Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Trade Rumors and Thoughts
If you're a hockey fan like myself, you know that the NHL Trade Deadline is fast approaching. The deadline this year is March 4th, so there's just 8 days remaining. And with the struggles the Penguins have been having since December, it will be interesting to see what moves will be made to bolster this team and give them a legitimate chance at making the playoffs. Here are my thoughts on the situation:
The Penguins MUST get a top scoring winger to play with Sid, and management has stated that this need has to be addressed by the drop of the puck for the 2009-2010 season. It would be in Shero's best interest to address said need well before then because missing the playoffs has been deemed "not an option" by ownership. We need to find a winger that #1: wants to actually come here and play, and #2: would want to re-sign with the team once their contract expires. Rental players are NOT the answer here because if we have to keep addressing this need every season, we run the risk of losing some of our top key players, as well as depleting our farm system and giving up our draft picks, which would make it rather difficult for Shero to re-stock our farm system with quality prospects for the future. The Hossa trade of last season certainly helped the team during the season and the playoffs, but really hurt us in the offseason when Shero made Hossa his sole priority. Because of that, we lost key players like Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Jarkko Ruutu, and Ty Conklin. It's clear that the team is missing players like them right now and they shouldn't have been allowed to walk. Even Brooks Orpik was just about out the door until some of his teammates convinced him to stay. If we do get another "Hossa-type" player this year, Shero can't make the same mistake of last season and focus solely on retaining this player. He needs to work the phones and negotiate contracts for other pending UFA's while he's trying to work out a deal for the star player.
According to InsidePittsburghSports.com, the Penguins are exploring two options:
Option #1: Find a top scoring winger
Option#2: Gritty Forward, Top Four Defenseman
Some wingers they are interested in include Dany Heatley(OTT), Martin St. Louis(TB), Martin Erat(NSH), Keith Tkachuk(STL), Milan Hejduk(COL), Ryan Smyth(COL), Bill Guerin(NYI), and Chris Neil(OTT). Milan Hejduk, Bill Guerin, and Martin St. Louis have indicated that they won't waive their No Trade Clauses, and Guerin and St. Louis said they wouldn't accept a trade to Pittsburgh, at least while Michel Therrien was still their coach because of how he treated veteran players.
If possible, not to mention affordable, Shero should try and address all 3 needs by the deadline. This team needs help in several areas and Shero shouldn't have waited this long to try and make a move. Once again, had Shero been able to re-sign some of the players we lost to free agency, we wouldn't have to address some of these needs.
It's been said that Shero isn't the type to make a trade just to make the playoffs. Well, if he wants to keep his job and avoid being put on the hot seat, he's gonna have to make a trade to help the team make the playoffs. Plain and simple.
The Penguins MUST get a top scoring winger to play with Sid, and management has stated that this need has to be addressed by the drop of the puck for the 2009-2010 season. It would be in Shero's best interest to address said need well before then because missing the playoffs has been deemed "not an option" by ownership. We need to find a winger that #1: wants to actually come here and play, and #2: would want to re-sign with the team once their contract expires. Rental players are NOT the answer here because if we have to keep addressing this need every season, we run the risk of losing some of our top key players, as well as depleting our farm system and giving up our draft picks, which would make it rather difficult for Shero to re-stock our farm system with quality prospects for the future. The Hossa trade of last season certainly helped the team during the season and the playoffs, but really hurt us in the offseason when Shero made Hossa his sole priority. Because of that, we lost key players like Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Jarkko Ruutu, and Ty Conklin. It's clear that the team is missing players like them right now and they shouldn't have been allowed to walk. Even Brooks Orpik was just about out the door until some of his teammates convinced him to stay. If we do get another "Hossa-type" player this year, Shero can't make the same mistake of last season and focus solely on retaining this player. He needs to work the phones and negotiate contracts for other pending UFA's while he's trying to work out a deal for the star player.
According to InsidePittsburghSports.com, the Penguins are exploring two options:
Option #1: Find a top scoring winger
Option#2: Gritty Forward, Top Four Defenseman
Some wingers they are interested in include Dany Heatley(OTT), Martin St. Louis(TB), Martin Erat(NSH), Keith Tkachuk(STL), Milan Hejduk(COL), Ryan Smyth(COL), Bill Guerin(NYI), and Chris Neil(OTT). Milan Hejduk, Bill Guerin, and Martin St. Louis have indicated that they won't waive their No Trade Clauses, and Guerin and St. Louis said they wouldn't accept a trade to Pittsburgh, at least while Michel Therrien was still their coach because of how he treated veteran players.
If possible, not to mention affordable, Shero should try and address all 3 needs by the deadline. This team needs help in several areas and Shero shouldn't have waited this long to try and make a move. Once again, had Shero been able to re-sign some of the players we lost to free agency, we wouldn't have to address some of these needs.
It's been said that Shero isn't the type to make a trade just to make the playoffs. Well, if he wants to keep his job and avoid being put on the hot seat, he's gonna have to make a trade to help the team make the playoffs. Plain and simple.
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