Dennis Wideman

[Wheels of Poirier]

I could've sworn there was already a Wideman thread, but surprisingly, there isn't. I just thought with his name in particular being consistently bandied about in trade rumours, and with his trade value perhaps on the incline due to his recent offensive re-emergence (4 goals in last 5 games; 3-game goal scoring streak), that it might be a good idea to have one specific thread pertaining to all Wideman-related discussion, whether in regards to his play, possible trade partners or destinations, contract details, etc.

I personally think this is the last year we see Wides in Flames silks; as timely as his scoring seems to have been thus far this season, his lapses on the defensive side are more than his offense makes up for IMO. I love that he gets the puck on net with his hard shot, and throws the occasional big hit, but overall I feel his unbalanced style does not fit the mold of what we need from a 3-4 guy moving forward, and I'm not sure we need $5-mil plus tied up on a bottom pairing with perhaps better-suited players available and guys like Wotherspoon and Kulak knocking at the door. (On a side note, I'm actually interested to know what is in the cards for Dustin Stevenson; on a PTO, he has been one of the few bright spots in a difficult start to the year for Addy: 2-2-4, 26 PIM in 6 games and one of three + players on a -16 team ~ perhaps deserves a player discussion thread of his own..?).

Wideman's age paired with the fact that his trade value will likely never be higher, tells me that the time is nigh for the Flames to make a move if they're going to. It's very likely that his play tails off the longer they wait to trade him, but there is also the matter of his contract; 2 more years at $5.25 may not be altogether unattractive to a team looking for a RH shot who can produce. (I still say the Flames should retain salary to better their return for him, but it might be a moot point with Wideman's NMC)

At the end of the day, I guess I'm just curious as to what my fellow HF'ers think:

- has Wideman's recent play warranted a second look in terms of him perhaps serving a solid bottom-pairing guy who's contract keeps us well above the cap floor?

- is this the right time to move him (since his value will likely never be higher), and if so, who are some prospective suitors and what is Wideman's (current) value/potential return?

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[YMCMBYOLO]

Yes.

 

[Turning Mangiapanese]

We don't really have anyone to take his minutes so I would not trade him for picks+prospects right now. If Burliving manages to acquire a young NHL D-man like Larsson or Gormley, then sure. We'll see if the owners are willing to eat salary because that's going to be a major issue in trading Wideman.

 

[MuffinMerc]

I brought this up in a other thread, but I don't think Wideman wants to be here anymore. He signed when the team still had the likes of Tanguay, Iginla, the "best player not in the NHL" Cervenka, with a backend that had Jbo and Gio. He didn't sign for a rebuild. But I also don't believe that Wideman is stupid and he probably realizes that no other team wants him, especially if he plays like the steaming bundle of horse **** he's been like since the latter galf of last season. I think he's trying to raise his own stock. But that's just me.

Thankfully he picked himself up after Hartley benched him. He probably smelled da #chocolatefumes

 

[Anglesmith]

We don't really have anyone to take his minutes so I would not trade him for picks+prospects right now. If Burliving manages to acquire a young NHL D-man like Larsson or Gormley, then sure. We'll see if the owners are willing to eat salary because that's going to be a major issue in trading Wideman.

I'd agree with that. I don't want Wideman traded unless we're getting back someone to play in his place. But I don't see many teams going for this kind of deal, to be honest.

I brought this up in a other thread, but I don't think Wideman wants to be here anymore. He signed when the team still had the likes of Tanguay, Iginla, the "best player not in the NHL" Cervenka, with a backend that had Jbo and Gio. He didn't sign for a rebuild. But I also don't believe that Wideman is stupid and he probably realizes that no other team wants him, especially if he plays like the steaming bundle of horse **** he's been like since the latter galf of last season. I think he's trying to raise his own stock. But that's just me.

Thankfully he picked himself up after Hartley benched him. He probably smelled da #chocolatefumes

That's not the craziest speculation I've ever heard. He certainly looked unmotivated early in the year and was making fewer strides out there than Dustin Penner. Other option is that Hartley worked some magic on him and coached him back to top form, but as a veteran I think it's fair to assume that it mostly came from within.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

I agree, I think Wideman would probably prefer to be dealt somewhere else to a team that can better use his services. Other than being a RH shot, we have Brodie and Russell that fill the same role as Wideman. I have no idea if Wideman has ever requested a trade, but if he has, Treliving likely told him that he cannot move him with his contract based on his current trade value in a deal that makes sense for the Flames. Hypothetically, if Wideman has ever asked for a trade, he likely would of been told to play better so his wish could be granted. This is a ton of speculation on my part, but that's my opinion.

