Quoting: aadoyle
I say stick with Nillsson till hes done he has got a year left. U got a great goalie in hogberg. Pitrangelo may not want to go to ottawa for that little but who knows, if there is going to be a complementary buyout buy bobby rein out bring him back for less. And maybe consider looking at Toronto (I posted a trade Idea Johnsson and Kerfoot for your NYI first which some have said is good. It would speed up the rebuild and make u one step closer to cup contention. Anyways not bad.
1. I like Nilsson and Hogberg as a tandem, but I know that Melnyk wants this team to be more competitive starting next year, and I think an upgrade in net could be used, cuz while I like Hogberg's potential for now that's all it is, potential. You shouldn't hesitate on bringing in a solid number 1 in Murray, and since his contract is only two years if Hogberg proves in that time he's the better player to have for the future.
2. My thoughts on Pietrangelo wanting to come to Ottawa is that, he's a kid born in Ontario, and returning to his home province could be tempting for him (Toronto is technically closer to his hometown of King City, but they can't afford his services.). They have a ton of cap space and can give him the most lucrative contract in the league, outside of Detroit or New Jersey, yes they're still rebuilding, but I believe in 2 years this team with these moves could make the playoffs, and in about 4 years be contenders if they're prospects pan out. Also DJ Smith is a good coach in my eyes who seems to get the most out of his players, which is attractive for free agents.
3. Also I like the Johnsson and Kerfoot deal for picks idea, but I believe this team has the offensive depth to not need them as they have players of similar caliber already on the team.
4. If they offer compliance buyouts maybe use it on Ryan, but after everything he's been through and just 2 years left on his deals, with not too many major deals pending I believe he could be a great veteran for the lineup. Instead I would maybe use that on Zaitsev considering how much of a liability he can be defensively, and sign a different 2nd pair d-man, or trade for somebody e.g. Demers, or Goligoski in ARI, or Brodin in Minnesota.