Kessel Offer Sheet: Would you do it? (WITH A POLL)

So why are we assuming it's that high? According to the RFA Compensation table an offer up to just over $3M requires a 2nd. For Boston to match $3M they would have to clear $1.4M just to get to the cap ceiling. Much more likely they would need to clear $3M to leave injury reserves. They could replace Wheeler ($2.825 2-way) with a callup, which would leave them with about $900K in reserves -- not ideal, but doable. But that doesn't make their team any better, and it's hardly fair to Wheeler.

Would Burke do that out of spite and to weaken a divisional rival?

The Rangers would need to clear about $1.35M to match $3M for Dubinsky and leave injury reserves. Burying Brashear in the minors will only clear about $900K, assuming you replace him with a league-minimum player. Or go with a 20-man roster (no spares).

Neither situation would be impossible to overcome, but it will put the team (Boston or NYR) at a disadvantage. Does Burke care about making enemies?

Columbus and Buffalo have the cap space to absorb $3M raises to Svitov and Stafford (respectively), and I don't see any other RFAs worth any hard work.

Still, perhaps forcing Boston to send Wheeler to the minors is the kind of truculence that Burke expects from his players, and he's just leading by example. Piss off your opposition, while at the same time weakening them, if only a little. Makes about as much sense as offering Kessel $5M *and* losing all those picks.

So why are we assuming it's that high? According to the RFA Compensation table an offer up to just over $3M requires a 2nd. For Boston to match $3M they would have to clear $1.4M just to get to the cap ceiling. Much more likely they would need to clear $3M to leave injury reserves. They could replace Wheeler ($2.825 2-way) with a callup, which would leave them with about $900K in reserves -- not ideal, but doable. But that doesn't make their team any better, and it's hardly fair to Wheeler.

Would Burke do that out of spite and to weaken a divisional rival?

The Rangers would need to clear about $1.35M to match $3M for Dubinsky and leave injury reserves. Burying Brashear in the minors will only clear about $900K, assuming you replace him with a league-minimum player. Or go with a 20-man roster (no spares).

Neither situation would be impossible to overcome, but it will put the team (Boston or NYR) at a disadvantage. Does Burke care about making enemies?

Columbus and Buffalo have the cap space to absorb $3M raises to Svitov and Stafford (respectively), and I don't see any other RFAs worth any hard work.

Still, perhaps forcing Boston to send Wheeler to the minors is the kind of truculence that Burke expects from his players, and he's just leading by example. Piss off your opposition, while at the same time weakening them, if only a little. Makes about as much sense as offering Kessel $5M *and* losing all those picks.

wprager wrote:So why are we assuming it's that high? According to the RFA Compensation table an offer up to just over $3M requires a 2nd. For Boston to match $3M they would have to clear $1.4M just to get to the cap ceiling. Much more likely they would need to clear $3M to leave injury reserves. They could replace Wheeler ($2.825 2-way) with a callup, which would leave them with about $900K in reserves -- not ideal, but doable. But that doesn't make their team any better, and it's hardly fair to Wheeler.

Would Burke do that out of spite and to weaken a divisional rival?

The Rangers would need to clear about $1.35M to match $3M for Dubinsky and leave injury reserves. Burying Brashear in the minors will only clear about $900K, assuming you replace him with a league-minimum player. Or go with a 20-man roster (no spares).

Neither situation would be impossible to overcome, but it will put the team (Boston or NYR) at a disadvantage. Does Burke care about making enemies?

Columbus and Buffalo have the cap space to absorb $3M raises to Svitov and Stafford (respectively), and I don't see any other RFAs worth any hard work.

Still, perhaps forcing Boston to send Wheeler to the minors is the kind of truculence that Burke expects from his players, and he's just leading by example. Piss off your opposition, while at the same time weakening them, if only a little. Makes about as much sense as offering Kessel $5M *and* losing all those picks.

That is funny stuff.

Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

wprager wrote:Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

But that is based on the assumption that Kessel would indeed accept a contract of only $3M which I don't believe he would. And the draft pick compensation is as follows: (according to nhlscap.com)

Amount	Compensation Due
$863,156 or less	None
$863,156 - $1,307,811	3rd round pick
$1,307,811 - $2,615,623	2nd round pick
$2,615,623 - $3,923,434	1st and 3rd round pick
$3,923,434 - $5,231,246	1st, 2nd, and 3rd round pick
$5,231,246 - $6,539,061	Two 1st's, one 2nd, one 3rd round pick
$6,539,061 or more	Four 1st round picks

wprager wrote:Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

I'd probably trade a Patrice Bergeron to the Western Conference before I'd trade Phil Kessel to a divisional rival. I don't think there is any way in hell that Kessel ends up in Toronto at all this year...

wprager wrote:Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

BOS would be grinning from ear to ear if Kessel was offered and signed a $3 mil / yr deal. It's pretty much common knowledge that they've been offering him the same money they gave to Krecji (close to $4 mil / yr), and given the stalemate, it's pretty clear Kessel's camp think he's worth more.

