If I was Bob Murray: A response to "Over-poll-ution: Imaginary Dilemmas, one offseason later!"

by Jacob McClure on Jul 11, 2011 11:57 AM PDT

first, you MUST check out http://www.capgeek.com/ simply incredible checking out everything. go to the ducks page, check out out cap situation and you’ll see, we can easily resign Getzlaf, Perry, and Fowler, once visnovsky and blake are off the payroll and will still have plenty of room to add another young prime time defenseman AND forward.

so my evil plan of NHL domination considers a few factors. im assuming that when we resign getz and perry they will both be willing to accept deals in 6-6.5 per year range and that fowler can be pegged down for somewhere around 4-4.5. that being said, our salary would increase by around 5 million per year to keep the main pillars of our franchise intact for a long period. i pray to god we shell out and give all three 6-7 year contracts (look and mike richards now of the Kings, such a perfect contract)

now what im thinking is that once we have resigned our own young talent and get rid of visnovsky and blake, (both really solid players, but over paid and old) we will have somewhere near 15 mill (generously) in cap space while still having the best line in the NHL and two solid defenseman locked up for some time. although hopefully our own prospects can develop into studs (Etem, Holland, Palmieri and Vatanen) i really think there are some relatively cheap players out there in the restricted free agent market that can really push us over the top.

For instance Kyle Turris of Phoenix, Zach Bogosian of Winnipeg Karl Alzner of Washington or Luke Schenn of Toronto, hell maybe even Doughty just to fuck with the Kings. hahaha All five are 21 or younger, and i think the first four could definitely be signed between the 3.0-4.5 mill price range that would only cost us a first and third round pick in return for a guy who was drafted in the top five. (Turris 3, Bogosian 3, Schenn 5, Alzner 5) Plus all four are on teams in position to move them. Phoenix doesn’t want to pay anyone these days, no one wants to play in winnipeg when they have to play a third of their games in florida, and toronto and washington dont have much cap space to work with signing a hot new prospect. (optimistic, but whatever)

i guess all im saying is that if i was the ducks GM, i would be out submitting offer sheets to one of these defenseman, (especially Schenn, strong and gifted) and turris as well. Signing ONE of these guys would make the ducks so much better next year not to mention adding another top four defenseman for the next decade, (which would fit perfectly alongside fowler and sbisa) or a forward with the potential to give us two POTENT scoring lines (imagine the big three with Etem, Turris, and palmieri, mcmillian, belesky, whoever, behind them. i have a boner.) Amazingly with the pending exit of visnovsky and blake this wouldn’t destroy us in the salary cap, and the draft picks we would give up would hopefully be in the high 20’s because another gifted defenseman or forward would certainly put us over the top into the leagues elite.

im sorry for this tirade. just when i found this site yesterday, i couldn’t help but feel the ducks have not only the cap room, but a very legitimate chance at landing at least one more piece to our already impressive young core, especially on defense. The three defenseman before mentioned could all be relatively cheap compared to their upside, and although turris hasn’t exactly impressed thus far, i think he could be a brad richards, henrik sedin type if given a few years to develop behind the big three. tell me what you think, i just feel this is a much better road then disrupting MVP Corey Perry, stud Ryan Getzlaf and still emerging Bobby Ryan.

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Haha, I responded to your comment on the Imaginary Dilemmas post, so I’ll copy it here.

Wow — excellent tirade. I’ll teach you to write a fan post one day. :)

And you’re pretty damn right — this post wasn’t a call to trade any of the Big 3, more just an exercise in better appreciating that we’re not making this decision right now.

The offer sheet road is tempting, I think, but it’s still relatively underexplored territory — I could appreciate some aggressiveness, I think, but this might not be the best summer with Teemu still in limbo. Next summer perhaps — we’ll have significant salary leaving, all our draft picks (I think), and maybe a better handle on what kids can play.

Anyways, welcome aboard, dude. Thanks for chiming in.

I can scratch out that part about teaching you to make a Fanpost! Again, welcome aboard.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 11, 2011 12:05 PM PDT reply actions

Oh, and just so we’re clear, I think you can only have two offer sheets per summer, and only one at a time — that’s why Kevin Lowe gave offer sheets to Vanek then Penner but never Parise.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 11, 2011 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions

I’d send an offer sheet for Bogosian over Schenn. He’d be cheaper considering how poorly ATL has used him thus far.

by ScottyKnows on Jul 11, 2011 12:27 PM PDT reply actions

get rid of visnovsky and blake, (both really solid players, but over paid and old)

Definitely don’t agree with you throwing Lubo in that statement. The dude was the highest scoring defenseman in the league. You think that’s going to come at a price? You get what you pay for with him, and then some.

