Unofficial 2013-2014 Armchair GM Thread

[Redleaf]

LeBrun doesn't think Horton is interested in Toronto....

Nathan Horton visiting an NHL team/city today. He'll end up with a non-traditional hockey market I think. Wants quieter life

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that some Canadian kids don't want to play closer to their home towns where hockey is king. Kinda makes me miss guys like Doug Gilmour.

 

[Corn Flake]

Nathan Horton visiting an NHL team/city today. He'll end up with a non-traditional hockey market I think. Wants quieter life

As in, retire while still playing.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

LeBrun doesn't think Horton is interested in Toronto....

Nathan Horton visiting an NHL team/city today. He'll end up with a non-traditional hockey market I think. Wants quieter life

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that some Canadian kids don't want to play closer to their home towns where hockey is king. Kinda makes me miss guys like Doug Gilmour.

So that might mean Clarkson in Toronto.

 

[Redleaf]

LeBrun doesn't think Horton is interested in Toronto....

Nathan Horton visiting an NHL team/city today. He'll end up with a non-traditional hockey market I think. Wants quieter life

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that some Canadian kids don't want to play closer to their home towns where hockey is king. Kinda makes me miss guys like Doug Gilmour.

So that might mean Clarkson in Toronto.

That seems to be the consensus of the rumour mill. It wouldn't surprise me if Nonis took a pass, and made a couple of smaller deals instead. Should find out by Friday morning or sooner what his plans are I would think.

 

[Corn Flake]

So that might mean Clarkson in Toronto.

Might be.  The loud whispers suggest he wants to come here but the believe it when I see it mode is what I'm fully in on any of these guys from now on.

Oh and $6.5 mil?  Hogwash.  Especially since the Flyers probably can't bid.

 

[bustaheims]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

 

[Kin]

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that some Canadian kids don't want to play closer to their home towns where hockey is king. Kinda makes me miss guys like Doug Gilmour.

I think it's the sort of thing you can only understand if you understand the practical realities of life for a professional athlete. If you hear pro athletes talk about what games are like in their hometown they usually talk about hassles for tickets which they have to pay for out of pocket and friends and relations hitting them up for money and things of that nature. Wanting to avoid that is something I understand.

That said the guys you tend to hear things like this about the whole "Doesn't want the pressure of a Canadian market" guys...they can have solid careers but for the most part I don't think they end up being the guys you want when the money's down in a game seven. Shane Doan is another guy like that where his playoff numbers are pretty underwhelming.

 

[Corn Flake]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

I think if he goes where he truly wants to go, he gets $4 mil x 4.  I think he could get as high as $5x5 if he goes for the money.  I don't see it going beyond that.

 

[Corn Flake]

That said the guys you tend to hear things like this about the whole "Doesn't want the pressure of a Canadian market" guys...they can have solid careers but for the most part I don't think they end up being the guys you want when the money's down in a game seven. Shane Doan is another guy like that where his playoff numbers are pretty underwhelming.

Absolutely true. We should be happy if these guys go elsewhere.  This is why I like Bolland so much. Not a UFA, but the guy has played and delivered in the most pressurized markets and games.

That said, with Horton, he's done it in a big market so he'd be a guy I hope decides he wants to stay in one vs. sail off to the quiet outskirts of Raleigh, where nobody gives a rat's rear end about you.

 

[bustaheims]

I think if he goes where he truly wants to go, he gets $4 mil x 4.  I think he could get as high as $5x5 if he goes for the money.  I don't see it going beyond that.

$4M would be the absolute limit of what I'd pay him. That would still be an overpayment, but it's a manageable one as long as there's not too much term.

 

[maplesyrup]

I'd bet my left you-know-what Clarkson gets north of 4 on a deal exceeding 4 years.

 

[cabber24]

Anyone interested in Peter Meuller? Bit of sleeper C available... with potential upside. Might be worth taking a flyer on him.

