Quote:
Originally Posted by CrescentMoonie
They haven't had a legit run for the cup since 1998. They've changed everything except Ovi during this run and had the exact same results. He's been a 0.66 ppg playoff scorer, and a -8, the last 5 postseasons. They're locked into being a good scoring team that wins in the regular season for another 3 years after this season. It's actually more enjoyable to have the cup winning false hopes removed.
Niskanen is the only legit top pairing D on the roster and he's more of the #2 guy. Orlov is still developing while Carlson has taken a couple of big steps backwards the last 2 years. It's so bad that Brooks Orpik is playing in the 2nd pairing again despite being beyond horrible at this point.
They've got 4 top 6 forwards. Even the bottom 6 has a question mark or two.
There's not much in the pipeline other than another 2-3 goalies behind the 2 studs at the NHL level and 3 defensemen that are considered 3rd pairing prospects. All of that is true with a team that is right up against the cap.
Ovi, Oshie, Backstrom, and Kuznetsov have been big positives through the first 3 games, but Vrana and Burakovsky are clearly not good enough yet.
The hope is probably to move either Holtby or Grubauer and get either a top 4 D or top 6 F. The window for moving either Ovi or Backstrom is gone and both will be counting more than $16 million a year against the salary cap through the end of the 2020-21 season.
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If they move Holtby they are crazy. Source - a fan of a team that hasn't had a decent goalie in forever.
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"Breakfast? Breakfast schmekfast, look at the score for God's sake. It's only the second period and I'm winning 12-2. Breakfasts come and go, Rene, but Hartford, the Whale, they only beat Vancouver maybe once or twice in a lifetime."
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