Too good to sell.
Too bad to buy.

Injuries to Sergy and Vasy. Down seasons by every forward not named Kucherov. I dunno where you go from here. If you get in maybe you can go on a run but seems I'll advised to get rid of anymore assets in a sparse cupboard.

The core is still there and good enough. Cernak needs to take a step forward and earn that pay raise.
Cirelli needs to find a new Killorn.
Stammer needs to chill out.
Kuch and Point would probably be better if the depth was better.
Sergy is good. Vasy is good both just need an offseason to recover.

It's been a rough season from many, but the core is still young enough and talented enough to be contenders for several years to come. The Duclair trade was fine imo if JBB is planning on re-signing him. They very much needed(and still need at least another) reliable middle 6 scoring threat. I am.more frustrated by not paying the assets needed to seal the deal on Hanifin, as for what he ultimately went for, Tampa could've definitely made the trade work. The fact that there was reportedly an extension in place with Tampa made JBB's.unwillingness.to once not pony up the futures needed very frustrating. He's taking a very large gamble that Hanifin will only sign with Tampa, as if he extends.with Vegas or someone else then it's a massive failure for him

Moving forward past this season, they need to add a good dman(whether that's Hanifin, or another potential ufa to be such as Walker, Pesce, Skjei, etc), they need to have that strong top 4 again. A change in defensive structure would also help imo(as would relieving the assistant who implemented it). Even with a change in system, though, many of the higher paid players,.at all positions.must get back to the levels seen from them during the deep playoff runs. Finally, if Vasy can't start consistently playing like the G that was given a 9.5 aav, it won't matter much how well the defense improves.

I think in terms of the F unit, Stamkos either takes a very team friendly deal, or he can walk. His play has noticeably declined this year, and he seems to now be a 3rd line pp specialist. 4-5 million aav tops, as they simply can't sink much needed cap space into a bloated retirement contract for him. I think Duclair will also be re-signed on an affordable short term deal, and the team can create 2-2.5 million more by moving Sheary and Jeannot while replacing them with a combination of lower cap hit ufa's and/or Syracuse promotions. Use the extra available space to sign one additional middle/bottom 6 F, or, if Stamkos is let go, use 4-5 million on one higher end middle 6 forward with top 6 upside, or 2 solid middle 6 contributors. A little bit of a retool would be good, and as much as Stamkos has been the face of the franchise for a long time, you can't sacrifice opportunities during this window to accommodate any one player(especially an older vet who is, unfortunately, showing signs of decline, especially 5v5).

Got to love Eyssimont jumping on Wi-Fi's back like that!

Only Wifi didn't do anything. Hagel ran into Stammer.

But Ace has been brilliant lately. Whole team is really clicking.

I wonder if he was just trying to end the play because he knew we were at least one man down

He was seeing red, I don't think it was a tactical move.

Yeah he is ready and willing to throw down with anyone at a moments notice. He tends to not think when he's amped up. Not to the point where it has become a complete liability obviously, but he usually disregards logic whenever tensions are high haha

I know but you got to love the heart.

Idk about everyone else, but the majority of the way we have played since turning the calendar to 2024, has left me not only satisfied, but very excited and optimistic. Our play post trade deadline has been night and day. This team absolutely has the potential to make a deep run.

With this post, I'm mainly addressing my optimism for next season. The growth of our new/young players, and our team as a whole this year, has been drastic in my eyes. While there is always room for upgrades at certain positions, I'm strictly going to address who we have.

As far as our forward group right now, I think it has become VERY lethal. Our versatility and chemistry have been off the charts.

Point and Kucherov are who they are, they will continue to score absurdly highly regardless of who plays with them. We have options though, that's no secret. Duclair, Hagel, Stamkos, Paul, Cirelli, Eyssimont, Chaffee.

Our bottom 9 is what I have gained a lot of confidence in. Duclair needs to stick around. He was not on my radar, but his arrival has been as good as you can possibly get. His speed. His willingness to not be afraid to pass and drop the puck + his chemistry with whoever he's playing with, is something that no one else on this team does. Not even Kucherov or Point has the mind to pass the puck the way he does. He uses every opportunity possible to create separation, make tic tac toes. He is just everything we didnt know we needed. We need to keep him around.

Stamkos needs to come back. While our entire fanbase obviously wants him to return, him staying is beneficial in countless ways, and far outweighs any negatives. If anyone would like to discuss him or his situation I'd be glad to but I'm not gonna get into it in this post.

Hagel with a career year although at times he's felt like he's making an invisible impact. Which is a good thing. He's quietly finding the score sheet, and his success isn't as highlighted as it was last year playing in the time like 90% of the year. If there's one thing he needs to improve IMO, it's his skating and his puck skills. If he can get better at those, it will go a long way to seeing him continue to grow.

