Speculation: 2013-2014 Trade Speculation (All Players) | Part IV | KCD ain't gonna cut it.

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

I like the idea of ROR because he is showing he can play top 6 winger minutes, but also gives us the potential to return to a stronger 3C model that we had in the past (if necessary).

 

[Ogrezilla]

I agree with all that, Ogre. Crosby's better off without him and he'd be better utilized in a 3rd line role. Was only arguing that the guy's not useless in the playoffs.

good deal. I am still of the opinion that any and all disdain caused by the Dupuis situation should be pointed directly at Dan Bylsma and/or Ray Shero. Disco is making me dislike one of my favorite players. Shero payed him a bit too much too, imo. At least, he payed him too much knowing the way Disco would be using him.

 

[DegenX]

I haven't really seen much of ROR since the lockout ended. My only impressions of him are from when he was playing for MMg. Zuccarello stood out more for me, mostly what I remember about ROR was that he was willing to go to the net. That and how odd his name sounded coming from Russian announcers

 

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

He's elite defensively and has size, yet literally never takes penalties.

Goes to show where his IQ and stick control is at.

 

[Shady Machine]

I like the idea of ROR because he is showing he can play top 6 winger minutes, but also gives us the potential to return to a stronger 3C model that we had in the past (if necessary).

I'm fine with O'Reilly as a winger, but we better not spend major assets to acquire him and then make him a 3rd line center. Sutter is plenty good enough. He just need consistent wingers around the quality of Cooke and Kennedy.

 

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

Losing Cooke was tough.

Sutter has been having a very good season, but it's the wear-and-tear factor of a big, active centermen on your 3rd line that makes your team that much harder to play against that I'm not quite sure we get with Sutter.

 

[BreakfastatMarios]

No offense but when you consider the Penguins Record Right Now, the streak they are on, the Title of this post starts to make less and less sense as we move on.

 

[Ogrezilla]

No offense but when you consider the Penguins Record Right Now, the streak they are on, the Title of this post starts to make less and less sense as we move on.

just like last year's streak and record

 

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

A lot of it comes down to MAF in the playoffs obviously. We can tweak the lines a bit, but they are solid, and our defense is actually amazing now considering we have so many options. MAF simply has to stay tough and not let in weak goals at bad times during the post season to kill our momentum.

 

[Til the End of Time]

A lot of it comes down to MAF in the playoffs obviously. We can tweak the lines a bit, but they are solid, and our defense is actually amazing now considering we have so many options. MAF simply has to stay tough and not let in weak goals at bad times during the post season to kill our momentum.

thats a pretty terrible strategy, as true as it is.

 

[JimmyTwoTimes]

I doubt any moves will be made around the league until after Olympics. Gonna be a lot of speculating til then.

 

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

thats a pretty terrible strategy, as true as it is.

It sucks, but we all know it, the team knows it, and it's really no surprise that MAF tends to cave under all that pressure at some point.

Alternative --> Bring in another "starting" goalie. But how/who, and how can Shero justify doing so given that MAF is having a possible Vezina year?

Maybe we somehow fit Miller in with Buffalo holding back salary, but would the deal actually be worth it? We'd probably let him walk after this post-season, he potentially wouldn't even play in the post-season, and what would we have to give up?

 

[Shady Machine]

Losing Cooke was tough.

Sutter has been having a very good season, but it's the wear-and-tear factor of a big, active centermen on your 3rd line that makes your team that much harder to play against that I'm not quite sure we get with Sutter.

Yeah I mean Sutter is no Staal but how many teams have a center on their 3rd line that is Staal caliber? I can't think of any other than San Jose. I said this the other day but all of the "elite" 3rd line centers of the past few years were traded to teams where they are now top 6 centers or wingers (Staal, Bolland, O'Reilly is a winger). I just don't see many cup contenders with Jordan Staal's on their 3rd line (other than San Jose). It's a luxury and one that we could no longer afford.

What we need is to find a winger with size and grit that can win puck battles down low and give Sutter the puck in open space. We also need to finally stack the top 6 and win with our superstars.

 

[Shady Machine]

It sucks, but we all know it, the team knows it, and it's really no surprise that MAF tends to cave under all that pressure at some point.

Alternative --> Bring in another "starting" goalie. But how/who, and how can Shero justify doing so given that MAF is having a possible Vezina year?

Maybe we somehow fit Miller in with Buffalo holding back salary, but would the deal actually be worth it? We'd probably let him walk after this post-season, he potentially wouldn't even play in the post-season, and what would we have to give up?

Buffalo would have to retain the full 50% AND we would have to trade over 3mil of salary back in the trade. So Dupuis would need to be part of the trade. I just don't see that happening.

 

[Ragamuffin Gunner]

No offense but when you consider the Penguins Record Right Now, the streak they are on, the Title of this post starts to make less and less sense as we move on.

I guess the Bs forgot to check out the Pens reg season streak before the POs.

 

[BreakfastatMarios]

just like last year's streak and record

Where the Team went to the Conference Finals?

A bunch of teams would've liked that result.

