sancarlos wrote: Fri Jul 23, 2021 6:30 pm
And, it seems every smart GM eventually becomes dumb, as every team with an extended run of success seems to eventually end up in Cap hell. (See Detroit...
I think the Red Wings' success stems directly from Mike Ilitch's willingness to spend when there was not a salary cap, not Ken Holland in any real way. When you have a Cup contender/eventual winner and an owner who repeatedly shows he'll open the checkbook, it makes it super easy to bring guys in, whether for a payday or because they want to win.
Ilitch's willingness to really ramp up spending with the Tigers coincided with the salary cap coming into effect in the NHL. He simply decided to shift his pet project based on the one where he felt he could win simply by outspending others.
“The running, the jumping... a celebration of life.”
mister d wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 9:29 am
+ early Russian scouting.
Yeah, it’s an oversimplification to suggest Holland’s success was all pre-cap related. He drafted one of the five best D-men in history with a sixth (IIRC) round pick. Maybe some of that is luck too but there was a combination of factors. The cap era definitely exposed some of his flaws.
mister d wrote: Sat Jul 24, 2021 9:29 am
+ early Russian scouting.
Yeah, it’s an oversimplification to suggest Holland’s success was all pre-cap related. He drafted one of the five best D-men in history with a sixth (IIRC) round pick. Maybe some of that is luck too but there was a combination of factors. The cap era definitely exposed some of his flaws.
You could also say that someone had to pick up the tab to really expand their scouting to Russia and Sweden. If I recall correctly, the Wings were the first team to have a full-time scouting operation in Sweden. Certainly, it's a "Moneyball" thing where they exploited a market inefficiency by scouting an otherwise ignored place and also set aside generalized stereotypes of the time about European players, but they had to pay people to do it in person at that time due to technology of the time.
Someone also had to write the checks to pay for private planes, etc. for Russians to defect.
“The running, the jumping... a celebration of life.”
Russian and other eastern bloc players were also key to the Sharks' rise in the 90s from expansion doormat to playoff team. Sergei Makarov, Igor Larionov and Johan Garpenlov were their top line for awhile, with Arturs Irbe and Sandis Ozolinsh also on those teams.
Yeah, I was trying to get 100% verification so at least I was sure I was right in case it looked like I was being bitter about him mocking the Pens for letting MAF go, but seems pretty lame.
There might be a little bit of cap recapture if MAF retires. His 3 year deal doesn't backdive like Suter, Parise, Weber, etc., but it did go down each year, and if he retires, I'm pretty sure VGK will get at least a little bit of cap problems. Wouldn't surprise me at all for him to exact revenge in this manner.
Until everything is less insane, I'm mixing weed with wine.
mister d wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 11:48 am
Twitter speculation this is for Eichel.
Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. I don't get it, but McPhee (and McCrimmon) are gonna keep rolling the dice on bringing these overpaid players in. Pietrangelo was a waste of cap space until the playoffs and that contract is gonna be an albatross in two years. I really think some of these GMs try to put themselves in future cap hell because it gives them a convenient excuse to tear everything down and have to rebuild instead of just trying to stay really good for a decade or longer but running the risk of ownership bringing in a different GM.
mister d wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 11:48 am
Twitter speculation this is for Eichel.
Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of. I don't get it, but McPhee (and McCrimmon) are gonna keep rolling the dice on bringing these overpaid players in. Pietrangelo was a waste of cap space until the playoffs and that contract is gonna be an albatross in two years. I really think some of these GMs try to put themselves in future cap hell because it gives them a convenient excuse to tear everything down and have to rebuild instead of just trying to stay really good for a decade or longer but running the risk of ownership bringing in a different GM.
Speculation for a bit that Reilly Smith will be traded as well. Which would give them enough for Eichel. Which would be a disaster.
"Pain or damage don't end the world. Or despair or fucking beatings. The world ends when you're dead. Until then, you got more punishment in store. Stand it like a man... and give some back." -Al Swearengen
Much like Cal Ripken I think Ovi gets to pick when he retires.
Teddy can't have him break the goal scoring record in another sweater
They were talking 3 or 4 years but 5 probably helps bring the annual down so he does not crush the cap worse than he already has
brian wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 11:48 am
In other news, two big contributors to VGK's success over the last few seasons are being bought out - James Neal (EDM) and Martin Jones (SJS).
Jones was better than Fleury when the Sharks eliminated Vegas in the playoffs a couple years ago.
That said, it was beyond time for Jones to leave San Jose.
brian wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 11:48 am
In other news, two big contributors to VGK's success over the last few seasons are being bought out - James Neal (EDM) and Martin Jones (SJS).
Flames signing Neal was one of the worst FA signings in recent memory. But then they turned it into one of the better trades. Can't believe they flipped in for Lucic and that conditional 3rd.
Kung Fu movies are like porn. There's 1 on 1, then 2 on 1, then a group scene..
Hoping Landeskog’s new deal puts a cap on what Danault gets because I’m pretty sure NYR is in and I’m ok with that so long as we don’t get stupid for the third time in a week.
A_B wrote: Mon Mar 31, 2025 2:54 pmand henceforth I imagine I’ll be Old …we…t spot AB.
