Holland is not making that trade, doesn’t make sense for the Oilers.

EDM may decline or ANA need to add something

That's a clear no from MIN (if Guerin knows what he's doing). Spurgeon is one of the best dman. Silfverberg is a good top6 option, reliable two-way player but he doesn't get Spurgeon. Add a 2nd and more

I would sleep well at night if that was our right-side D

Also, I am assuming The Snake Line comes on the ice doing the Purple Cobra's dance from Dodgeball. I approve.

First trade yes, second trade no, but I'm extremely high on Mahura, and think there's a reasonable chance that he can win a top 6 spot (on the defense) this year

I doubt Mahura gets more play time than he did last season. Guhle and Larsson are ahead of him and there’s numerous other bodies in his way.

I'm assuming Fowler plays 2RD, leaving lindholm as a guarantee to make the roster (and be on the first pair) then have Mahura Larsson Guhle and Del Zaster fight for the bottom 2 spots, and I'd take any of the kids over Del Zotto so that leaves Larsson and Guhle ahead of him, i think Guhle gets that top 4 spot, then it's 50/50 for the bottom pair imo, unless I'm forgetting someone, and in my bias I chose Mahura over Larsson, but either way he'll still get a good amount of games bc he'd probably be the first injury call up on LD if he doesn't make the roster

Larsson over Mahura. But also don’t be surprised if MDZ and Fowler start as a pair. They liked them for the 10 or so games last season.

I really like Silfverberg, but I wouldn't do this trade. If we're talking to Anaheim about a Spurgeon deal, it should be for Kase (we need an offensive RW a lot more than the two-way type that Silfverberg is). I'd imagine the Wild probably have to add a younger piece, too, but Kase for Spurgeon would be the framework.

Spurgeon is on an expiring contract, and I'm assuming he won't re=up in Minnesota and Guerin knows that.

I would accept that, too.

I don't see the need for Puji. I am not convinced his problems stem from being in EDM. Simply put, he was over-hyped coming into the 2016 draft. He wasn't at the same level as Matthews or Laine (although he might have thought he was) and hasn't progressed enough to earn his spot on the roster. The immaturity he has displayed, combined with the lost years in development is a real red flag for me. Moreover, we have a tonne of young, more promising wingers.



I agree, Spurgeon is legit and worth a tonne. However, you have to remember that he is a pending UFA and will be looking for a final deal that takes him to the end of his career. It's a big risk for ANA, so I'm not sure they'd even consider making a play for him.



Are Guhle and Larsson ahead of Mahura? I am not convinced. I kind of view them as a 3. Sure, Larsson has more NHL games under his belt, but he really needs to start bringing more to the NHL level. I don't see him being successful as a pure defensive D-man (and I mean with 0 offensive input) as I don't see his D-game being elite enough. Meanwhile, Guhle has been ok so far, but not exactly lights out. IMO, Mahura has every opportunity to leapfrog one of Larsson or Guhle. Mahura looked pretty good in his showings last season. Sure, he made his fair share of mistakes, but his skating looked good and his transition game was strong. Not bad for a 20 year old. We'll see, but I think that whoever is selected for the big team will depend on their showing at camp.



I'd do that deal if we were a contender, but we're not... so there really is no point. If Spurgeon doesn't re-sign in MIN this year we could just try and sign him at UFA. There is no immediate need for us to acquire him though. However, Silf+ or Kase + is a very fair price.

I defer to Pronman and the fact that Larsson has more GP. Pronman has Guhle ahead of Mahura on his prospect list but Larsson hit the 25 game mark and isn’t considered by him any more. I also watched a game against EDM when Lindholm and Fowler were out and saw that the shut down pair against McDavid was Manson and Larsson and they gave up nothing.

Fair enough. Just to be clear, I'm not saying you're wrong, I just personally don't view Larsson and Guhle as having distinguished themselves from Mahura. ANA management could see things very differently though.

If Larsson is able to consistently play at a level in which he can shutdown the oppositions top lines, he'll make for a good player. I just fear that his lack of offence will mean he's trapped as a 3rd pairing PK specialist (if that's even a thing).

Larsson’s biggest problem is the first pass out of the zone. If he can get the confidence to make good passes he’ll be a top 4 D. If he doesn’t he’ll be a 6-7 guy.