Wanna blog? Start your own hockey blog with My HockeyBuzz. Register for free today!
 

Duck A L'Orange

January 19, 2017, 7:34 PM ET [18 Comments]
GARTH'S CORNER
NHL news by Garth • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Thank you, Pierre LeBrun.

Thank you for confirming that which I have been writing about in this space and on Twitter (@SabresBuzz ) for the past three months.

NHL GMs are actively calling Anaheim Ducks GM Bob Murray to inquire about trading for his blue chip, can't-miss defensemen prospects Brandon Mountour, Shea Theodore, and Jacob Larsson.

"The system doesn't allow you to hoard this kind of talent forever", LeBrun said on the Thursday night edition of "Insider Trading".

There are several NHL teams who continue their desperate quest to trade for a top four defenseman. Most, if not all defensemen trade calls usually get directed to Bob Murray in SoCal.

Murray ain't budging. It's with peace and love that he continue to tell his eager, motivated NHL GM counterparts to keep dreaming if they want to try and pry one of his NHL D studs away from the Ducks.


I've been telling you since October that Hampus Lindolm, Sami Vatanen and Josh Manson are off limits. Ditto Kevin Bieksa.

In mid-October, Bob Murray extricated Cam Fowler from the NHL trade market. There were a couple of teams, namely Buffalo and Detroit, who thought they were close to completing a trade for Fowler last summer when Bob Murray was in salary cap trouble after signing then restricted free agents Hampus Lindholm and Rickard Rakell to new contracts. Sami Vatanen's new contract extension also impacts the 2016-17 salary cap.

It was a mortal lock in the first few weeks of the regular season that the Ducks would be forced to trade a big contract of two (see Fowler's $4M AAV) in order for Murray to create the slush necessary to re-sign his coveted restricted free agents Ricky Rakell, Sami Vatanen, and Hampus Lindholm. There was no way possible that Fowler could remain a Duck and Murray have enough salary cap space to finalize new long term contracts with Rakell, Vatanen, and Lindholm had there not been some special circumstances. Just when it seemed all hopes were dashed and it appeared that Bob Murray would have to trade away his best defenseman for prospects and picks (see Buffalo 8th overall) the hockey gods smiled upon Fowler and the Ducks when veterans Simon Despres and Nate Thompson were forced into long term injury status.

Bob Murray literally has been playing with house money all season long due to the LTIR savings of Despres and Thompson. Soem would call it manna from heaven. Others dumb luck. Despres has an LTIR salary figure of $3,376,667 and Thompson has a $1.6 million LTIR relief figure. Last I checked, neither Despres nor Thompson were close to returning to game action.

So, the Goodship Fowler ship set sail in October when Murray placed defenseman Despres and Thomspson on long term injured reserve. Murray has since been able to keep his NHL rioster intact and achieve salary cap compliance due to the LTIR relief from the contracts of Despres and forward Nate Thompson. Were it not for these two serious injurious, Fowler most likely would be a Buffalo Sabres star right now.

That's all ancient history now that the attention has shifted to AHL San Diego.

The Ducks are in such salary cap hell that Theodore has been called up and demoted back to AH: San Diego eight different times this season. It's penny pinching at it's bean counting finest. The math works for the chief financial officer of the Ducks and Bob Murray but it seemingly has taken a toll on Theodore. The kid is living out of the back of his luxury SUV. Hell, the state of Califirnia is going to rename the interstate between Anaheim and San Diego the "Shea Theodore Freeway".

San Diego is now the focal point of NHL teams looking to trade for a soon-to-be-star NHL defenseman. The Ducks have done a masterful job of feathering their organizational nest with three of the the best young defensemen prospects in North America in Montour, Theodore and Larsson.

The time has come to use one or two of his awesome young D assets to fund a trade for a spanking new scoring power forward for the Ducks.

Bob Murray may have no other choice than to trade Montour, Theodore or Larsson right now. It's the only way the Ducks will take possession of the top six scorer it so desperately covets.

One such power forward is Buffalo's Evander Kane, whom the Ducks have scouted several different times this season. Kane plays the heavy game with high tempo and serious truculence. He will be a 20 goal scorer again this season. Kane has scored 12 goals and 5 assists in his last 20 games. He's one of the hottest shooters in the NHL today. The Ducks want him. So do the Kings, Flyers, Canucks, and Sharks.

