I’ve said it once, and I’ll say it again. If the kraken select Dillon, I’ll do a line of coke with Kuzy.

I just think it’s more likely they select Vanecek, given how cheap he is and how good he’s been this year. But I really hope I’m wrong.

wow that OV contract. Just slow your role. 4 years... He's already gonna be 36 years old. There is no way I'd be paying him 10.5 at 39, you can bet you aren't getting 10.5 worth of production out of him then

I mean, I hope he doesn't get that much, but he apparently wants "McDavid money". We're not gonna let him walk. Not to mention, the Caps' contending window probably ends in the next three years anyways.

he can want McDavid money all day, but he ain't hit 100 points since like 09.
He gets 70% of his starts in the Ozone (career high) and but has a 5v5 FF of 46.6% and a 47.5 Corsi. How do you start most of your time in the Ozone and get out shot?
Ain't no way I'd sign that. He can walk at that rate. Especially for 4 years.

look at the other side of the coin. how many 50 goal ppg players are there in the NHL. OR when was the last time a player hit 50 goals besides Ovechkin... how do you replace 50 goals?

There's the business side of it too. Ovechkin revitalized the city and made DC a real hockey market. You aren't going to let the best player in the history of the team walk for nothing.

there is a very strong argument though that he gets more help than anyone in the whole league to hit those numbers. On top of it, there is an additional argument that past performance does not guarantee future results. In 4 years will Ov be a 40+ goal scorer?
Because you are paying him to be.
So yeah he nets 40+ goal a season, but he's clearly got declining play. He hasn't had a FF above 50% since 15-16.
only 1 x in the past 5 years a corsi over 50%.
Last year was the first time in the last 6 years or something he finished a - player on the ice in 5v5 play.
So as much as he scores goals still, there is a reality that you are not getting a 10.5 mil x 4 player here.
That would be like the penguins saying they should pay Malkin 9.5 again when his contract ends. I like the guy and all but he's not worth 9.5. Even if he's still performing.
At some point you have to make the best decisions to win. The reality is at 36, he should be making a lot less than 10.5. Not only to bring in help to win, but because things are clearly in decline.
It's not like there aren't other guys in the league at 40 goal paces making far less. Pasta and Jake in this new metro division alone meet that and they are in the 6 range.
Now you can say they weren't UFAs, but I counter with they aren't 36 years old either.

Penguins need to sign Malkin if they want to keep their window open. Hes bonified superstar and i doubt they let him walk. he will likely ask for similar money and get it... that imo. Jake signed a very friendly deal and PAsta wasnt who he is today when he signed that deal. idk i wish his deal would be 8m but its unlikely

I agree the penguins need malkin going forward, and Letang too, but not at those cap hits for 4 years. There has to be some reasonable middle ground. It's not all about the player. At some point you have to let them realize that Ov probably isn't making 10.5 anywhere in the NHL for 4 years. I don't see a single team agreeing to that. He might get 8 or something. Fine. But 10.5, that's top 10 salary range. You go look at a lot of those salaries, and you realize you got a list full of older guys not performing to that level like Price, Karlsson, Toews is not playing, A group of younger guys like McDavid and Matthews getting ready to hit their prime, and a handful of guys who are either in the middle of, or ending their prime years contracts. Like Kane(ending), or Panarin(middle of)
What you don't see there is guys past their prime raking in that kind of money. Just objectively looking at it, the older the player is when they join that list, the worse it ends for the team. Karlsson, Bob,, Doughty. It's just bad news to go that route.
Which is why I don't see anyone agreeing to that with him or a guy like Malkin for that matter. It's one thing to sign them to a 1 year deal, deal with it year by year or whatever. It's another to just fork over a 4 year mountain of cash.