They don't need to clear cap space during the rebuild. It allows them to take on other bad contracts for assets but I'm guessing they would much rather have a franchise player in the organization to help sell tickets. Highly doubtful they compete for playoffs in the 4 years remaining on the contract. SJ would be so much better off without Karlsson preventing them from tanking fully, but it's not realistic to think they would give him up for free or pay to ship him out, so it's kind of a waste to consider those scenarios. They're going to camp on him unless the right deal comes along. Just because he would like to go to a competitor does not mean their hand is forced to trade him.

That's your opinion. He is an 11.5MM noose around their neck. His value will never be higher and very few teams want him. So they can keep him and lose 46MM in an industry that doesn't make a ton of money or toss him and get back 46MM and help their tank.

In 21/22 the revenue for SJ was about 150MM. Remove tax, operational costs, team budget, coaches, scouts, etc and you're looking at a fairly small profit margin. Now, if your team is winning, then you don't need to make money. But if you're tanking AND losing money, the owners are going to be unhappy.

As far as fans go. Yeah, they like superstars but they prefer winning. Stars who don't win still dont bring in large crowds. Then take into account that Karl misses about 20% of the season every year.... His departure isn't really going to eat into revenue.

So yeah, SJ ownership would be dancing in the streets if someone took Karl and his 11.5MM for a handshake.

No. There is no agreeing to disagree. I am telling you what CHI is doing. They have been very clear and open about what they are doing. They certainly aren't going to hinder the team any further if they start winning. But they did not build this roster to win. The tear down is complete, but they want to rebuild from within through drafting and development, which requires them getting creative with how they get to the cap floor, hence the massive overpays for Foligno and Perry, and bringing in the expensive skilled forward in the twilight of his career, Hall, and not having any need or urgency to move other large contracts. They sold what they could, added a bunch of high picks, and drafted a lot of very promising young players. The rebuild has a soft timeline of 3 to 5 years, of which we are just about to enter year two. Every thing they have said publicly and move they have made up to now validates that they are still rebuilding and have a lot of work to do. If you don't think that is how teams work, you are mistaken. Plenty of teams have recently done long term rebuilds that are now starting to pay dividends, and CHI is following that formula.

Do you have a crystal ball that tells the future? If not, don't treat your guesses as absolutes. Maybe his value goes up or stays about the same after showing that he's healthy and close to being on pace for a repeat performance before 2024 TDL so that other teams become more comfortable taking the risk that he's going to last through his contract. He did 82 games last season because he fully recovered from the injuries that were bothering him years before and you could tell because most of his game revolves around his skating ability.

If you're going to watch your team lose it's more entertaining to see a star on your team do something cool during the game than just watch your team full of AHLers get obliterated. Yes casual sharks fans just care about winning but most season ticket holders want to go to the game and get some entertainment out of it. Sharks without Karlsson are going to watch their team lose plus not have the entertainment of EK. He's a big name and very marketable.

First, love the meme. Great film!

Oh, it is 100% my opinion. I'm sorry if it comes across as me stating facts. I in no way think I know something the rest of you don't.

It's possible he has another great season of 82 games and teams are clamoring (with the increased cap) for his services. History would bet against it but it's possible.

I will push back on the fans. I watched the first season of Crosby. That team had Lemieux, Fleury, Palffy, and a mix of vets and young players. The Pens couldn't give those tickets away. Why? Because they couldn't win games. Winning sells tickets, no matter if the team has stars or not.

As I was called out in the previous comment, I will pay it forward. You can guess what Chi is doing but you don't have insider knowledge.

It is possible the Pens underperformed and Chi is playing great. But Chi needs a proven RHD and they trade assets for Petry at the deadline. Chi knows this is a possibility. As such maybe they want to get ahead of it. Maybe they think highly of Petry. You don't know. I don't know.

As such it is unknown.

I'll be the first to admit that there are unknowns that we can't even begin to predict. But there are things that we do know that can help us discern a general direction and price range. So, I am telling you what we do know and what is public knowledge about CHI's motives, tactics, and plans, and that is that they are rebuilding and not interested in accelerating that process in any way shape or form. They have been pretty open about the fact that Bedard changes nothing about their plans, besides the fact that his presence could possibly accelerate things organically. They have openly stated that they are done making moves, unless there is an offer they can't refuse. If you look at their other trades and acquisitions from Davidson's tenure as CHI's GM, a 2nd for taking Petry's contract is a VERY baseline offer and not something "they can't refuse".

I don't doubt you read the happenings of Chi or that you can make deductions from their path so far. I think you hit the nail on the head. I think Petry + 2nd is a great deal for Chi, one they would strongly consider. Maybe it's not a "can't refuse" offer. Maybe it is.