value is fair, I dont think Buffalo is going to be trading for him though

I don't think Buffalo will pay a 2nd

I don't think Stars have the cap to buy another 4th liner.

I like Mysak's potential, but not enough to take Hoffman. NSH declines.

Mysak is more than enough to take Hoffman. Hoffman is really bad defensively, and not scoring, but he still puts up points. Plus he doesn't have a lot of term.

I'd consider that the final cost could be less if you factor in trading him as a rental in his final year. You could recoup some, if not all of the value then.

Hoffman's only ever been good at goal scoring, and he doesn't even do much of that anymore. He's washed, and that contract doesn't help NSH after 22-23, when Jeannot, Carrier and Fabbro all need new deals. Even he can hang on and not regress any further over the next two seasons, he doesn't seem like a good fit for John Hynes at all.

Mysak would be nice to have, but he's not a must have for NSH. They have a lot of centers with term right now (Granlund, Johansen, Sissons), and center prospects with more upside than Mysak (Glass, Svechkov). He's a luxury, not a necessity, and not as valuable to NSH as any of the aforementioned RFAs the Preds might not be able to afford, if they're stuck with Hoffman's contract.

There's two problems with Hoffman:
1. He's being used too much at even strength without favorable deployment.
2. Montreal's power play is bad and he hasn't changed that. If the PP was even league average, Hoffman might look a little better.

Surprisingly, he's only a -3 on ice goal differential.
He's been visibly bad, too much holding the puck and slow decisions, but somehow not as terrible as you'd expect from watching him play.