Make Everyone Slightly Upset

Compher is a solid middle six depth add with cost certainty that Buffalo desperately needs and who Jost is making expendable in Colorado.

Kaut is a solid B+ prospect (right?) with the potential to replace Reinhart over the longer term. It's not hard riding shotgun with Eichel. Get the puck, pass it to him, stand in open ice.

The first looks like a VERY late first after last night's game. So COL adds another prospect. Newhook is NOT going to happen. Byram? NO. So that leaves me with Bowers or Timmins in all likelihood. I took the center. He might only top out as bottom six but roll the dice.

Quantity over quality but I'm selling high on Reinhart instead of overpaying him. It's time to shake things up, take some risks, and try something different.

Risto to Winnipeg makes too much sense. They desperately need D and it's time to move on for Buffalo. Risto has value. He's not a cap dump. Worse defensmen (Ceci as the main piece in a deal for Connor Brown) have been traded for more. But Risto doesn't get you Roslovic and a 2nd alone.

You take back a cap dump in Perreault. He's wildly overpaid for a 4C or third line winger with an injury history who is in rapid decline. Not willing to give up on Mittelstadt or Thompson yet (selling low) so send back a 4th.

Of course, if Winnipeg trades Ehlers or Laine then they hold onto Roslovic and that changes to Vesalainen.

So Risto and a 4th for Roslovic, 2nd, & a cap dump.

A young cost controlled center to stop-gap at 2C for Cozens with upside. It's a big risk for 8 OA but so is whoever you draft at 8 OA. This is help now plus one year of an injury prone rental goalie to time-share with Ullmark as we continue to try to figure out what he is.

I re-thought the 2nd coming back from the Yotes. With an owner in the casino business who is likely hurting financially right now, I think they go the Ottawa route so they're not going to want to move picks. So instead Buffalo gets Hinistroza who is going to want to get paid as a depth RW option. Another chance to roll the dice on a potential middle 6 player who had a pretty bad year and is down on their depth chart.

Hutton goes back purely as a cap dump. No retention this time due to the amount of money coming Buffalo's way.

I see AZ as being motivated to get a high quality draft pick for the cost control. They gut their centers, dump bad contracts, and go full rebuild.

That said, I see this as a possible overpay for 8 OA. Does Hinistroza have more value than a 2nd?