Confirmed with Link: [ANA/PIT] Daniel Sprong for Marcus Pettersson

[KaseMeOutside]

This kid is a classic case of someone who should have been allowed to develop rather than playing in the NHL just bc he didn't look overwhelmed

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

Hmm. If Sprong can pull an Aberg and pan out well, this might be the end of Silfverberg (unfortunately.) I'm sure he can garner a kings ransom

 

[Dipsy Doodle]

This kid is a classic case of someone who should have been allowed to develop rather than playing in the NHL just bc he didn't look overwhelmed

IMHO, while it sucks that Sprong's no longer waiver-eligible because he was kept up in '15-'16, that's not really an issue now. He was never going to be a two-way player capable of grinding along the boards or in front of the opposite net.

He's a sniper who's put up elite production at every previous level, and outpaced his competition in the Pens bottom 6 despite having the worst QOT. He's ready to contribute in the NHL right now if he's played with a skilled center (and ideally a guy who works the trenches on the other side), but no amount of development was going to make him a good bottom 6 option.

 

[kducks]

Maybe the person that made the account was Mike Sullivan

Clearly it was Hoffman's girlfriend.

 

[Bald Like Getzy]

His hairline is not elite, so he’ll fit right in with Getz

 

[bsu]

Follow @db_hockey_factory on insta and watch his off season workouts crazy skill

 

[Gurglesons]

Just for reference user @Soggy Biscuit thinks we should move Hornqvist to L4 and Bryan Rust to LW to facilitate Daniel Sprong in our line up.

Sprong definitely got pushed out due to Pittsburgh’s RW depth and the emergence of Simon on the top line. I think Getz and him could show some easy chemistry, but not sure having Rakell in the other side is worth it. That being said I imagine Murray sees him as feeing Silfverberg’s role moving forward.

As far as the off ice issues. There were some weird rumors like that around WBS, some guy said he was taking an Uber to the rink because nobody else would give him a ride LOL. I think that ultimately is just an excuse for a player that struggled with a coach that preaches accountability and two way acumen.

I do think it’s weird that nobody on the Pens really commended Sprong’s skill or demanded to play with him as our centers clearly have that pull with Hornqvist rarely being with Sid and Malkin and Kessel joined at the hip most of this season.

Best of luck to Sprong, hopefully this turns out like the last trade we made Could easily see him being a solid third wheel in the Ducks top six.

 

[Paul4587]

Hmm. If Sprong can pull an Aberg and pan out well, this might be the end of Silfverberg (unfortunately.) I'm sure he can garner a kings ransom

I think they play too different roles to conclude that. Without Silfverberg our defensive ability in our forwards goes down significantly, he’s by far our best defensive forward and only one of about 5 guys I trust defensively.

 

[Paul4587]

Just for reference user @Soggy Biscuit thinks we should move Hornqvist to L4 and Bryan Rust to LW to facilitate Daniel Sprong in our line up.

Sprong definitely got pushed out due to Pittsburgh’s RW depth and the emergence of Simon on the top line. I think Getz and him could show some easy chemistry, but not sure having Rakell in the other side is worth it. That being said I imagine Murray sees him as feeing Silfverberg’s role moving forward.

As far as the off ice issues. There were some weird rumors like that around WBS, some guy said he was taking an Uber to the rink because nobody else would give him a ride LOL. I think that ultimately is just an excuse for a player that struggled with a coach that preaches accountability and two way acumen.

I do think it’s weird that nobody on the Pens really commended Sprong’s skill or demanded to play with him as our centers clearly have that pull with Hornqvist rarely being with Sid and Malkin and Kessel joined at the hip most of this season.

Best of luck to Sprong, hopefully this turns out like the last trade we made Could easily see him being a solid third wheel in the Ducks top six.

So he can’t play LW then? Seems an odd move if so, he’s not playing ahead of Kase/Silfverberg/Aberg for us.

 

[Dipsy Doodle]

Just for reference user @Soggy Biscuit thinks we should move Hornqvist to L4 and Bryan Rust to LW to facilitate Daniel Sprong in our line up.

Considering Rust has been garbage all year no matter what side he's played on and Hornqvist is presently useless on Geno's line, absolutely.

 

[Gurglesons]

So he can’t play LW then? Seems an odd move if so, he’s not playing ahead of Kase/Silfverberg/Aberg for us.

He was never tried. I’d assume he’d be fine. But honestly, if he isn’t in the top nine he’s useless. I assume the Ducks know that enough to take a flyer on him.

He’s also signed to minimum for another year so you can get away with burying him as a 13th.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he struggles similar to the Pens though ( based in SD ) because Silf and Kase are much more complete players and from what I’ve seen Aberg has been relatively good.

The issue with Sprong in Pitt is he never showed enough to get played up the line-up or when he does go off it is just flashes. He honestly reminds me of a less skilled Filatov.

Pens fans liked to compare him to James Neal, but he’s nowhere near that level of threat.

He was a huge divide amongst Pens fans who I think due to a lack of prospects over the years don’t realize when one is just not working out. And part of it was our coach’s refusal to use him in the correct way.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I come in peace - Pens fan here.

I hope Sprong gets top 6 time and is allowed to play through whatever horse shit Sullivan put him through by making him doubt his game and abilities. There is no way a kid that has a wicked shot, is suddenly turned into a playmaker by choice, he was forced to play with Crosby, of whom he was never a right fit, looked good with Malkin but was never allowed to let that flourish.

