The Athletic’s Max Bultman penned an article discussing Tomas Tatar’s possible fit with the Nashville Predators. FYI:
Just based on their general comments on the Detroit winger, it’s an interesting thought experiment to picture him joining the defending Western Conference champions. Nashville has a need for scoring on the wing, has a GM with a history of being active at the trade deadline and team poised to win. The preference may be for a winger like the New York Rangers’ Rick Nash, who is a pure rental, but Tatar certainly made his case on Tuesday. And according to The Athletic’s Craig Custance, the price tag is going to be in the same ballpark, with the Red Wings looking for a first-round pick and “A” prospect to move Tatar.
“He’s a really talented player,” said Predators center Ryan Johansen. “Competes really hard on the puck. He actually reminds me quite a bit of (Predators forward Viktor Arvidsson), who has been my linemate for a couple years now. He’s kind of a relentless player, so he’s a guy you’ve always gotta be aware of on the ice and try and manage him as best as possible.”
Continued (paywall)
I’d be sad to see Tats go, but if the return is right it’d be for the best of the team.
If I was Kenny, this is the draft to SELL SELL SELL!!!! Being such a deep draft I would do whatever it took to get hands on first rounders! Sell Tatar, Green, Nyquist, etc. It will help us better our standings for the draft lottery and potentially give us packaging options to move up (Dahlin or Shevy Jr.). Last year was a bad year to stockpile picks. You could argue the depth of this draft is the best since 2003.
I don’t think that KH is going to sell everybody, but I’m expecting another 2-3 trades.
I think Holland is still feeling out the market/returns. Green obviously is going to move regardless, but if the returns aren’t there I can see Holland waiting on moving a Nyquist or Tatar, and maybe a DeKeyser. And Daley might fetch more next deadline, and they’ll need him more next year with Green gone.
I mean, if he can get a 2nd and 3rd for Brendan Freaking Smith, anything is possible yet.
True true.
If memory serves Tatar was a mid 2nd rounder and developed fast for a Red Wing. He turned out to be as good a 2nd round NHLer as a happy G.M. could ask for.
I realize trading for picks is another kick at the can, but…another 2nd round seems like were hoping it turns into another Tatar? Why wait ? Hes there now, has a great work ethic it appears, youngish, and in good health.
Figure out how it all turns into a top #15 pick or keep a great player.
The Wings drafted Tats and Landon Ferraro in that draft, dropping down to earn 2 early-second-round picks, and Tomas panned out.
At this point, it appears that the Wings are going to move one of Nyquist or Tatar, and ideally, they get a 1st rounder, but I’m just not so sure that their worth is that high.
I will believe it when I see it. He does not have a proven record trading HIS assets . Like LGD, a 2nd rd is being asked for and a 4th rd is being offered. I guess I see KH over valuating his assets.
I can hear it now “Teams would not pay a fair price
Even Green has a short short list of teams he will go to (full NTC). We are lucky he might move.
Devils Advocate when it comes to KH.
All in All outside Hockey, KH was a great guy, like Babs and I assume most others. But he is still in the last decade.
I agree that the last decade has been a hard one for Holland. To me, the biggest mistake the Wings made was going all in on Ryan Suter as Nicklas Lidstrom’s replacement–that was a foolhardy premise, and Detroit had no back-up plan. I would argue that their decision was worse than passing over Hossa because the team simply made lateral signings afterward…
We’ll see what happens regarding this year’s crop. I expect Green to be moved and the Wings to move a forward, though I don’t know which one. It’s not going to be the fire sale fans want.
It’s death by a thousand cuts…he let Hudler and Filppula walk away for nothing because he thought we could get in the playoffs and go on a run. He compounded that by wasting assets on Legwand, Cole, Zidlicky. When Abby and Helm were pending UFAs he could have sold them as rentals to re-stock the cupboard and then trusted that he had internal replacements for them. But he was too conservative and hung onto them. There was no creativity along the way. As an example, not once did he act as a buyer AND seller. So you take Helm, as a pending UFA and sell him at the deadline (guys like Lars Eller went for a couple of 2nds)…but, but, but nobody sells when they are in a playoff spot…fine, you turn around and ADD a rental forward to replace Helm. So you sell Helm for a 2nd and 4th, then take that 4th and add someone like Shawn Matthias as a rental. So there, you aren’t waving the white flag on your season. You aren’t dumping Helm and replacing with a teenager. But you pocket an extra draft pick, and more importantly, you don’t then offer Helm a 5-year extension. Instead you use that cap space more wisely. Those are the type of creative moves that have been lacking for a decade. It’s not about Parise and Hossa. It’s hundreds of other small errors that have destroyed the franchise.
To me the biggest fumbles were going all in on Sutter, not re-signing Filppula and ultimately going through Weiss and Nielsen to find an adequate replacement, and then trading away Jarnkrok and Janmark for Legwand and Cole…but that 1st round pick that the Wings traded to get Kyle Quincey back turned out to be Andrei Vasilevskiy…
And KH put the Wings in a cap bind for years by spending so much on Helm and Abdelkader.
The moves add up, but for my money, blowing on Suter and not having a back-up plan was the biggest of the many errors KH has made.
“who has been my linemate for a couple years now.”
What? Surely he meant to say “Shifts”. Who keeps lines together to develop chemistry? That’s craziness. That team must never make the Cup Final…
Gold, comment gold. 😉