If the market wasn't tight as a clam right now, I'd say each move is reasonable...if anything,I think (in a normal market) the Names and Strome trades are low balls...the Smith trade might need a little sweetening...a 3rd and 4th to take 8.75M in salary (over 2 years) probably needs an upgrade in the picks and/or inclusion of a prospect.

I'm with Jimbo, I don't see the Ducks taking Smith unless we retain some salary or we offer a better deal. I could see a 3rd, 4th and their choice of Lindgren, Day or Raddysh which should hopefully be enough, but we will have to see as I really think Smith gets bought out. Gorton doesn't like to lose trades, dealing with no leverage is almost a guaranteed way to lose a trade. Buying out Smith lessens the load and puts Gorton in a better position to move Namestnikov or Strome for closer to market value. Also I don't see Letteri or Elmer here, it would probably be Boo or McKegg (only 1 extra forward to save cap room).

With Smith, it comes down to what it takes to move him (picks/prospects/retained salary). and weighing that against the cost of simply buying him out...I would much rather work out a trade than buyout- but (Dolan's checkbook aside) the cap consequences are really not too terrible due to the way the roster is constituted with so many players on ELCs...And if they move Kreider at TDL, they have even more breathing room...Once the players on ELCs begin to look for bigger $, the worst cap consequences of a buyout (or two) will be in the rear view mirror.

I completely agree with you. The market is abnormal right now, especially with the Rangers Cap situation, which led me to believe that the Rangers won't be getting the return they hoped for Names and Strome. I have done that Smith trade a couple of times now and have adjusted it to the market value for him and what teams may want in return and never thought about putting a B level D prospect in there. I think if the Rangers were to trade Names and Strome for draft picks, Gorton would use those in the deal for Smith and a B level Prospect like a Day, Raddyish, etc. But I agree with what you're saying.

I don't see the ducks doing it either, but I just tried to get rid of his contract to see what the Rangers would be working with in terms of cap space after getting rid of those 3 contracts. I do agree that Gorton hates giving up picks, but if the trades were to go this way, then technically they are giving up picks they already have their own for. Also, I agree with jimbo on the fact that there should be a B level D/F prospect involved with the trade to get rid of Smith's Contract. I just don't believe that the Rangers should buy him out because that would be 4 more years of him being on the books. Yes there is a small amount this year, but it's still dead cap space that they can completely avoid if they wanted to. In my opinion, I don't think the Rangers should get rid of Strome because he is a vital piece in terms of being a center. Names I see moving because he isn't playing with the right players and they don't compliment his game the right way.

That's the thing with moving Krieder at the TDL. If the Rangers keep him, then I believe he will be getting an extension because he has stated numerous times that:
1. He wants to be a Ranger
2. He wants an extension before the end of the offseason.
3. If he was to get traded before the offseason, he would be resigning with that team because in his trade Clause he gets to basically pick several teams that he would want to go to. This allows him to wager the trade more which makes it hard for the Rangers to eventually move him.