I would rather have the return. This "dominant #1 d-man" has gotten us to the playoffs in 3 of his 9 years with the franchise, and we have won 2 out of 5 playoff series with him. The league is increasingly becoming a young mans league and its only a matter of time before time catches up to him.
- TheUltimateJet

Then by this argument trade wheeler as he has the worse contract going forward and everything you said about buff applied to wheeler

Not at all. This is where GM Cheveldayoff can either be proactive or reactive.

He can be proactive and try to deal a player that is most likely to regress and get a return for him. Or do nothing and watch the player regress and get little or no return for him.
- TheUltimateJet

Agree so make it wheeler

Agree so make it wheeler
- Ross77

I 150% agree with you Ross!

Agree so make it wheeler
- Ross77

both of you are nuts, we shouldn't get excited about trying to rid ourselves of Buff or Wheeler.

I don't disagree that every player has their price that makes a trade worthwhile but trading Gretzky didn't help the Oilers on the ice (could say the same about Boston trading Thornton or Seguin, Montreal trading Roy, Detroit trading Ted Lindsay and the list goes on and on.

Teams can't stay in rebuilds forever, eventually you have to accept where you are at and commit to winning while in that accepted window of time. Right now both Wheeler and Buff bring more to the table with their play than any return in a reasonable hockey trade would.

If coaches and management see the leadership of one of these two as a negative then that is a different matter to be resolved but I am not going to play armchair GM and pretend that I have special insight into the leadership or personalities of these two. Keep them in their flight wings.

'why was the team worse this season compared to last season with so little roster turnover?'

Umm.... I would say:

Laine was an absolute cancer to the lineup. Any chemistry a line had was killed once he was added.
Ehlers, I love him, but he was not beneficial at all this season
Chiarot played well, but was used far too much given his skill set.
Trouba put up career numbers finally, but took STUPID penalties on a nightly basis
Buff's injury never allowed him to maintain his skating/conditioning

Not gonna put any fault on the bottom 6, who were fantastic, and VERY cost effective. Connor, Sheifs, Wheels, Morrissey were all studs worth every penny of their cap hits.

A good chunk of their issues could be blamed on Coaching, as they have all the talent require.

both of you are nuts, we shouldn't get excited about trying to rid ourselves of Buff or Wheeler.

I don't disagree that every player has their price that makes a trade worthwhile but trading Gretzky didn't help the Oilers on the ice (could say the same about Boston trading Thornton or Seguin, Montreal trading Roy, Detroit trading Ted Lindsay and the list goes on and on.

Teams can't stay in rebuilds forever, eventually you have to accept where you are at and commit to winning while in that accepted window of time. Right now both Wheeler and Buff bring more to the table with their play than any return in a reasonable hockey trade would.

If coaches and management see the leadership of one of these two as a negative then that is a different matter to be resolved but I am not going to play armchair GM and pretend that I have special insight into the leadership or personalities of these two. Keep them in their flight wings.
- 2.0

2.0, let me clarify.

I was just counterpointing with Ultimate, he made points to trade Buff that I said also applied to Wheeler. if I had to choose out of the 2 who to trade, I choose Wheeler.

for the record, I'm not advocating to trade either but I really don't like wheeler's contract and think his stats ( which clearly have no bearing on our team success ) are inflated due to who he plays with, the minutes pomo gives him and pp time

also, for the record, I have no idea the truth behind the locker room problems but my suspicion is that Wheeler is front and center and the head of it!! fastest way to fix it, cut the head off the leader ( trade Wheeler ) this one move does the following;
-trade away our current largest cap hit, and will be our worst contract in 2 years
-trade away an aging player who will absolutely regress
-trade a player who plays our organizations strongest depth position!!! Would any one really be concerned with Connor, Laine, ehlers, Roslovic and Vessalainen being our top 5 wingers?
-solves cap issues
-possibly solves locker room / leadership issues
-allows this team to move forward with new young leadership group
-takes away Maurices's biggest fan in room and overusing wheeler

2.0, let me clarify.

I was just counterpointing with Ultimate, he made points to trade Buff that I said also applied to Wheeler. if I had to choose out of the 2 who to trade, I choose Wheeler.

for the record, I'm not advocating to trade either but I really don't like wheeler's contract and think his stats ( which clearly have no bearing on our team success ) are inflated due to who he plays with, the minutes pomo gives him and pp time

also, for the record, I have no idea the truth behind the locker room problems but my suspicion is that Wheeler is front and center and the head of it!! fastest way to fix it, cut the head off the leader ( trade Wheeler ) this one move does the following;
-trade away our current largest cap hit, and will be our worst contract in 2 years
-trade away an aging player who will absolutely regress
-trade a player who plays our organizations strongest depth position!!! Would any one really be concerned with Connor, Laine, ehlers, Roslovic and Vessalainen being our top 5 wingers?
-solves cap issues
-possibly solves locker room / leadership issues
-allows this team to move forward with new young leadership group
-takes away Maurices's biggest fan in room and overusing wheeler
- Ross77

after re reading my own write up I guess I am saying trade wheeler, oh well, lets do that then.

The fact that Maurice is coming back next year, and the only move we are hearing is probably a Trouba trade, there should be no expectations on the Jets making the playoffs next year, based on their play through the last 40 games.

If that is the case the Jets should trade Buff at the deadline next season.

Brown Zaitsev 3rd for Buffsfullagain?

after re reading my own write up I guess I am saying trade wheeler, oh well, lets do that then.

- Ross77

lol, fair enough.