Now as of today, it makes no sense to move Wideman. We are playing well, and he is contributing to the team. However let's not kid ourselves, we are still rebuilding and this season should still be about evaluating our team and building a contender for years to come. If Treliving can get Gormley out of Phoenix, then I think it makes a lot of sense to deal Wideman. The Yotes blueline is better than ours, and by all accounts Gormley played so well in preseason that he should of made the team out of camp but was sent down due to numbers. When I saw Gormley play in preseason I was super impressed and he reminded me a lot of OEL with his style of play.

I don't think the Flames need to move Wideman, but I believe they should be open to it and be looking at opportunities where they can improve their defence long term.

 

[CraigsList]

I brought this up in a other thread, but I don't think Wideman wants to be here anymore. He signed when the team still had the likes of Tanguay, Iginla, the "best player not in the NHL" Cervenka, with a backend that had Jbo and Gio. He didn't sign for a rebuild. But I also don't believe that Wideman is stupid and he probably realizes that no other team wants him, especially if he plays like the steaming bundle of horse **** he's been like since the latter galf of last season. I think he's trying to raise his own stock. But that's just me.

Thankfully he picked himself up after Hartley benched him. He probably smelled da #chocolatefumes

MM and I are on the same page with this one. Maybe he is playing well to get traded? Maybe management has talked to him? He joined this team in hopes that we'd make the playoffs, but we have not. I do not think he is embracing the rebuild.

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

It appears that with the Treliving connection, combined with a surplus of quality d-men that Phoenix is a very likely destination. It also seems that Gormley is a guy many around here have their sights on, since he is currently an odd-man out (and none too happy about it, I'd imagine), but I'm not so sure we'd easily pry a young guy with his talent out of Arizona for any package built around Wideman, even with salary retained. One player I'd still be highly interested in pursuing is Michael Stone; he seems to bring everything to the table that we need, including size and a RH shot, and IMO would be a perfect compliment to Russell, who has seemed to bring out the best in whomever he is paired with (guy is seriously underrated; one of our absolute best in what seems to be a fortunate run of free agent acquisitions this past year or so). Now I'm not saying Wideman even with 50% retained would necessarily be anywhere near a Michael Stone, but I DO think that a deal could be built with this as its base.. and I do think that a top-4 of Brodano and Russtone could quite effectively hold down the fort with Smengelland as a bottom pairing for at least a couple seasons to buy the necessary time for whoever the next candidate(s) is/are to develop properly.

Wideman (with 50% salary retained) + ???

for

Stone

I have to imagine that Burliving has already talked to Tippett in regards to what it would take to swing a deal for either of these d-men -- possibly even before the season started -- and if that is indeed the case, I wonder what the snag (if any) might've been..

EDIT: It appears that Stone has been on the 2nd pairing with Yandle to start the season; I just wanted to also note that Connor Murphy has spent time playing with Yandle in the past -- in the event we were able to land Stone, they would essentially have Murphy, Michalek, Schlemko, Summers and of course Wideman to sort out the bottom-4 with Gormley still waiting in the wings.. not too friggin' shabby. Pull a trigger on a deal like this earlier on in the year, and they still have valuable pieces to negotiate with, depending on what kind of spot they find themselves in come trade deadline..

 

[Anglesmith]

How does it make sense that a team with a surplus of quality defencemen would be in the market for a quality defenceman?

 

[Johnny GODreau]

Besides surplus defensemen, the Coyotes are at the top of there budget. They'd want us to take probably 2 of, Schlemko , Klinkhammer and Moss.

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

How does it make sense that a team with a surplus of quality defencemen would be in the market for a quality defenceman?

Out of all teams in the West who have played 6 or more games so far, only the Jets and Blues have scored fewer goals than the Coyotes, and the only teams who have allowed more goals (SJ, COL, and EDM) have played 2 more games than they have; it may be a small sample size, but they were also in the bottom 3rd in the league in GF and GA last year.

If you're asking what a team like Arizona could stand to benefit from what an experienced guy like Wideman would bring to the table on a bottom pairing with Summers - or even with Yandle - I don't think it's at all a stretch to imagine that he'd fit in well there.

OEL - Murphy
Yandle - Wideman
Summers/Gormley - Michalek

(Edited to reflect Schlemko being included in the deal, as per below)

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

Besides surplus defensemen, the Coyotes are at the top of there budget. They'd want us to take probably 2 of, Schlemko , Klinkhammer and Moss.

Haha, wouldn't that be something?

