Kr55 wrote on Mon, 02 February 2026 17:26

Damn it would be nice to be able to take advantage of Drury here. I didn't know that Drury traded away 2 2nd round picks and a player for Ty Emberson This is the kind of move you would hope Bowman could pull off. He was the guy that convinced Panarin to come to the NHL, so lots of history there. Gotta think he takes Nuge's spot. That right handed shot on the left side would open a whole new world for our PP. And make 5v5 more interesting for one of McDavid or Drai too. noticed Panarin is 34 now. Seems like yesterday he took rookie of the year from the now 29 year old McDavid.

It's worth noting too that Panarin's full no-move means he dictates where he goes which means that if he decides it's Edmonton, then they take what they can get from us. He's probably not as expensive as he should be given that limitation (and the fact that we no longer have Ken Holland at our helm believing you should never take advantage of another team in a trade).

We have several draft picks we could move - 1st in 2027 and 2028, 2nds the next three years, 3rds in 2026 and 2028x2. We've got some strong performing minor leaguers too. I think the team does have the assets to get this done - they just need the will and the creativity (not to mention the sales job to Panarin that this should be his destination).

"Thinking that a bad team's best players are the reason the team is bad is the "Tambellini re-signing Lennart Petrell" of sports opinions." @Woodguy55
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