Welcome to the Hotstove! As always, I'm your host, Travis Yost.
It seemingly came out of nowhere, but TSN's Darren Dreger sort of dropped a bombshell during Insider Trading with respect to the Carolina Hurricanes. Dreger, who has iterated Cam Ward's availability in the past, has now expanded the trade rumors coming from Jim Rutherford's team to include both Eric Staal and Jeff Skinner, two of the bigger forward names in the National Hockey League.
Pro Hockey Talk touched on Dreger's point a bit in a
recent post:
You can watch the video segment here. Dreger says it’s “highly likely” that Ward will be traded, though one has to wonder what kind of market there will be for a goalie with a .893 save percentage this season, not to mention the $6.3 million cap hit through 2015-16 and all the injuries the 30-year-old has dealt with in the past few years. (That Conn Smythe Trophy he won in 2006 was a while ago now.)
Eric Staal and Jeff Skinner, if there are indeed in play, would garner interest. However, it sounds like the first order of business will be determining the future of president/general manager Jim Rutherford (who don’t forget also has a minority ownership stake in the franchise), after which the coaching and player decisions could be made, either by Rutherford or a new GM.
It's a fascinating dynamic, if true, and certainly signals the end of a potential era in the south. Carolina's struggled over the last few years, and this move certainly seems to be one of the "let's shake it all up" variety.
With respect to the three players, a few thoughts:
I share PHT's sentiment on Cam Ward. I'm just not sure how many teams are really going to fork over that kind of cash (and, presumably assets in any deal) to acquire nothing more than a league-average goaltender at this point.
Eric Staal and Jeff Skinner, though? Compelling, to say the least. I can't imagine the team will move both -- perhaps trade one for future assets, building around the other. Staal, you know, would command a massive return. He's under contract for two more seasons at a cap hit north of $8.2MM/yr, so if any trade occurs, it'll have to be one with plenty of space to absorb his contract.
Skinner might be the most intriguing, considering his $5.7MM/yr contract is long-term and, assuming he continues to produce, fairly friendly in a league where the cap is likely going to continue to expand. What's incredible is that Skinner, who has twenty-six goals in sixty games this year, is just twenty-one years old. There might be plenty of growth in that player to come.
So, Ward, Staal, Skinner. If you're the GM of your favorite team, which player are you interested in? And at what cost?
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