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I was in the middle of typing up today’s blog when I came across this doozy of a tweet
The interview was on TSN 690 out of Montreal. The audio of Dreger’s interview is
here (8:25 mark).
Whaaaaaat?!
Is this a real thing?
First things first I would consider this speculation and not a rumor.
Should the Penguins be in on this if it is more than speculation?
I am inclined to say yes. Jordan carries a 6M cap hit and it is for 9 more seasons but he is only 25 years old.
The idea of trading for Kesler was because of the loss of Jordan Staal. Staal’s cap hit would be 1M more per season but it would come with incredible security given the term left on the deal. Kesler is going to demand more cash after the next two years.
I would think the cost to acquire Jordan Staal would be less than Kesler considering the Canes main motivation would be to shed salary.
If the plan is to replace Jordan Staal, why not replace him with Jordan Staal?
This could be one of the more interesting developments of the trade deadline if Dreger’s report is accurate?
What do you guys think:
****
Here was my original post for today:
The trade deadline is fast approaching and general managers are going to have to start narrowing down their wish list in order streamline their plan of attacks.
the Penguins are zeroing in on 3 players According to Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune.
The first should be no surprise, it is Ryan Kesler.
Here are my thoughts about that situation .
The 2nd player is Ales Hemsky,
I wrote about him as a trade option here the other day .
The 3rd player is a little off the radar. Rob Rossi listed Marek Zidlicky. Rossi has reported that the Penguins have sent “trusted” scout Don Waddell to New Jersey to watch the Devils more closely.
The potential need for a guy like Zidlicky has been created because of the injuries to Kris Letang and Paul Martin. He would be an insurance policy for Paul Martin if he has any setbacks.
Zidlicky is known more for his puck skills than his defending and is prone to the occasional gaffe with the puck.
He does quarterback the Devils #1 power play which is ranked 9th in the league at 20.6%.
The Devils are one of the better possession teams in the NHL, they rank 6th overall with a FF% (close) of 53.2%, is Zidlicky a driving force or is he a passenger in that regard?
Out of players who have played in half of New Jersey’s games this year (31) he ranks 15th out of 17 Devils with a FF% (close) of 50.4%. The good news is that he is on the positive side but it is clear that he is more of a passenger than a driver of possession on the Devils.
He can’t blame his usage by the coach for that either. He is given extremely favorable offensive zone time starts.
Andy Greene and Mark Fayne are carrying the heavy load while still maintaining good possession numbers.
Zidlicky’s GF% (close) is a pretty bad 46.0%. Surprisingly that ranks 6th out of 17 on the Devils.
With the declining play of Orpik and the uncertainty surrounding Despres and Bortuzzo Shero might have to go out and make a deal for a rental defenseman, something that was not originally in the cards for this season. Where would the Penguins be without Matt Niskanen who was supposed to be traded and the emergence of star rookie Olli Maatta?
Here is a breakdown of past Penguins trade line deals during the Shero era . It shows the players the Penguins gave away and what they have gone on to do in the NHL. Spoiler alert: not much.
Thanks for reading!
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