Tuesday, January 13, 2009
New BanginPanger Feature: Rumors are Just That
[Today marks the next in the weekly feature set of articles here at BP. On Tuesdays we will take a look at some of the more prominent trade rumors of the week, brought you to by this Goat, or whomever else spreads such asinine gibberish. Using a little bit of common sense goes a long way when talking about trade rumors.]
Partners:
Partners:
Ottawa Senators & Columbus Blue Jackets
Players:
Jason Spezza, Anton Volchenkov for Rick Nash, Pascal LeClaire
Likelihood: Uh, none.
Why This Won't Happen: Besides the obvious that Rick Nash is now on IR, for the first time in franchise history, Columbus finds themselves in the thick of playoff contention this late in the season. Led obviously by the stellar play of rookie netminder Steve Mason, they however cannot simply swap Nash for Spezza. Nash is a pure goalscorer, Spezza is a pass-first, shoot second playmaker. With Brassard out, the Blue Jackets simply don't have the firepower (Huselius? R.J. Umberger?) to keep up with the big guns out West. This trade all but benefits the Senators in their rebuilding process. Shoring up the goaltending and gaining another threat along Heatley. Losing Volchenkov would hurt to an extent, but you can teach shot blocking, you can't teach goal scoring. If I'm Columbus, this is not the way I'm looking to build for a stretch run.
Partners:
Players:
Ryan Kesler for Drew Stafford
Ryan Kesler for Drew Stafford
Likelihood: Can't see it without picks & prospects as well.
Canucks Rationale: The Sabres and Canucks are go-to trading partners (Noronen, Geoff Sanderson, Bernier, Taylor Pyatt, Mogilny, etc.). But that's erroneous. Here we have 2 completely different players; Kesler, a 3rd line shutdown center and Stafford, a budding 1st line winger. Why would they do this? Well it's no surprise the 'Nucks would be searching for more scoring, they always are. Another set of good hands with the Sedins or with Sundin would definitely bolster their chances and make for a handy stretch run. Stafford shows signs of brilliance but also sometimes shows a lack of commitment to backchecking, a hard forecheck, and battling at the sidewall. However he would bolster their 19th ranked PP and could gain a spot on the PK as well. He'd also be a go-to top 3 shootout participant.
Sabres Rationale: Kesler on the other hand would hand Buffalo a true checking center to finally replace Drury. Hecht has been filling that role but is a true LW. He's limited in his abilities at center, especially in the faceoff circle. Kesler would bolster a PK already in the top 3, and would be of minimal aid to the PP.
Why This Won't Happen: I think both teams in the end would fear that giving up these two guys would more hurt their teams in the long run than help. Given that Stafford, at 23, has nearly a double point per game average than Kesler, at 24, doesn't really mean anything due to their different roles. I think Darcy Regier would need to sweeten the pot a bit to make this happen.
Partners:
Players:
Manny Fernandez & ???
Likelihood: Very
Bruins Rationale: The Bruins have lost both Marco Sturm and Patrice Bergeron to season ending injuries, a blow to their offensive output. Just yesterday they had to put leading goal scorer Phil Kessel onto IR due to Mono. Now they have a dearth of scoring, relying mightily heavy on Krecji, Lucic (who's currently day to day), Savard, Wheeler, and Ryder to pick up their slack. However what the Bruins lack in offensive firepower (relatively) they make up for with tremendous defense and 2 quality goaltenders. Tim Thomas surely won't be going anywhere, nor would Chara, Wideman, or Hunwick. So Manny may get offered to someone like the Blues for Tkachuk, Phoenix for Doan (silly, but apparently he's being shopped), Ottawa, Islanders, Thrashers, etc. in the coming weeks.
Why It Won't Happen: As much as a commodity as 2 quality goaltenders is, do the Bruin's really need to make a deal for more scoring? If Tim Thomas were to fall, or falter, would they feel confident in a stretch run with Tuuka Rask? They may hold on to him for just this reason.
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