Confirmed with Link: Devils Trade Henrique, Blandisi, 3rd Round Pick to Anaheim for Sami Vatanen/Conditional 3rd

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

Im sure I'll get blitzed for this, but I'm not thrilled with this deal. all they did was somewhat fill a need (I'm not as high on vatanen as most) while opening another hole. Losing henrique takes away someone who aids team speed, their biggest asset. And hurts the depth up front.

Vatanen might be a faster skater than Henrique so I am not really sure what you're talking about.

Henrique is not a fast skater

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

I am REALLY curious to see if the people who are unhappy with the trade would feel if Henrique did not score a certain goal 5 years ago. I have a feeling it'd be different.

 

[JimEIV]

Henrique has done nothing so far this year and has never been someone that drives the play.

The game role Vatanen fills (though I still think we need another defensemen) far outweighs the role Henrique vacates, both in the short term and long term.

I am not sure that this is true.

I haven't made a single comment in this thread mainly because I am uncertain about the value of Vatanen. If I could rephrase that a bit, I'm a little concerned with his results over his last 100 games but I can see he has been used in a much more defensive role during that time that he had previously. So I have no definitive opinion yet.

With that, I'm not sure a RHD of Vatanen's current output and possession provides anything to this team. Whereas a 40+ point forward that can play in all situations is ALWAYS useful to any team.

Again I'm not sure if Vatanen current numbers are reflective of his usage in Anaheim or a downward trajectory but as it stands, his overall numbers are very uninspiring.

I'm still holding off on judgement, but from a purely emotional POV, losing Henrique sucks big time.

 

[My3Sons]

So Mueller since he was doing just that before going down

Maybe but it’s probably asking too much of him right now to do it consistently and against the other teams better players. Let’s see how he continues to develop when he returns. He’s got the skating and reach but can he make the necessary decisions fast enough all the time? We will see.

 

[pbgoalie]

IF Sami stays healthy, he's a guy that will be very popular.
The type of shoulder injury takes some time, and likely after the start of the year, you'll see who he can be.
Good skater, decent pass. Good PK presence, scraps and plays bigger than his size.
If he can use his skating more to position better on D instead of trying to play 6'4" style, he's pretty effective.
As Ducks fan, I'm happy with the trade. Having a player with Henriques flexibility is huge for us, even when we get healthy.
But I really like Sami, we just happen to have some great youth to replace him, that gave us a chance to do this.

 

[guitarguyvic]

You know what’s just as important as having quality d-men? Having center depth. Which we no longer have since we basically traded away our second best one as it stood.

I’ve had a few days to digest and so far I’m not a fan of this trade. We now have a large hole at the center position/middle 6 forwards. Does Vatenan really offset that? I don’t see it. He can help the team transition out of the zone - great - but who is he transitioning the puck to? If he’s on the ice with our middle 6 guys, that’s not much quality on the ice to feed the puck to.

 

[Tretyak 20]

You know what’s just as important as having quality d-men? Having center depth. Which we no longer have since we basically traded away our second best one as it stood.

I’ve had a few days to digest and so far I’m not a fan of this trade. We now have a large hole at the center position/middle 6 forwards. Does Vatenan really offset that? I don’t see it. He can help the team transition out of the zone - great - but who is he transitioning the puck to? If he’s on the ice with our middle 6 guys, that’s not much quality on the ice to feed the puck to.

We have both McLeod and Zacha who could potentially fill that spot. We also have a dark horse center prospect in Maltsev who's being surprisingly good this year. The D had to be addressed, though. And Henrique was about to be up for a big raise we may not have been wise to pay him. Give it time.

 

[SteveCangialosi123]

You know what’s just as important as having quality d-men? Having center depth. Which we no longer have since we basically traded away our second best one as it stood.

I’ve had a few days to digest and so far I’m not a fan of this trade. We now have a large hole at the center position/middle 6 forwards. Does Vatenan really offset that? I don’t see it. He can help the team transition out of the zone - great - but who is he transitioning the puck to? If he’s on the ice with our middle 6 guys, that’s not much quality on the ice to feed the puck to.

