IMO we need a big, physical, crease clearing shutdown dman more then we need an offensive dman now. I think McDonagh has grown in that role, and will continue to grow in that role as we move forward. And I think we badly lack a physical presence on D. Maybe that can be Mcllrath at some point, but to me it is a clear need for us looking forward.
You are both right on Stralman I think. He is what he is. As a 3rd pair dman he is okay. But he is also limited physically. Just the way it is.
On Girardi, you way undervalue what he does sc. The minutes he plays. The role he plays here. That all cannot be undervalued. Those cannot be made up easily. I am not saying we shouldn't deal him IF we get a big time offer for him, but he will not be easily replaced. He would be a big loss for us, and someone we would need to replace for next season. Guy plays over 20 mpg on the 1st pair. That is huge.
The D will be re-made for next season I believe. I think that will actually be the bigger focus this summer. Upfront I think some kids could fill the lower lines. You sign 2 or 3 guys, a C to replace Richards, and another solid scoring winger, and maybe try and add a vet like an Ott to win draws. And you have Stepan, Kreider, Nash, MZA, Cally, Hags as a base.
On D we could have bigger holes to fill. McD gets a spot. Moore will get a spot (hopefully he improves and can play on the 2nd pair). After that we have a lot of question marks.
Girardi back? Staal back? Stralman back? Any kids ready? MDZ dealt this season? Who is the big physical crease clearer?
The D has a lot of questions on it IMO. Upfront I think we see what we need, and can add those guys. Plus we have a few solid players already, and some kids who can fill out 2 or 3 spots on the bottom 6. On D we need a re-make. We will have 2 or 3 open spots at least I believe, and we'll see who fills them.