Around the League 2019-2024 Edition

[BeLeafer]

you forget all the money handed out to overpaid mediocrities like Little and Myers, and to utter crap like Perreault and Kulikov.

and, worst of all, cheaping out on and ostracizing Trouba and ensuring he never would even think of staying in winnipeg.

Oh yeah, just scratching the surface.

 

[JackBurton]

Funny how it feels there's never criticism of the Jets. Imagine Dubas having that offseason?

 

[LeafGm]

FWIW, I don't think there's anything Winnipeg could have done to keep Trouba in Winnipeg any longer than he absolutely had to stay there. Seemed pretty crystal clear that he had zero interest in staying in a tiny Canadian market.

That said, I'd agree with the rest of the criticisms mentioned. And Trouba's desire to leave Winnipeg as soon as he could doesn't excuse the pitiful return the Jets got for him. They had all the time in the world to get ahead of that situation and get a proper return for a #1 RHD.

 

[MindzEye]

They've been a clown show of mismanagement the entire time and the canadian hockey media has done nothing but jerk the entire gang off with their feet. While at the same time bashing the shit out of everything a much better run organization has done over the last few years.

It's almost....almost like the media doesn't have a fucking clue what makes a good organization and hockey team.

Almost.

 

[zeke]

we saw it with the tender fellating of all those Oil Change years, too.

 

[zeke]

FWIW, I don't think there's anything Winnipeg could have done to keep Trouba in Winnipeg any longer than he absolutely had to stay there. Seemed pretty crystal clear that he had zero interest in staying in a tiny Canadian market.

perhaps, though there are circumstances where an overpay is necessary and worthwhile.

but you're right too, maybe the bigger mistake was not realizing that trouba was gonzo no matter what, and not proactively trading him for a good return when they could.

 

[BeLeafer]

They've been a clown show of mismanagement the entire time and the canadian hockey media has done nothing but jerk the entire gang off with their feet. While at the same time bashing the shit out of everything a much better run organization has done over the last few years.

It's almost....almost like the media doesn't have a fucking clue what makes a good organization and hockey team.

Almost.

It's more like they have an agenda to drive up ratings by sending Leafs fans into hysteria.

 

[worm]

I think Buff likely showed up all superfat again.

that was my first thought

 

[worm]

It's more like they have an agenda to drive up ratings by sending Leafs fans into hysteria.

yep

 

[JackBurton]

Big Buff became bigger. Part of this might be he wants out of there

 

[MindzEye]

Big Buff became bigger. Part of this might be he wants out of there

The other part is that food is delicious and he can afford all of it.

 

[Wayward DP]

The other part is that food is delicious and he can afford all of it.

this made me laugh way more than it should have. very true statement.

 

[Wayward DP]

They've been a clown show of mismanagement the entire time and the canadian hockey media has done nothing but jerk the entire gang off with their feet. While at the same time bashing the shit out of everything a much better run organization has done over the last few years.

It's almost....almost like the media doesn't have a fucking clue what makes a good organization and hockey team.

Almost.

in fairness, Chevaldayoff has done quite a bit right. but he's not the next Ken Holland or anything (old red wings Holland) the media narrative is just totally detached from reality. totally detached. has been for years.

 

[Volcanologist]

The other part is that food is delicious and he can afford all of it.

he probably wants to fill the backyard pool with cheeseburgers and dive in. being fit is hard work.

 

[MindzEye]

in fairness, Chevaldayoff has done quite a bit right. but he's not the next Ken Holland or anything (old red wings Holland) the media narrative is just totally detached from reality. totally detached. has been for years.

Their draft and development has been solid, but I think he fell way too quickly in line with the old "your veterans get the money" & "veteran depth is important" lines of thought that we've been talking about here for a couple of years now just being wrong. He was spending a pile of money on Kulikov and Myers instead of throwing the bag at Trouba to keep him happy and maybe extend their window. Threw a bag of money at players on the wrong sides of their primes (that are good players and all, but still).

He hasn't done a bad job necessarily (though losing Trouba for what they did is fringe criminal) but he hasn't done a particularly good job either. They were a team in need of some bold moves a couple of years ago, to either trade some of their veteran players for youth that would line up with their core of kids, or trade some of the core kids for impact veterans to try to win now. They basically have two distinct core groups on the team, neither good enough to win anything on their own and an overlapping window together that was always going to be at best 2-3 years long. This was a known structural problem with the way their roster was constructed and they did nothing to fix it.

 

[MindzEye]

he probably wants to fill the backyard pool with cheeseburgers and dive in. being fit is hard work.

Working out is hard. Eating delicious food is easy. Buff has millions in the bank. This math isn't hard.

 

[BeLeafer]

He also shit the bed on goaltender contracts.

 

[Wayward DP]

Their draft and development has been solid, but I think he fell way too quickly in line with the old "your veterans get the money" & "veteran depth is important" lines of thought that we've been talking about here for a couple of years now just being wrong. He was spending a pile of money on Kulikov and Myers instead of throwing the bag at Trouba to keep him happy and maybe extend their window. Threw a bag of money at players on the wrong sides of their primes (that are good players and all, but still).

He hasn't done a bad job necessarily (though losing Trouba for what they did is fringe criminal) but he hasn't done a particularly good job either. They were a team in need of some bold moves a couple of years ago, to either trade some of their veteran players for youth that would line up with their core of kids, or trade some of the core kids for impact veterans to try to win now. They basically have two distinct core groups on the team, neither good enough to win anything on their own and an overlapping window together that was always going to be at best 2-3 years long. This was a known structural problem with the way their roster was constructed and they did nothing to fix it.

I think he did a really good job collecting assets and young talent. But when it came time to make the hard decisions and be thoughtful and deliberate about how they allocate their cap space, he crapped the bed. And they've just started paying for it now and will continue to do so for several more years. I really think two seasons ago was the best shot they'll have with this group.

And yeah, you've pointed out the bad money given to middling vets. Losing Trouba for what he did is also pretty poor.

I wonder when the Winnipeg media honeymoon ends...

 

[Wayward DP]

Working out is hard. Eating delicious food is easy. Buff has millions in the bank. This math isn't hard.

don't forget the whole 'living in Winnipeg' factor

 

[MindzEye]

Yeah, the Mason contract was bad. I'm pro Helly though, that contract is likely to turn out really good. That contract will probably turn out similar for them as the Freddy contract has for us, he just won't be as consistent as Fred but will probably bounce around between slightly worse than normal Fred, to a bit better. .918 over the last 2 seasons total and has shown he can handle the starters workload. At 6.1 million? I'll take that shit.