Yup, exactly what Zito did NOT want to do. It was tough to let him go, but when it's either this or letting him walk in FA, you just have to trade him.
Good luck with that contract Flames fans, I hope it ages well.
The winner of the Huberdeau+Weegar+Schwindt+1st/Tkachuk trade was dependent on the Flames being able to re-sign Huberdeau and Weegar. With the more important one now taken care of, Brad Treliving has done a solid job in an incredibly tough spot. And yes, this contract might hurt when Huberdeau gets older, but given that it was this vs. letting Tkachuk walk for nothing, I think the Flames would prefer the former. In short: not a great signing, but a much better outlook for a team that looked like it was collapsing into rebuild-mode 2 weeks ago.
Is it an overpay right now? no. Is it an overpay in the last 3 years? sure. But the cap should sky rocket by then and it shouldn't matter. Plus I can see Hubby still be producing at a good level when he's 36-38. Yes there's some risk to this but it's a good deal
This is why I understood why Florida made the trade, even it was a fairly one-sided deal for the Flames. This contract will hurt in 4-5 years
I think that this contract is exactly why it WASN'T one sided for the flames, and in fact Florida won the trade. In the cap era player value in inextricably linked to their contract value
At least as good as the Gaudreau signing, imo. Huberdeau is more consistent and should be much better in his mid-30's than Johnny. Flames did very well here in a really difficult situation.
I think that this contract is exactly why it WASN'T one sided for the flames, and in fact Florida won the trade. In the cap era player value in inextricably linked to their contract value
I tend to agree, although personally having seen the other offers I think Zito should have pushed hard to exclude Weegar from the trade and then trade him separately.