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You could find somebody in the system (like Zack Smith) to kill penalties, and here are some other examples of other NHLers who are just as good offensively as Kelly (some not, but Kelly isn't here for offense either), kill penalties, and make less than he does:

Max Talbot $1,050,000
Blair Betts $700,000
David Clarkson $837,500
Max Lapierre $687,500

Just a few examples...obviously Kelly is an asset because of his PK skills, but he can be replaced while cutting salary at the same time

Two of those guys are on entry level deals except Talbot and Betts who will probably get a raise. I would take Clarkson over Kelly for sure but he will be making at least 2.1 mil when his contract expires.

Betts and Lapieree are not the same player Kelly. Those two shouldnt even be mentioned.

Kelly is about as replaceable as A Train. You might be able to find guys at a bit cheaper price to fill in their roles but will the fit into the team like these two do? I say no and just go with what works.

If there is ever a guy to come in and play where Kelly is, it's Zack Smith, but even he cant do what Kelly does right now, expierence is a huge factor here.

People always think the grass is greener.

I'll admit that Betts was a terrific signing by the Flyers and a terrible loss by the Rangers.

He still isnt anywhere near as good as Kelly is or could ever be as important to The Sens as Kelly is.

N4L wrote:He still isnt anywhere near as good as Kelly is or could ever be as important to The Sens as Kelly is.

No, this year Kelly is playing like two years ago Pahlsson with the requisite linemates to be even more effective. I'm very pleased with Murray's patience with Kelly last year (or perhaps his inability to trade him).

N4L wrote:

Big Ev wrote:If it came down to Kelly or Cullen I would rather have neither.

Kelly with 15 goals who plays an important role and one of the best Pkers in the league? What's your beef with him, I would love to hear it.

While it isn't central to your argument, I'm gonna point out that Kelly has 11 goals.

spader wrote:

N4L wrote:

Big Ev wrote:If it came down to Kelly or Cullen I would rather have neither.

Kelly with 15 goals who plays an important role and one of the best Pkers in the league? What's your beef with him, I would love to hear it.

While it isn't central to your argument, I'm gonna point out that Kelly has 11 goals.

Also, let's not forget that Kelly is actually having a good year, offensively, compared to last year. I like Kelly, don't get me wrong, but his *usual* contribution on offense could be a little better for $2.1M. He gets lots of chances, which is probably what makes it all the more frustrating -- he *should* be scoring more.

Anyhow, I like him on the team now, just wish he would do this every year, and win a few more face offs. The guy's listed as a center, for crying out loud, and he's supposed to be the defensive genius. Yet when it's a minute to go with a 1-goal lead and a face off in your own end, Kelly is rarely the guy who gets the tap on the shoulder.

wprager wrote:

spader wrote:

N4L wrote:

Big Ev wrote:If it came down to Kelly or Cullen I would rather have neither.

Kelly with 15 goals who plays an important role and one of the best Pkers in the league? What's your beef with him, I would love to hear it.

While it isn't central to your argument, I'm gonna point out that Kelly has 11 goals.

Also, let's not forget that Kelly is actually having a good year, offensively, compared to last year. I like Kelly, don't get me wrong, but his *usual* contribution on offense could be a little better for $2.1M. He gets lots of chances, which is probably what makes it all the more frustrating -- he *should* be scoring more.

Anyhow, I like him on the team now, just wish he would do this every year, and win a few more face offs. The guy's listed as a center, for crying out loud, and he's supposed to be the defensive genius. Yet when it's a minute to go with a 1-goal lead and a face off in your own end, Kelly is rarely the guy who gets the tap on the shoulder.

I'm with N4L on this one. I didn't like Kelly's signing but he's surprised me a lot this. I'd argue he's the most versatile forward we have, and if it wasn't for his hands of stone, he'd have 20+ goals already. Can't ask for much more...

Im also implying he will have 15 goals by the end of the year. With the cap having gone up from where it was after the cup run and Kelly's play, expierence, and leadership, he's worth every penny of that contract.

The guy I think that is overpaid just a little bit in that range is Neil, but if you are in the playoffs then any opinion you have on that contract is pretty much void because Neil shows he worth every time playoffs roll around.

Anyways, there are a few over paid guys on the team but Kelly isnt one of them.

I think you guys are missing my point a little. He's one of our best guys, defensively, yet last minute of play, if it's a face off in our zone, he's on the bench. Would you not prefer he was out there? He's got to either be better on the draw or line up at wing. Actually, strike all that, when you've got a defensive-end face off in a tight game with a minute left, you'd better have 2 centers out on the ice. So put out Fisher and Kelly, with Fisher taking the face off (or Kelly trying to draw the other center into being kicked out, but making sure at least one of them gets kicked out).

wprager wrote:

spader wrote:

N4L wrote:

Big Ev wrote:If it came down to Kelly or Cullen I would rather have neither.

Kelly with 15 goals who plays an important role and one of the best Pkers in the league? What's your beef with him, I would love to hear it.

