Joined: May 2017
Posts: 517
Likes: 214
Matt Martin is clearly a cap dump, and one which the Islanders have no reason to accept. Considering the Leafs' situation, there is no reason the Islanders, especially with an improved management staff, would not demand assets. If making cap dumps were that easy, the Lightning would dump Killorn and Callahan and sign Karlsson or something. An offense like that can carry you into the playoffs, but in a conference with teams like the Lightning, Penguins, and Capitals (though the latter two are in decline due to an aging core), they need people who can shut down a high-scoring offense. Anderson isn't getting any younger, and can't carry them for 60+ regular games and 20+ playoff games, and Kaskisuo is not the type of guy you can rely on without help from defensemen. They may spend most of the game in the offensive zone, but no team can keep the puck out of their zone for an entire game. This offense is downright scary, but scoring eight goals per game won't matter if the other team can score nine, and players like Stamkos, Kucherov, Point, Gourde, etc. will easily penetrate that defense.
If you look at recent Cup winners, all of them had players who could play defense for a run like that. With the Lightning having Hedman, McDonagh, and Sergachev locked up (and Foote coming up) and an offense close to competing with this one, and a Vezina-quality goalie, the Jets having a similarly good offense, one of the best defensive cores in the League, and another Vezina-quality goalie, and the Predators having a somewhat strong (though not anywhere near this level) of offense and some of the best defense and goaltending in the League, unless the Leafs' defense can really step it up beyond the play they've already shown (and if they can, that means they earn more money, forcing the Leafs to sacrifice something), they can't compete with teams like that for a Cup. And obviously, that kind of team has a narrow window....