Very few sellers at the deadline
Posted 9:52 AM ET | Comments 5
When looking at the standings coming out of the Olympic break, there are only a handful of teams that are considered to be sellers at the trade deadline. With so many 3 point games many more teams are in position to make the playoffs, 5 teams in the east 3 points out or less and 4 teams within 4 points in the west . The only teams that are sellers at the moment are the Sabres, Islanders, Panthers, Flames and Oilers.rnrnBuffalo Sabres- We all know they're in a rebuild and have some really nice assets at the moment with expiring contracts. Goaltender Ryan Miller, winger Matt Moulson, defensemen Henrik Tallinder and team captain Steve Ott are all UFA's at the end of the season. When March 5th comes around, all of these players will be in high demand from contending teams to make the final push in the playoffs. With 5 1st or 2nd round picks in the next 2 drafts, I believe new GM Tim Murray will be looking more at prospects in return that are close to making the NHL to speed up the rebuild and get them some experience at the highest level this season.rnrnNew York Islanders- Having traded away a 1st round pick for Thomas Vanek earlier in the season and the rejection of a long-term contract extension, the Islanders should be able go get something back by moving the Austrian sniper at the deadline. Another player that can be moved is defensemen Andrew MacDonald, who plays over 25\min a game. MacDonald is a 2-way defensemen who blocks a lot of shots and I believe would be a more effective defender playing a couple minutes less per game on a contending team. Returns for both these players should net the Isles some picks and prospects, but in my opinion, they should look at acquiring a young goalie with some NHL experience. rnrnFlorida Panthers- At the beginning of the season the Panthers signed forward Brad Boyes and defensemen Tom Gilbert to inexpensive 1-year contracts and with the teams out of the playoffs, these 2 players should be in high demand for teams looking to add depth at the deadline. The Panthers have plenty of young players at all positions moving forward and should be adding more prospects and draft picks. Another player that can possibly be moved is goaltender Tim Thomas. The former Conn Smythe winner could be a solid option for a contending team with his experience.rnrnCalgary Flames- The Flames have already re-signed pending UFA's Kris Russell and Matt Stajan to contract extensions, they still have several players that other teams might want to add. Mike Cammalleri, Lee Stempniak and Chris Butler are UFA's at the end of the year and could be in high demand at the deadline with so few sellers. Calgary is in re-build as well and should be looking for better returns then what the got last year for Iginla and Bouwmeester. But then again Jay Feester is no longer in charge and Brian Burke usually finds a way to maximize his tradable assets.rnrnEdmonton Oilers- This was supposed to be the year the Oilers and all there young talent were going to make a push an possibly make the playoffs, but that's not the case. Sam Gagner and Ales Hemsky and once again rumoured to be on the move. The Oilers have many holes in their lineup, from lack of depth and size for the forwards, quality NHL defensemen and a starting goalie(although Ben Scrivens is making a case) GM Craig MacTavish has his work cut out for him. Other UFA's include forwards Ryan Jones and Ryan Smyth, as well as defensemen Nick Schultz and the recently acquired Mark Fraser. Oilers fans are getting restless and this could prove to be an important deadline to stockpile some more picks and prospects heading into off-season.rnrnAll in all there are some quality players that could be available at the trade deadline. With so few sellers prices to acquire these players could be inflated, which will help all of these rnin the future and should make an interesting March 5th. Add to the fact, teams can now keep and trade salary and many teams not having much cap space, players may generate more of a return then expected.rn
With this garbage format that 2 other teams from the Metro division have to make it even though they are terrible and have less points gives them the idea that they are cup contenders and wont give up anything or make trades. This is why there are fewer sellers. ie Philly, Rangers, Caps, Hurricanes, Devils, Sens, etc
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Devils are never sellers. it is not something Lou does..
Lmao Lou picks 29th as well when he knows he has to give up a first. Guys is losing it.
As it stands now the sabres have 9 picks in the first two rounds this and next year, not 5. Their own firsts and seconds with equals 4, then the NYI 1st, LA and minnys second this year, and NYI and LAs seconds next year.