I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell

by Natesaduck on Jul 11, 2011 7:27 PM PDT reply actions

hey sleek thanks for the welcome, and my bad scotty, hadn’t figured out how to fan post yet, that was a ridiculously long post. i guess the reason i had Schenn or even Alzner picked out in my mind was that it would put immense pressure on their teams because of their limited cap space and the additions of JML and Franson. especially after moving to winnipeg, i think that franchise will be willing to match almost any offer on a top five pick that has the potential to be a top pair defenseman.

and nate i do agree that lubo earned every penny and more last year , however i doubt another season with such production, and dont really see him in the ducks future 2-3 years down the road.

by Jacob McClure on Jul 12, 2011 1:03 PM PDT reply actions

Haha, no problem man, I was just messing with you.

Lubo can stay as long as he takes a pay cut.

by ScottyKnows on Jul 12, 2011 1:51 PM PDT up reply actions

Lubo’s contract is nothing but pay cuts.

The season we acquired him he was playing for $7M.
Last season he played for $6M.
Next season he’s playing for $5M.
Then there’s a season he’ll play for $3M.

It’s a beauty contract for where he is in his career, I think.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 12, 2011 3:06 PM PDT up reply actions

Yes but he’s still a 5.6 mill cap hit. We can’t have that. If we re-sign him to 3 mill, I won’t be too disappointed.

by ScottyKnows on Jul 12, 2011 4:22 PM PDT up reply actions

Yes but he’s still a 5.6 mill cap hit. We can’t have that.

Cap hits only matter for teams that will be near the cap floor or cap ceiling. What do we need more cap room for?

But yeah, he’ll sign for less, probably — that’s down the road, though. Let’s see what the new CBA is first.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 12, 2011 4:27 PM PDT up reply actions

Once the bad salary drops off in a couple seasons, every penny should matter. Well, not really. Thanks a lot Samuelis!

by ScottyKnows on Jul 12, 2011 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions

I can appreciate their bind — cap ceiling has gone from $39M to $64M since the lockout. It’d be a tough sell to have tickets follow that sort of price jump.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 12, 2011 5:04 PM PDT up reply actions

I don’t. We proved last season that we can get it down with so little. Sure a few players over achieved but that shows you how much more work t he rest of the roster needs.

Murray said he’d be busy, and he hasn’t done anything impressive.

by ScottyKnows on Jul 13, 2011 11:25 AM PDT up reply actions

More importantly to me, though, he hasn’t done anything stupid. That’s huge.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 11:54 AM PDT up reply actions

if we can pay lubo the 3 mil scotty is talking about, we could make a run at doughty and still have enough room to maneuver in nearly any direction we wanted. i like lubo, he was amazing this season, but his cap it is on par with Duncan Keith or Mike Green. i dont think he has another season deserving on that kind of money.

by Jacob McClure on Jul 12, 2011 5:57 PM PDT reply actions

I think we need to stop thinking of Anaheim as a cash-ceiling team until they actually demonstrate that first. High hopes is a bad first step.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 12, 2011 6:11 PM PDT up reply actions

High hopes is a bad first step.

Yet you’re cool with Murray going with the bargain players and having unrealistic expectations? =/

by ScottyKnows on Jul 13, 2011 11:23 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs

Well, hoping that the owner will spend more than he probably will, I meant.

I’m cool enough with this summer — I think I’ve covered it in the posts. There’s a reason for our inactivity, and it’s to retain many pieces that worked in last year’s lineup. I don’t know how realistic or unrealistic it is to think that what worked last year might work again this year.

The areas for focus remain the bottom two forward lines, and steps are being taken there. I’m still not of the opinion that things need to be finished by mid-July, though. There’s more to do, and I think more will be done.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 11:53 AM PDT up reply actions

sleek i dont mean to be blunt but you’re wrong. koivu and blake are 36 and 37, and we are PRAYING that teemu returns for one more year. we need dramatic improvement in the second line, if not this year, next year, and for many more in the future. i like the cogliano move, (it wasn’t exactly what i had in mind, but it could work) however if we don’t seriously revamp our roster through other means than developing our own players we could miss the playoffs in a very competitive west.

just think, in the years we dissed out for pronger and neidermayer we made it to the conference finals and won a cup. im just worried that as a relatively young franchise we are content with our one cup win in 2007 and will become mediocre as a means of not spending money. dynasties can be build with savvy moves and smart spending, but refusing to dish out for necessary commodities is going to turn us into a one line team that will miss the playoffs or exit in the first round.

by Jacob McClure on Jul 13, 2011 3:51 PM PDT reply actions

Are you in relation to Troy McClure by chance?

by Mudhippy on Jul 13, 2011 4:28 PM PDT up reply actions

we need dramatic improvement in the second line, if not this year, next year, and for many more in the future.

