Draft Pick Watch - WE PICKED NYLANDER!!1!!

[Kin]

I'm torn on the concept of that kind of trade.  It's a terrible trade from a value standpoint.  Kadri's performing as one of the better draft picks in his draft class.  I'm not sure how his value isn't worth a 1st round pick (and a decently high one).  Phaneuf is overpaid but he's still an upper tier defenseman.  What that trade really does is free up a big long cap hit for a team that really hasn't done a good job of managing player salaries.

I don't think Kadri is going to win a lot of points with anyone for how he compares to the rest of his draft class.

Aside from that, though, I think the question of Kadri's value is a fair one but I think it comes down on whether or not you think last year or this year was a better snap shot of what Kadri is likely to be. If, like last year, Kadri can score at a rate that would make him one of the upper-tier 2nd line centers then I think you're right that he's  too valuable to just be a throw-in like that.

If, however, this year was a more realistic look at him where he only scored at an ok pace for a 2nd line center but perhaps more importantly really struggled when he got time with the top line then I really do question his value. Not because that's not a valuable piece to have but just because that strikes me as the kind of player who you are going to see available a lot come free agency.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Do it!

Ekblad= all kinds of awesome, I've been lucky enough to watch him play with the Barrie Colts the last couple years. He's for real. And he's 10x better than Phaneuf.

I realize it's an exaggeration but even then... 10x seems just astronomically silly to me. There isn't a player in the world 10x better than Phanuef at any position. I'd go on the record saying that Gretzky isn't 10x better than Phanuef.

An order of magnitude is an epic amount of additional ability. I'm not sure why people are so hard on the guy. We trade him without an nhl player coming back in the deal and we're a bottom dweller until we probably overpay to fix it or wait until the youngins become men.

A player not considered a generational talent, and not yet drafted, is called 10x better than Phaneuf.  That's a good summation of what Phaneuf has to put up with from fans I'd say.

 

[Kin]

Yeah, there was almost no statistical basis for that 10x figure whatsoever.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

Speaking of Barrie, is there anything to Claude Lemieux's kid? (Barrie player hyperbole aside)...

 

[Britishbulldog]

I got this on another fan page, yesterday.

RUMOUR: Howard Berger is reporting that the Toronto Maple Leafs and The Florida Panthers could be working on a trade that would see the #Leafs send Dion Phaneuf, Nazem Kadri and the 8th overall draft pick to the #Panthers for the 1st overall draft pick and Ed Jovanovski.

Gawd I hope not.

I am obviously not Howard Berger because my trade would have been Kadri, Phaneuf, Lupul and 8th Overall pick for 1st Overall pick and Gudbranson.  I would have tried to squeeze the lazy but tough Chris Stewart in there as well.

 

[LittleHockeyFan]

Speaking of Barrie, is there anything to Claude Lemieux's kid? (Barrie player hyperbole aside)...

he reminds me very much of Darcy Tucker. A major pest, gets under the oppositions' skin ALL the time and does draw penalties (he'll end up with a rep for that soon enough though). He does score and get assists too, but IMO, a little too prone to dumb penalties, I think he gets caught up in the moment sometimes. I don't know if that's something one can mature out of.....hope so. He's very popular with his teammates (in that I stand up for you when someone takes you on kind of way) but I think he's got a way to go to make it in the bigs.

AND...... Ekblad is all kind of awesome. He got the same early admission to the OHL status that Tavares got and Ekblad is a dman. He became team captain this last season and was a terrific lead by example captain. He was Rookie of the Year in his first season, an All star this season, as well as playing in the gold winning U20 this year. Whatever NHL team gets Ekblad is in for a franchise player.

 

[Champ Kind]

I got this on another fan page, yesterday.

RUMOUR: Howard Berger is reporting that the Toronto Maple Leafs and The Florida Panthers could be working on a trade that would see the #Leafs send Dion Phaneuf, Nazem Kadri and the 8th overall draft pick to the #Panthers for the 1st overall draft pick and Ed Jovanovski.

Gawd I hope not.

I am obviously not Howard Berger because my trade would have been Kadri, Phaneuf, Lupul and 8th Overall pick for 1st Overall pick and Gudbranson.  I would have tried to squeeze the lazy but tough Chris Stewart in there as well.

Oh my, Bulldog, I think your trade is worse!  Take Lupul out and maybe we can talk.  What on earth would the Leafs do with all that capspace, there's very few if any UFAs to spend it on.

 

[Kin]

Oh my, Bulldog, I think your trade is worse!  Take Lupul out and maybe we can talk.  What on earth would the Leafs do with all that capspace, there's very few if any UFAs to spend it on.

It doesn't burn a hole in your pocket, you know.

 

[bustaheims]

It doesn't burn a hole in your pocket, you know.

No, but, it is a time dependant asset, nonetheless.

 

[Corn Flake]

Oh my, Bulldog, I think your trade is worse!  Take Lupul out and maybe we can talk.  What on earth would the Leafs do with all that capspace, there's very few if any UFAs to spend it on.

It doesn't burn a hole in your pocket, you know.

Cap space!

The horror.  The horror.

 

[L K]

It doesn't burn a hole in your pocket, you know.

