Originally Posted by fonzz41 (Post 16320167)

No question that's their biggest hole. But the deadline is no longer the time to make those deals. I mean, would they really settle for Russell, especially considering what Dallas ended up paying to get him? Hamhuis wasn't going to waive his NTC to go to Colorado (he wanted a legitimate contender), so who else was there?

The Avs will definitely be major players at the draft and on July 1 and in the market to get that defenseman they need. That is the better time to make those deals. And the Avs have so many good prospects, I'm even OK with them moving their 1st rounder to get one.

That being said, the Avs did a good job at the deadline of making this year's team better. Of the three pieces they moved to get Boedker, Kyle Wood was the biggest one (I've heard they soured on Bleakley, who apparently has an attitude problem), and he's still a mid-range prospect. Tanguay was the only actual roster player they moved, and there's no question Boedker is an improvement over him. It will be difficult to re-sign him with MacKinnon and Barrie needing to be re-signed, but we'll see.

I REALLY like the Gelinas deal. He'll help the PP, will add a little more stability to what is currently a pretty terrible bottom defensive pair, and has a lot of room to grow. If he reaches his full potential, the third rounder we paid to get him will be an absolute steal.

Originally Posted by hailtopitt (Post 16320233)

calm down

maybe if DC could handle a snow storm neither team would be in this situation

Originally Posted by hailtopitt (Post 16320249)

:lol so easy to get Caps fans worked up

Originally Posted by Bron Yr Aur (Post 16320253)

:lol :lol Caps fans complaining that their team has to play a few extra games in a short time span. Your team is 14 pts up on any other in the East, give it a rest.

Originally Posted by coldengrey12 (Post 16320236)

Absolutely. I like the Boedker deal, but I agree keeping him is gonna be complicated. Sakic did say he doesn't like to make deals rent-a-player style, so I'm guessing he has a longer-term plan for him.

Sad to see Tangs go, but he hasn't really done much. He's in the twilight of his career. It would've been nice to see him hang it up as a member of the Avs.

Originally Posted by fonzz41 (Post 16320299)

Yeah. The Avs do have cap space to work with (at season's end, they'll be at around $7 million), and they've got some guys coming off the books. Of UFA's, I would hope they re-sign Skille (he should be pretty cheap - under $2 mil per), but I think they let Mathias, Bodnarchuk, and Redmond walk.

If Iginla chooses to retire, that's some big money off the books. But personally I think he won't. Would love to see him around for one more year.

MacKinnon, Barrie, Martinsen, and Grigorenko are all up for restricted free agency. Martinsen and Grigorenko will probably get manageable bridge deals (if they even decide to keep Grigs, I can see it going either way), but Mac and Barrie are up for some major bucks. Making that work with Boedker, who will probably want around $5 mil per, could be tricky.

EDIT: And yeah, it would've been cool for Tanguay to be able to retire an Av. Put in so many good years here and I was sad to see him moved here at the end. I think there's no question he retires after this season.

Originally Posted by Bron Yr Aur (Post 16320253)

:lol :lol Caps fans complaining that their team has to play a few extra games in a short time span. Your team is 14 pts up on any other in the East, give it a rest.

Originally Posted by barbogast (Post 16320289)

At the risk of sounding rattled...



You were worked up about playing lots of games this week well before either myself or Bobalew responded to you



Never once did I complain. Just responded to the complaining Pens fan.

Originally Posted by SirBobalew (Post 16320331)

Not complaining, just saying that Pens fans have no reason to complain.

Originally Posted by hailtopitt (Post 16320201)

yea but now the Pens have to play 6 games in 9 days because of it :shrug

Originally Posted by barbogast (Post 16320216)

So do the Caps. Life's tough.

Originally Posted by barbogast (Post 16320409)

Personally I'm excited to watch hockey 4 times over the next 5 nights. Still unclear as to when I was worked up about it.

Originally Posted by barbogast (Post 16320409)

Personally I'm excited to watch hockey 4 times over the next 5 nights. Still unclear as to when I was worked up about it.

Originally Posted by aeroshady (Post 16320429)

You were getting worked up about how the Caps are going to be skating like this after having to play 4 times in 5 nights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lN0mZkYSMo

Originally Posted by hailtopitt (Post 16320421)

guys i'd love to keep talking about this but i THINK i just saw a snowflake fall outside

gonna have to cancel

Originally Posted by aeroshady (Post 16320429)

You were getting worked up about how the Caps are going to be skating like this after having to play 4 times in 5 nights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lN0mZkYSMo

Originally Posted by TMoore4075 (Post 16320328)

Didn't Iggy sign his deal when he was over 35? I thought if he retires, the cap hit stays.

Originally Posted by fonzz41 (Post 16320227)

:lol That's why I've said that if Dallas somehow hangs on to the #1 spot, I'd be TOTALLY OK with the Avs staying in that last wild card spot. Would much rather face them in the first round. I don't think anyone in here would dispute that the Hawks are the odds-on favorites to come out of the West - I would go so far as to win the Cup.

Things can obviously change and you never know in the NHL playoffs. But if I had to make the SAFE bet right now, no doubt it's Chicago. As boring as that's becoming ;)

Originally Posted by dmbetc (Post 16320345)

Shows you how bad the Kings have been lately when Dustin Brown is the player of the month for February.

Originally Posted by aeroshady (Post 16320429)

You were getting worked up about how the Caps are going to be skating like this after having to play 4 times in 5 nights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lN0mZkYSMo

Originally Posted by Lcsulla (Post 16320493)

Saw that, what on earth is going on with the Kings. They are a much better team than they are coming off as these days. It's like they know they have their playoff slot locked up and took the foot off the pedal.

Originally Posted by fonzz41 (Post 16320473)

You are right, my bad. How could I forget about that little nugget?

Originally Posted by dmbetc (Post 16320520)

It's the Kings. They can't give themselves breathing room. I'm not worried, they play their best pushed against the wall.

Originally Posted by SirBobalew (Post 16319992)

I love Dallas's odds to make the conference final, which will make that trade look even better for Calgary.