13 Dec 2018 18:26:53
Leafs trade Dermott
Avs trade Makar

Everyone seems to think we could afford Pietrangelo next year, so instead we re-sign Gardiner to same cost as Pietrangelo and trade out Dermott. We still have Sandin in the system.

2019/ 2020

Rielly/ Liljegren
Gardiner/ Zaitsev
Hainsey/ Ozhiganov
(Sandin/ Makar)


1.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 18:47:30
I don't see why the Leafs would trade a D-man for a D-man (they should be looking to trade a forward for a D-man as they are deeper up front than they are on the back-end) .

I suppose they could trade a D-Man that they don't think they will be able to resign (Gardiner) for another D-Man (one that is more affordable, still under contract, etc. ) but Colorado would likely (and rightfully) laugh at that sort of proposal.

I have not watched Dermott much but have read good things, and given that he's dirt cheap still I think the Leafs will be banking on him. They signed Rosen to a cheap extension (and he is having a terrific year in the AHL), so assuming Gardiner prices himself out of Toronto, they would have Rielly, Dermott and Rosen on the LHS next year.


2.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 18:59:18
No from Colorado.


3.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 18:59:54
Doesnt make sense for the Leafs or the Avs. makar is a highend prospect projected to be top 2 quality. Leafs are looking for players to help now. No from both sides.


4.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 19:05:37
Just thinking it would be nice if we could keep the forward group intact, and rather than lose Gardiner for nothing to free agency, we extend him, and trade from LHD to address RHD. Gardiner is having another great year. Babcock thinks highly of him, and rightfully so. And with Rosen and Sandin still in the system, our left side is much stronger than our right side. It’s a little different than most of the proposals floated lately. A little outside the box. Looking ahead a couple years: Rielly/ Makar Gardiner/ Liljegren would be a very effective top 4. Maybe one of the best in the league.


5.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 19:40:35
Gardiner would have to take a huge discount to stay. I don’t see him wanting to do that and I don’t blame him. He will have a few options at least and can cash in. Why I would keep dermott is that he’s so much younger, a great skater as well (which is gardiners biggest asset) and a hometown kid.

When Don cherry used to harp on the leafs for not having enough ontario boys on the team I thought it was overrated and I don’t care where a player comes from as long as they’re good and they play hard for the Leafs. But when now it comes to cap situation, it’s a lot easier to ask hometown kids who grew up leaf fans to leave money on the table to play for the leafs than a Minnesota kid, an Arizona kid or a Stockholm kid.
Kadri, Connor Brown and Zach Hyman signed low cost multi year deals just to stay in the city longer. Now if you can get that out of dermott, hopefully some kind of discount from marner etc, it helps. They should Keep dermott.


6.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 19:42:13
LeafsGM you constantly bash Gardiner and now you say this, wtf?


7.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 20:33:17
@leafs17

To be honest, I was a huge fan of Gardiner until Game 7, and then turned against him. I mean, sure, it’s entertaining to poke fun at Gardiner and make jokes about how he can’t skate backwards, but at the end of the day the truth is that he is a very good player. A near-elite offensive defenseman, he’s probably the most improved player under Babcock. I’m not so blinded by resentment for one bad game that i can’t see truth, and the truth is that he is a very valuable player, and if we could afford him, then it wouldn’t most definitely be in Leafs best interest to re-sign him. Unfortunately, I have a hard time seeing it happen.


8.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 22:13:30
They have no choice but to let Gardiner walk IMO. Dermott can fill the void and there are much bigger players to sign. I don’t follow the prospects too much, just the odd article and what you guys say. Does anyone think Liljegren or Sandin will be ready next year?


9.) 13 Dec 2018
13 Dec 2018 23:12:26
I don’t understand why you would sign Gardiner for the same price that Petro would get like that doesn’t make any sense considering Gardiner is no where near the quality of Petro.
Also that’ll be an immediate no coming from Colorado why would they trade Makar for a lesser potential dman.
Just Keep Dermott.


10.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 00:16:59
@Mcjesus, I think his thoughts process was that Gardiner would stay for 5 years at $6-6.5 mill as where petro is only making that next year, then will be $8+. I agree with you though. Let Jake walk if he doesn’t want to stay for like $5 mill. Dermott in my opinion looks like he’s ready for top 4 min on that left side, little less offense but will probably be better all round than Gardiner. With Rielly and all those forwards we can sacrifice a few pts from Gardiner to have a more all round guy making far less.


