David Perron is really a smart pickup for the Dallas Stars. Incredible defensive metrics last season. No way he should have been unsigned for so long. #TexasHockey

The Leafs definitely shouldn’t expect much from Aatu Raty. Might be a good Marlie but that’s about it at this point. #Leafs

Debrincat is definitely worth his $13 million extension. Reliable elite 40 goal guy over the last two seasons and has had a great start so far. Good business by Detroit. #LGRW

Truly horrible for Shesterkin to miss the entire season. Thought the Rangers had a really good chance to make the playoffs, yet subtracting a guy like this is just so costly. Maybe they can rally around this, but this is probably too brutal of a loss. Terrible for Igor. #NYR

A 2nd round pick is definitely way too much to pay to get Jayden Struble. 3rd pair guy around replacement-level. Not sure why Nashville is so high on him. #Preds #GoHabsGo

Very surprised a team didn’t pick up Bunting sooner. Has had success playing on all 4 lines and passes well. $1.2 million is a good deal for Philly. #LetsGoFlyers

Connor Zary is coming off of a replacement-level season, but is still worth a claim for a rebuilding team. Nothing to lose here except money if he doesn’t progress. Bizarre to see Calgary give up on a 25 year old instead of trying to build his value. #Flames

Here is the model’s final standings projection based on Player WAR. Last year it did quite well at 11.01 points error on average so I didn’t tweak it much. Atlantic is a toss-up if we’re being real. Central is top-heavy. IMO the model overrates SEA and underrates NYI the most.

Matthew Knies vs Kirill Marchenko. No doubt Marchenko is the better player right now. Knies has been surrounded by better talent and has put up worse results. Neither are good defensively. Leafs get a direct upgrade up front, Columbus gets younger and cheaper. #Leafs #CBJ

Nick Blankenburg seems like a good bet for the Leafs and probably deserves the minutes they were otherwise going to give Stecher. Seems to provide more value in every aspect 5v5. #LeafsForever

It’s no secret that Fantilli isn’t worth $13.75 million yet, but Columbus seemed to really have no choice here. Going to need improvement all-around for him to be worth this bag. #CBJ

I’m surprised Dallas coughed up the money for Sam Steel. Great defensive player but I’m not sure they have the cap space to be handing out $3.7 million to guys like this. They really gotta find some guys on ELCs #TexasHockey

The Jets need to be smart and sit Hellebuyck for as long as it takes to get a decent return. What do you lose by waiting? The offers already stink. Might as well wait for a team to falter and make a desperation move for a goalie. Let this whiner sit at home. #GoJetsGo

Cutter Gauthier gets $13.5 million from the desperate Ducks. He seems to be an elite sniper but needs to repeat this season to be worth the deal. The Ducks are already in trouble, but if Gauthier’s 40 goals are a slight outlier they are absolutely doomed. #FlyTogether

$6.6 million is a decent bet on Noah Ostlund, but he needs to develop his offensive game more. Even just his 11 goals came out to about double of his expected goals. Really not good on the PP either. Seems solid defensively at least. #SabreHood

The Mark Stone contract is an absolute steal. This guy is still absolutely elite and one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL. Not many guys can play all situations as well as this. #VegasBorn

Chris Kreider’s contract will be terminated by the Ducks. Dany Briere really has done a number on the Ducks for no cost at all. Kreider is not what he used to be, but someone should really pick him up for the PP and tips in front. #FlyTogether

Fraser Minten is a good third-liner, but nowhere near worth $7.2 million per season yet. Need to see some real improvement as he gets more responsibility. Special teams really need work. #NHLBruins

Luke Evangelista has some really, really good upside IMO. Exactly the type of player to be targeted by Sunny Mehta. Really like this pickup for New Jersey. Better hope he spent the summer ripping pucks tho. #NJDevils

Tolvanen to the Rangers. His offensive metrics have absolutely tanked in recent years as he’s turned into more of a checking forward, rather than the sniper he was touted as. The Rangers should have him focus on his offensive game to make use of his great shot. #NYR