Darren Dreger on TSN 1050 radio this morning.
- On what Ryan O’Reilly could bring back in a trade:
“Yeah, what is it? That’s a good question. When you’re on the draft floor, it always seems to include a high pick, doesn’t it, or a collection of draft picks. There’s flexibility among teams to do that because it’s currency. You know, those picks are absolutely currency. There’s also risk when you’re drafting any player, there’s risk. There’s no absolute certainty that that player is going to develop into a very good NHL player and in Colorado’s case, they know what they have in Ryan O’Reilly. It’s a salary cap issue – Patrick Roy loves Ryan O’Reilly, absolutely does, but you know, he’s a high salary cap hit and that’s not going to change I believe going into his final season, or final year of his contract. So it’s going to get a lot more complicated for the Colorado Avalanche. I don’t think they’re looking to push him out the door but they’re facing reality here and reality is somebody is likely going to have to go and if they can maximize a level of return on Ryan O’Reilly, then the place to do that, or at least start the process is in Florida at the draft. There will be a list of teams for sure that are interested in Ryan O’Reilly, you know, because of how he plays on the ice – the character of this young man, all of those things so there are a lot of teams that have a lot of time for Ryan O’Reilly.”
- What will happen first – Stamkos contract or Leafs trade a major piece?
“We’re simply guessing. I want to say that it’s more likely that the Leafs trade a major part because we’re now days away from the draft and again I always view the draft as open season and it’s because we’ve experienced it year after year after year. There have been some pretty big and significant deals almost on an annual basis at the draft. In Stamkos, you know, he controls this process now and moving forward. I absolutely believe that Steven Stamkos wants to stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Why wouldn’t he? It’s a good team. Yzerman is going to keep it a very good team, a Stanley Cup contending team. But there is the business side of things that kicks in. I’m sure he’s looking at Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews and recognizing and appreciating that they’re further ahead than he is in terms of winning championships and all of that but it’s supply and demand and at $10.5, that’s the bottom, that’s the low end for Steven Stamkos, and it could drift into 12 plus I guess. I mean if you want to look at the franchise equation around the NHL. So probably, it will be the Leafs that will make a splash before the lightning are able to ink Stamkos long term but I’m not suggesting that there’s a chance that he leaves. I think that there’s a remote chance but I think this negotiation might be a bit more difficult than Lightning fans are hoping”
- On Martin St. Louis’ future:
“He wants to stay in that New York area so you talk about the Devils, the Islanders, the Rangers, the Philadelphia Flyers, maybe Washington I suppose. I think the best thing for Martin St Louis to do would be to follow his good friend Brad Richards. You know, Richards was a little bit different in that the Rangers bought him out but man he went through a methodical situation and scenario with the Chicago Blackhawks before he signed. He had a couple different conference calls with Stan Bowman and Joel Quenneville on the line, with both of those to make sure that everyone was on the same page with how Richards would be utilized by the Chicago Blackhawks, what his role would be, and all of that. And at the end of it, you know, he signed a $1-million contract and that was to reset his career to some degree, but he knew that Chicago would give him a great opportunity to win another Stanley Cup, and so he realized his goal in doing that. I don’t think he’s taking that kind of a discount to play in the National Hockey League next year. Maybe St. Louis has to do that. If he wants to continue to play, he’s going to have to take way, way, way less and when you do that as a veteran player who still has some game left, I think that you put yourself in a better position to pick and choose.”
Darren Dreger on TSN 1050 radio this morning.
Transcribed by Platinum Seat Ghosts from TSN 1050 Radio