My goal of this team is to keep the core intact and build around Dahlin and our center spine.
The trades:
Alex Nylander to Calgary for Rasmus Andersson. Andersson is stuck behind a logjam in Calgary, and they're in search of right shot wingers. Nylander has tremendous upside but seems to be stuck in a rut in Rochester, so the move would be good for him. Andersson doesn't have the high end upside of some defensive prospects, but he was still an AHL all-star last year at 21 years old. He's ready for the NHL, and will fit into Buffalo's long term plans perfectly as a second pairing RHD.
Nathan Beaulieu and Johan Larsson (Salary retained on both) for Carl Hagelin. I've seen similar deals to this thrown around this site a few times, and I think it makes a lot of sense for both teams. With Pittsburgh's cap situation, they're going to be looking for excuses to shed either Hagelin's $4m or Sheary's $3m. Hagelin is a bit overpriced, but Buffalo has the cap space to deal with it and desparately needs help on LW. Hagelin is a speedy vet from a winning organization that can also contribute on the PK; he's play's Botterill's style of hockey and can aid in building a winning culture here. Beaulieu and Larsson provide the Pens with cheap depth as a 6/7D and 4C. I don't know Pittsburgh's organizational needs all too well, so I'd love to hear if this makes sense from a Pens fan's perspective.
Signings:
Calvert, Ryan, and Winnik were all brought in for a similar reason. They're all relatively cheap pieces that help us build depth, but more importantly they're all guys who've had to work and fight for everything they've achieved in their careers. I want our young guys surrounded by players who don't take anything for granted and will work their ass off every night for this team, rather than floaters like Pouliot last year.
Smith, Bailey, Baptiste were all given qualifying offers, with Smith getting 2 years. Wilson has earned a bit more than his QO in my opinion, so he's rewarded there. I signed Reinhart long term using Arvidsson's Nashville contract as a framework. This has the opportunity to look real bad or really good down the road, but I'll take my chances there.
Sean Malone, Colin Blackwell, and Zach Redmond earned themselves 2-way NHL contracts with their play last year.
Additionally, I'll be optimistic and say we land Cale Morris, a free agent goalie who just finished up a dominant junior year at Notre Dame. He jumps into the starting job in Rochester, with Reto Berra brought in as an AHL vet backup.
Overview:
This leaves players like CJ Smith, Victor Olofsson, Baptiste, Bailey, etc. to start the year in the AHL. They're going to have to earn themselves a call-up rather than just having a roster spot handed to them. This should also keep Rochester strong and competitive throughout the year, even as injuries hit in Buffalo. I left Guhle in Rochester as well which will probably be unpopular, but I'd rather he play top minutes down there than compete with McCabe for that third pairing spot. He's the number 1 call-up in case of injuries.
I know a lot of people suggest buying out Pominville and/or Bogosian, but I didn't just yet for a couple reasons. I think Pominville can still be a productive player when given a limited role, and he's be a good vet presence for a rookie like Mittelstadt. He's overpaid, yes, but we shouldn't be struggling with the cap this season. As for Bogosian, he may not even be eligible to be bought out this offseason with his hip injury. I believe players have to be cleared as healthy to be bought out. Additionally, he serves as depth on our right side until Andersson, Nelson, and eventually Borgen grow into their roles.
I enjoyed putting this together, I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts!
I dont think you have enough cap to cover dahlin's bonuses'
Haha, fair point. Both Dahlin and Mittelstadt could potentially put a dent in their performance bonuses next year. Mittelstadt's bonuses are capped at $850,000 while Dahlin's will presumably be capped at $2,850,000 which is the max allowable. Guhle could earn performance bonuses up to $182,500 as well, but that's not nearly as significant.
So we could potentially go over a $78m cap by almost $2 million dollars. $78m is the low end of what Bettman projected the cap to be next year, and the chances of all three of them maxing out their bonuses is pretty slim. I'd be surprised if their bonuses would push this roster over the cap, and even if they do it won't be much and we'll just roll it into next year.
McDavid, Connor
$250,000)
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