 

[Corn Flake]

Anyone interested in Peter Meuller? Bit of sleeper C available... with potential upside. Might be worth taking a flyer on him.

Tough one. To me he has kind of crossed that line where too many teams have now moved him along to be anything more than a wild card reclamation project, but then again his issues seem to have a lot to do with concussions as much as anything else. The Panthers seem to be concerned about money more than anything, but I'm sure if they believed in the guy they would have kept him.

He's in the Anthony Stewart / Patrick O'Sullivan situation.

 

[bustaheims]

I'd bet my left you-know-what Clarkson gets north of 4 on a deal exceeding 4 years.

Then, I wish him luck wherever he is, and I look forward to his new team losing to the Leafs on a regular basis.

 

[cw]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

Unlike other UFA years, with the drop in the cap, there could be some really good deals after the first pass of top RFAs/UFAs go. I've heard that reported and I did a rough calculation which seems to support it.

If each team signs a top UFA/RFA for $4.5 mil, that leaves on average very roughly about $1 mil per player in cap space left to sign the 105 open spots on 23 man rosters - given that a number of teams won't spend to 100% of the cap. Dale Tallon is waiting until August and he might be pretty smart to get a good bang for his buck.

Under those circumstances, the notion that Tyler Bozak could come close to $5 mil for eight years seems a little crazy to me. Not long after July 5th, a harsh reality of this cap cutback is going to set in for a number of guys still looking for a seat in this game of RFA/UFA musical chairs.

There are 542 RFAs/UFAs (a bunch AHLers). There are  only 135 NHL openings left and some of those, between 30-60, will be taken by kids on their way up. It could get interesting.

 

[princedpw]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

Unlike other UFA years, with the drop in the cap, there could be some really good deals after the first pass of top RFAs/UFAs go. I've heard that reported and I did a rough calculation which seems to support it.

If each team signs a top UFA/RFA for $4.5 mil, that leaves on average very roughly about $1 mil per player in cap space left to sign the 105 open spots on 23 man rosters - given that a number of teams won't spend to 100% of the cap. Dale Tallon is waiting until August and he might be pretty smart to get a good bang for his buck.

Under those circumstances, the notion that Tyler Bozak could come close to $5 mil for eight years seems a little crazy to me. Not long after July 5th, a harsh reality of this cap cutback is going to set in for a number of guys still looking for a seat in this game of RFA/UFA musical chairs.

There are 542 RFAs/UFAs (a bunch AHLers). There are  only 135 NHL openings left and some of those, between 30-60, will be taken by kids on their way up. It could get interesting.

The way you put it is a bit like single-deck blackjack.  I really hope Nonis can count cards or has hired somebody from MIT that can.

 

[cw]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

Unlike other UFA years, with the drop in the cap, there could be some really good deals after the first pass of top RFAs/UFAs go. I've heard that reported and I did a rough calculation which seems to support it.

If each team signs a top UFA/RFA for $4.5 mil, that leaves on average very roughly about $1 mil per player in cap space left to sign the 105 open spots on 23 man rosters - given that a number of teams won't spend to 100% of the cap. Dale Tallon is waiting until August and he might be pretty smart to get a good bang for his buck.

Under those circumstances, the notion that Tyler Bozak could come close to $5 mil for eight years seems a little crazy to me. Not long after July 5th, a harsh reality of this cap cutback is going to set in for a number of guys still looking for a seat in this game of RFA/UFA musical chairs.

There are 542 RFAs/UFAs (a bunch AHLers). There are  only 135 NHL openings left and some of those, between 30-60, will be taken by kids on their way up. It could get interesting.

The way you put it is a bit like single-deck blackjack.  I really hope Nonis can count cards or has hired somebody from MIT that can.

Claude Loiselle looks after a bunch of that for Nonis. He seems pretty sharp to me. I'm sure they're aware of it. The trick will be trying to convince players they're trying to sign of it (which to some extent the agents will have to at some point). I think there's a harsher than normal reality headed towards the tweeners, 3rd/4th liners, bottom pairing & 7th dmen & backup goalies this summer. The GMs are going to run out of cap cash sooner than normal.

