Leaderboard

oh, ya, I am not just swapping picks and picking up an extra 2nd rounder. Hell no! If I am trading the #1 I am getting a turbo boost on my rebuild, especially if it's an inner-divisional rival, and triple ESPECIALLY if it's Montreal!

Yes, yes, poor persecuted kip. :'( I've always been open to trading down from 1OA, in theory. My hangup has always been the return. If I'm trading Lafreniere, I need to be getting something that's jizz-in-your-pants amazing. Stutzle + Rossi is, at the very least, in the ballpark. I actually like each of those players more than I like Byfield, so, for me, that might as well be the 2nd and 3rd overall picks.

Which has been my point for a long time now. Sure, Lafreniere can be a no-brainer, selection, but you have to listen to phone calls. I am sure (as in TSN's mock up) if Montreal got the #2 and we got #1, they'd be pounding Yzerman's door down with offer(s) to flip flop picks! All hypothetical, but if they offered the trade I mentioned a few times before (Domi, Caufield, the #2 and maybe another pick/prospect) I may be inclined to make a deal like that, especially if I'm eyeing a C at the draft. You could have an entire line for the price of Laffi... Domi - Stutzle - Caufield plus maybe another pick/prospect.

You want substance? Ok. After less than a half seasons worth of games. Zadina is at a .5 PPG pace as a 20 year old rookie. That's a small sample size. And it only translates to a 40-45 point season. Low end 2nd liner. If you think he's peaked at 20, then yeah, trade him. I personally think he's got a lot more potential. I don't think he plateaus at a Hudler/Nyquist level tho. As a comparison, I give you fellow Czech Jakub Vrana. He's roughly the same size as Zadina. Was drafted 13th overall in 2014. Is currently 24 and in his 4th season. Vrana made the NHL at 20 just like Zadina. In his first full season, he only scored 27 points in 73 games. Then 47 points in 82 games and was on pace to finally break 60 points this season. And he was playing on a line with Backstrom which probably padded his numbers a bit. Zadina was already on pace as a rookie to match Vranas 3rd year numbers while not having anyone as good as Backstrom as his center. And while it took Vrana 4 seasons to break 60 points, I think Zadina will break 60 points by age 23. This is the trajectory I see for Zadina.

Nah, not a no-brainer. We don't know that either of these guys will be a full-time centerman at the NHL level. That's why I say I'd be having endless convos with my scouts. Don't get me wrong tho -- you don't have to convince me that Stutzle and Rossi are fantastic prospects. It's killing me that we don't have another early 1st to work with and I completely understand the logic in trading down from 1st overall.

Well in my mind then if we have the 1st pick and the team in 2nd wants Laffy and we want Stutzie you leverage the situation and get another high end asset. Don't just go blow you brains out and use the 1st pick on Laffy.

Firstly, I can write pages - and have - detailing exactly what I do and don't like about Zadina, leading to my personal opinion on him. The response I get to that is consistently one lacking in any substance, and 10 times out of 10 is rooted soley in "well I'm a Red Wings slappy and I know he''l be great because I hope he'll be great". So either give me some concrete reasons why I'm so wrong about boy wonder or learn to deal with it. I don't have much sympathy for any argument rooted in "well the collective narrative of the Red Wings fan hive mind says I should think X way about X player." And yeah Gagner being a bottom6er/AHLer after being picked 6th overall is in bust territory. Secondly, you all know my Hudler/Zadina perspective. I've laid it out countless times. So the whole strawman thing you rolled out to start this cant even be feigned with ignorance. Lastly, I do enjoy using #bust because of the programmed screeching it incites. You'd think yall would learn not be triggered by it by now, but nah the blind faith in Zadina is too precious.

What's the difference between me n you? If we had played this year picking up where we left off at the end of last season (still out of playoffs but showing hope and progress like we sorta expected), I would be fine and thrilled to settle for an O'Reilly or Schenn. But no. They have angered me with their poop play, and now I desire only the most extravagant draft picks. And I demand satisfaction. If I'm gonna be forced to watch the same s***ty team again next year I want ******* results Stephen. Crosby's and Malkin's bicch. 5 of them.

Right. We're on the same page. Point is, basically, we'd be getting a guy who's likely going to be as good as Larkin if not better. I'd be perfectly fine with an O'Reilly-Schenn scheme where you could call either player the 1C depending on how you personally define things. Do I want a McDavid? Absolutely. Would I settle for O'Reilly-Schenn? Absolutely. Do I think we have an O'Reilly-esque centerman and are now in a position to draft a Schenn-esque centerman (in addition to having Veleno and Rasmussen in the system)? Absolutely. And I'm pretty pumped about it.