Comments on: Another unthinkable trade: Devils unload Brian Rolston to Islanders for Trent Hunter

By: jaypot23

jaypot23 — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 16:02:50 +0000

This is a typical post from a blogger who blows something totally out of proportion. What is so “unthinkable” about this trade? Both players are third line players at best. Rolston adds a little leadership and helps out the Isles with the cap floor. Also, he doesn’t hurt the team long-term.

Hunter is an okay player when healthy, but certainly isn’t anything to write home about.

As an Isles fan I’d prefer not helping the Devils, but at this point it’s a non-issue.

Try again James O’Brien.

By: cshearing

cshearing — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 12:50:34 +0000

It does not have to take time away from developing players; that is up to the coach. Rolston could earn his $5M sitting in the press box, no?

With a salary cap, there needs to be a salary floor. You could argue over the exact numbers for each, but both need to be in place for the system to work.

By: donttouchthedirtypenny

donttouchthedirtypenny — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 23:01:14 +0000

I hate this salary floor BS. Yea it keeps cheap teams from being cheap but it also prevents rebuilding teams from keeping a low payroll while developing players and then paying more later to keep them. Just taking on an underperforming veteran to reach the floor, and thus taking playing time away from a developing player while spending bad money just to meet a minimum requirement makes me feel queasy. Of course the Isles are a mess anyway and have a long history of bad contracts, but mine is a comment in general. Isn’t the new NFL CBA puts the floor at something like 95% of the cap? That’s crazy. It just seems like it puts too much pressure on management, and prevents teams from making good salary and team decisions while building a team they like. What happens in a couple years when overpriced “salary floor” veterans need to be bought out in order to free up space for young guys? Then there’s dead money against the cap and no player. What am I missing here? It just doesn’t make sense.

By: davebrownspiral

davebrownspiral — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 22:53:30 +0000

Rolston’s contract is for one season, I don’t understand how this is a “hard pill for Islanders fans to swallow.” You don’t have to look hard to see why the Isles made this move. They need to hit the cap floor, so trading Hunter, who at this stage in his career is basically useless for a 3rd or 4th line winger who can instill some veteran leadership and is playing for perhaps what is a final contract grab is not that big of a deal for one season. In terms of production of Hunter and Rolston, it will be a wash.

By: sknut

sknut — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 19:54:32 +0000

Although this is leagl, it seems a bit foolish. Both Chicago and the Devils get bailed out by teams that need to spend money and they get rid of a huge mistake in the firstplace. It can’t make the Blackhawks and Devils competitors very happy that they get a free “Get out of salary cap hell card” expecially if NJ locks up Parise with this ‘newfound’ cap space thanks to the Islanders.