Paul has greatly improved his consistency issues he had last seasons. Love Paul, nothing bad to say, he will continue to grow these next few seasons. He has seamlessly taken over for Killorn's role.

Eyssimont. Y'all know I'm a huge Stan for this kid. He's had a great year. I wish Cooper wouldn't have stonewalled him so much this year and given him more of a chance to produce offensively. Either way, he has excelled in the role he's been given. He's one of those guys who will execute in whatever role he's given.

Cirelli. His offensive output has increased this year and he hasn't been so much of a merchant. He's creating offense on his own and that's great for his development. Defense is defense and work ethic is work ethic. We all know what he brings in those fronts.

Glenny and Motte have been just terrific additions. We need to bring them back.

This post will be hella long so I'll try to tighten some things up.

Overall for our offense, our versatility has been our biggest asset. Like I mentioned earlier, nearly any guy can play 1st line. We have infinite combinations for our bottom 9 that give us different looks. I am not at all worried about our offensive group moving forward. So as long as we resign Stamkos, Duclair, Motte and Glendening. Chaffee too.


Defensively we have come a long way from our night in and night out frustrations the first 5 months of the season. This is our area of concern moving forward.

Hedman is still a #1. Sergachev will continue to transition into our #1. Cernak has played much better lately. He needs to continue to improve though. My biggest concern with him is his consistency. He needs to be an absolute rock on the back end. Raddysh has shouldered massive weight in Sergachev's absence. He continues to prove why he is a top 4 guy. I've always been a believer in Fluery. I think he deserves another chance next year. Lilliberg solid. Dumba I'm so so on. Haven't had a chance to pay too close attention to him so I won't comment on him just yet. I think Crozier needs to get a big look next year. Probably not ready for full time due to the personnel we have and how partly clogged we are. But he is ready to make a big step. Love that kid.

As far as Perbix is concerned I'm fine with moving on from him. The apathy he has shown this season is not promising. The one thing a young/er player should have is work ethic and drive. Commitment to focusing and growing every night. He doesn't have that in my eyes. Crozier, Fluery and Lilliberg deserve chances to grow over him IMO. He could be a decent trade chip to further upgrade the defense or make a sneaky lateral move. Either way I think his leash should be shortened.

I've rambled long enough so I'll wrap it up.

I'm personally most hopeful about Cirelli's offense near the end of the year. If he becomes a consistent 25 goal scorer that would be huge. My biggest worry is Cernak though. We are paying him a lot for a long time and he is often injured and doesn't seem to play very well when healthy. Hopefully he can play better and in more games next year. I'll also be interested to see what new forwards make the team next year. I'm guessing we'll see at least one or two.

Exactly. With the offensive depth that we have between Kuch Point Stamkos Hagel Paul Cirelli + everyone else, we don't need Tony to be a 30+ goal guy. Sure that'd be great but if he can be 25 goals for 55+ points, that is just fine. His two way game allows for him to post those type of numbers despite him making "a ton" in the eyes of some. Yeah Cernak can be a concern. Like I said, he needs to stay healthy and just be a rock. He doesn't need to be a game saver every night, he just needs to be consistent. Block shots when necessary but don't destroy your body. Improve his 2 way game. His salary is justifiable if he develops his 2 way game. Not his offense, but his ability to transition the play up the ice, lead/be more involved in the rush up ice, and keep plays going offensively. Being just a DFD who has lapses fairly often is not enough for a guy making his kind of money. Agreed about the forwards. We've got a few candidates for sure. I really think we need to just run it back with these guys. Stamkos, Duclair, Motte, Glenny, Chaffee

Oh man.
I've been on the "McDavid is doing something truly amazing" train.

Then suddenly, Kucherov might put up 100assists. What a freak.

I love Ace. But I don't wanna see him higher up the lineup. He's the spiritual successor to Yanni Gourde and if our depth allows him to be a force on the third line in all for it.

I missed the game last night. Did he play in the top 6? Also I'm inclined to agree with you. Despite what I said, it's very likely I think that that continues to be his role for next year and years beyond if he remains (hopefully he does). He is very good at what he does. All I meant by the several comments I've made over the last 6-8 months have been mainly a hypothetical possibility. If in a pinch, he can play top 6. If we had a long term top 6 injury, he could slide up and develop. I think it's clear though that our top 6, now with the addition of Duclair, top 7, is pretty entrenched in their roles and coaching intends to keep it that way. For good reason.

Took them ages to figure it out but Cirelli Hagel Stamkos clicking at the right time.

And there we have it. Couldn't catch the game last night. I'm not mad at all at the season we had. Ups and downs sure. But it just happens to be Florida's time this year. I've talked to a number a fans who want to gut the team and hit the panic button. No reason to do so, as I've made my view and confidence of this group very clear. Now it's time to root for someone out west lol!