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What's your limit/what do you think they'll get if they stay -


ghdi

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I'm not concerned with our current unsigned RFAs (Henrique, Josefson) as I don't see them getting huge raises and no one will risk an offer sheet on them, so let's stick to our UFAs. 

 

Here's the list and their contracts from last season: 

 

David Clarkson 12-13 Contract - 2.6M

Dainius Zubrus 12-13 Contract - 3.4M

Patrik Elias 12-13 Contract - 6M

Steve Sullivan 12-13 Contract - 2.6M (already stated by Lou that he's not returning)

Alexei Ponikarovsky 12-13 Contract - 1.8M

Tom Kostopoulous 12-13 Contract - 600K

Marek Zidlicky 12-13 Contract - 4M

Peter Harrold 12-13 Contract - 525K

 

Mine:

 

Clarkson - I think he's leaving. He's one of the top names in this lackluster UFA pool and that says all you need to know. I don't think he's worth $5M per year, and I think he's going to get it from someone. Hopefully not us. Gone.

 

Zubrus - I think he will stay. I think he will get around $4M per and will be re-signed shortly after Clarky is off the market.

 

Elias - This is the name that scares me on the list. I would hate to see him in another sweater. I figure he wants 2-3 more years, and I can imagine this being the area where we balk. I think 2 years would be my max, money no more than $5M. I think he stays after sniffing what's out there, but Id not be shocked to see someone overpay for him. I would not be angry or shocked if that was us. This is a guy I think is worth paying a bit more to keep in our sweater + he still contributes a ton.

 

Poni - Gone.

 

Kostopoulous - Betting gone. Too many players like him on the market and the open roster spot may be more valuable to us than with him filling it.

 

Zidlicky - With Gonchar getting the $/years he did, Zidlicky is another top name in this relatively poor pool. I could easily see Zidlicky getting around 5 and 3 years from someone. I would hope that its not us. I'm betting gone. Streit made 4.1 last season and is a year younger and will probably be getting more than that from the Flyers.

 

Replacements:

 

If everything I predicted happened, I would hope that we'd kick the tires on someone like Horton or Weiss and then there's guys like Brunner and Fillipula, Id be interested in seeing how they could fit. Stalberg? Clowe? Defensively, I'm a bit wary of bringing someone in, if only because we have 10 million locked into Volchenkov, Sal, and Tallinder.  Maybe Clitsome or Ian White? Ugh. 

 

 

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I sure hope your wrong about clarkson, i do not want to see 5m per year tied up in him. However he contributes alot to this team i am really really dreding him leaving.. Who is going to replace him? 25-30 goals a year thats a descent enforcer?.. He knew what he was doing this year by staying healthy and uninjured(not being as physical as he normaly is) and trying to sling everything at the net he could to make his value look better when discussed on paper.

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Devils can't afford to lose Clarkson's offensive production.  I'm with sik02gt.  I hope the OP is wrong.

 

Lets look at that production. He had 24 points in 48 games. 15 of those points in the first 14 games. I see a guy who went on a hot streak and then spread 9 more points over 30 games and still took stupid penalties from time to time. I don't see us living and dying b/c Clarkson is on or off this team. He is almost assuredly going to get overpaid though. There are a lot more teams in dire straits than us that have the money to burn and then there are teams like the Leafs who have to do something just to appease their batsh!t fanbase.

 

I agree we need offensive production, but losing Clarkson is not as detrimental as it may seem. Parise was the real killer loss, and we did nothing to help in that respect.

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Elias will get more than $5 million AAV, especially if he decides to field offers from other teams.  He's still more or less a point per game player that is excellent defensively and gets about 19 minutes per game.  

 

My guess is that hel'll get 3 years, $19 million, be it from the Devils or someone else. 

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Clarkson - Gone for at least 5.5m/year from a stupid team like the Leafs.  Unless Clarky take a discount to stay in NJ, he'll definitely find more money out there in the UFA market - he's arguably the top forward out there right now.

 

Zubrus - Why not resign for 1-2 years at 2.5m or so.  Small risk, he's a solid 2nd or (preferably) 3rd liner with a great presence along the boards.

 

Elias - Pay the man.  He hasn't declined much at all yet, I'd be happy giving him 2-3 years at 5.5-6m.

 

Poni - Again, if there isn't a better internal option to fill out the 3rd line, bring him back for 1.5m or so.  If a kid's ready, let him walk.

 

Tom Kostopoulous - Gone.  Thanks for having your face smashed for the cause though.

 

Marek Zidlicky - This one's tricky.  I like what Zid brings, but he'll probably get 5m/year for multiple years.  With the number of kids knocking on the door, I might not be against letting him go.

 

Peter Harrold - Gone, if he wants top-6 minutes and money.

Edited by Devilsfan118
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C

Zubrus - Why not resign for 1-2 years at 2.5m or so.  Small risk, he's a solid 2nd or (preferably) 3rd liner with a great presence along the boards.

