Tell me if this works/thoughts...

[sjrules99]

The heater trade is the biggy. I think havlat>Heatley and a whole lot cheaper. 2.5M is a ton to save on the cap and it's saved for 3 years! that is kinda like heatley for havlat+White equivalent. Dougie played the heatley situation just right. He hosed ottawa (cheech's 3M was a total waste and michalek has regressed and been injured a whole lot. Not worht nearly the 4.3M he gets). Dougie unloaded two bad contracts and got the superstar sniper the sharks needed at the time. He gave it 2 years, it didnt work, and now he's out and a new guy with elite level skill is in (excluding his first two seasons in ottawa as he was developing, havlat has a .88 points per game pace = 72 pts per 82 games). That's probably in the top 30 in the league, making him an equivalent #1 forward on at least a few teams.

I'm still not sold on handzus either, as his FO numbers arent that great (51.7% last year, 50.9% the year before), and we'll see how much of the PK skill comes from him as opposed to the LA's more effective system. He's also aging as he'll be 35 come PO time in just the first year of his contract. Still though 2.5M is not a huge amount, so there's not that much downside.

Dougie clearly isnt done though. With griess signed and stalock too, the sharks have too many goalies in the system and on the team, so it seems clear that one will move. To where and for what? nobody knows and dougie doesnt tip his hand, but this team is not complete, and if he can get rid of nitty and repace him with griess, then suddenyl he'll have upwards of 8M in cap space. That's way more than enough to land 2 legit 20 goal scorers and still have a little left over for midseason moves.

The next week should be interesting as there are still some guys out there who will land somewhere.

 

[sjrules99]

btw, the caps signed brouwer for 2.35M per year, which puts them about 2M over the cap and they still havent signed karl alzner. seems to me that they need to shop a forward or a Dman. Any interesting ideas there?

 

[filosofy29]

btw, the caps signed brouwer for 2.35M per year, which puts them about 2M over the cap and they still havent signed karl alzner. seems to me that they need to shop a forward or a Dman. Any interesting ideas there?

Others have said it and I agree.....Chimera. His cap hit is $1.875mil.

 

[Cbrower91]

Others have said it and I agree.....Chimera. His cap hit is $1.875mil.

pretty sure it means either Semin or Green are gone

 

[sjrules99]

I, for one, would be intrigued by semin. It's not dougie's style and you know he's just gunna follow the money next year (he's a rooskie, it's what they do), but he is pretty electric. maybe for mitchell straight up if its just a salary dump. if niity goes, then dougie will have the space. Its a pretty huge risk and I wouldnt give up anything of value for him, but gotta place the chips to win?

I'm not sure chimera alone would be sufficient. Not to mention, although I really do like the guy, dougie would still need to add another respectable player. Chimera only played 12-13 minutes, which is not even 3rd line minutes, and is only good for 10 goals and 25-30 points while being OK defensively. he's a good complimentary guy, but I would hope dougie could add someone a bit more dynamic. Hard to imagine dougie going after green or washington being OK giving him up, but he sure would add another dynamic to the Defense. Green is scary at both ends of risk (one good way, one bad one), but it would be another high risk-high reward shot. Wideman seems to me the more logical move for the caps. his 4M hit is enough to put them back under the cap even after resigning alzner, and he's a UFA next year. However, I dont see dougie pouncing there no matter who is dumped aside maybe from chimera.

Buffalo has the far more attractive options with several reasonably priced, attractive skilled forwards. I still pray for derek roy. Yeah, he was hurt last year, but he averaged 8-0 games the three years prior and when he is in the lineup, he's basically nearly point per game. All that at 4M per makes him the top target. I doubt buffalo would let him go, but a man can dream!

 

[Cbrower91]

Dude Darcey Reiger is not moving Roy for anything so let it go, thats like trying to land Miller for Nittymaki not happening lol

 

[sjrules99]

Ok,fair enough...

On second thought, green might be a target. You think vlasic an mid-rounder might do the trick? Here's the thought process:

Washington has offensive weapons galore. They need defensive prowess. vlasic provides that kind of player, and he's capable of playing 22+ mins at just 3.1M on the cap for two years and he's young. Just that deal alone would be enough to bring the caps back under the cap, so I wonder if they would be interested?

For the sharks, Green would add another prime scoring threat, but also does not upset the balance of the team. And if vlasic goes, then it's only a 2.1M cap hit increase. And if niity goes somewhere too, dougie will still find himself still with roughly 5M for a 3rd liner or two.

Boyle-Murray
Burns-Green
Demers-Vandermeer
Braun/moore

Each line has a large, physical, defensively capable presence (Murray, Burns, Vandermeer) and each has at least one scoring threat (burnsgreen might become one of the scariest offensive pairings in the league as both can score 15-20 goals). At every moment, the sharks would have a threat from the blueline and would be able to attack with at least 4 or 5 guys. They would have two very strong PP pairings. Also, They would still be strong defensively, and it would help ease some of the pressure off of demers, who is still just barely 23, and has only 1 full season under his belt. He shouldnt be counted on to be a top 3 guy just yet. Imagine Jumbo always having at least one of boyle, burns, green, or Demers to look for on the point. The sharks would be seriously scary and the thinner third line wouldn't be a huge problem.

