The Winnipeg Jets are reportedly among the many teams after New York Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic.
If the Jets were to acquire Hamonic it would probably cost prized young blue liner Jacob Trouba.
In this edition of the hotstove we discuss whether the Jets should be willing to part with Trouba to land Hamonic.
Todd Cordell
I like Hamonic but involving Trouba in a deal would be a total non starter for me.
He's an excellent skater, he's physical, he makes a positive impact on possession and he can chip in offensively while logging 20+ minutes on a nightly basis.
Hamonic possesses many of those traits but I think Trouba has more offensive pop from the back end and the numbers back me up. In 349 games Hamonic has 19 goals while Trouba has 19 in his first 156 games.
This isn't a knock on Hamonic but I think Trouba is already the better defenseman and he's still a few years away from entering his prime.
Peter Tessier Moving Trouba for Hamonic would only be smart if your budget dictated heading against salary expenditures. While the benefits of having Hamonic now might be greater than Trouba, now, it does not hold water for what GMs need to do better than their counterparts- build the future. If the Jets are a Nashville model team, Trouba does no cost them anymore than what the Preds have done with their defence core, or at least in that ballpark.
The point here is the answer is not clearly a 'this player is preferred more than this other player'. It's a bigger question with difference answers. The Jets need a player like Trouba as it's unlikely they can hold onto Byfuglien, his closest team comparable, or get the performance of Buff as long as they would from Trouba. Trading for Hamonic has to come as an additional piece to the puzzle, not a swap of parts that only moves the puzzle in a different direction, no closer to being solved.
If budget is a factor, why draft and develop Trouba and then only consider trading him for Hamonic? If the Jets are willing to part with Trouba they should look at 28 other teams and what they will pay. If budget is not a factor then sign Trouba and put pressure on Snow to reconsider his stance, one he has taken to all possible trading partners and has been denied on. The pressure is on him and Cheveldayoff would be wise to keep it there while not dismantling his draft and develop core.
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