Why do I feel like you signed the wrong Mantha

Rangers are just not trading Lafreniere.

Just an AHL depth piece

You're not getting Laf, we just resigned him on a really really team friendly contract lmfao.

That's a no.

So you take two of Minnesota’s best bang for buck contracts, something we need with our dead cap situation, and add a 1st to get a guy we would have to shell out big money to re-sign. That makes no sense from a Minnesota POV.

Not to mention it's an overpay to begin with.

Wouldn't trade Hartman for Hanifin straight up let alone add. That's how valuable that contract is.

I might consider Middleton and a 3rd for Hanifin. But in all honesty, Middleton is a better fit for us because he's more physical and blocks more shots than Hanifin is/does. So he fits better next to Spurgeon, despite being the same height and weighs less overall than Hanifin does.

Middleton and a 3rd OMG 😆

I’d take Hanifin over Middleton any day. Middleton is nice as a 2nd/3rd pair tweener, but there’s no doubt Hanifin is a top 4 dman. The only problem is cap.

You shouldn’t laugh. Your proposal was terrible.

Hanifin is a better overall player, sure. Specifically in terms of points production. But again he's less physical and is less inclined to block shots. That's the two areas we most need out of Spurgeon's D-partner, and where Middleton excels over Hanifin. It's less about who's the better player and more importantly who is the better fit there.

Middleton wins that battle everytime.

Furthermore, Hanifin gets more O-zone starts then Middleton does while playing against lesser competition to boot.


So it depends on whether you want the bigger points producer, who's less physical, blocks shots less, and is less inclined to clear the front of the net.

Or

The guy who's less productive, but hits more, blocks more shots, can actually clear the front of the net, plus does it against tougher competition.

Your call. 🤷‍♂️

For the record.

Player comparison at dobbersports.

The difference between Hanifin and Middleton value wise is a LOT LESS then you think it is. It certainly isn't a middle-six forward who's capable of playing all three forward positions being paid 4th liner money and is one of the best value contracts in the league plus a 1st.

It's not a Middleton and a 1st either.

Or Middleton and a 2nd.

Middleton and a 3rd is being generous.

I don’t know which Middleton you are watching, but I don’t think he should be playing on the top pair. He’s useless in the offensive zone. Slow skater that can easily get burned by faster players. His first pass is mediocre at best. You’re overvaluing his size too much IMO. He’s basically a slightly better Clayton Stoner. That doesn’t belong next to Spurgeon.

No, I'm overvaluing his size and physicality in this scenario because Spurgeon is 5'8" and weighs 168 pounds. Soaking wet.

Maybe he doesn't belong there, and would be better served playing farther down in the lineup. But this is AGAIN not about who's a better overall player. This is about what type of player Spurgeon NEEDS next to him. Middleton is a better FIT next to Spurgeon then Hanifin because the areas he excels at are the areas Spurgeon needs help in. Minus blocking shots, really. Middleton's physicality is what allows Spurgeon to activate in the play and generate offensive production. No Middleton, no top-10 Norris finish for Spurgeon.

Simple as that.

Hanifin literally is supposed to play the Middleton role in his partnering with Andersson. While Andersson plays the Spurgeon role.

And, despite Hanifin being the exact same height as Middleton at 6'3" and weighing 5 lbs more. He threw 39 less hits then Middleton did last season and 26 less blocks. And while it's obvious that Plus/Minus is generally useless, it's telling that Hanifin was only a plus 2 while playing against lesser competition and getting more offensive zone starts. While Middleton was a plus 15 playing against tougher competition and defensive zone starts. So for a guy that can get walked by faster players, he does pretty well for himself defensively speaking.

I really don't give a flying f*** if Middleton has no offensive game to speak of. That's not his role. His role is to hit anyone and anything that moves in a opposing jersey, block shots, and clear the front of the net. He does those things extremely well.

Middleton, Spurgeon, Hanifin, Andersson comparison.

I seriously suggest you look at the data for the 3 year comparative between these 4 players.

In the last 3 years of the 4 only Middleton is above 200 hits, the other 3 can't even crack 170. And his Plus/Minus is more in less in line with both Hanifin and Andersson's. So the idea or opinion that he isn't good enough to play there is irrelevant to the discussion at hand. He's the only one physical enough to do the job there next to Spurgeon.

This is absolute rose colored glasses on Middleton. Jesus.

Perhaps Hanifin had fewer hits because his team had the puck more. Perhaps Hanifin had fewer blocks because he spent more time playing offense than defense.

+/- is a team stat. A stat that Spurgeon has always been good at and making his d partner have better numbers. Christ dude, Goligoski was a +41 next to Spurgeon if that tells you anything.

Middleton is not that good. You go ahead and enjoy those hits cause he never has the puck though… seems to be what matters in your eyes. My eyes, I’d rather my team have the puck up and in the offensive zone with a legitimate scoring threat from the blue line. That’s just me though. I know typical Minnesota fans love their grinders way too much and this seems to be a prime example.

Why so serious?

Middleton is a solid bottom pair guy and Hanifin is definitely better by quite a bit but this deal still isn't something Minnesota should be considering. Hartman's contract is too valuable for what he provides and Minnesota doesn't need to be trading 1sts. Not to mention Hanifin is a rental, and Minnesota isn't in a position to be acquiring high value rentals. And with Minnesota's prospect depth at LD it's just not a position they should be looking for in any case.

Fair enough, respectful and insightful, too bad too many on here are so angry. Well said Caerii! Thanks.