The cap reduction crudely reduced max NHL spending on players salaries by $177 mil. Recent compliance buyouts tally $53 mil.

Last time the cap went down, 100% - all 700+ players bore the brunt with a 24% (?) cut in pay across the board. This time around the 135 remaining RFAs/UFAs to be signed (19%) of the league have to absorb the 8% cut across the league while the top UFAs seem to be getting close to the same bucks. Some of these guys will either lose their jobs or take a 33-50% cut in pay. It's going to be tough for some of them - though still getting more than half a mil to play hockey won't seem all that tough to many.

 

[mr grieves]

I've seen it reported that he's seeking $6-6.5 mil/season on a lengthy deal. I hope they don't do that.

There's some rumours that those numbers are only what it would take to keep in in NJ, but he'd take less in other markets. That being said, he'd have to be willing to sign for about half that amount for me to be comfortable with signing him.

Unlike other UFA years, with the drop in the cap, there could be some really good deals after the first pass of top RFAs/UFAs go. I've heard that reported and I did a rough calculation which seems to support it.

If each team signs a top UFA/RFA for $4.5 mil, that leaves on average very roughly about $1 mil per player in cap space left to sign the 105 open spots on 23 man rosters - given that a number of teams won't spend to 100% of the cap. Dale Tallon is waiting until August and he might be pretty smart to get a good bang for his buck.

Under those circumstances, the notion that Tyler Bozak could come close to $5 mil for eight years seems a little crazy to me. Not long after July 5th, a harsh reality of this cap cutback is going to set in for a number of guys still looking for a seat in this game of RFA/UFA musical chairs.

There are 542 RFAs/UFAs (a bunch AHLers). There are  only 135 NHL openings left and some of those, between 30-60, will be taken by kids on their way up. It could get interesting.

The way you put it is a bit like single-deck blackjack.  I really hope Nonis can count cards or has hired somebody from MIT that can.

Claude Loiselle looks after a bunch of that for Nonis. He seems pretty sharp to me. I'm sure they're aware of it. The trick will be trying to convince players they're trying to sign of it (which to some extent the agents will have to at some point). I think there's a harsher than normal reality headed towards the tweeners, 3rd/4th liners, bottom pairing & 7th dmen & backup goalies this summer. The GMs are going to run out of cap cash sooner than normal.

The cap reduction crudely reduced max NHL spending on players salaries by $177 mil. Recent compliance buyouts tally $53 mil.

Last time the cap went down, 100% - all 700+ players bore the brunt with a 24% (?) cut in pay across the board. This time around the 135 remaining RFAs/UFAs to be signed (19%) of the league have to absorb the 8% cut across the league while the top UFAs seem to be getting close to the same bucks. Some of these guys will either lose their jobs or take a 33-50% cut in pay. It's going to be tough for some of them - though still getting more than half a mil to play hockey won't seem all that tough to many.

This is an interesting way to think of the market. I see $365m in cap space among all the teams, and I think we're now down to 134 open roster spots. And, last year, there were about 15 teams spending less than next season's cap -- an average of (eyeballed) $8m or so less. So I'd guess only $265m of that cap space will be used on the 134 roster spots.

It doesn't really look possible for too many guys to get contacts in the $4-5m range, unless the plan is to do away with the $3m player entirely and fill out rosters with call ups. Hard time for the tweeners ahead.

 

[ZBBM]

Anybody want to start a Repatriate Colaiacovo to Toronto petition now that he's been waived by Detroit? 

 

[princedpw]

Anybody want to start a Repatriate Colaiacovo to Toronto petition now that he's been waived by Detroit? 

I really liked Coco when he was here and was always disappointed when got hurt.  Haven't seen him play recently but I wouldn't be surprised if he was better than the #6, #7 defensemen we played last year ....