Quoting: BeastModeUnknown
@rja40 @STLBlues17 @Chopper02 @mokumboi
Dreadful deal. Rebuild in 2 seasons. We should have done a 1-Year deal because now in 2 Years he is a Unrestricted Free Agent and more than likely he leaves. If he signed a 1-Year Deal he would still be a Restricted Free Agent.
I knew it would be either a two year deal or four or more years to buy out some of his free agent years. Army was in a precarious position with Binny. He looks like he's the goalie of the future, but the sample size is small; however, the sample size is nothing like anyone has done before. This made a deal difficult to quantify. Army said he won't move Allen this year, which isn't a terrible move even though many Blues fans want to see him gone. Most of these fans are not very knowledgeable of the game I suspect, as he has stretches where he is lights out along with his annual December dud he's become infamous for. When you look at the stats though, he's a better backup than any that were available, just over-priced.
Army likely lets the coming year play out for a while before making some hard decisions. The central is much better now on paper, and the likelihood of repeating is always daunting. The Blues have a good amount of skilled players on their way and can acquire more by moving some veterans. If I was a betting man, I'd bet that Army waits until December to decide his direction. He can't just move guys like Schenn and Petro since they do have a shot to repeat. He also can't simply do nothing and possibly lose them to free agency. If we are a competitive team in December, Army extends Petro for sure and possibly Schenn. If we are a borderline team, Schenn is moved for sure and possibly Petro depending on Toronto's position. Petro isn't waiving his NTC except to his home town. Cody Ceci likely disappoints the Leafs, so such a move is perhaps possible.
Allen plays a lot on the road to build up his value. When December comes and a contender has a goalie injury, it is then that Army moves Allen and brings up a minor league journeyman rather than Husso. If he brings up Husso, he is then forced to protect either Binny or Husso when the Seattle draft occurs, and I don't think he wants to do that unless Binny flops. If Binny proves to be a one-hit wonder, Binny is left unprotected and Husso will be the man of the future. The $4.4 million contract allows him to do this. Allen will bring more due to the injury-urgency along with his probable increase in value come trade time.
My biggest fear is that Sunny just had his career year. We have no way of knowing that, but moving him now while his value is highest is tempting. It is also a huge gamble. He's our second best penalty killer, and his game fits the Blues perfectly. I think the gamble isn't worth the potential gain, but it is just a thought.