Right but, Jeannot produce more than points. He is very reliable defensively + brings physicality like no one else. Sure Kaliyev offensive upside is higher but, clearly does not work in LA.

I'm not convinced Jiricek needs a spot immediately. Let him make Cleveland unstoppable; we don't need to press, and Gudbranson can take a break in the press box now and again when Jiricek needs reminders as to the pace of the NHL game.

A 7th D lmao? He is a very reliable defenseman imo. I really like what he can provide to Tampa's defense. Nothing flashy but, good all around. 2.5m is more than fair.

I definitely disagree, Jiricek has shown he is ready for the NHL. We already had to deal with him having issues being sent down this past season, no way we are doing that again and risking alienating our most valuable prospect. Gudbranson also makes too much to be scratched. Scratching 4mil players is terrible cap management.

Surely this very reliable defenseman is a regular in the nhl.(hes not)

Probably the roster player that would make the most sense would be Hoglander (still cheap), plus a pick.

hes in the same boat as de haan and de haan got league min

40+ games a season since 2016 is quite reliable for a 3rd pair guy. He is not a star or anything but, still pretty good.

I think the supposed issues with Jiricek are overblown, and I don't think he's shown he is ready. He's still making some of the same dumb mistakes; yes, he's outscored a few of them, but that's not enough at this level.

And as for cap management - part of why I'm so enthusiastic about Cernak in particular is because I think we badly need his skillset and that we're unlikely to get it without paying more than what he makes to folks who are even older and who would require term taking them to even later parts of their career. It's not a sweetheart deal, but it's a decent one. There are potentially better ways to cover that gap, but I don't think they're anywhere near as likely to succeed in doing so.

Well, De Haan is also a very reliable defenseman. Just did not work in Tampa, I also think Miller is way better.

Even tho I like Nils Hoglander, If Tampa trades Cernak, it will have to be for either a top15 pick or a young promising player like Johnson imo. I don't think any package that involve Hoglander would push Tampa to pull the trigger.

Like I said I think Jeannot would be a good fit in LA but he wont play in the top 9 meaning he will only play on the 4th line unless someone gets injured and if you're paying anoyone on the 4th line more than 1m you're overpaying not to mention giving up and asset like Kaliyev and a 4th is too much. We probably wont resign Lizzotte because he will be a 2m 4th liner and even though he is smaller than Jeannot he is way more valuable than Jeannot.

I'd scratch a $4M Gudbranson to play Cernak in a heartbeat, cap be damned. I'd like a Cernak trade for the same reason I'd rather see us draft Silayev or Levshunov over Lindstrom: we have hardly any NHL-floor D-men in the system, and the NHL D-men we have can't shut down anyone.



I agree with you, but my concern is age. Making a move for Cernak is great if the rest of the team was a shutdown defenseman away from competing, but I think the core is just too young for that move to make enough of an impact now, and by the time the window is open, he's reached the end of his prime. Maybe he plays well until he's 38, but realistically he's only a contributing core piece for 4-5 years of a potential window, then we're looking at a replacement again. It's kind of the same argument we have over Marner, and it's not something I'd want to trade someone who could be a top-6 ppg winger for 10+ years for.

Would I be mad? No. Would Tampa need to add? Of course. Is it exactly the kind of win-now move and mentality that I think this organization chases constantly, and has caused us to be mired in mediocrity instead of ever building a legitimate contending team for 20+ years? Absolutely.

Fair points; I just disagree on your notion of what the timetable is. I think this is exactly the time when we need to be supplementing the kids we have with skilled vets who cover gaps in their upside and potential, and Cernak is a great fit. With Marner the argument makes sense because we have plenty of wingers who could potentially cover that skillset (albeit perhaps not as well). I don't think anyone in the system looks to be a Cernak.

That's 100% reasonable, I'd also like nothing better than being wrong about the timeline. But I'm sure you understand the reluctance to push any chips to the center if it means we're sacrificing something that looks to be a core piece for a longer window. I want the window to be Tampa 2014-present, not Montreal 2019-2021.

I do agree that Cernak would be a great fit, though, there's no doubt about that.

I don't think a Cernak pickup would risk that at all, honestly. Prospect depth here is sufficient such that I think it's a worthwhile risk - and compared to other means of addressing the issue, a minimal risk IMO.