EDIT: So, what about

- Wideman (50% salary retained) + Acolatse OR Culkin + 3rd round pick

for

- Stone + Schlemko + Moss


EDIT (again): both Moss and Schlemko are FA after this season, so they would likely want someone like a Sieloff, Kulak or Hickey (or maybe Culkin); my logic was that they'd be after one of our (better) d-prospects + a 3rd rounder in the upcoming draft..

 

[CraigsList]

Would rather trade for Gormley than for Stone. I like Stone, but he would cost more than Gormley. We could get Gormley for cheap since the guy wants to be traded. And imo, he would play #4 minutes with Russell.

 

[Gritty]

Would rather trade for Gormley than for Stone. I like Stone, but he would cost more than Gormley. We could get Gormley for cheap since the guy wants to be traded. And imo, he would play #4 minutes with Russell.

I probably missed it, but did a source come out and say he wanted to be traded, or is this just speculation?

I would love to see Gormley on our team and agree that trading for him would cost less than Stone.

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

Not only does it now seem like Gormley would come cheaper, it's probably more likely that Tippett would move him before Stone. I just don't see that deal being built around Wideman. I do have a sinking suspicion that Baertschi is going to be moved sooner rather than later, and even though the 'Yotes have solid young forwards like Domi and Perlini in the pipeline, they could definitely use a guy like Sven, who is NHL-ready, tons of potential, has rounded out his game, and could probably benefit from a change of scenery.. I think ARZ still makes a good trade partner regardless..

..but I created this thread to discuss Wideman; if I could wager vCash with my fellow HF'ers, I'd be willing to bet that he extends his goal-scoring streak to 4 games vs his (most recent) former team.. Lol call it a hunch

 

[Johnny GODreau]

I'd rather trade Wideman east, maybe to the leafs. What would we add to Wideman to get the disgruntled Kadri and Gradiner?

 

[Unlimited Chequing]

I'd rather trade Wideman east, maybe to the leafs. What would we add to Wideman to get the disgruntled Kadri and Gradiner?

If Wideman doesn't want to play for the Flames, I doubt he'd want to play for the Leafs much more.

 

[Johnny GODreau]

But I thought everybody from Ontario want's to play for the Leafs.

 

[GAMO1992]

I definitely think it's time to move Wides. In a week or 2, for sure. His play is only increasing his value and his value will never be higher than what it is.

We are NOT going to get Gormley for cheap guys, just not gonna happen. We can dream, but Gormley was sent down only because the Yotes have such a quality D core. Michalek is older though, he would be their 1st option to be moved, and then Gormley takes his spot.

I was actually thinking a trade with Detroit, something around Sproul.

To Detroit:
Wideman(@50% retained)

To Calgary:
D Sproul

A straight up trade. 1-1. Maybe add something for us if it isn't enough, or them if it isn't enough for Wideman, but I think it's more our end that has to add.

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

I definitely think it's time to move Wides. In a week or 2, for sure. His play is only increasing his value and his value will never be higher than what it is.

We are NOT going to get Gormley for cheap guys, just not gonna happen. We can dream, but Gormley was sent down only because the Yotes have such a quality D core. Michalek is older though, he would be their 1st option to be moved, and then Gormley takes his spot.

I was actually thinking a trade with Detroit, something around Sproul.

To Detroit:
Wideman(@50% retained)

To Calgary:
D Sproul

A straight up trade. 1-1. Maybe add something for us if it isn't enough, or them if it isn't enough for Wideman, but I think it's more our end that has to add.

Sproul is an intriguing prospect.. tons of offensive potential, but the reason he isn't currently playing in Detroit is the same reason Wideman likely wouldn't find a home there..

 

[Wheels of Poirier]

Not only does it now seem like Gormley would come cheaper, it's probably more likely that Tippett would move him before Stone. I just don't see that deal being built around Wideman. I do have a sinking suspicion that Baertschi is going to be moved sooner rather than later, and even though the 'Yotes have solid young forwards like Domi and Perlini in the pipeline, they could definitely use a guy like Sven, who is NHL-ready, tons of potential, has rounded out his game, and could probably benefit from a change of scenery.. I think ARZ still makes a good trade partner regardless..

..but I created this thread to discuss Wideman; if I could wager vCash with my fellow HF'ers, I'd be willing to bet that he extends his goal-scoring streak to 4 games vs his (most recent) former team.. Lol call it a hunch

 

[InfinityIggy]

Well done bae.

 

[Johnny GODreau]

so uh trade wideman while he's still hot..

 

[Sean Monahan]

I bet Burkliving told him he needs to play well to get traded

 

[BVicious]

Where's that crow eating thread, I need to make a visit