GHT120

Agreed ... but that won't impact the current $82,419,642 in total AAV for next season

Believe they eliminated that because some enterprising coach used it as a virtual timeout.

True ... but with minimal return ... and is any FA unproven prospect better than our existing unproven prospects?

Interesting (?) that they included the term "Habs prospect" ... maybe the decision on whether to offer him a contract is outstanding.

CapFriendly currently shows 20 players on the current NHL roster (including Weber, Price and Drouin) with contracts totalling $82,419,642 for 22/23, leaving $80,358 in cap space ... that does not take into account new contracts for Rem Pitlick or Romanov ... or Dauphin, Pezzetta, Wideman, Schueneman ... or ... Tyler Pitlick Perreault, Paquette, Montembeault, Clague, Lagesson ... as well as various AHLers who likely get bury-able two-way deal ***if*** re-signed. HuGo need to consult Penn&Teller, Chris Angel, David Copperfield, David Blaine and any other "magician" you can think of ... salary cap magic is needed this summer ... even moving Weber likely leaves the Habs near (on-brink-of?) LTIR once Romanov and Rem are re-signed ... not where a rebuilding team needs to be.

This time at least he was smart enough to come out right away ... fingers crossed

Dea gives them the lead And adds an empty-netter

A strong 11 game run to close the season could make his "dream" of being traded come true ... he should be motivated ... hopefully the time off allowed him to get his head straight.

Agreed ... but tomh009's point remains IMO valid ... a corporate CEO can lay out the direction a company wants to go because for the most part they control the levers they will pull ... VP/GMs have to work with other teams to revamp rosters (e.g., trades) and agents to sign players (or waive NTC/NMCs) ... too much transparency would put them at a disadvantage, possibly be disrespectful to players.

I agree ... Jonathan may not have met fans' hopes/expectations but he has but this season and last he has played better than Hoffman, when in the line-up ... sadly Drouin may be easier to trade as he only has one more year on his deal versus Hoffman's two ... although Mike is $1M cheaper on the cap

I would suggest not putting any arbitrary fixed goals ... next season and perhaps the season after are IMO developmental ... when to add pieces to win now/soon has to be judged against the progress the team has actually made at each step.

Nice to see him have a chance to show/find what his NHL potential will be ... fingers crossed.

4/5 agree, but wouldn't say Agostino "never had a chance" ... I recall having hopes for him (not specifically why) ... but I don't think he ever earned a chance at the NHL ... even though the habs gave him his first legit shot ... after 4 full seasons at Harvard, Agostino had 2 AHL seasons and 10 NHL games (1 goal) with Calgary ... then joined the Blues organization for an AHL season and 7 NHL games (1 goal) ... then the Bruins organization for another AHL season and 5 NHL games (o gaols) ... next he spent 12 games in Laval and 36 games (2 goals) with the Habs organization before being waived and claimed by the NJD, getting 4 goals in 27 games ... finally 2 AHL seasons with the Marlies and 1 NHL game (0 gaols) with the Leafs ... he is 7th in goals in the KHL this season ... glad to see he found his place, and wish him well.

IMO it was hardly a fake ... certainly not at a Claude Lemieux level ... at his age Stubble may well have been lucky enough to not have experienced such a hit and the initial panic/fear would be very understandable ... and/or if he has had previous knee issues the concern of the unknown result justify concern.

So far I see him as a 4th liner, borderline 3rd liner ... but the perfect contract profile that the team needs. If they are playing well enough to earn a spot next season they are also playing well enough to be traded for more near(er) ready prospects to expedite the rebuild ... over the summer and next season the Habs need to move a significant amount of cap hit to give HuGo the cap flexibility to finish restructuring the roster in the next 2-3 years. Some may be playing poorly enough to require them to be kept next season, not as good an option.

I agree with the 7-8 year expectation ... but my concern is that he is only under contract for the first three years of that time ... he would be a pending UFA around the time the new youngsters are getting established and Romanov/Suzuki/Caufield is at their best ... and couldn't be extended until the summer of 2024 ... could end up being a short-term addition that improves the short/near-term but not the long-term. That concept (i.e. not necessarily PK, I wonder if he won't get a tempting offer to go to one of the new US Tv networks) would make sense ... but I wouldn't call them 2nd tier ... I put Chiarot and Edmundson in that tier ... IMO they would be 3rd tier

An NHL ready players is one thing ... that fits in a rebuild ... but top 4 NHL established defencemen is another ... that could jump the Habs into the playoff race and impede/short-circuit the rebuild ... don't think people mean it is guaranteed that the team will be better in 3 years but that at least next season, and maybe 23/24, should be used to acquire/develop youngsters and plans add established NHLers with the purpose of making the playoffs a third year element, absent incredibly quick youth development.

Some clickbait sites have been pushing to sign Letang ... they feel that as a former Hughes client he might accept a 2 year deal trusting Hughes will extend him if his play warrants ... ***IF*** that were true (given the sources I am dubious) I would even look to move Edmundson this summer.

Luckily, despite the attention to the little things by the "big guns" the Leafs are in the bottom half of the league in goals against (18th) ... last season they were 7th, when their best goalie by Sv% was Campbell (.921) ... this season he is still best, but at .913 (Woll - 4 -games - .911 ... Lallgren - 8 gms - .902 ... Mrazek - 20 gms - .888) ... don't think they have the defensive game overall for the playoffs.

Thanks ... mis-click in the setup ... corrected in my original post ... and here it is as well Countdown Timer – Countdown to May 16, 2022 7:00 pm in Ottawa (timeanddate.com)

Since 11 teams will have a shot at the #1 overall pick both getting a point and not getting a point could be the difference in having the first overall pick, depending on which "slot" wins the lottery ... think it is better to say at having the best chance at getting Wright.

Countdown Timer – Countdown to May 16, 2022 7:00 pm in Ottawa (timeanddate.com)

just added a qualifier to what you said ... I fear with a couple of moves this summer the Habs could be scratching for a wild card spot next season ... don't think that would be in their long-term best interests. BTW - by "legit" I mean not hoping/battling for a wild card but a top 3 in the Division team

I agree ... not what it was last season but still value ... they may need to take back an expiring "poor/bad" contract as part of a deal to make the cap work.