That's very tempting for Columbus

I thought so as well, both teams are getting a haul. Foligno brothers are united which could be fun to watch for Columbus fans. Granlund is a hell of a player, and I'd hate to trade him, but if the Wild trade Staal (as I have done), we'd need some scoring to at least come close to the 42 goals Staal scored which is what Panarin/Zucker could do on the 1st line.

Don’t think Ducks GM Bob Murray is gonna Trade his 1st for a 2nd year in a row AND trade Silfverberg who he may end up using to add more picks in the draft. Not a bad offer, just don’t view it as something that actually happens.

Thanks for the feedback! I've made similar trades on other threads a couple times and have never heard if this would be fair or not. The only thing that leaves me wondering if the Ducks might make a move like this is out of desperation. Getzlaf and Perry are on the edge of their careers and I could see them wanting to go for one more cup run while they can. They were swept in the playoffs and with the uncertainty of Kesler, a guy like Staal could be great for them.

Value-wise, I think the Staal trade is pretty fair, but...I can't see the Ducks wanting to acquire and old player. By all accounts, they are looking to get younger.

I (personally) have no interest in ROR. He's a very good player, but over paid. While he is better than Koivu, I don't want another #2 center paid like a #1 on a loooong-term contract. ROR is a #2 center on a legit Cup contending team...IMO.

I am getting more and more intrigued with a trade with Columbus. Panarin would (obviously) be a great addition for the Wild, but I also think Savard is the type of defenseman that would be a perfect fit with Brodin. That pairing would be able to shut down anyone! Josh Anderson brings a hole lot of what the Wild desperately need, and Milano's speed would be a welcome addition. I would start with Zucker on the trade, but would be willing to move Granlund if necessary. I hate to give up the #24, but...

Panarin and Kaprizov on a line together in a couple years might just be amazing... Now, we just have to find a center to put between them...

Honestly, I could not agree more with your assessment of O'Reilly. This post was mainly just for fun, but if we realistically were to trade for O'Reilly, I'd want Koivu to be the center that leaves instead of Staal. O'Reilly is basically a faster and more skilled Koivu (both of which are 2C's, Koivu being more of a 3C). Not necessarily someone you want as your 1C.

I also agree that a trade with Columbus makes so much sense for both teams. Wild have a surplus of skillful wingers, Columbus needs some skillful wingers. Columbus could be looking to upgrade their D, the Wild have a surplus of upgrades on D. I know you aren't a fan of trading Nino, but Josh Anderson seems a bit like a Nino lite while also being right handed. A lot of Columbus threads made on here have been trading away Milano, and if we traded Foligno to Columbus to play with his brother I would love a player like Milano on our 3rd line with (at the moment, our likely 3C) Eriksson Ek. Zucker would be the much more preferable player to trade over Granlund, I am really against trading Granny unless we get a huge return.

Kaprizov is another reason I'm hoping we get Panarin. They both have the same agent (Dan Milstein) and Panarin could make Kaprizov feel more comfortable coming to the States. I have no idea what would we will do about our future center situation. I'm really hoping Kunin develops nicely on C so he could be the anchor to a line such as one with Kaprizov and Panarin, but another part of me wonders if he's a better wing at the pro level. Eriksson Ek really needs to figure out his faceoffs, too. He was pretty terrible on the dot last season (an atrocious 201 FOW and 271 FOL to make 42.6% of faceoffs won).

I think (hope I'm wrong) Kunin is best suited as a wing in the NHL. I'm not worried about Ek's face-offs, long-term...the kid is too competitive not to figure it out. I'm not yet convinced he will develop into a #1 center, but I think it's reasonable to expect him to be a very good #2 in the near future. I'm very high on his future...higher than most.

I'm a student at Madison, so I had the luxury of watching Kunin during his time here. He was very dominant at center, a spectacle to watch, so that leaves me with a lot of hope he can be exactly that in the NHL with proper development. I think Ek will figure it out, he's only 21 and had his 1st full year here figuring out how to adapt his play on the smaller ice. Ek is a great two way player so I think 2C would be the perfect projection for him (with the hope that Kunin is our future 1C).

As a HUGE Gopher Hockey fan...I'm disappointed to learn you are a Badger... But, I can look past that, I suppose.

I hope you are right about Kunin...but I will be VERY surprised if he develops into a #1 center. I see him more as a middle 6 wing...for whatever that's worth.

Haha, I'm a MN native that never grew up watching Gopher sports. I'm glad we can set our differences aside and have civil discussions about hockey besides, I'm more of a Wild hockey fan than a Badger hockey fan, but I enjoy going to Badger games. In the end we are all fans of the great sport of hockey and can appreciate one another's enjoyment for the game!

I agree with you about Kunin, my bias towards him definitely influences my dream of him being a 1C, but I saw some flashes of that in him when he played here. If you haven't seen this, I recommend checking this video out to illustrate that. Highlights are highlights, you don't see the full game of the payer, but he's got some gorgeous plays in this video. I got the sense that he was very competitive in his time here, he was always battling to get the puck and make a play.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCMo9VmwdUo

Kunin does not lack competitiveness...or confidence. These are two qualities I want a lot of on my teams! The only hole in his game that I see (small sample) is what I refer to as processor speed. I just question whether or not he can think the game fast enough to be a top line player at the NHL level. I definitely hope I am wrong here!