Seems fair.

Thanks. I'd give the same for ROR with a little retention, but I don't expect he's available.

Part of me hates this idea, because Hayes has fewer playoff p/gp than Burakovsky alone, and I think Djoos is as valuable as Burakovsky or a late first, so offensively, it's a massive overpay for not much difference, but the Caps have a lot of offense, and need some depth on PK, plus Hayes is having a career year, and hopefully that finally carries over for some playoff offense.

Considering NYR have the 5th worst pk percentage this year...I'll pass on two of their PP1 guys being the savior's of our pk!

I think if they get to play pk without Marc Staal, they'll feel like a great weight has been lifted. Same for Lars Eller, moving to 2nd PK shift, when the opponents are tired.

But mostly, Hayes is having a big year on offense, which is fun. Still should rent a defenseman who plays 200 minutes, and the cap picture narrows it down.

My bigger skepticism on this deal is just how much Hayes has improved in his contract year. He might be a very good candidate for a one year extension, if it's worth the risk of a massive cap crisis in summer 2020, when Backstrom and Boyd already make Holtby tricky.

An interesting Idea except, I think our center depth is fine and I really cant see him playing on the wing, plus I dont think wed be able to afford him if we want to keep backstrom/holtby a year later
cool idea though

Thanks!

I agree an extension is tricky, and Worth negotiating up front, but I think people make too big a deal about the difference between positions in hockey.

If you can play center, the other ones aren't that different. Look at Boyd, Dowd, and Stephenson moving wherever they're needed, and doing okay.

If he can't do it, Backstrom, Kuznetsov, and Eller have each played most of a season at wing. Only Eller complained.

Edit: You're right about it being tough to keep both Backstrom and Holtby. MacLellan said he's committed to trying to keep Backstrom, which I think means he's hoping Samsonov emerges as a cheaper starter option in the next year. I'm kicking the can down the road on Vrana, too, because Vrana isn't going anywhere as an RFA, and doesn't play pk at all. Someone who can help both special teams should be a bigger priority.

What's hilarious is how much that sounds like a good reason not to do this. . In fact it's the Hall-Larsson fallacy.

@CapitalFail67