I like Rathbone but I’m curious what the market is going to be to dump cap with this Penguins move (50% rentention on Bjugstad for a conditional 7th)

That defense sucks. We won't make the Playoffs with that. In this wild scenario you still have a bunch of cap space, so why not re-sign Tanev instead of Braun and then add someone like DeMelo?

I don't think that's close to enough to dump Eriksson.

Rightly or wrongly, Baertschi's days of playing for the Canucks are probably done. You probably have to bury him and bring in a replacement.

Gaudette probably get's around 2M on his contract.

This is just a really dreamy scenario.

Van adds a 2021 2nd to the wings deal

Yeah, all of this is obviously just dreaming, but I figure it's grounded in at least a bit of reality.

The Eriksson deal was supposed to have $1 mil retained, but that might not have gone through, I suppose. Also, Detroit likes their slick, sweet Swedes as much as the Canucks. Figured he might even get playing time there. Even if we toss in another pick or two...I'm down.

As for the the RFA's, you may be right about Gaudette. I am ballparking it with salary/cap and just guessing with term. Not going to research each of those. Not going to lose sleep over it if I'm wrong, either.

The D isn't that bad. If Quinn steps up even more next year, then that's an auto-upgrade. And, as far as Chatfield, Juolevi, Rafferty, and even Woo...let them play! In this (imagined) scenario they are surrounded by vets who can guide and mentor. Tanev will be looking for a payday: in a normal year, he signs for 6+ somewhere. A player like Braun brings size and leadership for a lower cap hit.

Lastly, the extra couple mill are (a) set aside for bonuses that are sure to be paid out with some young guys, (b) because I want to save for the long-term re-jam with the cap I'm imagining once Petey and Hughes get their dues, and (c) it allows for a buffer - showing this can be accomplished in the real world, even if we pay a bit more here or there.

If that's what it takes...

It's going to take a LOT more than that to offload Eriksson. The package STARTS at either a 1st or Demko.

Detroit declines, To move Eriksson it's either Eriksson+Vancouvers 2021 1st round pick or Eriksson+Demko+Vancouver's 2021 3rd round pick to move Eriksson.

I like Rathbone a whole more than Demko well before his playoff start at least. I'd probably take it if you switched the 6th to a 2nd or even a 3rd, but I really like Rathbone. He's got a lot of skill, he is smart and hard working. The only problem I can see is Yzerman likes big defensemen.

That all seems fine.

I don't think any team in the league would be interested in Eriksson's on ice capabilities, even the team that finished last by a mile. The other pick we toss in would probably have to be a 1st. I was firmly against losing another 1st in consecutive years before, but now I am a bit more open to the idea since shedding Eriksson without giving up Demko would help us out a lot. The basic idea I had was
Eriksson + DiPietro + 1st 2021 for a 3rd. If that's too much then we can reduce the 1st and the pick coming back our way.

The contracts could all be off this year. It's even tougher to predict than normal. However, in scenarios like this I like to prepare for the most expensive contract that player could realistically get. For Gaudette, I think that's between 2M - 2.5M on a short term deal.

I think Tanev is being underrated again for what he brings. He is clearly our best RHD and played a lot of important minutes all year that nobody else could as effectively. Our blue line is already a weakness and downgrading Tanev to Braun and playing two rookies (including one in the top 4) is a recipe for disaster.

Saving money is fair enough. I just think the extra 1M - 2M it would take to re-sign Tanev would be worth it since we would still have a pretty good amount of cap space remaining.