Nobody’s signed there beyond next year. I don’t know why my position suddenly has become “Let’s re-sign them all”. Yes, I think that there will be a time to move on past Koivu and Blake, but I don’t know why it has to be now.

I guess I should ask up front: do you want Teemu to retire this summer? Because it sort of sounds like you do.

just think, in the years we dissed out for pronger and neidermayer we made it to the conference finals and won a cup.

Would you like to have Chris Pronger’s current contract?

Just think, the year we dished out for Bertuzzi and Schneider we got fucked because of it. If you want to add a Niedermayer or Pronger, go ahead and tell me your poll answer. Who leaves, Perry, Ryan, or Getzlaf? The answer isn’t “none of them”.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 5:22 PM PDT up reply actions

Also, what’s the necessary commodity that will guarantee a cup this season, again? You may as well just spell that out. Since you’re so blunt about being right and me being wrong.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 5:27 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs

the guy who played at ice town for some time????

by Jacob McClure on Jul 13, 2011 4:47 PM PDT reply actions

ahem … see that button that says “reply” … it comes in handy now and again. :)

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by Angy on Jul 13, 2011 7:03 PM PDT up reply actions

sleek please dont take it personal. i never said i right, i just feel that us only needing help for the bottom two lines is a bit of a stretch. perhaps “wrong” was a poor choice of words. my apologies.

but lets get this straight. i consider myself a true ducks fan. implying that i would not want teemu back for another season is an insult. i might cut off a nut to insure another amazing 80 point season from the one duck that DOES deserve to have his jersey retired.

but back to our current dilemma, i just dont think it is ever too early to explore options of strengthening our roster. obviously bertuzzi and schneider were bad signs, but to compare them to pronger and neidermayer is an absolute joke. maybe i am being a bit impatient or overanxious, but allowing good young talent to slip through our fingers when we have so much cap space is just not my style.

as i posted before i really think that one of these RFA defenseman could be the answer to push us over the top and into the leagues elite. another solid season from players like koivu, lydamn, beauchemin, blake, lubo, and the progression of sbisa, fowler, mcmillian, (mystery D Alzner, Schenn, Bogosian) to compliment the best line in the NHL (none of whom id give away) and a healthy Jonas Hiller, makes us a very intimidating team to play against. we’d have youth, veterans, role players, a #1 goalie, everything you need to make a deep run in the playoffs. not to say we dont have it already but with around 10 mill in cap space (after setting aside enough for the finnish flash) why can’t we make a move??? it’s not ever day (or decade for that matter) that you have a line of amazing players in their prime who can play against and dominate the other team’s best line. the time for a move is now. one more demanding than trading for cogliano.

by Jacob McClure on Jul 13, 2011 6:07 PM PDT reply actions

but allowing good young talent to slip through our fingers when we have so much cap space is just not my style.

This is what I think is flawed — looking at cap space as “money that is going to be spent”. Unless somebody less profits-driven buys the team and decides to spend to the ceiling (a move I don’t see as wise), it’s not going to be spent. Ducks have a budget that is different from the cap ceiling, and while I guess it’d be cool to have unlimited money to spend, it’s not a reality yet.

We do need another body — I don’t think anybody signed the first week of July was the answer, though — not at those dollars/years. I’m not sure we have the necessary picks next draft in order to make an effective RFA offer sheet (though I haven’t really looked at specifics), so that door may be closed anyways — Ducks may be stuck using more traditional trade methods, and I’m not uncomfortable with that.

Barstool’s not done, but at this point, every new large salary that enters next year’s roster (except Selanne or his replacement — that’s budgeted) means that one old large salary has to leave. That’s actual salary, not cap hit — getting rid of Blake only saves $3M, not $4M. You may not like it as a dynasty-building strategy, but unless you’re buying the team and paying its payroll, we’re going to have to stick to the budget that makes sense.

Unless you know of a way to make another couple of million dollars annually for the club that doesn’t involve ticket price hikes, that’s the situation, I think. It may change under the next CBA — maybe revenue sharing becomes more effective — so I don’t know that this is a “forever” strategy. I think it makes sense for the “this is the last season of the old CBA” strategy, keeping flexibility for any future changes.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 6:29 PM PDT up reply actions

I should add — we should all keep in mind that the Ducks should have more flexibility as the season progresses. Towards the trade deadline, as players’ salaries get paid, the payroll cost becomes less and less.

It makes sense for the Ducks to wait to take on salary for that reason, plus by then we’ll know much better where an addition is needed. Nobody wins a cup in October anyways.

www.battleofcali.com

by Earl Sleek on Jul 13, 2011 6:44 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions