Selling from the Cellar: Who goes?

I have to say, it would be nice to get rid of Kuba’s cap hit, but the player I would most like to see moved is Milan Michalek. I might be wrong, but I rather have the sense that his contract is the worst per capita (as it were), with the exception of Kovalev, except that, unlike Michalek, Kovalev is gone in April. Gonchar’s contract might seem a bit much right now, but he has one year less on his contract than Michalek does.

The problem, of course, is that it is hard to see who would want Michalek or Gonchar right now; Gonchar, at least, might be attractive at next year’s deadline at which time he would have just one full season left on the contract. Even if Michalek could be moved, a cap hit of at least half his would have to be coming back, I imagine.

The guy is done. He is a nice guy and all, but I’d rather give one of the young defencemen a spot next year, Phillips is so much more infuriating than Gonchar because with Gonchar there is at least the hope of “some” offensive productions.

Dump him for a pick or let him go. Don’t trade him for a bad contract past this year though, that would be just awful. :/

Some Rangers fan posted this back in December. To summarize:

To Sens: Frolov and White
To Rangers: Kovalev

I’m thinking this makes sense for Ottawa now even more so since Spezza is out (White used to center Alfie and Hossa if I recall correctly).

Of course, White would need to be recalled from AHL before the trade to ensure Ottawa doesn’t get stuck with 1/2 his salary & cap if another team grabs him on re-entry waivers…

Guess I’m thinking that Frolov and White have the potential to play better in Ottawa than in NY.

White had some chemistry with Alfie long back and you often see players reunited and quickly clicking again. White had 73 points just two years ago in Atlanta (granted probably most were thanks to Kovalchuk) but seems like he’d be a low cost fill in for Spezza while he’s out and can’t hurt Sens chances at a good draft pick :)

Frolov I liked in LA (I actually live in Socal now) and I have no idea why his output is down in NY. He’s younger than Kovalev, and he’s a left wing (Sens had been hunting for top-6 LW’s forever when Heatley was around… probably more so now with Michalek)

I figure Kovalev’s gone after the season so why not get something for him before then? There’s potential upside for Ottawa in this. Do you think Kov could bring more in return?

I’d like to think Kuba is worth a little more than Bergeron, but the way he’s been playing, it doesn’t seem that way.

I voted for Ruutu, because it seems like he’s a prime candidate to be made available, and he’s actually someone who could provide very good work for a competing team. Also, he’s still popular in Pittsburgh and Vancouver, so either of them would be the front-runners.

I agree with you on Ruutu, there will definately be some interest in him come deadline day. As for Kuba, I’d hope for a 2nd rounder (that seems to be the standard these days) but I had trouble finding a player similar to Kuba, unless I missed someone obvious. I through MA Bergeron in because he’s relatively good offensively and a liability in his own end.

So Ruutu, Phillips, Kovalev if anyone will take him for a 7th round pick or something.

I’d be inclined to keep the rest of the team around….there’s two kinds of rebuilds: complete tear-down, or on the fly. So far Bryan Murray has done enough to justify an on the fly rebuild. His drafting is beyond reproach, and his trades and free agent signings have made the team bad enough to compete for a lottery pick.

So the team is on pace to be able to draft a Sean Couturier or Gabriel landeskog (please God) while still keeping overpaid but useful ROLE PLAYERS like Fisher, Michalek, Kelly, Neil etc.

The team will return to contention faster if we keep our players until their contract is about to expire, and then trade them at the deadline for picks/prospects.

I’m probably the last person you want to hear from since I’m a fan of team that just beat yours.

It seems to me that the best thing the Sens can do is build with youth in mind. I assume Kovalev will be allowed to walk, given his age and the fact he’s been so injury prone the last 2 years. While Gonchar has been a very good defenseman throughout his career, especially with the Penguins, I wondered about the wisdom of the Sens signing an old one as a FA and letting Volchenkov leave.