Quoting: LGBstl
Buffalo needs to add... a lot but the premise of the trade is not that bad.
Maybe Risto + high end prospect + 1st or 2nd
or
Risto + a solid winger like Reinhart
I agree with a lot of that, Buffalo fans come in way too low for an Ehlers trade involving Risto.
However, I think you're really undervaluing Reinhart. Put up 65 points and will easily be in the 75-80 range once the team as a whole starts to get better. That's basically Ehlers' level, if not better because Reinhart's production has only been increasing, whereas Ehlers took a big step back last season.
I think Ristolainen + Tage + 2021 2nd + 2020 3rd (deep draft) gets it done. Is it a perfect trade? Of course not. But Ehlers has some question marks after not producing much last season. Risto is easily a bigger question mark.
In this trade, Buffalo is adding
at least a second line winger who
may regain form as a first line winger. Nobody is 100% sure.
Winnipeg is adding a defenseman who
could be an excellent physical, tenacious foil to Morrissey's quick, cerebral play style. That pairing could easily put up 90 points combined. Or he could be a bust, that's very true, there's a large swing in just what Winnipeg might get. Risto needs a partner who can make exit passes after he pressures and removes the possession in the defensive zone. That's his huge weakness, as he will get stuck in his own zone via bad exit attempts, get tired, and inevitably the goals will come. To offset that risk, they get a premier shooting prospect with some serious size--he needs to bulk up a bit and learn to read the game faster, along with a third round pick in a seriously deep draft and another third.
Not perfect, there will always be nitpicks, but this solves holes in the roster for both teams while providing something close to equal value.