Hawks aren't going to accept a late 2nd and 3rd for Toews and max retention is 50% per NHL rules

It'll be a three-way trade, of course, which CapFriendly has not updated to create this compatibility. It's actually a late 2nd and a high 3rd (Philadelphia is a dumpster fire). I also think that the options for Toews, similar to the Giroux and Taylor Hall situations, may be limited because of the NMC.

So why exactly would Toews waive for Carolina versus say the Jets or Colorado? If Toews waives for Carolina, it won't be the only team is my point.

I mean, I'm not a psychic, but I would imagine that Carolina would be appealing to many veteran players that want the hardware (again, in Toews' case).

Correction; a chance at the cup and they will have a hell of time going through Boston, NJ, Toronto, and Tampa

The other clubs in the Cup mix don't really need a rental at 2C outside of Carolina and Colorado. A Toews pickup likely comes down to those two teams, and I think that Carolina is more likely because I see the Avs more willing to go all-in for Horvat.

Jets could use a center as well, maybe Rangers and Leafs could certainly use an upgrade at 3C

You're a Carolina fan. Why do you think that Megna is worth more than Coghlan, never mind a first-round draft pick?

Ask Sharks fans about him. He's been excellent all year for a terrible hockey team and makes near league-min for 1.5 more seasons. We've seen other trades in recent seasons of low cap-hit players over-performing expectations, and they almost universally generate large asset returns in trades. Hagel and Coleman both received the equivalent of two late 1sts, and Goodrow and Middleton both received late-1st-equivalent returns (Kahkonen was a highly-regarded young goalie prospect at the time).

I'm sorry, did you just ask to trade a 23 1st for Jaycob Megna? I can't possibly be reading that right.

It's actually a 1st for a 3rd pick swap, nearly identical to the Goodrow parameters. I would not be shocked if Megna gets that in a trade. I personally would pay that much. That near league-minimum cap-hit next season frees up even more space for offseason moves, and his performance this season has been really good for a bad team. He's also huge (6'6" and 221 lbs) and skates well for a player that size.

Megs is extremely high value for his contract. Very much like Middleton last year, SJ patiently developed him. He is certainly worth more than a B prospect like Coghlan and if Barclay Goodrow gets a 1st, so does Megs. Megna is a big part of Karlsson's resurgence.

Bro. He's a 30 yo never was who plays against the weakest competition among SJ d-men by a country mile. You yourself have him on the 3rd pairing to play what? Fourteen minutes a night? Any GM who wastes a 23 1st on Megna is begging to be fired.

No interest in Toews. And in no way would the Canes swap Raanta for Copley.

I mean I agree a first is a bit of an overpayment, but you clearly have no idea what you're talking about too. He plays on the first Pairing with EK65 as he did last year, playing around 19 minutes a night. His cap at 750k with another year after this is also super valuable.

Again a first is a bit excessive but a second is not out of the question by any means

Wow, okay, a lot to unpack.

- It is true that Megna plays most with EK this season, but he also plays a lot fewer minutes (only about 12 of EK's 25+ minutes a night happen next to Megna). I know EK gets double shifted in 3rd periods when you guys are in a tight one. It seems apparent that much of EK's extra 5v5 time away from Megna is against tougher average opposition than his time with Megna. For example, EK has faced Kopitar 14:30 this season, while Megna has faced Kopitar three minutes less than that.

- All that said, I do concede that the model's usage projection is definitely too low and probably a sloppy mistake, which the model maker can be prone to. His rating should absolutely be higher than guys like Simek and Benning. So fair point to you on that one, I humbly surrender and apologize for my error in trusting anything he prints without checking it first.

- However, Megna played only 128 of 842 5v5 minutes with EK last season.

- Let's be clear: Megna is a passenger when with EK. He's been solid, but let's not get crazy about who helps whom more.

- Regardless of how much he plays with EK, it's seems highly likely a contender would have him on the 3rd pairing, as this AGM does. That means probably 14 minutes a game. Nobody is giving a 23 1st for 14 minutes a game of anyone, let alone this guy. It's very excessive. Which has been my only real point the whole time.

The reason that I've been talking about the first round pick is because I could see a situation where clubs like Tampa, Boston, Toronto, and Carolina get into a bit of a bidding war for Megna. Tampa has a history in recent years of coveting players at the deadline with significant over-performances relative to cap hit.

Really tried to sneak the leafs in there