Congrats to Alex Ovechkin, Barry Trotz and the Washington Capitals on their Stanley Cup championship.
Now, on to Silly Season.
There is a likelihood that the Ottawa Senators trade power winger Mike Hoffman in the days to come. I caught Pierre LeBrun’s segment on TSN 1200 on Thursday. LeBrun confirmed the chatter that I have been hearing about Hoffman being on the move.
What will the trade compensation be for a skilled veteran forward of Hoffman’s ilk?
It won’t be a one for one trade.
Bring multiple assets or don’t bother calling Pierre Dorion.
Hoffman has term remaining on his current Ottawa contract. Hoffman has two years at $5,187,500 AAV remaining on his deal. Hoffman has a modified no trade clause written into his Ottawa deal.
At age 28, Hoffman is entering his prime years. Hoffman plays the game the right way. He’s heavy on pucks and gets after it at five on five, and on the power play. Hoffman has blazing speed and silky-smooth mitts. Hoffman has four 20-goal seasons notched on his gun belt. He’s a sniper who loves to wire the puck. In his 342 career NHL games with the Senators, Hoffman has 107 goals (32 PPG) and 123 assists (34 PPA) for 230 points.
Dorion is now tasked with having to get max trade value for Hoffman. The Sens need to acquire young offensive and defensive prospects and players.
We are two weeks away from the NHL Draft in Dallas, and there is a fertile market for scoring forwards in the NHL. With Evander Kane’s recent signing with San Jose, the supply of scoring power forwards is shrinking. Kane’s 7-year, $49 million contract has set the market comparable for scoring power forwards. Kane was set to be one of the marquee unrestricted free agents this summer.
Several NHL teams will be trying their dead level best to land pending unrestricted free agent snipers on July 1. High demand, low supply will force the final prices will get stupid. The competition will be stiff for John Tavares, James van Riemsdyk, James Neal and David Perron come UFA day on July 1. JVR, Neal and Perron are solid scorers, however, none are Hoffman’s equal in terms of being a complete, all-around player.
The added value that Hoffman brings is that he is cost controlled for the next two seasons. I’m confident that Hoffman will continue to light the lamp at least twenty times for season. When he is eligible to become UFA two summers from now, Hoffman will break the bank.
Pierre Dorion has a problem. A big problem. He has opted to keep the fourth overall in the 2018 NHL Draft courtesy of the NHL Draft Lottery. However, Dorion doesn’t own a 2019 first round draft choice and he desperately needs one. The Colorado Avalanche will get the Senators first round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft as the final piece of the Duchene trade. The Sens will be stripping it down to the studs to insure they are a lottery team again next season. pick will be a top 10 pick at minimum once again next season. Dorion can fill his coffers with some valuable gems by trading the sniping Hoffman and dazzling defenseman Erik Karlsson at the NHL Draft as has been rumored for months.
Where will Dorion get his hands on a 2019 first rounder?
If he hasn’t already done so, Dorion may want to call Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill. The Sabres now own two first-round draft choices in the 2019 NHL Draft. Botterill will have his own 2019 first rounder, plus, San Jose’s first rounder. When Evander Kane signed his long-term contract to stay and play in San Jose, the conditional draft choice in the deal transformed from a second-round pick to a first round pick. A caveat is if San Jose fails to qualify for the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, they reserve the right to hold onto their 2019 first rounder and give Buffalo their 2020 first rounder. Not likely to happen as the Sharks have made the playoffs 13 out of the past 14 seasons. The Sharks are built to win a Cup next season and will add more fire power to their veteran core this summer. The Sharks will go all-in in signing John Tavares as a free agent in July 1.
Botterill and Phil Housley know Hoffman’s game very well having competed against him and the Sens in division head-to-head match-ups. There is no secret that the Evander Kane trade left the Sabres paper thin at left wing. Botterill and Housley are still looking for a power winger to skate and create with and for Jack Eichel on Buffalo’s top line. I’ve always liked Hoffman. I think he would excel while riding shotgun for Eichel. Hoffman plays fast and north. He’s a quick-catch-quick-release puck practitioner. He plays a feisty, fast game. Hoffman would create a big target for Eichel to throw pucks to. Adding Hoffman would give the Sabres needed 5v5 scoring off the cycle and off the rush. Hoffman would add immediate scoring pop to the Sabres PP that feel from the penthouse to the out house in 2017-18. The Sabres PP was ranked #1 in the NHL during the 2016-17 regular season. The fall from grace was ugly in 2017-18 when the Sabres finished 31st overall on the PP.
If the Sabres are going to be a playoff team in 2018-19, they will have to find a full time running mate for Eichel, who is entering year one of his 8-year, $80 million contract with the Sabres. Eichel has played with far too many wingers in his three seasons with the Sabres. Eichel needs to know who his wingers are every night. It's high time for Housley to give Eichel a dynamic, skilled, power forward to call his own. Eichel has been carrying his linemates for three years. It's time to give him wingers who compliment his explosive style.
The 2017-18 Colorado Avalanche made a 47-point improvement from one season to the next. The 2017-18 New Jersey Devils made the playoffs after the team finished in last place in the Eastern standings the season before.
The Sabres will select Rasmus Dahlin first overall at the NHL Draft in Dallas. The tanking days are dead in Buffalo. Thank God! The time is now for Botterill to put the best product on the ice which will create more fannies in the seats. Sabres fans deserve a winning team after having to suffer through seven straight losing seasons.
Adding Hoffman via trade will solidify the left win position on Jack Eichel's line.
The Sabres have the salary cap space to fit Hoffman’s salary into their budget. THe NHL salary cap is expected to increase by as mush as $8 million for the 2018-19 season.
At what price Hoffman?
Buffalo’s second 2019 first rounder (San Jose’s pick), plus energy forward Zemgus Girgensons, a former first rounder.
There are several teams pursuing Hoffman, including Carolina, Los Angeles, Vancouver, and Pittsburgh.
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Speaking of trade chatter...
Don’t believe all the hype you read in Twitter about Sabres center Ryan O’Reilly.
Speculation runs rampant around the NHL during the Stanley Cup Finals. The rumors persis leading up to the NHL Draft and July 1.
Is ROR in the trade block?
No. The Sabres are very happy with O’Reilly the player and O’Reilly the man.
Are other NHL GMs calling Jason Botterill to ask if O’Reilly, Rasmus Ristolainen, Zemgus Girgensons and other Sabres are available for trade?
Yes, they are calling.
I’ll have more on this later.
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