11.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 00:53:50
@leafs17

I’m really hoping Liljegren will be ready for next year. From what I’ve read, he’s doing pretty good. But Sandin apparently has been doing outstanding. Much further ahead than expected. Extremely high hockey IQ. It’s quite possible they both make the team next year, and we may even see a bit of Liljegren this year. Of course I’m only reading the same articles as everyone else, so I can only rely on news reports, which may be hyped.

Dermott looks fantastic. He’s on pace for over 20 points playing 3rd line. Possession metrics are outstanding at 55% CF. Given more ice time this year and has responded by playing even better this year than last. No sign of a so-called “sophomore slump” there. It makes the decision to let Gardiner walk end of season much easier for management I’m sure.


12.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 03:33:16
I hope to to see Liljegren this year before they make a big trade for a RD. I know the experience is not there but maybe adding a veteran defenseman at the deadline would be better than trading a piece of the core away if Liljegren could be ready next year on an ELC.


13.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 05:35:24
Gardiner is a very underrated player. Years of underperformance have left fans with a distorted view of his actual value today. Compare Gardiner vs Pietrangelo since 2016-2017 to present. Almost identical stats. Very eerily how similar they are in fact. The difference between the two players now seems to be more the intangible things that Pietrangelo brings to his team that Gardiner cannot. Things like leadership, media relations, community outreach, team development. All very valuable qualities that make Pietrangelo a qualified captain deserving of a pay premium over Gardiner.

Jim was correct as well in that I was referring to the extensions. Gardiner tops out about $6.5-$7.0, while Pietrangelo, assuming he has a bounce back year next year, will likely command $8.5-$9.5. A fairly significant difference.


14.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 14:06:38
If someone gives pietrangelo 8.5-9.5 it'll be a huge mistake. Maybe I guess on a 2 or 3 year deal but he seems to be regressing already. see later I guess. Think that's a huge anchor, be untradable for years.


15.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 16:17:21
@shoots

Even before he was injured, I read a few articles basically saying the same thing: That Pietrangelo was having a disappointing season on a team full of disappointments.

After he returns from injury, it will be interesting to see if he can play at his full potential again. Karlsson never didn’t return to form after he got hurt.

I think it’s still a little early to say whether Pietrangelo is regressing. No matter how the rest of the season goes, this year gives a distorted view. But next year should really give us a better idea of what he is capable of and how much he is worth.


16.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 17:21:34
Ya, agree, just to many players get signed past their prime to big money contracts for 6-8 years. Would be fine with 3 years at big money but look at players like lucic, backes, Seabrook. Think teams will smarten up soon cause getting to be a lot of those players in the league now. Shouldn't be rocket science to not sign a 30 year to a 8 year contract unless takes a nice discount on the money.


17.) 14 Dec 2018
14 Dec 2018 20:12:15
You nailed it Shoots.

Even understanding that there are more and more guys playing until they are 40, and playing good hockey at that, guys like Jagr, Marleau, Thornton, etc, are still the exception.

You would have thought GM’s learned their lessons long time ago, what with the spectacular failures in, say, NYI, for example, with Yashin and DiPietro. But that doesn’t appear to be the case. Chicago buried themselves with all those long term deals and are going to have a difficult time digging out from under those boat anchor contracts.

As long as the Leafs don’t make the same silly mistakes I don’t really care what other teams do though. Lol.


18.) 15 Dec 2018
15 Dec 2018 04:22:29
Ya, some players are worth it but not many. Guys with as many miles as the three players I mentioned don't usually get better with age. Some as Giordano get better with age but play a type of game that eases the body more. Physical players seem to slow down a lot earlier. Patrick kane probably be one of those guys that can play along time cause doesn't take a lot of abuse and Thornton a big dude but seems to avoid contact for a big guy. Think Chicago should've traded Seabrook before a fa or let him walk. didn't have much defensive help but better than signing him for 8 years. Bowman made a mistake on that. A Chicago fan and as much as like him, 8 years not a good signing. But paying him for what he's done, not what he's going to do.