No, but, it is a time dependant asset, nonetheless.

True, although with cap space, you might be able to sign a few guys coming off down years to inflated 1-2 year contracts with the intention of them being bridge players/deadline trades.

 

[bustaheims]

True, although with cap space, you might be able to sign a few guys coming off down years to inflated 1-2 year contracts with the intention of them being bridge players/deadline trades.

Possibly, though, going more than 1 year on guys like that has potential to be troublesome. It's more useful to keep the space open for potential trades, but, at the same time, having cap space is really only valuable if you can actually use it - and, if using it requires making trades, you really don't want to burn too many trade assets in creating cap space.

 

[Kin]

No, but, it is a time dependant asset, nonetheless.

Not really. It's there until you use it. Yes, if the Leafs don't use it in a particular season there's some wasted opportunity but that chunk of dough will always be available until you find a player you want to use it on.

 

[Corn Flake]

No, but, it is a time dependant asset, nonetheless.

Not really. It's there until you use it. Yes, if the Leafs don't use it in a particular season there's some wasted opportunity but that chunk of dough will always be available until you find a player you want to use it on.

As an example, the Leafs were going to acquire Vanek but could not due to lack of cap space.  If a similar scenario comes up next season, they would be in a position to take on a player.

 

[ZBBM]

Putting Berger's uselessness as a source aside, I do think there's a fair chance that Phaneuf gets packaged before the deadline.  FLA or EDM are the obvious places.  And if either were willing to part with their pick in exchange for our eighth, we'd end up with either Ekblad or a very good young center.  If Ekblad, you keep Kadri; if one of the other 3 (Bennett, Reinhart, Draisaitl), you deal him.

Even though I'm no fan of Dion I wouldn't do this, though, having said elsewhere that the price is too high to trade up.  If the deal was Phaneuf AND Kadri, then it's even worse.

 

[Deebo]

I think the draft day deal that sent Jordan Staal to Carolina could be used as comparable when assessing Dion's value.

That was for Brian Dumoulin, Brandon Sutter and 8th overall pick.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

he reminds me very much of Darcy Tucker. A major pest, gets under the oppositions' skin ALL the time and does draw penalties (he'll end up with a rep for that soon enough though). He does score and get assists too, but IMO, a little too prone to dumb penalties, I think he gets caught up in the moment sometimes. I don't know if that's something one can mature out of.....hope so. He's very popular with his teammates (in that I stand up for you when someone takes you on kind of way) but I think he's got a way to go to make it in the bigs.

Thanks... Sounds like a 4th liner in the NHL to me.

 

[losveratos]

AND...... Ekblad is all kind of awesome. He got the same early admission to the OHL status that Tavares got and Ekblad is a dman. He became team captain this last season and was a terrific lead by example captain. He was Rookie of the Year in his first season, an All star this season, as well as playing in the gold winning U20 this year. Whatever NHL team gets Ekblad is in for a franchise player.

Phaneuf established himself as the junior hockey's top player following his drafting by Calgary, earning the Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy as the top defenceman in the WHL. He was also named an Eastern Conference All-Star by the WHL, and a First Team All-Star by the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). He was considered a candidate to join the Flames in 2004, however the 2004?05 NHL lockout forced Phaneuf to play one final year of junior hockey. He scored 56 points in 55 games to finish his junior career with 146 points. He repeated as the WHL's defenceman of the year, and was again named to both WHL and CHL All-Star Teams. Prospects Hockey rated Phaneuf as the top player in the CHL in both 2004 and 2005, ahead of Sidney Crosby, naming him one of the best junior defencemen of the previous decade.

 

[Corn Flake]

Putting Berger's uselessness as a source aside, I do think there's a fair chance that Phaneuf gets packaged before the deadline.  FLA or EDM are the obvious places.  And if either were willing to part with their pick in exchange for our eighth, we'd end up with either Ekblad or a very good young center.  If Ekblad, you keep Kadri; if one of the other 3 (Bennett, Reinhart, Draisaitl), you deal him.

Even though I'm no fan of Dion I wouldn't do this, though, having said elsewhere that the price is too high to trade up.  If the deal was Phaneuf AND Kadri, then it's even worse.

I agree that the rumor stated is completely ridiculous and just reeks of Howie's old method of picking random names in a loosely connected potential trade partner scenario.  I think he's just trying a standard way of getting lots of attention from Leafs nation.  It's one of the goofiest trades I've ever seen proposed.

I could see Phaneuf, #8 for the #1 and Jovo

or

Kadri and the #8 for the #1

but not Phaneuf AND Kadri AND the #8.  That is clown college craziness.

I think Edmonton is a more likely scenario than Florida anyway.  I think EDM would be far more eager to outright trade their #3 pick for Phaneuf, take on the salary and be happy to not need to send any back.  I don't think they have much of an appetite to draft yet another kid to add to that team already loaded with young talented kids.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

As an example, the Leafs were going to acquire Vanek but could not due to lack of cap space.  If a similar scenario comes up next season, they would be in a position to take on a player.

But if we're going by getting cap space via the trade(s) suggested on the previous page(s), by virtue of getting that cap space they're likely to be a worse team and probably not in play for someone like that at a deadline for a couple years at least.