Continuing on from this morning...
Winner #3: Tampa
The Lightning were already great and at times looked unstoppable. They went out and added Ryan McDonagh, a star D-man, not even 29 years old, in his prime...and JT Miller, a top 6 on most teams, top 12 in Tampa. And Yzerman did it at the 3 o'clock hour JUST to spite some teams he was competing against and not give them a chance to react. Toronto and Florida went hard after McDonagh and neither could react when they lost out.
Winner #2: The Flyers
Sometimes a trade looks like nothing and turns into everything. I get a strong sense that the Mrazek deal will be remembered this way. The Flyers were having an OK season and Elliott and Neuvirth were capable, at times more than capable, but never really spectacular or big enough difference makers to support what was becoming a VERY solid team in front of them. Mrazek had struggled in Detroit, despite most saying how he had "another level" which could reveal itself with a change of scenery. We will never know if this trade even happens if Neuvirth doesn't get hurt....but it happened...the funny thing about it is the conditional draft pick that kicks in if Mrazek plays 6 games.. No one around the Flyers is saying this yet, but Mrazek may have taken only a week to leap frog into the #1 spot. He has won his first three games and looked quicker and sharper than any goalie in Philly in a long time. The Flyers are now in first place in the Metro. The next two weeks will inevitably decide this though, and the Flyers play a killer schedule...(and that is why you will see how our computer has put them in 3rd at the end of the year.) If they stay hot and Mrazek is a part of that...look out.
Winner #1: The Pittsburgh Penguins.
Getting Brassard. The Penguins were in dire need of a third line center, to the point they were rumored to going back after the aging Matt Cullen..but they had very little cap space to make a deal happen....Instead, the expert horse trader, Jim Rutherford, pulled off an unbelievable coup, using the the cap space of Vegas, and the Knight's desire to keep Brassard out of the Western Conference and added a supreme talent in Brassard to a team that already looked like they were gearing up to a three-peat... Just a brilliant move and a potentially devastating move to the teams in the East...funny enough, yesterday one top exec at another NHL team said, "I hope Vegas gets it handed to them in the Final for this..." Essentially the Pens have to be the top winner, because this trade may assure a Stanley Cup...
Do You Agree with these winners? I am quite sure you all do....right?
Look below for the new Updated Projected Final Standings.. Later I will be posting tonight's predictions...
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— Michael Augello (@MikeInBuffalo) August 2, 2017