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NHL Thoughts : There Has Been A Trade

February 20, 2018, 9:48 AM ET [14 Comments]
Adam French
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Hello everyone and welcome, to the most inconsistent series on Hockeybuzz! The series where I espouse my inane and pedantic thoughts on everything NHL.


It's a trade about nothing

I think this is a pretty good trade for the Flyers. Apparently Mrazek murders puppies and drinks blood if you are to believe the Detroit media, but everybody else who interacts with him seems to think he is a solid professional. People from the 67's where he played his junior game rave about him. So how much is rumour and how much is true is one Steve Simmond's hot dog article away from being known.

Mrazek isn't exactly the second coming of Hasek, but he's been a quality goaltender every year outside of his sophomore season (last year). He's basically as good if not better than Jimmy Howard. He's less injury prone than Howard. He's cheaper than Howard. He's less expensive than Howard. he's younger than Howard. I suppose he just doesn't "heart" like Howard. He's younger than the Wings "goalie of the future" Coreau...and considerably better in the NHL and AHL to boot.

So this is looking more like what happened in Buffalo a few years ago when they traded any goalie that could stop a puck in my eyes.

I like the trade for the Flyers.The last time they gambled on a goalie that had an amazing rookie year and then took a stumble or two they got Steve Mason. Who, like Mrazek, is not a superstar, but provided a few years of stable goaltending.

With Neuvirth out and never really establishing himself as a number one; plus Elliot out and having another mediocre year, I like Mrazek's chances to provide quality goaltending and potentially even usurp one of them.

The draft picks given are negligible for a team like the Flyers. This is to say that they have a very strong group of prospects already in the cupboard. As well as a having the majority of their own picks, plus others this year. That includes the Blues first rounder (conditional and potentially 2019). The Wings even ate 2 million of Mrazek's salary. That's just paying the Flyers to take him.

A lot of people will say this is the first move in Detroit's rebuild. If so...I'd be a bit worried. This is a shaky start. Trading a 26 year old goalie who has had NHL success for nothing and retaining money on the deal, just to save the money he's going to get in arbitration is...not exactly a good start. I've seen Wings fans on this site be extremely pessimistic and following along and looking into some of the things going on in their organization...I'm starting to see why.

Really like this deal for the Flyers. Hopefully Mrazek can bring back some of that magic he showed in 2016.


That other trade I didn't talk about and has already been talked to death


Double Dion was traded to the Senators along with Nate Thompson for Marian Gaborik and nick Shore. All I really have to say is that I like this trade for the Kings, because Ottawa ate salary. I dislike this trade for the Sens because Melnyk is again looking for some more savings to put in his offshore Barbados tax haven.

Dion Phaneuf is what he is at this point. A slower skating 4th defenseman that could really use a partner that can skate. What will he used as perfectly in LA? A slower skating 4th defenseman with a partner that can skate. Match made in heaven. He won't even have to be relied on to play top line penalty killing minutes. Which is good...because he's never been that great at it despite constantly being thrown out there.

Dion at 5.25 is a lot more palatable than at the ludicrous 7 million he took up on the Cap. I'd say he's still a bit overpaid (by a million), but that's why Free Agency is so funny.

This gives the LA Kings a formidable top-4 of Doughty-Muzzin-Phaneuf-Martinez. If/when they get Jeff Carter back, they should be able to find themselves in the playoffs...and dangerous too.

Gaborik is 36. Wow, how time flies. I remember watching him when he broke into the league skating like a demon. But at 36 with his production declining, his health always a question and his defensive game lacking with no production to back that up...he's not that good. It was nice to see him score a goal and get an assist in his first game. Sure. But with Guy "The System" Boucher behind the bench, he'll be on the fourth line by game 10.

Plus the Sens get EVEN older. They're icing one of the most veteran teams in the league and are bottom feeders. That's a recipe for disaster. I get that this move will help facilitate giving Erik Karlsson the second largest contract in the NHL, but I think a Brassard move for actual goods and the growth of Colin White could have done the same thing moving forward.

Shore for Thompson is fine. Shore's younger and a tad better, but it's negligible.

Not a fan of this move for the Sens.


Frustration Abounds

Watching the Oilers is a chore at this point. Last season I forced myself to stay awake and watched about 20 games. Why did I watch them? They were exciting. Like staying up a bit later to watch the Blackhawks in years past or changing the channel to watch a Penguins or Capitals game, I enjoy exciting high octane hockey. I like watching star players do star player things. Hence the Oilers. Who have one of the brightest stars in the game.

Last season they were exciting to watch. They had excellent goaltending. A steady, if unspectacular defence, with a bright spot in Klefbom. Draisaitl took advantage of his time with McDavid and was an elite scorer. Lucic brought Lucic things to the table. Everything seemed to be going the right direction.

Fast forward a year and it's all doom and gloom. If McDavid isn't scoring a hat-trick, the Oilers likely aren't winning. McDavid has 17 more points than the next Oiler. 17! Draisaitl has 21 more points than the next Oiler after that. 21! That guy (Nugent-Hopkins) has missed 12 games too. So realistically we are looking at McDavid scoring 39 more points than the third next Oilers forward. That's pitiful. Especially for a team that's going to be in a Cap Crunch.

I don't want to rag on the Oilers because I like their fans, but it's an unavoidable discussion. This is a mess and it's hard to see how to sort it out.



Thanks for reading. Tomorrow I'll be posting an article on "The Next One." I've had to delay it a month as I wanted to actually see him play again live and have it fresh in my mind. Last time I had seen him live was in November.
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