Look, I'm not here to be a big-time Lou defender or anything, but unless you think the difference between Bailey/Chara and Eberle/Toews is 9 wins, it wouldn't make a difference.

The Toews trade was kinda inevitable since they were gonna be cap crunched. Although losing Eberle in the expansion draft could have be avoided by just exposing Clutterbuck.

Inevitable? I’m so tired of this bull****, so if Isles are in a cap crunch going forward they give away Barzal because he needs a new contract? He could’ve traded away Nick Leddy, Josh Bailey, Cal Clutterbuck, Leo Komarov, Andrew Ladd, Johnny Boychuks contract or even Jordan Eberle, just to keep a young top pair defenseman who signed for 4 million in Colorado. And no he didn’t became a top pair defenseman on Colorado, he already was with Isles. I realize Ladd, Boychuk, Komarovs contracts would be very expensive to get rid of at the time with the dead cap and all but whatever prize you just do it to keep Toews. I’m sure Lou would’ve been able to give away Leddy and Bailey without giving up any assets etc. this narrative that it was inevitable is the most tiresome ever.