Like they had when they were scouting Jamie McGinn for a trade, the Ducks make routine visits to Buffalo this season. Their assistant general manager and director of player personnel have been visible to my eyes at many Sabres home games this season. Buffalo's west coast scout is a frequent flyer to Anaheim this season. Why? The Sabres s and Ducks will only play two games this season. The Sabres left coast scout was in attendance at Avalanche @ Ducks on Thursday night.


Bob Murray wants Evander Kane. Tim Murray wants Shea Theodore and Adam Larsson.


So, until such time that Despres or Thompson, or both are cleared for contact and are ready to play in games for the Ducks, Bob Murray is snug as a bug in a rug which means that he doesn't have to trade Fowler, nor any other player.

For now, that is.


The trade discussion continue to happen between Bob Murray and other NHL GMs like Tim Murray. These days, Fowler's name has been replaced in the discussions by those of Ducks blue chip D prospects Shea Theodore and Brandon Montour.


Bob Murray is still looking to add a two-way power center/forward.


The Ducks have been scouting Buffalo routinely for the past three months.

Evander Kane is still very appealing to Bob Murray. Trading for Kane would require Tim Murray to absorb a portion (50%) of the remainder of his $5.25M AAV for this season, which today is approximately $2.625 million. Kane has this and next year remaining on his Buffalo contract.


Tim Murray and Dan Bylsma are long overdue on adding an impact player to the NBuffalo blue line. Shea Theodore (26th overall 2013, 6'2" and 195 lb., Left D) or Brandon Montour (55th overall 2014, 6'0" and 195 lb., Right D) would answer that immediate need.

An then some.

Both man are big, strong, smart, skilled defenders who play the 200 foot game. Both join join the rush as the fourth man and have the speed to back track and pick up opposing forwards on the back check. Don't sleep on Jacob Larsson (6'2" and 190 lb., Left D), the 19 year old lefty who was the 27th overall pick in 2015. Larsson recently was loaned to Team Sweden's World Juniors team where he played with Buffalo prospects Alex Nylander and Rasmus Asplund.

The Ducks have a surplus of young defenseman. They cannot keep forcing the kids to stay in AHL San Diego and bide their time until the next injury hits the Ducks D corps. Theodore and Montour are NHL ready. They are plug and play defensemen who can eat 20+ minutes TOI in the NHL without batting an eye.

Theodore, 21, has scored one goal and seven assists with 18 PIMs in 23 games with the Ducks this season. The 6'1", 195 lb. defenseman has set NHL single-season career highs in several categories during the 2016-17 season, including assists, appearances and PIM. Selected by Anaheim in the first round (26th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft, Theodore has earned 4 goals and 11 assists with 20 PIM in 42 career NHL games. In 11 games with the Gulls this season, Theodore recorded 1 goals and 8 assists with a +5 rating.

Earlier this month, the American Hockey League named defenseman Brandon Montour to the 2017 AHL All-Star Classic. Montour will make his second career All-Star appearance following his All-Star debut last season in Syracuse, N.Y.

Montour, 22, has collected 11 goals and 15 assists points with 30 PIMs in 28 appearances with San Diego this season. The Brantford, Ontario native was recalled by the Anaheim Ducks on December 28 and made his NHL debut on December 29 at Calgary. Montour has made three appearances with Anaheim this season, going scoreless with a +1 rating.


Selected by Anaheim in the second round (55th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft, Montour has earned 20Gs, 68As and a +10 rating in 107 career AHL games with San Diego (2015 to present) and Norfolk (2014-15).


Soon, Theodore or Montour will be leaving the Anaheim nest.




**


Keep an eye on Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving. He has been actively searching for top nine forward who can add bite and skill to his forward ranks.

The Flames have been scouting the Buffalo Sabres this season.

Zemgus Girgensons had tremendous chemistry while playing with Johnny Gaudreau at USHL Dubuque Saints.




**
Join the Discussion: » 18 Comments » Post New Comment
More from GARTH'S CORNER
» Hailing Taxis
» He With The Gold Makes The Rules
» Sedentary Seven
» The Sedentary Seven
» GadZuccs