I guess when you view success as cup or go home, a lot of people are going to be dissapointed more often then not.

 

[mpp9]

ROR is a young, left handed version of Patrice Bergeron. There is really nothing there not to like.

Not saying I think he is someone we'd have enough use for to break the bank, I don't, but what he has been doing on Duchene's wing, you'd like on our top6, that I guarantee.

He really should go somewhere else to play C though.

Yep. He's a very similar player to Bergeron. I'd like someone like that with Sid if he's going to be used against top lines for the rest of his prime. I could see ROR being of more use to him than Stewart, and I've been a huge backer of bringing Stewart in.

 

[Ogrezilla]

Where the Team went to the Conference Finals?

A bunch of teams would've liked that result.

I guess when you view success as cup or go home, a lot of people are going to be dissapointed more often then not.

Id word it a bit differently. I'd say more like where we ran into a strong defensive team and they exposed our weaknesses that we have yet to address.

I guess when you are content to be one of the better teams but don't strive to fix the problems that keep us from being the best, I understand why this year's team is looking so promising.

Look, I don't expect to win the Cup every year. But when we don't win it because of glaring but problems, I would like to see us try to fix the problems. We don't seem to recognize that we have problems.

 

[PensBandwagonerNo272*]

Buffalo would have to retain the full 50% AND we would have to trade over 3mil of salary back in the trade. So Dupuis would need to be part of the trade. I just don't see that happening.

I don't either, nor do I think it would be worth it. Reality is, we're going into postseason 2014 with MAF at the helm, and the pressure on him greater than ever.

It's not just Pens fans that know and talk about the situation at this point, it's everybody. To the point where even though going by play this season and the fact he was there last time, MAF should probably be one of the 3 goalies going to Sochi, but we're hearing that Hockey Canada simply doesn't trust him in pressure situations. That has to be tough.

 

[madinsomniac]

The reality is that this team is built on Crosby and Malkin generating almost all of the offense.
In the past few years this was supplimented by having the defense repeatedly jump into plays so that there was virtually no burden on wingers to create offense. We have greatly reduced the defnsive contribution to the offense, because we needed our D to play D to thwart the insane defensive collapses we have had the past few years in the playoffs.

That has left the burden of the offense almost completely on Malkin and Crosby. We have seen in the postseason, when good defensive teams are able to contain those two's cotributions, we falter and fail. Neal is a finisher, but really hasnt created on his own much. Kunitz is average at all things top line related, but he isnt going to draw coverage off of crosby, or hurt a team if they cover him lightly without a true finisher to pass to. Especially now with Staal gone, we must make ourselves more difficult to scheme against.

Maybe we add another top end scoring talent to crosby's line and make them spread out the double coverage more, maybe we add another playmaker to Malkin's line so either he or neal will get more room to get shots off, Maybe we add a scoring threat to the third line, or make the fourth line less one dimentional....

I dont know what the priority ought to be, just that what we are doing isnt working beyond the regular season right now

 

[cheesedanish87]

The more i think about it, i'd be surprised if the pens are looking at anybody on the av's besides Mcginn, hes a 3rd line left winger, pens have a hole at left wing on the 3rd line, hes got a salary pens could find a way to fit in, Mcginn has also been rumored in trade talks, just makes so much sense for the pens to be interested in him.

 

[penguins2946*]

The issue with adding a scoring threat to Crosby's line is that none are available and we don't have the assets to get one. Pretty much the only players who fit the description and may be even slightly available are Pacioretty and Kane, neither of which fit the description very well. We don't have the assets to get either of those anyway, nor do we have the cap space. We're going to enter the playoffs with probably Kunitz-Crosby-Bennett, mainly because that's the best we could possibly do, with including trades.

There are no top-line RW that can create their own offense for under $4 million available. In fact, I don't know of any that even fit under $4 million, regardless of availability. It simply isn't a possibility this season. The only times we got elite talent at the deadline (Neal, Iginla, Hossa and such), we were either extremely under the cap or had Crosby and Malkin for less than $17.4 million because of ELCs or injuries. It simply isn't possible to get a top line winger right now.

 

[Shady Machine]

Wait, Kane and Patches don't fit the description of "scoring threat" very well??? You must be joking.

 

[eXile59]

I think the missing piece at this point is a big bodied player that can control the puck down low, score some what consistently, & play in the top 9 some where.

Kane & Patches would be perfect but I'm not holding my breath on that. I would be surprised, rumors or not, if their teams chose to move them.

 

[penguins2946*]

Wait, Kane and Patches don't fit the description of "scoring threat" very well??? You must be joking.

I was referring to players who could create offense on their own. Both would be deadly scoring threats along Crosby, but I think they would just be Crosby's Neal. Especially true with Kane. While that may seem great, it's a problem once Boston or someone like that is shutting Sid down entirely. If I'm trading for a top line winger, I'm looking for someone who isn't dependent on Crosby to create offense. Basically what Bennett will be in a few years.

Completely honestly, I think the player we should be targeting is Hemsky at 50% salary. That's just me though.