Isn’t it amazing that a player who puts up nearly a point per game and is one of the fastest skaters in the league cannot garner a top 5 draft pick? The expectations that the top picks will become a Gretzky or Lemieux are about nil! Sure a team like San Jose can be the best all-rookie team, but if you want to win now, you actually have to have some good veterans to go along with the youngsters.

If you have to take a player of that caliber out of his element just to make room for him, then it’s not the right team. Toews isn’t a wing. If the Avalanche sign Toews and keep Coyle, it’ll be Coyle playing on the wing, not Toews. Toews’ game thrives down the middle. Shifting him to the wing isn’t a tactical move, it’s a waste of what makes him elite.

Signing Toews to stick him on the wing is basically admitting he can’t drive play anymore and if that’s the case, what’s the point? A $1M veteran just to pump tires in the locker room? Sure. But let’s not pretend Toews would be fine fading quietly into a depth role. That’s not who he is.

Winnipeg appears to be in the running for Toews. And Winnipeg is looking for a center. Do you really think Toews would choose to sign with a team that has no room at center? How many ELITE centers do you know who ended their careers playing on the wing? You’ll have a hard time naming any. 

I don’t know if Necas nets a top 5 pick. But I would like him gone prior to the start of free agency. So they can utilize that 6.5 in free agency.

I said when the trade went down the move made no sense. Pay Mikko 12 – 13. Or pay this fraud 9 – 10? So many around here said he wouldn’t command or expect that much. Well…here we are.

The Avs may not be able to do it or may want to go a different route, but they should consider trading Necas for a top 5 draft pick and then use the money to get someone like Marchand.

Marchand would be perfect. Call me cray but I’d rather have him than Necas next year in the top 6. Even if he is 37 & might only have 1 – 2 good years left.

If the Avs give Necas an extension especially in the 9 – 10 per year range, that will be a huge mistake.

I fail to see why he can’t be effective on the wing. He’s always been an extremely intelligent player. He’ll adapt.

I also don’t get comparing his potential effectiveness to LOC. They are completely different types of players. Plus LOC is more effective as a 4th liner.

You also don’t know what you’re getting from him coming off a second hip procedure in the last 18 months. He might struggle or take awhile to get back to where he was. When you’re dealing with hip & back stuff. You’re getting into murky territory.

Ok…lol. I think you’re greatly overstating how important it is he be at center. It’s not that big of a deal. Father time is undefeated. Center requires a lot more from him especially on the defensive end.

He can still take draws if they so choose. And he can play center in a pinch. But if they have Mack, Nelson & Coyle still. There’s no need for him to play there 100% all the time.

Toews is a center through and through. It’s in his DNA, shifting him to the wing would be like asking a maestro to play triangle. That’s not where his instincts, rhythm, or legacy live. If he can’t contribute at center anymore, it’s not about finding him a consolation role, it’s about recognizing that his effectiveness lies at the heart of the ice.

Toews has excelled at center his entire career. If he’s no longer good enough to play that position, he certainly won’t be any better on the wing. LOC just to name one would be far more effective than Toews on the wing. And let’s not forget, not long ago many considered LOC nothing more than an AHL player.