I seriously hope you guys turn this kid into a stud 20+ goal scorer this year. I catch the odd few games because of how good Rakell is and we've seen ex Pens on the Ducks before (Whitney and Despres...we ignore Rowney).

Hope he's an absolute steal for you guys. I seriously do.

 

[Oddfello]

As a Pens fan I am really bummed hearing this today. The most exciting thing for me at the start of this season was that I would get to see this kid start as a regular, or so we were told. At some point he got into Sully's doghouse and that's all she wrote. I hope he absolutely finds his place out west and becomes a player that meets or exceeds every bit of his potential. This kid could be big for you guys.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

This kid is a classic case of someone who should have been allowed to develop rather than playing in the NHL just bc he didn't look overwhelmed

100% the case.

Rutherford tried to play him in his rookie year and it was clear he wasn't ready, but in 18 games wasted, he burned his first year of his ELC and Sullivan barely played him when he took over. Then this year, his waiver eligibility gone, Sullivan never really gave him much rope to play through struggles like he did for countless others. Was barely given top 6 time, he clearly needs development in the AHL. But he's also a player that is skilled enough that you put him with like minded skilled players and let him play through it, he will do well. I hope he gets a spin with Henrique or Getzlaf, more so the latter as he has a wicked shot and Getz is a damn good playmaker that finds guys with a good shot in good spots to shoot.

 

[ronduguayshair]

Pens fan here. Daniel Sprong was the most overrated Pens prospect I can remember. People around town have his jersey and he hasn't played 50 games. Its was nuts.

I think the trade could very well work out for the Ducks based solely on potential. Sprong hasn't done anything on the NHL level IMO that says he's a NHL player at this time. Here are some reasons I believe that to be.

1. His proponents watched his highlights and read his draft notes and was like "this guy is a sniper". Well his shot release is way too slow. Check out how he didn't get any shots in a ton of games. The proponents blame his line mates but NHL defenders ate him alive. He was not ready for their closing speed even bottom pairing. All his shots have been getting blocked.

2. When he was drafted in the second round, there was talk that he wasn't very coachable and a little cocky. I've been fortunate to go to a lot of games this year and it was pretty apparent that he needed work in the defensive zone but tons of offensive rookies need this. Obviously our coach didn't seem to like Sprong but he didn't get a raw deal. He didn't do anything in training camp or in the season to merit a promotion from the fourth line.

3. Not sure how his teammates felt about him but when he was at his first camp he was taking Ubers to practice. Typically you know teammates help out teammates. In addition it wasn't like Malkin or Crosby campaigned at any time to play with this "elite" sniper. It was strange so there might be something to the fact that his book was he was cocky.

4. He needed another year in the AHL.


This trade could be the wake up call Sprong needed and it will be interesting to see how he does with a fresh start. I would definately be excited if I was a ducks fan.


I would suggest being patient with him. He is a project. The idea that he should have be "gifted" to a top 6 role on a stacked Pittsburgh team over players who have proved themselves as champions was really amateur opinion around Pittsburgh.

 

[Kalv]

Potetentially he could fit in well with both Rak-Getz and Ritchie-Rico duos but there is a risk that those lines will eventually suck defensively if Sprong is really how he has been advertised for the past 3 years (weak overall game). So he might be tried with Cogs-Kesler.
If not, he will have trouble, obviously.

 

[ohcomeonref]

When's the next Ducks game?!

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Also, glad he's wearing his proper #11 for you guys.

 

[crowi]

Dumbass trade

Edit: Guess the potential makes sense. Just don't see Sprong fitting well - hope I'm wrong.

 

[KickHisAssZegrass]

Great trade. Marcus is solid but has such less potential then Larsson or Mahura. Sprong gives us a guy that's shown glimpses of elite skill, still just 21. Maybe a change in scenery unlocks it at the NHL level, maybe not. Either way it's a good gamble for a potential game-changer and will most definitely be entertaining for us fans.

 

[Kalv]

fun fact - with nearly identical amount of games played in the NHL, Pettersson has scored more points

 

[Mallard]

Too thin to ever be an NHL player.

People seem to forget he was drafted as a big project and even making the team this year was probably a year/two ahead of his expected development schedule. He made the best of it when Larsson got hurt last year and did well considering. People seem to expect him to be top-4 out of the gate it seems like for some reason.

 

[KelVarnsen]

Is that weirder than creating an account to come and plant a false story and then not elaborate more on a lie? I don't think it is.

I think people create fake accounts to specifically troll. So it would not surprise me if someone created an account today to come in and bash a player in order to troll a fan base.

 

[Ducks DVM]

People seem to forget he was drafted as a big project and even making the team this year was probably a year/two ahead of his expected development schedule. He made the best of it when Larsson got hurt last year and did well considering. People seem to expect him to be top-4 out of the gate it seems like for some reason.

This is a reference to an old poster who rather stridently proclaimed when he drafted that he’d never be an NHL player because he was too thin.

 

[Empoleon8771]

fun fact - with nearly identical amount of games played in the NHL, Pettersson has scored more points

Yeah, I think Ducks fans need to take what Penguins fans say with a grain of salt. Sprong was like a god among some Penguins fans because he was one of the most productive prospects the Penguins have had in years in the AHL. He is very much a project, there are legitimate questions of whether he has the hockey IQ and speed to be effective at the NHL level. Sprong fans will say it was all Sullivan's fault, but Sprong was legitimately terrible this year while being miscast on the 4th line. His advanced stats really show this, the Penguins couldn't score and couldn't generate any high danger chances with him on the ice and they bled goals against.