Quoting: Ritzy
I have to agree, the return here is very underwhelming.
I have a feeling they probably did try to get a third team to retain, it's possible that neither side would agree to pay the third team.
The plus is that Murray's contract ends at the time as Matthews and Nylander. If they inked Campbell to the contract he's asking for, it would have been an issue getting AM and WN extended in two years. So there's a positive there.
I find it ironic that everyone is praising Dorion for getting rid of the ugly contract he signed, but Dubas gets ridiculed for offloading a bad contract he signed. Standard TOR hate. You could make the argument that Dorion gave up less to get rid of Murray than Dubas did with Mrazek, but we'd be splitting hairs on the value.
At the end of the day, this is Dubas' big gamble. If Murray turns it around and stays healthy, Dubas looks like a genius. If not, his job may be on the line. Only time will tell.
That's my issue with this as well. I was legitimately impressed that Dubas was targeting Murray, but that was because I thought there was a lot more value to squeeze out of here one way or another. I have softened a little, but only because I think every GM in the market for a goalie is getting absolutely hosed right now.
Detroit having to pay a 3rd for the UFA rights for a goalie with less than 100 game experience, and give him a big contract is objectively bad, especially when comparing to paying a 3rd and much lower cap hit for an equally impressive Ned last year, a deal that definitely doesn't look like a home run. The cost to acquire Georgiev was terrible, and again he hasn't been very good, and we haven't even seen a glimpse of an impressive ceiling in his case.
So I hate the deal because I feel Dubas got fixated on the player, not the value, jumped the gun, when he had lots of time, and just generally got out negotiated by Pierre Dorian, which feels unacceptable. Given that every goalie available this offseason carries very substantial risk, I don't hate taking two longer shots at much lower total cost, but I hate that Dubas had all the leverage and gave it all away.