 

 

 

I dont see Zubrus taking a pay cut. I see him able to get the same he gets now, if not a little more. He's been fairly consistent for us (which is 30-40 points) and his intangibles are valuable. Im more concerned with the years for him since he'll be 35 when he signs his next deal. 

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I dont understad honestly why alot of people are down on clarkson or always have something to say about his performance the second half of this past shortened season.. Seems like everyone forgets that it wasnt just clarkson going threw a dry spell it was the entire team could not figure out how to score a goddamn goal. Clarkson does the job he signed up for.. Third line player. Sorry when he was forced to play a top 6 role he didnt hold up to it.. Maybe thats because thats not his role on this team obviously. People need to realize that before they start talking sh!t about the guy.

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If Clarkson leaves, I'd like to take a run at Bickell or Horton.  All 3 of them are likely to be overpaid, but in the end they are all versatile players that can contribute offensively.   Replacing Clarkson with 1 of these 2 players would lessen the sting a little bit, although I think both Chicago and Boston will make strong pushes to retain them.

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I dont understad honestly why alot of people are down on clarkson or always have something to say about his performance the second half of this past shortened season.. Seems like everyone forgets that it wasnt just clarkson going threw a dry spell it was the entire team could not figure out how to score a goddamn goal. Clarkson does the job he signed up for.. Third line player. Sorry when he was forced to play a top 6 role he didnt hold up to it.. Maybe thats because thats not his role on this team obviously. People need to realize that before they start talking sh!t about the guy.

 

You're looking at it entirely wrong. Personally, I'm perfectly fine with Clarkson staying, my issue, and a lot of other fan's issues has nothing to do with him or his performance. Its ALL $$$$. He is going to get overpaid. The market is weak and he's one of the more talented guys on this market.  There is nothing in recent UFA history around the league that says he's going to get paid what he's worth. He's going to get more. You said yourself that you dont want to see $5M invested in him for a # of years, and that's probably what he's going to get b/c there's high interest in him now because hes one of those better names available. I don't even think he's worth 4. I think 3-3.5 is more than enough for what he brings to the table and what he doesn't bring to the table. 

 

We have enough bad contracts on this team as it is. 

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You're looking at it entirely wrong. Personally, I'm perfectly fine with Clarkson staying, my issue, and a lot of other fan's issues has nothing to do with him or his performance. Its ALL $$$$. He is going to get overpaid. The market is weak and he's one of the more talented guys on this market.  There is nothing in recent UFA history around the league that says he's going to get paid what he's worth. He's going to get more. You said yourself that you dont want to see $5M invested in him for a # of years, and that's probably what he's going to get b/c there's high interest in him now because hes one of those better names available. I don't even think he's worth 4. I think 3-3.5 is more than enough for what he brings to the table and what he doesn't bring to the table. 

 

We have enough bad contracts on this team as it is.

okok i agree with this .. Sucks that the market is so sh!tty right now
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I dont see Zubrus taking a pay cut. I see him able to get the same he gets now, if not a little more. He's been fairly consistent for us (which is 30-40 points) and his intangibles are valuable. Im more concerned with the years for him since he'll be 35 when he signs his next deal. 

 

Zubrus is 35, spent most of the year hurt, he's definitely a winger and not a center, and the only reason his cap hit was so 'low' on his previous deal was because he signed a super long contract.  2.5M per maximum.  He's on the decline and won't be playing over 15 minutes a game soon.

 

People seem to think there's tons of money out there in free agency - there isn't.  For people like Elias and Gonchar there is.  For players like Zubrus, there isn't.

Edited by Triumph
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If Clarkson leaves, I'd like to take a run at Bickell or Horton.  All 3 of them are likely to be overpaid, but in the end they are all versatile players that can contribute offensively.   Replacing Clarkson with 1 of these 2 players would lessen the sting a little bit, although I think both Chicago and Boston will make strong pushes to retain them.

 

Unfortunately there's going to be a lot of competition for those two.  When that's the landscape, 99 percent of the time, the Devils don't even bother.

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I dont understad honestly why alot of people are down on clarkson or always have something to say about his performance the second half of this past shortened season.. Seems like everyone forgets that it wasnt just clarkson going threw a dry spell it was the entire team could not figure out how to score a goddamn goal. Clarkson does the job he signed up for.. Third line player. Sorry when he was forced to play a top 6 role he didnt hold up to it.. Maybe thats because thats not his role on this team obviously. People need to realize that before they start talking sh!t about the guy.

People do realize that. But why spend 5 million bucks on a 3rd liner?

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People do realize that. But why spend 5 million bucks on a 3rd liner?

I agree...kind of. We call him a 3rd liner. But the coach calls him a 2nd liner. Which is obvious since he spent the entire season on 2nd line (although mostly due to lack of RW depth(If kovy was LW, Clarkson would be 1RW)) and some of last season why the A Line v2 wasn't clicking. And 5mil for a 2nd liner is normal. That being said, I wouldn't want to sign him for 5 mil.