BOS is certainly in a pickle, cap-wise -- right now, they're actually about $1 mil over the cap; only by invoking the bonus clause to 'bury' $3 mil do they get under -- but I'm pretty sure they'll find ways to manage that, if they can work out a deal with Kessel. They've got moveable piece in the form of Bergeron, Ryder, Sturm, Kobasew, and (if push comes to shove) Wideman. I wouldn't take the 'don't worry, no problems here' approach, but they do have options. If Kessel were to sign, too, BOS would have a grace period for buyouts.

I'm a heartless scuz sometimes, I would have traded Bergeron a long time ago (if possible) and have signed Kessel by now.

It's a business. Nothing wrong with treating it as such Spezz.

For sure...still... :^^^^: Bergeron is one of those special cases, I'd feel like an arse.

SpezDispenser wrote:For sure...still... :^^^^: Bergeron is one of those special cases, I'd feel like an arse.

I'd take him for a discount.

The compensatin numbers I used were from NHL.com, on a page titled 2009 Free Agents. I'd trust NHL.com over NHLScap.

Bass Destruction wrote:

wprager wrote:Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

But that is based on the assumption that Kessel would indeed accept a contract of only $3M which I don't believe he would. And the draft pick compensation is as follows: (according to nhlscap.com)

Bass Destruction wrote:

wprager wrote:Another thing he could do is threaten Boston with a $3M offer sheet. If you are Chiarelli, which of the following three options would you choose (another poll?):

1. Trade Kessel to the Leafs (assuming the previously rumored deal is still of the table)
2. Be forced to give Kessel $3M, and send Wheeler to the minors to clear room.
3. Lose Kessel for a 2nd round pick.

I don't know about you, but #1 sounds like the most attractive option to Boston.

But that is based on the assumption that Kessel would indeed accept a contract of only $3M which I don't believe he would.

Also, Boston cannot offer him $3M, so why *wouldn't he* take that from Toronto? Would he rather take the QO from Boton?

He wouldn't take either.... No way you pry him away from a legit contender to Toronto for anything under 5M.

Remember that this is all orchestrated by Kessel's agent. He wouldn't do this unless he knew that Kessel wanted to go to TO - and that TO would offer the best offer. Chiarelli just messed this scenario up, he's been amazing so far, but he didn't take care of this the way he should have. His fault, I'm sure he takes the blame, but it'll all work out.

SpezDispenser wrote:Remember that this is all orchestrated by Kessel's agent. He wouldn't do this unless he knew that Kessel wanted to go to TO - and that TO would offer the best offer. Chiarelli just messed this scenario up, he's been amazing so far, but he didn't take care of this the way he should have. His fault, I'm sure he takes the blame, but it'll all work out.

I'm wouldn't go that far... I agree that his agent (assuming this talk is at all factual) would have a major part to play in this, but I wouldn't go as far as saying Kessel wants to play in TO. Thats 100% baseless speculation. Maybe they're just using TO to get their number from Boston

cas wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:Remember that this is all orchestrated by Kessel's agent. He wouldn't do this unless he knew that Kessel wanted to go to TO - and that TO would offer the best offer. Chiarelli just messed this scenario up, he's been amazing so far, but he didn't take care of this the way he should have. His fault, I'm sure he takes the blame, but it'll all work out.

I'm wouldn't go that far... I agree that his agent (assuming this talk is at all factual) would have a major part to play in this, but I wouldn't go as far as saying Kessel wants to play in TO. Thats 100% baseless speculation. Maybe they're just using TO to get their number from Boston

Well Kessel would have a bit of a say I would imagine. If it was a ploy to drive his price up a bit, that's fine, but at the same time, there's a very real chance he'll be a Leaf for the next 5 years, he'd realize that and probably had some dialogue about it I would imagine.

True, but if this is actually happening, would Kessel want to leave a team that has a relatively good shot at going on a long playoff run to go be a part of the rebuilding process elsewhere?