Waiting until the deadline is a big risk. He might get injured again, or Dorion, being as inexperienced as he is, might out play himself as he did this deadline, and wind up not trading him at all.
- Feeling Glucky?

Where the Sens finish next year is now irrelevant. It has no impact upon the future of the Sens, so worrying about it is a waste of time and emotional energy.

Hell, there's actually an argument to be made that finishing last benefits the Sens, as the #1 (assuming Colorado wins the lottery) would then go to the Western Conference.

What's done is done. The Sens now need to make decisions based upon what's best for the team - and not worry about fans bellyaching next year if they do happen to finish last.

Where the Sens finish next year is now irrelevant. It has no impact upon the future of the Sens, so worrying about it is a waste of time and emotional energy.

Hell, there's actually an argument to be made that finishing last benefits the Sens, as the #1 (assuming Colorado wins the lottery) would then go to the Western Conference.

What's done is done. The Sens now need to make decisions based upon what's best for the team - and not worry about fans bellyaching next year if they do happen to finish last

This same thought has crossed my mind. What's worse, him going to Colorado, or Montreal/Buffalo.

This same thought has crossed my mind. What's worse, him going to Colorado, or Montreal/Buffalo.
- david22

glorious

While some saying talks have cooled on on EK (the player, not the blogger). Gean Brown or Dord Wilson (i get them confused) was just on the radio saying that likely would be traded this weekend... Hoping things pick up a little: EK, Tavares, etc (Caps news doesnt qualify). I still have 3.5 hours at work to kill....

This same thought has crossed my mind. What's worse, him going to Colorado, or Montreal/Buffalo.
- david22

Wouldn't you like to see Hughes often while facing the Habs? As a hockey fan you gotta appreciate talent!

Wouldn't you like to see Hughes often while facing the Habs? As a hockey fan you gotta appreciate talent!
- Scabeh

Over the embarrassment of seeing him in an Avs jersey?

Probably.

Where the Sens finish next year is now irrelevant. It has no impact upon the future of the Sens, so worrying about it is a waste of time and emotional energy.

Hell, there's actually an argument to be made that finishing last benefits the Sens, as the #1 (assuming Colorado wins the lottery) would then go to the Western Conference.

What's done is done. The Sens now need to make decisions based upon what's best for the team - and not worry about fans bellyaching next year if they do happen to finish last.
- Atomic Wedgie

Well, finishing last definitely benefits them, because the remainder of their picks will be at the start of their rounds.

Doing a full tear down now also means they get more picks, and not necessarily just from teams that know they’re going deep.

But I have a feeling Dorion and Melnyk might want to save face and not give away the 1st overall.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and make a bold prediction: EK resigns for 8 years at $11.5 million after July 1st. Dorion has been quiet and confident on that front all offseason, we got rid of a lot of the toxicity in the locker room and EK has been basically silent all summer, he's never made any request to trade him, he's never had any comment that showed he wanted out, and Swedes have a tendency to just quietly go about their business when the status quo is good for them. Every bold prediction and stupid claim made by TSN to date (a media network owned by the network that owns the Leafs) has been wrong, no reason the ones about EK being traded won't be either.

The team announcing the refinancing deal publically was a way of subtly reassuring Sens fans they intend to invest in the team big time in the coming years and not just for a new arena. This is contract money, people! Paid for by debt financing, sure, but still contract moneys. Only way they can boost ticket sales is make the team competitive and they will do that.

It's also encouraged by two other factors: one, other teams are low balling sheisters who will never offer us what he is worth (2 firsts, a 2nd, an NHL calibre Top 9 forward and top 4 dman is the starting point for just one season of this guy. If you don't believe that you haven't watched Karlsson play enough and your opinion is irrelevant). Two, Ottawa will be making some other moves over the summer to bring in some legit talent and will have a young and exciting team next season filled with people no one else in the league will know but who will show a lot of people that this is a retool that will be short. We need a veteran centre and a D man with some experience. I would propose the following:

-Place Gaborik and MacArthur on LTIR for cap savings;
-Re-sign Karlsson (8 x $11.5);
-Re-sign Stone (5 x $7.4);
-Re-sign Duchene (6 x $7.4)
-Re-sign Ceci (2 x $3.7);
-Sign Tyler Bozak (3 x 5.2);
-Sign Thomas Hickey (4 x 3.8)

Dzingle-Duchene-Stone
Pageau-Bozak-Ryan
Tkachuk-Brown-White
Pyatt-Smith-Boedker
ex: Paajarvi, McCormick

Karlsson-Chabot
Ceci-Hickey
Boro-Wideman
ex: Harpur, Wolanin

Anderson
Condon

Bubble team right there. Now stop the bellyaching and wait to see what they do before training camp. This is hope time, people!!!!!

