MiamiLaw wrote: ↑08 Feb 2025 15:11 pm
TheJackBurton wrote: ↑08 Feb 2025 15:02 pm
MiamiLaw wrote: ↑08 Feb 2025 14:54 pm
TheJackBurton wrote: ↑08 Feb 2025 14:53 pm
So to the tank and get top 5 picks here's a #4 overall we can just snatch up and get on the team. After all getting top 5 picks for a few years guarantees a cup:
https://puckpedia.com/player/jesse-puljujarvi
Now get er done Army and start booking the parade
Has anyone said it “guarantees” a cup though? It’s just that, historically, it is basically a necessity. That’s an important distinction
They talk as if it is the only way.
They root for it as if it is actually a guarantee.
Does it hurt to have one? No
Does having a top 5 pick guarantee that they will be an elite player in the league? No and Puljujarvi is living proof of that. He's played with two generational centers and another (Draisatl) who is pretty (bleep) close and is very likely headed back to the European leagues after a few more stints with other clubs.
I don't have a problem with having a top 5 pick, but I refuse to believe in a "tank" as you are asking for problems. If a year goes south and the award is a top 5 pick fine so be it, but I will never, ever be on board with promoting losing and trading every player to ensure a top 5 pick. That kind of plan is for losers and rarely ever actually works.
Colorado had to tank. Tampa had to tank. Washington and Pittsburgh had to tank. Chicago had to tank. LA had to tank. Panthers had to tank. Even the Blues had to go through their Checketts years.
I don’t understand the “rarely works” opinion held by many here. It doesn’t always work sure, but it consistently does work for the teams that use the picks well.
It’s is very difficult to get an elite 1C or 1D without drafting them. They just don’t hit the market often
Pittsburgh didn't tank, they won a lottery. Colorado was bad because Kroenke is a terrible owner and all his teams were bad. Washington went from a high, getting old, and then getting Ovechkin. Chicago is the one example of purposely tanking and it still took them close to a decade and had to win the lottery to go from #5 overall to #1 to get Kane, if that doesn't happen I doubt they win. When did LA ever officially tank? Panthers for a long time were terrible and not a destination team, once the state taxes were gone, then things changed.
A team getting old, drafting low, having to overpay their talent, and trading away all their draft picks isn't tanking, it's the design of the salary cap.
Yes we did, and it produced two top 5 picks and one, the #1 overall, has had a very ok career with most of it not wearing the Blue Note.
How did Vegas get their #1 center? How did they get their #1 forward? How did they get their top dmen? They didn't draft any of them (well in the normal sense)
What I don't get is acting like that's the only way to get those players. If the salary cap wouldn't be going up like it is the next 3 years then a lot of teams would be in trouble and the Blues would be in a great position to take advantage of it. However, just like in their history when they are playing their cards right, doing what they can, something comes along and upsets the plan.