Mason McTavish’s name is out there, and a change of scenery might do him well
The Chris Johnston Show: Johnston and Julian McKenzie talk about Anaheim Ducks Mason McTavish having his name in the rumor mill. A change of scenary might do him well. There are concerns about McTavish, and the prices are high, but he’s still only 23 and under contract for a while.
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Johnston: “Mason McTavish, so I mean, look, this season did not go the way he or the Ducks wanted. He signed an extension, missed part of training camp, got pretty big money, and then he got a decline in offense and a decline in time on ice, and was a healthy scratch a little bit during the season, a couple times during the playoffs.
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And certainly his name is out there, and you know, fresh start might do him well. You have to keep in mind with Anaheim, like they have to sign Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier’s getting up there. I mean, Anaheim has been this young team, and they’re still a young team in age, but some of their players are moving into being primetime guys and going to command paychecks, and so they have to also manage the cap situation.
And you know, I think he’s an interesting name, because he’s so young, not that far removed from being the third overall pick. Although now you’re now, you’re not judging him on a third overall pick, you’re judging him on what he’s been as a pro.
You know, think some of the concerns or issues in Anaheim with him were maybe a little bit of concern about his skating ability and speed, or lack thereof. You know, not always the most aware on the ice, but you know, certainly teams are, you know.
He was, they was out there a little bit, the trade deadline, I’d say, I don’t know if anything got close, close, but there was, he was definitely part of discussions then. And I think that there’s a little, I’d say a heightened level discussion about, you know, where he’s at now, and there’s, you know, you got some teams looking at whether that makes sense for them.”
McKenzie: “I know there are people in Ottawa, even back to last year, who were very intrigued about having a local kid come home. So, I know with his name out there, that’s that’s one city for sure.”
Johnston: “I’m embarrassed to say, I didn’t know he was an Ottawa guy.”
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McKenzie: “Yeah, I believe, if I, if memory serves, I believe when he was going through his contract tiffy with Anaheim, he went back to Ottawa to skate.”
Johnston: “Right.”
McKenzie: “That’s what I remember from, from last off season.”
Johnston “Right. I mean, we’ll see. It’s not going to be.. I probably like.. I could probably say this for everyone you’re going to ask for on this board, but like, the prices are high, right?”
McKenzie: “They’re going up.”
Johnston: “And the prices are high for a reason, though. There’s not a lot of players available other ways this offseason, right? And you know, we know there’s a few notable UFAs. I think there’s a ton of depth UFAs. Don’t get me wrong, I put out a list of 75 this week, so there are players to sign.
But if you’re looking for more impactful additions to your team, there’s only so many ways to get them, and trade is really the root this summer. And I think if you hold a player that has some appeal, naturally you’re you’re trying to create a bidding war. You’re trying to to auction, get the auction going here and get the most you can.
And I think it’s doubly soaked, because the benefit of Mctavish would be he signed, right? And it’s sort of like if we talk about Matthew Knies, which I assume we will at some point here, you know, Knies, the benefit I would argue is that it’s cost certainty for whoever gets him.
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And you’re buying his best years, like he signed through his 20s, so the, you know, you’re buying upside effectively. And so even though he’s coming off not his best year, certainly, as an NHL player, but you know, I think it was a challenging year in a lot of ways for McTavish personally. You’re still buying a pretty prime asset at the end of the day. It’s maybe a small amount of distress there, but come on, I think …”
McKenzie: “Early 20s.”
Johnston: “Reasonably, you’d bet that his age 24 or 25 seasons going to be better, no matter where it’s played. And if for some reason he doesn’t end up getting moved at all, it won’t surprise me at all if he has a good season at Anaheim, because at a certain point they’re going to need him.
But you know, right now they’re they’re certainly listening on him, and because there’s so few centers available as well, I think teams are, you know, doubly curious about where the fit might be with him.”
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