Brown Zaitsev 3rd for Buffsfullagain?
- DrunkenCanuck

Haha. So Jet's lose their top RD, save 1M, and gain a #6/7 D man and a bottom 6 RW? No chance. Don't worry leafs, just another 5 seasons at 4.5M AAV and zaitsev and his 0.17 ppg are off the books

Haha. So Jet's lose their top RD, save 1M, and gain a #6/7 D man and a bottom 6 RW? No chance. Don't worry leafs, just another 5 seasons at 4.5M AAV and zaitsev and his 0.17 ppg are off the books


- bikeguy99

That’s the kind of offers Chevy would get. Makes zero sense to trade him in their window. Same goes for Wheels. Winning should be paramount.

That’s the kind of offers Chevy would get. Makes zero sense to trade him in their window. Same goes for Wheels. Winning should be paramount.
- DrunkenCanuck

Great teams keep retooling and making changes that keep upgrading positions, upgrading prospects, upgrading coaching, etc... The problem is fans fall in love with past performance and are unable to think of future performance.

Byfuglien would garner a package that would include At least a young defenseman and a top forward, especially for a team near the cap. I can totally see Tampa Bay trading Palat, Johnson, and Sergachev for Byfuglien and a cheap player going out. Especially if it means that they gain some cap space to sign a Brayden Point.

after re reading my own write up I guess I am saying trade wheeler, oh well, lets do that then.

- Ross77

Wow Ross77, you have been on point lately.

The fact that Maurice is coming back next year, and the only move we are hearing is probably a Trouba trade, there should be no expectations on the Jets making the playoffs next year, based on their play through the last 40 games.

If that is the case the Jets should trade Buff at the deadline next season.
- BWJumper

Great point BW

I also think that Brent Seabrook is a great comparison to Byfuglien. Two years ago, he was still playing at elite levels. That's when he was 31 turning 32. His play in the last two season dropped off considerably and the drop was dramatic.
- TheUltimateJet

Seabrook has been on the downslope for a long time now. He wasn’t as good as everyone thought, and he hit a cliff by 29. The event you’re describing is when Keith started going down, and wasn’t able to hide Mr. Brent

'why was the team worse this season compared to last season with so little roster turnover?'

Umm.... I would say:

Laine was an absolute cancer to the lineup. Any chemistry a line had was killed once he was added.
Ehlers, I love him, but he was not beneficial at all this season
Chiarot played well, but was used far too much given his skill set.
Trouba put up career numbers finally, but took STUPID penalties on a nightly basis
Buff's injury never allowed him to maintain his skating/conditioning

Not gonna put any fault on the bottom 6, who were fantastic, and VERY cost effective. Connor, Sheifs, Wheels, Morrissey were all studs worth every penny of their cap hits.

A good chunk of their issues could be blamed on Coaching, as they have all the talent require.
- bikeguy99

So... you’re saying the problems on this team are Laine (generational goal scorer), Ehlers (arguably our 2nd best forward, and close to Scheifele), Trouba (a #1 dman), and Buff (another #1 dman)? That’s like saying the Oilers problems are Draisaitl, Klefbom, and Connor McDavid

Great teams keep retooling and making changes that keep upgrading positions, upgrading prospects, upgrading coaching, etc... The problem is fans fall in love with past performance and are unable to think of future performance.

Byfuglien would garner a package that would include At least a young defenseman and a top forward, especially for a team near the cap. I can totally see Tampa Bay trading Palat, Johnson, and Sergachev for Byfuglien and a cheap player going out. Especially if it means that they gain some cap space to sign a Brayden Point.
- TheUltimateJet

Sergachev, really?

So... you’re saying the problems on this team are Laine (generational goal scorer), Ehlers (arguably our 2nd best forward, and close to Scheifele), Trouba (a #1 dman), and Buff (another #1 dman)? That’s like saying the Oilers problems are Draisaitl, Klefbom, and Connor McDavid
- Rexypoo

Doesn’t a player have to win the Rocket Richard trophy consistently to be considered a “generational goal scorer”?

See - Ovechkin

Sergachev, really?
- grahamzky

It was just something I threw out there. You could probably get something better and if you choose not to keep all the pieces you get in return, they can be dealt for draft picks and prospects.

Doesn’t a player have to win the Rocket Richard trophy consistently to be considered a “generational goal scorer”?

See - Ovechkin
- TheUltimateJet

Yes. Laine will do just that. He’s already the best shooter in the NHL.

Yes. Laine will do just that. He’s already the best shooter in the NHL.
- Rexypoo

Ovechkin has been doing that since his rookie season. And outside of shooting, what else is Laine good at?

What's his offseason routine looking like? Is it sitting at home with his friends playing NHL 19 and telling them he's awesome?

It was just something I threw out there. You could probably get something better and if you choose not to keep all the pieces you get in return, they can be dealt for draft picks and prospects.
- TheUltimateJet

No, you got me wrong, I would trade Buff - even up - for Sergachev in a heart-beat

Ovechkin has been doing that since his rookie season. And outside of shooting, what else is Laine good at?

What's his offseason routine looking like? Is it sitting at home with his friends playing NHL 19 and telling them he's awesome?
- TheUltimateJet

Exactly. He is no generational player, let me tell you - at least IMO - maybe on NHL 19. Yes, he definitely can (sometimes) score goals (103 or 203, don't care), - but?
Would he still fetch a #2C and a young #1-3 d-man - and reduce the salary cap number?

TB has to dump salary, I can see Sergachev being the incentive.
Callahan (to take Tanev's spot), Sergachev plus a 2020 second rounder for signed Trouba