I'm game to opening up a higher tier if Laine succeeds, was figuring it would be adding another higher pick like the 26 2nd on top of the 26 1st if he plays in say 130 games (80% remaining on his deal) however, I would maintain that if he plays less than 1/3 of the games on the rest of his contract, the pick falls to a more meaningless 3rd. 1/3 of the season is 27 games each season, at that point he'd be an 8.7 million dollar anchor. Getting him off payroll at that point is the benefit, let's not kid ourselves, neither of our teams have the deepest payrolls.

It's nit-picking, but it's also rare that a team has conditions on a player failing; they're almost always upgrades based on performance or health/GP. I'd be fine with the first pick being a 3rd, with an extremely attainable upgrade to a 2nd with a condition on him playing 1/4 to 1/3 of the next two seasons.

But yes, both teams are operating on an internal cap. It's very possible Columbus is interested just to move the payroll.

For the trades, I like the addition of Colton, but I get the sense that we’ll probably have to add a 3rd round pick in this deal. Moving up in the draft is something the Ducks should consider if it’s possible, but MBN wouldn’t be my target. I’m more interested in someone like Tij Iginla, who I think could end up being the steal of the first round for whoever gets him. I don’t like this Laine trade. I’m not against acquiring him and I’m all for getting Strome out of here, but given Laine’s injury history I don’t think we’ll need to give up a 1st at all. In all honesty we may even be able to get something else back as well be it a mid-low round pick or a B-C tier prospect if we really play this correctly. But the pick should be a conditional 2nd that maybe becomes a 1st if Laine plays a certain percentage of games. As for the signings, LaCombe is more likely a 2 year signing at about $50,000-$200,000 less on the AAV. To be honest I’m not as sold on him as everyone else is right now, and I think he needs to prove himself more. With Lundestrom, I’m conflicted. Personally I think he’s down to his last chance to really make an impact with this team. More likely scenario is a one year deal, but maybe the AAV is a bit higher to compensate. Vaakanainen probably gets slightly less AAV and one less year, but Leason I think is on point and in my opinion he should be the RFA the Ducks value most as he has potential to be a valuable asset for this team once they start winning. And then there’s Lindstrom…I’m honestly not a fan. I haven’t been that impressed with him and I don’t think we should re-sign him. I’d rather sign other RHD’s in free agency or find another piece to trade Colorado for Colton and give Helleson a shot. Gauthier’s getting $950,000 AAV, that’s not even a debate. As for the two UFA signings, Joshua is intriguing for sure, but I think we can get him for cheaper. I don’t want Brett Pesce. Too expensive and has a big injury history which the Ducks don’t need anymore of. Matt Roy would be my preferred RHD option. Cheaper and imo better for his value.

1: Maybe, the point is to take advantage of a cap strapped team, but I'd be fine with tossing a 3rd at it.

2: to each their own, I think MBN would be an excellent 2nd line support piece, the kind of puck digger you need for the skill guys. Tij wouldn't be bad either.

3: It is a conditional pick, if Laine plays less than half the games on his contract it drops to a 2nd, less than that it falls to a 3rd. Even distressed, CNJ isn't giving Laine away for free, he's great, when he's on the ice, but as pointed out, he carries high risk.

4: I'm impressed with his overall game, I'd ice him over Fowler. He's still young and learning but he isn't blowing coverages like Cam is, a lot of his +- are from playing his off hand with Fowler, same as Zellweger. I'd love to dump him but don't know who would bite or how much we'd have to retain.

5: RFA signings: to each their own, I like Lundestrom as another support piece, he's good defensively, but he's going the way of Sam Steel before him, pushed down by higher talent. I know Lindstrom has had a few Gaffs this season that have gone bad, but mostly he's been positive, especially his advanced stats, he usually leading the Ducks defensively on the game report cards I get, and he's willing to hit and play with an edge, he just seems to work in our system, as a D6 he's fine, I think a bottom pairing of him and Vaaks is good. (Vaaks also has done well defensively this season) Wiffed on the Gauthier money, but doesn't hurt the cap at all.

6: There's not exactly a lot available for RHD in free agency outside a couple big names. I'm fine with Roy, but I don't want to sign more than a 4-5 year deal, hence why I'm throwing money at the problem.