[MOD]
If Landy does come back next year, can the Avs add another salary slot to Nukes, thus opening up $18M in cap space? If an unnamed player asking for $12M could return a young sniper++, the $13M in savings could get you Mitts (8 x $5.5M) Drouin (8 x $3.5) and LOC (3 x $2M Bridge?) plus about $2M to fatten the wallets for the bottom line and pair. Maybe Trenin is even affordable.
This Nuke situation brings back the understated part of this dialogue: An injury to just 1 key player can end cup hopes immediately. This is especially so if the player suddenly inactive is a star on a top-heavy team, with no bottom-sixers capable of stepping up. And Nuke is a $6.25M player. The damage is worse with a $12.5M player.
Mac - Mitts - Colton ( when LOC is back) - Trenin is not a bad spine with which to try a retool. Quite a few good wings are under contract as well. The Avs would really just need to find an effective, younger Burakovsky.
I have fought this thought for too long, but I think this Nuke thing closes this window. The retool shouldn't have to be a disaster; but numbers need to win, not emotions.