Wouldn't you rather save your picks and enter into a rebuild. You guys have some really good pieces to build around (Sorokin, Baral, Horvat), but why not sell assets to gain some really high picks or prospects and tank for 2 years and enter the league as a heavy hitter instead of an outside pick for the playoffs?

This is a team Gm'ed by Lou Lamoriello, not likely

I honestly agree with you for the most part but this roster is littered with long-term and NTCs so blowing it up would be incredibly difficult. You would likely only be able to sell guys with expiring contracts like Nelson, Palmieri, Dobson (should be a part of the core and not traded), and Romanov. Then with those guys gone you still have a 3/4ths of a completed roster that wouldn’t be bad enough to get high picks but wouldn’t be able to sneak into the playoffs. I think Lou is gonna ride out this group until the wheels fall right off or until he retires because this team has proven that they can make the playoffs, they just need to get hot at the right time like they did in 2020-21 and 2021-22.

Taking on Pageau and retaining is a no-go

Flames wouldn’t take that offer even if Kuzmenko were removed. Would cost just shy of two 1sts or the equivalent just to dump JGP $5mil Cap Hit x 2 seasons and he’d just plug a hole needed to develop our young guys

I see Kuzmenko either becoming a Flame long-term or being moved at the Trade Deadline for an absolute haul. He’s gonna have a repeat ~40 Goal/PPG contract season

He and Tocchet just didn’t gel in VAN, that’s all

I think Lou should sell high on Nelson and Palmieri, tank for Hagens (let me be delusional) than the next year Lee and Pageau have 1 yr left sell them, not give out big contracts besides Romanov and Dobson and see were we go from there

2 firsts to dump Pageau? Come on that's ridiculous. There's reports teams offered a first for him at the deadline. At most it would cost 1 second and would probably be less than that.

Flames paid a 1st to dump Sean Monahan. There’s a huge difference between Trades in the off-season vs. trades with retention at the deadline. I don’t believe anybody offered a 1st for JGP

And the Isles offloaded Josh Bailey (a guy who literally couldn't play hockey anymore) @$5M for a 2nd. Monahan coming off 2 awful seasons when he got traded. Granted an extra year for Pageau but the guy is still a solid hockey player just a bit overpaid. 2 firsts is crazy

I bet Calgary would take that in an instant. Maybe scrap the 2m retention, but seriously a 1st 2nd and 3rd for Kuzmenko and Pageau could be retained and traded next deadline.

Would essentially be Lindholm for 2 1sts, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, Brzustewicz and only taking 10.5 mill cap split over 2 years cap, plus a whatever return Pageau garners next year.

Remove Pageau and the rest of that package from the Isles might get Kuzmenko. Remove the retention and they probably do it.