krsmith17

F*** Devellano! (not really... but f*** him for that "very, very disappointing" bulls***). He could book it to Canada, but so could Athanasiou or Rasmussen or Cholowski or whoever else. I'm not sure where you're getting the not loyal thing though. Athanasiou, maybe, but not Mantha.

F*** Off! Mantha ain't going no where! My next jersey (which I plan to buy in the next few months) will be a Mantha.

It will be... C - Larkin A's - Abdelkader, Mantha, and Cholowski (if he develops the way we hope...)

I agree. Mantha is my favorite young player, but Larkin is and has been being groomed to be the next captain for the past 2 plus seasons. I think he's better suited for that role as well. Mantha will definitely be an alternate though.

Fun fact: Matthews / Nylander / Marner - combined 44 points in 54 games. Larkin / Mantha / Athanasiou - combined 43 points in 47 games. The kids are alright.

Hahaha f***ing SportsNet bias...

I agree. I'd be trying to lock Larkin and Mantha up long term as soon as possible.

Awesome! Thanks for that. I f***ing LOVE Mantha. He's the total package, he has it all; size, skill, speed, hands, shot, and a mean streak to go along with it. I love that he stands up for himself and his teammates, I just hope he doesn't get any more serious injuries due to the extra curriculars like last season with Witkowski... Also, for as much as I rag on Witkowski, I loved seeing him destroy Kulak last night and then turn to Hamonic and ask him if he wanted some. What a beast that guy is.

I agree. I hate the above argument. Couldn't disagree more. The skill level is better today from top to bottom and it's not even close in my opinion.

Smith isn't playing tonight. It'll either be Lack (most likely) or Gillies, which bodes well for us. I expect a convincing W tonight.

Abdelkader is playing. Doubt he'll fight though. Nor should he with a fractured cheekbone...

Abdelkader out with a fractured cheekbone. Will be replaced by Booth or Witkowski. DeKeyser skating with the team this morning in regular practice jersey. Could be ready to go tonight...

I thought the same thing, but I would assume he just meant "another", as in another opportunity, not another Cup. Green has had many opportunities with those Caps teams', but has never been fortunate enough (yet) to win it all.

Ok, so I said we should try to trade Ericsson to a team by retaining salary and adding some other form of asset. You counter that by saying, little to no teams will be interested in trading for Ericsson, unless we retain salary and give up some sort of asset. Got it. Makes so much sense now...

Ok, so if you don't believe that, why did you say it? And when I very clearly indicated that that is what I disagreed with, why did you continue to argue something we agree on? The very thing I said right from the beginning, that we'd have to give up something to trade Ericsson... Seems like back peddling to me, but whatever. It's never going to happen, so it's irrelevant.

I don't care why you believe little to no teams would be interested in Ericsson. The point is that you do believe this, regardless how you came to this conclusion. I disagree. Why is that so difficult for you to understand? Regarding the bolded, are you f***ing serious? I said you'd turn this into something it's not, and here we are... I've said countless times that we "could trade Ericsson", just that Holland won't. Teams would want additional incentive to take on a bad contract? Really? What a concept... If only I had thought of that...

I agree. I don't think we can either. All I'm saying is that I don't see Holland trading any of his bigger contracts (including Ericsson), and to me that's a problem. Holland has done a TON of good for this organization over the past couple decades, but in my opinion, it's time to move on. I don't think he has what it takes to get this organization back on top. I'd love for him to prove me wrong, but as of now, I don't have much confidence in his ability to manage this team through another rebuild.

Not a single person is arguing that. No you're not. Ericsson has played well all season in my opinion. Of course he's had his share of turnovers, but so has every other defenseman in the league playing big minutes like E. Of course those turnovers get magnified to the Nth degree here on LGW, because "Errorsson" or "Erection" or whatever other clever name people come up with...

Yes I do understand the concept of taking something out of context... Please tell me what I took out of context. We agree that we'd have to give up something (likely nothing of major significance) to trade Ericsson. We disagree whether or not teams would be interested in Ericsson at a fraction of his salary. There's nothing more to it. But like always, you're going to spin this into something it's not. What the hell is wrong with cherry picking one sentence if that's the sentence I disagree with? Explain to me how I'm "wrong" in my interpretation when you said, and I quote "I think very few teams, if any, would be interested in E even at $2.25M with two years left. That's the part I "cherry picked", because THAT'S the part I disagree with...

Yes, I quoted your post, but I very specifically bolded a part of your post in which I was referring to and disagree with. So what if you think it can happen if we pay a team to take him. That's stating the obvious. The part I completely disagree with is that very few teams, if any, would be interested in Ericsson at roughly half his cap hit. I apologize if I offended your character... but you do often times try to twist what people say to fit your argument. I'm not the first to say this... Anyway, my point was that we could trade Ericsson without giving up too much on the future, but somehow it will get turned into we must trade Ericsson at all cost... I'm one of the very few here that pick up for Ericsson and say he's not near as bad as people make him out to be. I'm okay with keeping him for the next two seasons, but if it were up to me, I'd trade him. But then again, I'd be trading a lot of pieces in order to do what I believe this team needs to properly rebuild.

The bolded, I completely agree with. The underlined, I'm not so sure about. Green may very well be re-signed, and if he's not, I'd be shocked if Holland (assuming he's still the GM) doesn't go after some sort of UFA defenseman to replace him. Which forward is going to be traded? And what makes that forward more likely to be traded than Ericsson? I don't see anyone being traded (including Ericsson). Howard won't be traded, and if Mrazek is let walk in the offseason, I will have lost all faith in this management group...

I'm with you 100% until that last part... What's the harm in retaining salary and giving up mid range assets? I don't get that. I'm not saying we must move him at any cost, but if the cost isn't significant, I'd do it. Is giving up a 3rd round pick (just an example) going to cripple us? Not at all. A buyout hurts us more long term in my opinion.

Surprise, surprise, Buppy trying to twist someone's words... You said "I think very few teams, if any, would be interested in E even at $2.25M with two years left." That's what is disagree with. Not whatever you're trying to say there... To answer your question about why not buy him out? I just don't agree with buyouts unless they're an absolute necessity. They rarely are, because there's almost always a team willing to take on a bad contract. I didn't really like the Weiss buyout either, but whatever. It is what it is. Maybe trading Ericsson isn't the best way to clear cap space. In my opinion it is. We disagree... again. No big deal.

I disagree. Any player in the league can be traded, and that includes Ericsson. I believer there would be teams that would show interest in Ericsson at a lowered cap hit. All you need is one. The question is, what would we have to give up that would make it worth it? I don't think we'd have to give up much more than a mid round pick, and maybe a mid-tier prospect. Do you think that sort of trade would set us back? I don't. Unfortunately, we'll never know if such a deal could be made because Holland would never do it.