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You're really telling us that the Predators that made it to game 7 of the second round in last year's playoffs won the trade because they are in the second round again this season, and the Canadiens who finished with the 9th worst record in the league last year but won their division and got eliminated in the first round lost the trade, based on those results? Great logic there.

to be fair. Spezza's no trade clause included every Canadian team, and I doubt Boston was trading Seguin to the Habs. On the other hand. Ryan O'Reilly is a top line centre, and there is no reason the Avalanche wouldn't deal him here. Jeff Carter would be our #1 centre and he was traded twice. Ryan Johanssen was moved. Bergevin didn't bid on Eric Staal. Ryan Kesler was traded (though he may have been like Spezza with a NTC to Canadian teams) Kyle Turris was traded

So does Bergevin. Hence pushing Galchenyuk to the wing with Danault and Plekanec as the top two centres. Less (defensive) risk, no worry about spending too much on a trade. I've theorized for a while now that Bergevin is waiting for his sweetheart deal. Ryder, Vanek, Petry, he won these deals because the risk was low in all of them on his end. Never had to worry about losing a first round pick. Never had to worry about a player locked for multiple years. Like Bergevin, you're not ready to take a risk. Which means you're not ready to win a Cup. Which means there's no point to this team trying to compete. You play it safe too long you never get ahead. Every Cup winning team took a risk or two that could have cost them for years. Pittsburgh brought in Kessel. Chicago flipped chunks of their roster multiple times. LA went all in on two former Philly troublemakers. Boston had only a few years prior traded away Joe Thornton and Phil Kessel while putting it all on Thomas' shoulders. Detroit gambled with an old Osgood. Carolina acquired every veteran at the trade deadline available. I could go on and on. I'm tired of safe Montreal. Looks too much like complacent Montreal. Take the risk or blow it up. Otherwise be happy when Galchenyuk gets moved for Mikael Backlund and a draft pick.

Right, but have the Stars been forced to ignore the rest of the roster because of those trades? Or was that always a failure of the Dallas organization? They didn't lose many assets in the deals, holy shit they ####ing fleeced both teams handily. They weren't put in salary cap hell with those trades, son of a bitch those ####ers could have traded for Spezza twice and still been fine cap-wise for 2 years. What is the connection between Dallas trading for Spezza & Seguin, and them misreading their defense and goaltending? I think your main point is made up of two completely unrelated truths: They added good centres. They ignored the rest of the roster. But they didn't ignore the rest of the roster because they added good centres. Why try to shoehorn them together?

Nobody knows what will do it until New York is ready to trade him. Right now that's a nuclear option. They are trying to move the team to a different area in New York (Belmont I think) and that team will be a hard sell without the franchise player. Pacioretty would be a good start I think as an American, not too old, but he could leave as a UFA right soon. Not a rental but pretty close. I'm thinking more Galchenyuk would have to be in the deal. American, young, a centre if the coach isn't a brick. Then add from there. If the Islanders say he will sign and trade to Montreal you probably go Chuck/Sergachev/x2 1sts. It's a big payment but you just solved the top centre issue for the next 6 seasons. Tavares is worth it. If that sounds too expensive to you, you get the team you pay for.

Good god, man. Are you actually arguing that Dallas sucks BECAUSE they made these deals? Are you completely opposed to the idea that Dallas is an even worse team without Spezza and Seguin? In your scenario of Bergevin making those exact same deals, does he also handcuff himself into a below-average goaltending tandem making a combined 10.4 million till 2018-19? Does he also fail to draft more than one serviceable defenseman for a decade? Does he also trade away more good defensemen than he brings in? Because without all those other factors, that team is making the playoffs consistently.

Joe Thornton is a good option, if you also have a time machine.

Don't worry we can find more. At least he is not in the foxhole with Barber Bill.

In my mind it's both. The only clear home runs they PROBABLY hit in the first round in MB's tenure are last year and galchenyuk. That's a scouting issue. What I don't know is whether going after players like mccarron in the first round is because of the size fetish is that MB or Timmons had. He doesn't fit the Timmons profile - speed and skill, so I me be biased because I've hated MB since his first three major decisions as GM - 1) hiring Le genius 2) not exactly ending Subban for 10 or 12 years when they could have prior to the lockout 3) bridge deal to Subban after the lockout. There have been other Timmons draft picks that SHOULD have been good - Beaulieu, Shreback. IMO that is a development issue. it seems that unless a player really doesn't really need much time in the AHL Gallagher, lekhonan and galchenyuk), none of the habs draftees have progressed that well. IMO that is on MB's other coaching hire in the AHL. Another one of his bum buddies, who has done squat to develop players. in the NHL, the habs had therrian who probably would have benched Gretzky for trying to score empty net goals if he had Gretzky as an 18 year old. Unless a player was confident and skilled himself, he could not succeed under le genius. Even if he was, dumb and dumber would try and break them - see Subban. To make matters worse, they have another crony that grew up with MB - daigneult- as an assistant coach. Galchenyuk was a gift at #3, but they have messed him up by flipping him up, down, left, right and centre in the lineup. So so with the incompetent coaching staff the habs hired in both the NHL and AHL, it's hard to judge Timmons. He did draft McDonough, maxpac and Subban in one friggin draft. Hudon seems like a highly skilled player, who has not been given a fair shake. Schrebak seemed like a steal. i think I'd start off with cleaning house with AHL coaching staff and Daigneult before firing Timmons.

Excellent post, as was Lovett's. Bergevin is Mr Excuses. Apparently there are as many as five impact C in this year's draft. OK, how about moving up? Oh, forgot, it's 'tough' to do that. Just like it's tough to make a trade that actually improves your club. And it's tough to draft top-6 players. And it's tough to develop your #3 overall pick into a top-6 C. And it's tough to match your tie to your blazer. It's probably tough to tie shoelaces and order good smoked meat. I am so sick of this crap. Five years of treading water and he's still giving us this garbage about how his job is too 'tough.' PAS D'EXCUSES.

Lol, I can't say I've given it any thought. Though it's a shame dark_faerie87 isn't still around here. He'd have made a wonderful Dean Pelton.

What are talking about, Weber deal wasn't bold, you have been ranting about it for almost a year now? Year before he added top 4 d-man for good sized $ and term and many said he overpaid Radulov (back in the fall was the talk anyways).

That character was quoted saying he leaned on radulov to come here and was going to lean on him to stay. If the result is radulov signing in Montreal, then I am all for that character. Trade Weber and radulov for subban? Absolutely

So you only want bold but Cucumber approved deals...got it.