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You're looking at it entirely wrong. Personally, I'm perfectly fine with Clarkson staying, my issue, and a lot of other fan's issues has nothing to do with him or his performance. Its ALL $$$$. He is going to get overpaid. The market is weak and he's one of the more talented guys on this market.  There is nothing in recent UFA history around the league that says he's going to get paid what he's worth. He's going to get more. You said yourself that you dont want to see $5M invested in him for a # of years, and that's probably what he's going to get b/c there's high interest in him now because hes one of those better names available. I don't even think he's worth 4. I think 3-3.5 is more than enough for what he brings to the table and what he doesn't bring to the table. 

 

We have enough bad contracts on this team as it is. 

 

This would be great news if the Devils had a player who could remotely replace him, but they don't right now, and they don't have one in their system either.  There's a limit to how much should be spent and how many years given, but the Devils can't just let him walk and replace him internally like they did with Brian Gionta.

Edited by Triumph
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Unfortunately there's going to be a lot of competition for those two.  When that's the landscape, 99 percent of the time, the Devils don't even bother.

 

I agree with you.  I can see Detroit and a large number of teams making a strong push for Bickell this offseason.  He has had such a strong playoffs, and is versatile enough to play almost anywhere in your top 9, as well PP minutes, that he is bound ot get a huge raise likely pricing him out of our range.  The question becomes, is he a one year wonder that got luck and heated up at the perfect time (i.e. Capt. Sally), or is he just coming into his own and we've only begun to see what he can do?

 

Horton is a little more interesting.  He makes a lot of money now and has a lot of talent.  He is a playoff performer and can play top 6 minutes, PP, etc.  However, his concussion and injury history has to be concerning to teams, and it might scare a few off.  Big risk/reward, but he might be worth taking a run at.

 

Clarkson seems like the safest bet at this point.  You know what you're going to get from him, his strengths (forecheck/cycle down low) and liabilities (skating over a blueline).  The fact that these 3 guys are the talk of this FA class to a large extent shows just how weak this season's class actually is. 

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This would be great news if the Devils had a player who could remotely replace him, but they don't right now, and they don't have one in their system either.  There's a limit to how much should be spent and how many years given, but the Devils can't just let him walk and replace him internally like they did with Brian Gionta.

 

I don't disagree with this, but I find it hard to believe we're going to get into a bidding war for him. It's one thing if we're talking Parise and Niedermayer who were guys worth waiting for and ostensibly overpaying for. I think we're going to let Clarkson walk b/c of what he wants and what another team will offer him. I dont think for a second we have a chance to sign him for less than 4.

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signing clarkson for less then 4 is most definently not going to happen.. he's going to get paid way more then 4 thats for sure. If he stays with us i see him getting a minimum of 4.5 to a max of 5m.. if he goes else where i would imagine him getting 5-5.5m

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This would be great news if the Devils had a player who could remotely replace him, but they don't right now, and they don't have one in their system either. There's a limit to how much should be spent and how many years given, but the Devils can't just let him walk and replace him internally like they did with Brian Gionta.

You don't think Matteau can do more or less what Clarkson does, at least in a year or two?

Don't get me wrong, it would be good to have both, but I don't think losing Clarkson would be the end of the world.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

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Bickel is Leino 2.0. PASS!

Agreed. He's getting overpaid, forget it.

Joel Ward had a real good playoffs too once. He actually had an ok year this year, but managed only 18 points in 2011-2012 after putting up 13 over 12 games in the playoffs the year before.

Edited by ATLL765
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You don't think Matteau can do more or less what Clarkson does, at least in a year or two? Don't get me wrong, it would be good to have both, but I don't think losing Clarkson would be the end of the world. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

I'd be surprised if Matteau ever scored 30 goals in a season or ever averaged as many shots/game as David Clarkson did this year (or even close to it - I'd be over the moon if Matteau ever got to 3 shots/game).  And while Clarkson's shots aren't always the greatest, he was 4th in the NHL in shots on goal this year - that's pretty good.

 

Obviously losing Clarkson isn't the end of the world, but as I've pointed out when we did a different version of this thread in April, Clarkson's shot rate is the only one on NJ that was substantially above average.  Already the Devils as a team don't generate that many shots - it's going to be more difficult to replace his minutes than you might think.

Edited by Triumph
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I'd be surprised if Matteau ever scored 30 goals in a season or ever averaged as many shots/game as David Clarkson did this year (or even close to it - I'd be over the moon if Matteau ever got to 3 shots/game). And while Clarkson's shots aren't always the greatest, he was 4th in the NHL in shots on goal this year - that's pretty good.

Obviously losing Clarkson isn't the end of the world, but as I've pointed out when we did a different version of this thread in April, Clarkson's shot rate is the only one on NJ that was substantially above average. Already the Devils as a team don't generate that many shots - it's going to be more difficult to replace his minutes than you might think.

I'd be surprised if Clarkson ever scored 30 goals in a season again.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

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