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and make a bold prediction: EK resigns for 8 years at $11.5 million after July 1st. Dorion has been quiet and confident on that front all offseason, we got rid of a lot of the toxicity in the locker room and EK has been basically silent all summer, he's never made any request to trade him, he's never had any comment that showed he wanted out, and Swedes have a tendency to just quietly go about their business when the status quo is good for them. Every bold prediction and stupid claim made by TSN to date (a media network owned by the network that owns the Leafs) has been wrong, no reason the ones about EK being traded won't be either.

The team announcing the refinancing deal publically was a way of subtly reassuring Sens fans they intend to invest in the team big time in the coming years and not just for a new arena. This is contract money, people! Paid for by debt financing, sure, but still contract moneys. Only way they can boost ticket sales is make the team competitive and they will do that.

It's also encouraged by two other factors: one, other teams are low balling sheisters who will never offer us what he is worth (2 firsts, a 2nd, an NHL calibre Top 9 forward and top 4 dman is the starting point for just one season of this guy. If you don't believe that you haven't watched Karlsson play enough and your opinion is irrelevant). Two, Ottawa will be making some other moves over the summer to bring in some legit talent and will have a young and exciting team next season filled with people no one else in the league will know but who will show a lot of people that this is a retool that will be short. We need a veteran centre and a D man with some experience. I would propose the following:

-Place Gaborik and MacArthur on LTIR for cap savings;
-Re-sign Karlsson (8 x $11.5);
-Re-sign Stone (5 x $7.4);
-Re-sign Duchene (6 x $7.4)
-Re-sign Ceci (2 x $3.7);
-Sign Tyler Bozak (3 x 5.2);
-Sign Thomas Hickey (4 x 3.8)

Dzingle-Duchene-Stone
Pageau-Bozak-Ryan
Tkachuk-Brown-White
Pyatt-Smith-Boedker
ex: Paajarvi, McCormick

Karlsson-Chabot
Ceci-Hickey
Boro-Wideman
ex: Harpur, Wolanin

Anderson
Condon

Bubble team right there. Now stop the bellyaching and wait to see what they do before training camp. This is hope time, people!!!!!










- ahjnkn

Not bad! ..although I believe that Karlsson/smith/Ryan? Some combo...will be traded to Vegas ..maybe st . Louis?..Vegas Tuch.. Theo ..brannstrom ..Tatar. +1st ..something in those confines. .we'll see. .either way. .if Karlsson does go..it should be a home run

Hutton (Buf) and Mrazek (Car) apparently already have deals in place. Bernier (Det) and Cam Ward (Chi) as well.

Best bet would be to take a run at Lehner or Khudobin. Dont know where could trade Anderson too, proabably would have to buy out one of him or condon if you really want to make a change but with whats out there, are you really getting an upgrade anywhere?
- DDM-Coga

Surprise, every "evaluation" of a Sens' player is negative . Yawn*

If teams know what the money is to sign him and that the sens cant make that work, gotta wonder how much do they use that as leverage against the Sens....take the trade bc he will just walk for free
- DDM-Coga

Not surprisingly, you've focused only on the potential negative aspects of Doughty signing. The rather obvious flip side is that:

1) the Doughty, Carlson, and OEL deals will essentially set the contract price for Karlsson up front, and limit the extent to which serious negotiations can be delayed by waiting for comparable contracts to be established;

2) the Doughty, Carlson, and OEL deals only further reinforce how rarely a player of Karlsson's quality is available via trade or free agency, and essentially leave Karlsson as the only significant option for teams looking to add an offensive d-man of that quality.

Basically, the only thing Doughty re-signing does is further restrict the supply of potentially available elite d-men, and clarify the contract expectations for this level of player. Your glass has to be seriously half-empty to view either of those things as definitively bad for the Senators at this point.

Surprise, every "evaluation" of a Sens' player is negative . Yawn*
- AlfieisKing

you had 2 sub 900 goalies last night you tuna can, how can you spin that as a negative

saying you would have to trade or buyout your current goalies to make a change in net is negative? you are so dumb its alarming

Not surprisingly, you've focused only on the potential negative aspects of Doughty signing. The rather obvious flip side is that:

1) the Doughty, Carlson, and OEL deals will essentially set the contract price for Karlsson up front, and limit the extent to which serious negotiations can be delayed by waiting for comparable contracts to be established;

2) the Doughty, Carlson, and OEL deals only further reinforce how rarely a player of Karlsson's quality is available via trade or free agency, and essentially leave Karlsson as the only significant option for teams looking to add an offensive d-man of that quality.

