I think the Tampa trade is perfect. Not sure we want to give away a ton of high draft picks though. Don’t think the NYR trade makes sense and would rather not sign JVR to such a huge contract.

Our left-wing depth is quite bare if we trade Panarin for a RW (Kucherov) - especially if Foligno is forced to play center again. It's absolutely necessary to add another top-6 LWer because do we really want Foligno or Milano playing on the top-line?

Over on HF, Rangers fans seem to be a fan of the proposed deal around Jenner/Hayes/Vesey. This would allow us to add another depth winger, and also a middle-6 C to push Dubinsky down to the fourth line.

The cap still works for next season when Kuch/Bob/Z all need new contracts. We could buy out or trade Dubinsky, trade Savard, etc. to make enough room. That shouldn't be a concern.

I still think JVR’s best Year’s are behind him. Abramov should slide into a big role, as well as Robinson. Even with the NYR trade, JVR doesn’t do it for me. Would rather save that money going forward

Why does Kucherov being an RFA make him likely to be more expensive

my only input is that i see Kucherov making serious $$$ with his next contract and that year there don't seem to be any UFAs dropping off just a few RFAs that will cost something.. I wonder if they could afford Kucherov long term at $10 million per year.. I see Panarin making more like $8 million per year. But honestly i'm not very familiar with the organization.

Panarin is worth every bit of $10M-$12M, which is Patrick Kane type money. He is not a centre, but his production is a point a game, which mirrors the top scorers in the entire league.
When Panarin is on the ice, his vision and quick accurate passing is like having another center on the ice.
I get the sense he either wants to go back to Chicago, or he wants to hold out to the highest bidder to make top dollar contract like McDavid, (Tavares?), etc.