While it isn't central to your argument, I'm gonna point out that Kelly has 11 goals.

Also, let's not forget that Kelly is actually having a good year, offensively, compared to last year. I like Kelly, don't get me wrong, but his *usual* contribution on offense could be a little better for $2.1M. He gets lots of chances, which is probably what makes it all the more frustrating -- he *should* be scoring more.

Anyhow, I like him on the team now, just wish he would do this every year, and win a few more face offs. The guy's listed as a center, for crying out loud, and he's supposed to be the defensive genius. Yet when it's a minute to go with a 1-goal lead and a face off in your own end, Kelly is rarely the guy who gets the tap on the shoulder.

Huh? Late in games when we're defending a 1-goal lead, Clouston routinely puts out a line of Kelly-Fisher-Alfie. What are you watching?

I'm still a little bummed we didn't get Visnovsky to be perfectly honest. I love that little dude, amazing first pass, booming shot from the point, great PP QB, great PP passer, great passer period, good stick work defensively, a little weak in the defensive zone, but his partner should be able to make up for it (not in Edmonton).

A real jewel in any Ds crown. I'm sad.

SpezDispenser wrote:I'm still a little bummed we didn't get Visnovsky to be perfectly honest. I love that little dude, amazing first pass, booming shot from the point, great PP QB, great PP passer, great passer period, good stick work defensively, a little weak in the defensive zone, but his partner should be able to make up for it (not in Edmonton).

A real jewel in any Ds crown. I'm sad.

Looking at the deal that went down, I'm not sure we had the assets to make it happen. We don't have a player comparable to Whitney in terms of youth / potential / contract. Kuba was not going to get it done -- maybe if you include our first, but I dunno. That leaves Karlsson. I think we all know what BM's answer would be to that demand.

NObody's talked about the cap yet. How did we manage to send cheechoo's 3M and add CUllen's 2.8 and Sutton's 3?

rooneypoo wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:I'm still a little bummed we didn't get Visnovsky to be perfectly honest. I love that little dude, amazing first pass, booming shot from the point, great PP QB, great PP passer, great passer period, good stick work defensively, a little weak in the defensive zone, but his partner should be able to make up for it (not in Edmonton).

A real jewel in any Ds crown. I'm sad.

Looking at the deal that went down, I'm not sure we had the assets to make it happen. We don't have a player comparable to Whitney in terms of youth / potential / contract. Kuba was not going to get it done -- maybe if you include our first, but I dunno. That leaves Karlsson. I think we all know what BM's answer would be to that demand.

Whitney is young, but he's more expensive than Kuba and Kuba would have given the Oilers a comparable D-man in terms of vet. experience and stability. Instead of a 6th, we would probably have had to add in Jim O'Brien or Brian Lee and a 3rd or even a 2nd from next year, but that would have been worth it to me.

I'm not really complaining about Kuba, just that Lubo is a dynamite player to me.

marakh wrote:NObody's talked about the cap yet. How did we manage to send cheechoo's 3M and add CUllen's 2.8 and Sutton's 3?

That's the magic of prorated salaries, my friend. As each day of the season passes, the real dollars owed to the player shrinks. Given that there's only 1/4th of the season left, we only owe Cullen and Sutton 1/4th of their remaining salaries -- altogether, that might make for an addition of $2 mil in salary. Meanwhile, we probably saved well over $1 mil by subtracting the remaining salaries of Cheechoo and Picard.

According to CapGeek, we actually still have (or had, I guess -- it doesn't mean much now that the deadline has passed) a lot of prorated cap space -- almost $4 mil. Our real cap space figure, however, is really quite small.

http://www.capgeek.com/tracker/team.php?Team=23

SpezDispenser wrote:

rooneypoo wrote:

SpezDispenser wrote:I'm still a little bummed we didn't get Visnovsky to be perfectly honest. I love that little dude, amazing first pass, booming shot from the point, great PP QB, great PP passer, great passer period, good stick work defensively, a little weak in the defensive zone, but his partner should be able to make up for it (not in Edmonton).

A real jewel in any Ds crown. I'm sad.

Looking at the deal that went down, I'm not sure we had the assets to make it happen. We don't have a player comparable to Whitney in terms of youth / potential / contract. Kuba was not going to get it done -- maybe if you include our first, but I dunno. That leaves Karlsson. I think we all know what BM's answer would be to that demand.

Whitney is young, but he's more expensive than Kuba and Kuba would have given the Oilers a comparable D-man in terms of vet. experience and stability. Instead of a 6th, we would probably have had to add in Jim O'Brien or Brian Lee and a 3rd or even a 2nd from next year, but that would have been worth it to me.

I'm not really complaining about Kuba, just that Lubo is a dynamite player to me.

I really don't think Kuba is comparable to Whitney -- talent-wise, right now, sure, but not when you factor in things like age and potential. And in any event, Kuba has a NTC, and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't have waived it to go to the restroom of the NHL.

It would have been Karlsson or not at all. Which explains why it didn't happen.