UPDATE: DISCLAIMER: What you are about to read is not a serious trade proposal. It's a thought experiment wherein the Ducks could obtain an uneven deal for Bobby Ryan from a team that needs him, in this case the Flyers. Again, as it is exploring the sort of uneven deal that's possible, the deal suggested is UNEVEN. It's meant to encourage Ducks fans to consider uneven deals with teams that are overvaluing Ryan, deals beyond the Kaberle deal or offer sheet compensation, which are commonly discussed.
ARTHUR:
Call this your thought experiment for the weekend, but what can we get for an unsigned Bobby Ryan?
There was an interesting suggestion by reader Gizmoitus the other day that the Ducks and Flyers undertake a deal whose moving parts were Bobby Ryan and Jeff Carter. The Flyers have been rumored to be shopping their 2003 11th overall pick, both to clear cap space and shore up holes in net and wing. Meanwhile, the Ducks have had trouble seeing eye to eye with their young forward, and sending him home to Philadelphia-- and a Cap economy that can pay him at least what Carter was making --might be the answer.
Now, in a practical sense, there are many problems with a straight-up deal. Carter actually makes 500K more than his 5M cap hit on what is the last year of his contract next season. He will be an RFA at the end of that, but after making that Philly money, the Ducks might end up right back where they were with Ryan i.e. convincing a guy to live in a Getzlaf economy. For the Flyers, they're trying to move Gagne, but if they take anything in return, they'll still be in a position where they have to clear some cap space. And with Bobby unsigned, there's no guarantee they would accomplish that.
So, to continue this thought experiment, I'm going to suggest adding Matt Carle. That would seem to unbalance the scales in the Ducks favor, but they're also taking on a lot more salary than they can manage. And in that sense, the trade passed the laugh test for me. The Flyers just signed Meszaros and a low-cost option in O'Donnell, and clearing 8.5M minus Bobby's pending salary could go a long way to opening up some moves (even if only deadline moves) for a team that made the Finals (even if they only made the playoffs on the last play of the season). So while they'll definitely be losing something, it won't be any of the pieces they desperately needed and they'll have the option of adding something.
I've learned something from this brain teaser: Bobby is overvalued right now. That's not to say that he isn't worth a Carter and a Carle-- he may or may not be --but just generally to note that he's overvalued. The NHL at large doesn't watch our games, and Bobby is coming off of a statistically strong season and a solid performance for Team USA. While you or I might be able to point to flaws in his game, the rest of the league is over the moon about him. It's a pleasant secondary effect of East Coast Bias: we get no respect, but our stars sometimes get too much respect. If we play it right, we could be on the winning side of most any Bobby deal. So, Kaberle Schmaberle, what do you think you could get for Bobby Ryan?