Case in point, Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams did nothing but inquire about an asking price for Timo Meier in January.
Yesterday, I outlined three forwards the Buffalo Sabres could realistically trade for, and Timo Meier wasn’t among them. One reason is that general manager Kevyn Adams has next to zero interest in Meier, and he was doing nothing more than a routine check to get an idea of what potential compensation would be in a possible trade.
This is the type of inquiry most general managers make when a player is rumored to be on the trading block, but rarely does it mean they have interest in the player. I know many in the Sabres faithful would love a trade for Meier, but as I’ve even said in the recent past, trading for the Sharks forward makes no sense.
The Sabres are the league’s youngest team and on the outside, looking in for a playoff berth at the All-Star break. That hasn’t happened in a while, and it means the current group is building chemistry. So why disrupt that budding chemistry by trading players, prospects, and draft compensation for a player whose presence could disrupt that chemistry?
Look for Timo Meier to land with someone not named the Buffalo Sabres
So if I were to make a prediction, where do I think Meier would end up? Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise me if he landed with a team in the Eastern Conference battling it out in the top three in each respective division.
That leaves the following organizations:
- Boston Bruins
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- Tampa Bay Lightning
- Carolina Hurricanes
- New Jersey Devils
- New York Rangers
I could also see a couple of teams out west vying for his services. Namely the:
- Dallas Stars
- Winnipeg Jets
- Minnesota Wild
- Colorado Avalanche
Not all the teams above would have the current cap space to land Meier. But if they want a player they feel will help them hoist a Stanley Cup bad enough, they will find a way to make it happen. Meier will go to an older, more experienced team in contention, and one that isn’t in a building phase as the Sabres are.
Once the Sabres reach the level of the teams mentioned above, and they will, expect them to pull off a trade for a Meier-like player. Until then, any so-called interest in landing a star player is nothing more than a smokescreen.
Article Source: NHL Rumors: Blues, Golden Knights, Blackhawks, Oilers, Sabres by Jim Parsons
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