick, but that's secondary to me at this point. Neal was a healthy scratch in our do or die playoff game last season, and rightfully so. #### James Neal.

Edmonton is also effectively paying Neal $6.5M with the salary retention involved.

[dino7c]

I would rather have neither for the money

If I had to choose though I would rather go into the playoffs with Lucic though

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by Sainters7

I don't like how we helped out Edmonton escape some cap hell, but I'll take Flames Lucic over Flames Neal any day. I'd say Lucic is the big body presence we need for the playoffs, but after the way he shied away from physicality in the BoA this year, I have little faith in him stepping up and throwing his weight around if we played the Oilers in the playoffs. Really annoying he's too nice to beat up on his former team, I notice Mike Smith had no such issues (and yes I realize him and Talbot never played together).

If he shows he can play physical against the Oilers, I'm more than happy with the result. But I really don't think he can, no matter how nasty it gets as long as its not directed at him.

Oilers have less cap space after the deal...if they buy Neal out it will be some savings but the hit will be longer