Corn Flake said:
They could be moved if need be to make room for cheaper, better options, etc.
Well, the issue there is that, with some of them, their contracts make that extremely difficult. For instance, I don't see any team that would take on another 6 years of Clarkson @ $5.25M. In a cap world, moving expensive, long-term contracts can be problematic. While I agree with you that long-term contract does not equal being part of the core, Petrielli is absolutely right when he says there has to be a progression plan. There has to be spots on the roster that are available to be won by younger players without having to push out a veteran on an expensive long-term deal. There have to be better cap value players on the roster. I also think the Holland/Bolland issue he brings up is a good example of this. I think there's a real question as to whether Bolland will provide enough more value to the team to justify the significant difference in cap hit between them.