Most importantly:
1. Green, Burns, and demers would make a very nice foundation for the future. Boyle's reign is coming to an end soon, and the sharks will need his heirs. All three are young and will soon be entering their primes (or already are), and should be effective for arguably 7+ years.
2. It takes alot of the pressure off of boyle. He shouldnt be playing more than 22 or 23 mins/game next year. He's gunna be nearly 36 by the PO's and his age is starting to show. He'll be alot more effective if his minutes are limited, and obviously burns, green, and demers can easily pick up the slack yet still provide a similar game.

 

[sjrules99]

maybe I'm massively undervaluing what it would take to acquire green...

 

[Cbrower91]

Dude the sharks need defenseman who can actually defend lol. It cant be all go go go offense from all 5 positions on the ice. The D is set its a great balance right now

 

[sjrules99]

Dude the sharks need defenseman who can actually defend lol. It cant be all go go go offense from all 5 positions on the ice. The D is set its a great balance right now

I understand that point of view, but they also keep losing because of how terrible their defense is offensively. Even the merc talked about the difference in the vancouver series being the sharks D outscored by 7 goals. Burns is good, but with Boyle's regression and the loss of white, I'm not sure the sharks are that much better offensively than at the end of last year.

Every fucking year they have PO power outages. Sure, Havlat might help, but he and handzus are not better offensively combined than seto and heater. Defensively? could well be, but I dont see them better offensively. Against the nucks they scored 2-3-4-2-2 goals for an average of 2.6. that's not very good. They survived the wings despite just 2.5 GFA, and boyle's heroics gave them a shot in that series. They scored 1.75 GFA vs. chicago in '10 with the defense having just 1 goal.

I could go on for a while about the annual power outages, but its largely the defense that fails to help the offense. Green is suspect defensively, but also, guys can learn defense. That's what coaching does, and if paired with a solid defender, then he should be fine.

I just dont think dougie has done anywhere near enough to bolster the D. he still has lots of time and a deadline move is always possible, but boyle is a fading threat, and that makes burns the only major one. Demers has 6 career goals, 3 of which were on the PP. That's hardly a major threat and to consider him one just yet is a great mistake. Clearly murray and vandermeer arent. Pickles isnt (18 career goals in 400 games, never more than 6 is a season.) basically, once again, the majority of the time, the sharks will lack any threat from the point and will be playing 3 on 5 offensively. The power outage will likely continue. Green would add far more offensively and I still think that's the sharks' weakest point for years and years. No O from the D = no success.

 

[SJVP408]

I gotta go with Korky on this one. I'd stay away from Semin due to him being so fragile and I'd stay away from Green because it would take a lot more than Vlasic to get him.

Looking at WAS's roster, it looks as though they would be looking to trade a dman as they have 7 that I can count who can play for them. This is excluding Poti who is injured and questionable, and including Alzner who is currently unsigned.

My guess is Wideman is the most expendable for them who makes $3.9 for one more year. Unfortunately, he's not the type of dman Doug should be targeting. I want him to get another defensively dependable guy that can easily bump both Braun and Vandy from the starting 6.

As for BUF, they have Hecht who Korky wants. For dmen, they have Morrisonn who I think can be of service to the Sharks. He's like Vandy but a bit more agile. I think that's perfect for the Sharks. He is signed for one more year at $2. Even better.

 

[Cmon_WTF]

I've seen a few other posts on other message boards saying that the Sharks are chasing Semin. I find it highly unlikely for the Sharks to aquire him. Unless they are willing to take Mitchell and a prospect for him, maybe a 2nd round pick as well. The only media where I've seen this rumor mentioned is an HRR twitter which has less credibility than Eklund.

Likewall, Gagne in a post signing phone interview on the NHL network said that Richards was the primary deciding factor for him choosing LA and stated the only other options he considered were out east.

 

[SJVP408]

That said, I'm not sure WAS and BUF make good trading partners for the Sharks. All three teams want to win now. When both trading teams have the same goals, it's usually lateral moves. In this case, all three teams want assets that help the team now.

 

[SJVP408]

I've seen a few other posts on other message boards saying that the Sharks are chasing Semin. I find it highly unlikely for the Sharks to aquire him. Unless they are willing to take Mitchell and a prospect for him, maybe a 2nd round pick as well. The only media where I've seen this rumor mentioned is an HRR twitter which has less credibility than Eklund.

Likewall, Gagne in a post signing phone interview on the NHL network said that Richards was the primary deciding factor for him choosing LA and stated the only other options he considered were out east.

Ah man, really? I don't doubt the guy's skillset for one second. I do doubt his will to win and his durability. However, like you said, what can the Sharks offer that won't result in a lateral move?

 

[Cmon_WTF]

Ah man, really? I don't doubt the guy's skillset for one second. I do doubt his will to win and his durability. However, like you said, what can the Sharks offer that won't result in a lateral move?

With the role Wilson is on this offseason it wouldn't shock me if he pulled Doan or Iginla out of his butt.

 

[RaiderZar]

With the role Wilson is on this offseason it wouldn't shock me if he pulled Doan or Iginla out of his butt.

I was just thinking this too. Prolly not Iggy. :pb:

 

[Cmon_WTF]

Sharks signed Matt Pelech. Former 1st round pick for Calgary. He'll be AHL fodder.

 

[RaiderZar]

What about Teemu for 2 yr. / $2M per?

 

[SJVP408]

Teemu at one year for $3 would be an amazing acquisition. A RH sniper with speed and skill for Thornton? That'd be awesome.

 

[RaiderZar]

I wouldn't mind Recchi for $1 - $1.5M for a year either.