I think a good bet would be targeting a guy like Matthew Wood from NSH, who may want to accelerate their timeline to remain competitive while Josi's at his best. 6'4, great skillset, and starts playing at the University of Minnesota next year, too. May not be optimal for MIN's Kaprizov timeline, though.

Alternatively, something around Sillinger from CLB or Kasper/Danielsson from DET as I could see both teams having incentive to make such moves. Hell, a Necas trade might even be a good fit if they could make the cap work.

Where did you see this Russo report? I almost don't believe it haha.
If he trades Rossi he'll be making a huge mistake. Especially for these packages

You are not getting Jiricek for Rossi. Ridiculous offer.

(No comment!)

Sorry if I made it sound like you had offered these. I did read it. But my point is these are ridiculous. Jiricek is not available.

I don't see the Leafs trying to get smaller

Knies has to be off the list rn...

Easy no from the jackets

Probably a year too early in Columbus's rebuild cycle to think about moving out pieces in house for other ones. I'd love to get Rossi because that solves the 2C problem straightaway. But at the cost of Jiricek? The org's only RHD prospect with top 4 upside? Not yet. I'm not saying hard no, but I'm definitely saying not this summer or coming season. Talk again 2025.

Would a Kent Johnson be of similar perigee? I think that could be an applicable swap for us.

What's the deal with him? I liked him in college, but in my limited viewing of him at the NHL level he didn't stand out in any way?

Don’t see the Sharks going after Rossi, especially if Muk is going the other way. Grier said he wants the team to get bigger too.

Had an excellent rookie year under Brad Larsen, 40 points with no PP time. But it was clear Pascal Vincent didn't like him this year. He came in with no summer bulk as well. He floated and seemed confused in Vincent's system, and was eventually sent to Cleveland for a while. Did very well in Cleveland, came back up, and continued to be treated as an afterthought by Vincent. Then got hurt on a faceoff, tore his labrum, and had season-ending surgery. Not a banner year for anyone in those circumstances.

To continue that: KJ probably wouldn't be available this offseason, because of said injury. I'm sure a new GM would want to get a look at him on the NHL roster again, too. And he doesn't really fit Guerin's desire to bring in "bigger players".

It definitely seems like a fit based on team needs/similar pedigree/similar age (Columbus wants a 2C and Minnesota could use another prototypical top-6 winger IMO), I just don't know if it works this offseason.

TBF bigger is kind of a relative term for MN. Marat K, Rossi, Spurgeon, and Zucc are all small (5'9"); with Heidt, Kap, and Shaw 5'10".

Columbus is pretty small, too. Among prospects, Dumais, Brindley, and Pinelli are all 5'9", and on the NHL roster Justin Danforth is even shorter. Fix-Wolansky is 5'5", though he's a tweener. On the blue line, Boqvist is a very small listed 5'11", and top prospect Denton Mateychuk is under six feet as well (though built like a tank). KJ is 6'1" but he only weighs about 165. And of course then there's famously small Johnny Gaudreau, although I've never seen a player as good at evasion on the ice as he is. Really, the only truly big guys in the system are Voronkov, Jiricek, Gudbranson, and Laine (there is a 6'8" Russian prospect, but his odds of coming over are very low). Everyone else is under 6'2" or a goalie. The org as a whole is so small there's a lot of discontent over the coming draft, and a lot of fans are preferencing Lindstrom or Silayev just because they're big boys.

KJ is 140 now. He lost 25 pounds when his arm was ripped off on that faceoff.

I knew I'd summon you by mentioning Dolzhenkov

He is coming. Just you wait and see.

Silayev does fit a need in this organization as a LHD stay at home type defenseman with offensive upside. Lindstrom is ok but I actually like Cattron a lot.

I agree. It is a matter of time… And I also think Ivanov is coming soon too.

Ivanov! Also tiny! There's a reason there's only one NHL goalie under six feet.

Never said he wasn’t but he has some great numbers in the KHL. Worth keeping a close eye on.