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Honestly, I've been happy with MacLellan

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zerofox:
I know some people here may not like GMBM, but I've been quite pleased with his work thus far. I feel like he's done a much better job at addressing holes in our roster. Even if we had not won the Cup, I still would have giving GMBM props for some of the moves he's made.


1) Signing Niskanen and Orpik - Yes these were deals with too much term and too much salary (especially for Orpik), but you can't deny that one glaring hole we had when McPhee left was on defense. MacLellan instantly snagged up two veteran defensemen in the FA market to help bolster our defense.


2) Trading for TJ Oshie - Great trade in my opinion. We got rid of a mediocre bottom 6 player (Brouwer) who was being used in a top 6 fashion, and exchanged him for a legit top 6 winger, which was another hole we needed to fill.


3) Signing Justin Williams - Sure we didn't win the Cup with Williams on our team, but he still provided us with a solid top 6 forward and solid veteran presence. He put in a few good years for us, and IMO this is a good move regardless of whether or not you win the Cup with him.


4) Dumping Brooks Laich - This contract was killing us. We had to give up Connor Carrick and a decent draft pick for it, but dumping this anchor of a contract was another big boost for us.


5) Trading for Lars Eller - We only lost a couple of 2nd round picks for up, but he was a pretty decent pick up. He's provided our 3rd line with a solid C, and he's also shown recently that he can step up on occasion as well.


6) Trading for Kevin Shattenkirk - I know, we didn't win the Cup despite this "win now" trade. But I still do give GMBM props for having the balls to pull this off. We had an already dominant regular season team and we tried to go over the hump with a blockbuster move. I would honestly make a trade like this 9/10 times.


7) Trading for Michal Kempny - He may not be the best defenseman, but he helped solidify our defense when we were struggling with a bunch of youngsters. He also performed well enough where I hope he's back next season.


8) Dumping Brooks Orpik - I was totally on board with this signing way back. Even though the term and dollars were too much, I felt like we absolutely needed the veteran defensive presence. However, Brooks Orpik at age 33-35 or whatever is different from Brooks Orpik at age 36-37+. I'm glad we were able to clear this cap hit away




At the end of the day, no one can deny that we won a Cup with MacLellan, that he's addressed glaring holes more aggressively than McPhee (for instance, McPhee was willing to let Brooks fucking Laich be our 2C for YEARS, whereas MacLellan shored up our defense big time as his first move as GM), and he's also made another moves that have truly bolstered our roster and given us that "win now" opportunity. I never felt like that with McPhee. I always felt like McPhee would look for middle of the road players for cheap, and they rarely panned out. I'm happy to have BMac on our side.

4 Caps:
Zerofox, I agree completely with your assessment of MacLellan.  I think he has done a terrific job and should be given a lot of the credit for the team winning the Cup.  He sees the holes that need to be filled and goes out and gets the players needed to fill them.  He has had to make some difficult decisions but isn’t afraid to make them.  I have complete trust in BMac, he has a great background.  He played 10 years in the NHL and won a Stanley Cup with Calgary.  After his career ended he went into the business world but then his good friend George McPhee got him back into hockey and he became a scout for the Capitals and he eventually became the Assistant General Manager and now General Manager.  He has come up through the ranks and I think his experience really helps him unlike some of these young whippersnappers who think they know everything based on analytics.  The Pheonix GM is not even 30 years old. 

KitFisto:
I've been happy too. Some still praise McPhail while he did squat to put this team over the top in 16 years. BM built a squad that won a cup in 4 years and people think he sucks. Go figure....Sure, some of McPhee's core pieces are still here, but he couldn't get the right mix. BM did it.

BlackIce:

--- Quote from: KitFisto on Saturday June 23, 2018, 10:48:00 AM Eastern ---I've been happy too. Some still praise McPhail while he did squat to put this team over the top in 16 years. BM built a squad that won a cup in 4 years and people think he sucks. Go figure....Sure, some of McPhee's core pieces are still here, but he couldn't get the right mix. BM did it.

--- End quote ---




Well, those of you happy with GMBM, good for you.  And those who aren't, you'd better learn to live with it.  Because if GMGM lasted 15 years with this organization, how long do you think MacLellan will last, now that he's won a Cup?  Not to mention, I think he handles the media extremely well, and they like him because he gives real information.  That has cascading effects on MacLellan's shelf life, because the media will portray him positively as a result, the fan base as a whole will be satisfied if the storylines about the team are positive, and if fans are happy they tend to spend money, which makes Ted Leonsis VERY happy.

waynerivers:
All I know is that Grubauer AND Orpik for a 2nd round pick sucks.  Grubauer for a 2nd rounder would suck.  Orpik led the entire league in the playoffs with a +17 in 20 games and brought a real physical presence.  As of now, they have none on the backline.  This is hardly an auspicious start to the post season whether they sign Carlson or not.  They better have some plans for adding a physical defenseman.

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