Gonna need a lot more than a rental a top 6 dman and a 2nd rounder to get someone with as much upside as McAvoy

Lias Andersson on line 4 is a waste of his talent. Same could probably be said about Howden as well.

Kreider obviously wouldn't be a rental if that happened

I could see the Rangers moving him if a top 6 forward becomes available. He and Howden haven't shown much

Ok even with an extension it's still not enough to get McAvoy.

That's just not true.

That's because they've been playing on the fourth line with grinders....

Howden has regularly been on the third line rotating with skillful guys, Lias has gotten chances and just hasn't proven anything

Plus as much as Boston would like a top 6 forward upgrade it won't be at the cost of putting a gigantic hole on the right side of their first pair for the next 10+ years. The package you are offering makes a whole lot more sense for a guy like Ristolainen or Parayko or someone like that.

Why? Because you're a Bruins fan?

No i'm a Lightning fan but I can tell you that if Gorton called Don Sweeney and told him we'll give you a 50 point forward and a shaky unproven dman for one of the best young d in the league it would be a quick phone call.

You are undervaluing Kreider tremendously. That's all ill say

Smith has a M-NTC, where he can pick 10 teams he can be traded to. Granted, if he wants to play a full season at defense and try to play for another contract at the NHL level, he may waive to go to more than 10 teams. However, I have a hard time seeing him waive to be shipped to OTT. If you want to move Smith, you have to find a team that has some potential to compete (at the very least on paper), and needs to fill spots on defense. I would think of teams such as Anaheim, Carolina (if they move of their defensemen for assets), maybe Minnesota (if Spurgeon is moved), and possibly St. Louis. I think it's also more likely he's traded for another veteran who needs new scenery. I am thinking Smith for Eaves; NYR save 1.2 this coming season, Eaves comes off the books then, and Anaheim is given another veteran on the blue line, and gives space for their youth to come up. Point is, the Smith to Ottawa proposal should stop being offered.

And you are obviously undervaluing McAvoy extraordinarily

Solid point but the Smith thing was hypothetical. I do still think he holds some value for a team desperate on D. I could potentially see him waiving for Ottawa, if they're even on his list. He would be a top 4 dman there, so you never know

Of course nobody knows, but the reason why he would want to uproot his family and waive would be to be put in a position where he can put himself in a position to sign another contract in this league. I would think Smith believes that he will not look too impressive in Ottawa for the next two years. At least with a team like the Ducks he could be paired with a Fowler or a Lindholm potentially. I also would believe Ottawa would move on from him after 2 years, where he would have to uproot his wife and young child again. I think if he wants to waive he wants to go to a place where there is a relative possibility he could be there longer than the remainder of the contract (or maybe not who knows). And let's not forget that Canadian taxes are higher, so he will realize less money on his contract if he moves to Ottawa. Given that he's been in and out of the lineup and has been playing forward for a decent amount of time, I would think he would like to realize as much as he can at this point. Of course we do not know; I am just trying to put myself in his shoes.

I also would think McAvoy is off the table for Boston, but that's another issue.