Tampa Bay Lightning made a huge mistake trading for Blake Coleman
By Kyle Pereira
Why This Is A Bad Trade For The Lightning
First of all, Coleman has only recently begun generating offense at a respectable rate. He has never eclipsed the 50-point mark in his career. Not only that, but he needed injuries to top-six players on the Devils to even get an opportunity to get a spot on the Devils top-six.
Coleman is 28 years old, which tells me he is at the tip of the iceberg in terms of his production as he is right in the middle of his prime years. If he is able to hit the 50-point mark, it might be the only time in his career that he’ll do it.
For a guy with half-decent production and a solid PK resume, I don’t mind the addition. I actually like the idea of adding a guy like Coleman, because he plays a style that would find a ton of success in the playoffs. But Coleman also has term left on his deal, he’s not just a rental.
Sure, he takes up just $1.8 million of the total cap space, but the Tampa Bay Lightning have enough salary cap problems as it is. Not to mention that, but they also have three important upcoming restricted free agents – Mikhail Sergachev, Anthony Cirelli, and Erik Cernak.
I’ve done a lot of research already into how the Tampa Bay Lightning could possibly retain all three guys, but with how tight the Tampa Bay Lightning already are to the cap, and not to mention all of the players signed with no-trade clauses, it’s extremely difficult to see them all returning. Adding Coleman to the books all but guarantees at least one of those three players are likely leaving this off-season.
So let’s say Cirelli leaves. Add that to the fact that the Lightning gave up a conditional first-round pick, which is looking more like a 2020 selection as we near the end of the season, as well as a forward prospect in Nolan Foote who was the Lightning’s first-round choice in the last draft, and you have an absolutely ridiculous giveaway of assets.
First of all, any of those three guys leaving would absolutely hurt their roster. Not to mention, if the first-round pick is, in fact, a 2020 first-rounder, then they lose out in a draft that is stockpiled with incredible talent.
I was unhappy with the selection of Nolan Foote at first. He’s a big body with an incredible shot. However, he isn’t anything special, and he isn’t a great skater. It was obvious the Lightning reached when they selected him, as he was a projected mid-to-late second-round pick in 2019, and the Lightning grabbed him late in the first.
However, he has taken a big leap this season in his development, recording 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points in 26 games with the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL. He also added an additional three goals and five points in seven games with Team Canada in the U20 World Junior Championships, winning a gold medal.
In my eyes, he wasn’t going to go anywhere for at least a couple seasons, as he joined his brother in the Lightning organization and was Julien BriseBois first-ever pick as the Lightning GM.
The fact that the Lightning are giving up basically two first-round picks for a middle-six forward who can kill penalties and risking the loss of three major pieces of the roster this off-season is beyond me and, quite honestly, very confusing. All I have to say is the Lightning better not get swept in round one, again.