What I would want gainey to do in my dreams
The offseason will be more meaningful, if not more roller-coastery, than the regular season for the Montreal Canadiens.
In the last winning stretch to contend, the Habs were led by a core of young players.
In the two-game meltdown to lose the berth, they were let down by the vets; Kovalev’s give aways and Koivu’s penalties.
I think this makes Gainey’s job fairly obvious.
Buyouts:
Samsonov- enough said
Trades:
Kovalev- this is a huge priority, even though Gainey will have a tough time getting anything more than a late late pick for the Russian ghost. But a young pretending team might use his experience and 18 goals for a year or two.
Koivu- I know this is going to get me in trouble, but even as I never thought I’d say this, and I love the guy personally, he gets career numbers and yet he’s still -20 or something and apparently has lost his leadership abilities. Use the fact that he’s had good numbers to trade him, rumour is he wants out anyways. No source, just heard it somewhere.
Let Them Walk:
Aebischer: 2 mil
Souray: 2.5 mil
Niinimaa: 3 mil
Bonk: 3 mil (numbers approximate)
Re-sign:
Markov- NUMBER ONE PRIORITY, most underrated D in the league.
Johnson- this guy has been an unsung hero this season. Solid two way play, big hitting, blocked shots, PK, keep him around.
UFA market:
Briere- priority
Acquisitions:
If UFA situation doesn’t yield that high-scoring center, it will be necessary to pull off a big trade.
This one is a dream scenario for any Habs fans but of course is pretty unlikely.
Given that Tampa needs to dump the salary of one of their Big Three, with the idea of getting a slew of picks and prospects in return, it may be possible to pry Vinny lose with a Koivu package that would include one of our first round picks, plus a Perezhogin, and a goalie, maybe Halak. This is going to get me in trouble too.
Latendresse Lecavalier Ryder
Higgins Plekanec Kostytsin (you don’t mess with chem like this)
Begin Lappierre Johnson
Milroy Chipchura Kostytsin (S.) (or some combo like this)
Markov Komisarek
Dandenault Boullion
Streit Yemelin/O’Brien/Cote
Huet
Price
There you go, a true fan’s scenario: i.e. irresponsibly hopeful.