2016-17 was the last time Gudas played 2nd pairing. I wouldn't count on him being overly effective in that role going forward.

With the exception of this season hes been one of the best 3rd pairing defensemen in the league. Not so much offensively but defensively hes been extremely effective. It shouldn't be hard for him to move up to the 2nd pair. A bunch of stats people have done some research and they found that quality of linemates is more important then quality of competition. He'd be playing with rielly and the leafs forwards, a huge step up from guys hes played with before. Sure he wouldnt be as great as he is in a 3rd pairing role but he'd still be a net positive by quite a bit. Hes put up some great numbers with horrible partners. It boggles my mind that he hasn't been given more of an opportunity in teams top 4s with the skillset he has. Hes the "gritty" player that boomers like but he has phenomenal underlying numbers

Generally I find NHL coaches know what they're doing. If they are sheltering a player it's usually for good reason. The fact that Gudas has been sheltered in the 3rd pairing for the past 3 years (with more than one coach) tells me, that at 30-years-old he's not a good bet to play higher in the order.

God tier? Is this where we are going now?
No, not at all.

God tier is dream that will never happen.
We need defensively responsible, Severson fits that bill.

Gudas, had a bad year and is getting older.
He is not gonna improve.

If Zadorov was obtainable, I'd go with him.
He plays that same defensive style we need.

AVs have crazy D depth, maybe some sort of 3 way trade??


Another name to consider might be Weegar from Florida.