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Hate when that happens. Since you took the time to write all of that out i will make a comment on the contract figures. One figure stuck out to me and it was the 7 million JVR is getting. A healthy Simmonds is a better all around player than JVR and quite possibly a better offensive player than JVR. So my question is why did you go to all this trouble to make a case that Simmonds will be preventing us from keeping Frost, Ratcliffe, O'Brien, and Farabee and not make a case that JVR would be preventing us from keeping them.
Mostly timing honestly. JvR's contract was up sooner. The opportunity to have his contract start was a year sooner. And they signed JvR to a 5 year deal. So the equivalent, in terms of risk to keeping the prospects, Simmonds contract would be a 4 year deal.
I'm also not ready to say Simmonds is better than JvR overall. I think Simmonds is more responsible defensively, but JvR IMO is the better offensive player. Especially at 5 on 5. Simmonds' best 5 on 5 goal output was 19 goals, 3 seasons ago. JvR had 25 last year and 23 the year before, compared to Simmonds' 13 and 12. If you go to advanced stats the gap widens even further, JvR has been a play driving machine at 5 on 5 the past 3 seasons, even relative to his teammates. Simmonds is barely even from a play driving perspective. I'd probably give the PP edge to Simmonds, he's phenomenal there. But through no fault of his own, that's not as important. If there's anything the Flyers PP has proven over the past 4-5 years, it's that Giroux, Voracek, and Ghost will probably make anyone productive on the PP. Particularly Giroux. Hartnell, Schenn, Couturier, Simmonds, Patrick, it doesn't seem to matter. Simmonds obviously has the grit and leadership edge, but I'm also more concerned about Simmonds' decline than JvR's because of the way they play. Plus Simmonds will be 31 when his next contract starts, JvR will only be 29 when his starts.
It's certainly a worthwhile argument though, and one I would think Hextall and Co. had. Signing JvR makes the Simmonds contract much more delicate.