Basically, the only thing Doughty re-signing does is further restrict the supply of potentially available elite d-men, and clarify the contract expectations for this level of player. Your glass has to be seriously half-empty to view either of those things as definitively bad for the Senators at this point.
- khawk

TSN guys tweeted the same thing out, that they are playing hard ball with the Sens for that exact reason.

SO yeah its me who is focusing on the bad

TSN guys tweeted the same thing out, that they are playing hard ball with the Sens for that exact reason.

SO yeah its me who is focusing on the bad
- DDM-Coga

No doubt they're getting low offers, makes sense they'd try. Hope Dorion doesn't fall for it, they've freed up enough money to sign him and others now. Far better to have him on the Sens roster (and signed) than to throw him away for little return. Returns need be indicative of trading for a franchise player. Period.

TSN guys tweeted the same thing out, that they are playing hard ball with the Sens for that exact reason.
SO yeah its me who is focusing on the bad
- DDM-Coga

Guess we an all stop thinking about things for ourselves. Some of us don't need TSN tweets sent out as part of their July 1st hype machine to think about a situation objectively, and come up with some original thoughts on the matter.

No doubt they're getting low offers, makes sense they'd try. Hope Dorion doesn't fall for it, they've freed up enough money to sign him and others now. Far better to have him on the Sens roster (and signed) than to throw him away for little return. Returns need be indicative of trading for a franchise player. Period.
- sportsdataguy

Travis Yost has a series of tweets today outlining what hes hearing for EK trade talks with Vegas

They are trying to attached Ryan with him again..

1.) The preference to attach Bobby Ryan’s contract to this trade has been well reported at this point. But it’s important to reiterate how much complexity it creates. Teams are increasingly unwilling to part with top-tier prospects while taking on his salary.

— Travis Yost (@travisyost) June 30, 2018

4.) July 1 poses another issue for Ottawa. By then, Ottawa — who absolutely should be taken at their word — will have offered a contract to Karlsson. Belief around the league is that will not be accepted, which is why interested teams are digging in.

— Travis Yost (@travisyost) June 30, 2018

But mentions Ott could benefit from a Tavares fall out if they target trade talks with teams who miss on on JT

But chances are Ryan wont be attached in those targets. Sens are in a tough spot and it will much clearer July 1st

Guess we an all stop thinking about things for ourselves. Some of us don't need TSN tweets sent out as part of their July 1st hype machine to think about a situation objectively, and come up with some original thoughts on the matter.
- khawk

Its called reality of the situation. Your post was a bit too optimistic and ignoring reported items to craft some sort of hypothetical situation...now respond back with another passive aggressive post

Teams aren't in the business of helping one another out, and GM aren't in the business of giving other GMs a break. There is blood in the water with the Sens and EK, and there are teams who are trying to take advantage of the tough spot they put themselves in. Its that simple

Its called reality of the situation. Your post was a bit too optimistic and ignoring reported items to craft some sort of hypothetical situation...now respond back with another passive aggressive post

Teams aren't in the business of helping one another out, and GM aren't in the business of giving other GMs a break. There is blood in the water with the Sens and EK, and there are teams who are trying to take advantage of the tough spot they put themselves in. Its that simple
- DDM-Coga

Clear to me as the blue sky stretching over the prairies on a warm summer day.

Its called reality of the situation. Your post was a bit too optimistic and ignoring reported items to craft some sort of hypothetical situation...now respond back with another passive aggressive post

Teams aren't in the business of helping one another out, and GM aren't in the business of giving other GMs a break. There is blood in the water with the Sens and EK, and there are teams who are trying to take advantage of the tough spot they put themselves in. Its that simple
- DDM-Coga

Don't disagree, if Bobby Ryan is included, they need to lower expectations significantly. As for signing him, the Doughty contracts sets the reasonable bar - just don't lowball him. Somewhere around $11M should get it done and is respectable. Can always consider a trade later.

Its called reality of the situation. Your post was a bit too optimistic and ignoring reported items to craft some sort of hypothetical situation...now respond back with another passive aggressive poste
- DDM-Coga

Regardless of TSN's Twitter content du jour, the objective reality of the situation is that Ottawa can still either sign or trade Karlsson. If you're not actively considering both of those outcomes as distinct possibilities, then you need to revisit your own biases. Dorion has obviously been testing the waters to see what the return might be on a Karlsson trade in advance of contract negotiations, but that doesn't mean he's willing to sell on the cheap. In fact, I'd suggest that lowball offers make it even more likely the team will break the bank to re-sign him. The biggest uncertainty in the equation is Karlsson himself, and whether he would accept a Doughty-level extension if it was presented to him.

Personally, I think he would... you will probably disagree.

Karlsson posted an Instagram story today from development camp. Shows hes been hanging around at least. As an optimist I'll take this as a good sign.