Henrique isn’t a very good center. Much better at wing. And what do you know, our second best wing is out and will be back soon. There’s your guy that Vatanen is transitioning the puck to. It would be dumb to resign Henrique so I’m glad we were able to get a top 4 dman for him.

 

[MadDevil]

Is this the same Henrique that was labeled a soft, lazy player who is only good for 45-50 games a year and shouldn't play center about 2 weeks ago?

 

[Billdo]

People ignore the reality of Henrique as a player because of the ECF goal and his social media/community relations presence. The fact of the matter is he was a 40ish point player who far too often took weeks off at a time. I’m not celebrating this trade, I think it’s fairly even, tbh if anything we MIGHT have given a touch too much, but Henrique has a quite a few negatives that make this an easier pill to swallow.

 

[Devils090]

You know what’s just as important as having quality d-men? Having center depth. Which we no longer have since we basically traded away our second best one as it stood.

I’ve had a few days to digest and so far I’m not a fan of this trade. We now have a large hole at the center position/middle 6 forwards. Does Vatenan really offset that? I don’t see it. He can help the team transition out of the zone - great - but who is he transitioning the puck to? If he’s on the ice with our middle 6 guys, that’s not much quality on the ice to feed the puck to.

Henrique wasn't a good center at all lol, he's probably our 5th best center when he was here after Nico, Boyle, Coleman and Trav

 

[JimEIV]

The Henrique discounting is borderline outrageous. He is the 5th leading goal scorer from the 2008 draft, the 8th leading point producer. He is etched in NJ lore. I have no problem with arguments that he should've been traded, or that some players are better or more valuable...but discounting his contributions is bull shit

 

[HischierSeDgewOrk]

Henrique was a nice player who was a fan favorite. Nothing more, nothing less. Was a very versatile player but is replaceable. You have to give to get and top 4 dmen aren't cheap.

This trade wasn't a steal like a few of Shero's others, but when all is said and done, I'd rather have the top 4 dman than a top 9 forward. Add in the fact that Henrique is ufa after next season and would probably want 5.5 mil per year on a new deal, I think it was the right move. I'd say the deal was a slight win on our end. Shero is building for beyond this year or next. Smart hockey trade.

With that said, we need to hope 2 or 3 out of Zacha, McLeod, Quenneville, Anderson, Studenic, Maltsev, Speers develop into solid top 9 players to replace Henriques 20/20.

 

[GeNeXt]

With that said, we need to hope 2 or 3 out of Zacha, McLeod, Quenneville, Anderson, Studenic, Maltsev, Speers develop into solid top 9 players to replace Henriques 20/20.

Throw in Boqvist, Zetterlund, Popugaev, and Taltavitie too. Also, I feel that this trade, along with Butcher's emergence possibly gives us the opportunity to draft BPA this year. Before this trade, I think we needed to lean defenceman, but now, I'd rather just go with whoever is considered the BPA. Which will likely be a defenceman anyway considering the depth of them in this draft class.

 

[Bleedred]

Yeah, this was definitely a fair and equal hockey trade and not so much a ''Robbery'' trade, like Larsson for Hall, which will go down as one of the most lopsided trades of this decade. The Palmieri trade only seemed fair at the time it was made, but now it looks a whole lot better than that, because I figured we'd only be getting this middle 6/40-ish point guy and not this 50+ point guy. I think the Johansson trade was a steal on our part. A 2nd rounder for a guy that scored 45-50 points and had 58 points last year? I know a lot of people are down on him right now, but let's just say you think he's even with Henrique, that would be like us only trading Henrique for a 2nd round pick and not a top 4 defenseman. Think about it like that. Shero got more value for Henrique than Brian MacLellan got for Johansson from a division rival.

 

[britdevil]

Henrique wasn't a good center at all lol, he's probably our 5th best center when he was here after Nico, Boyle, Coleman and Trav

lol

Hyperbole is awesome.

 

[NjDevsRR]

Good lord at some of these comments....

Saying Henrique is near the tops in offensive categories on this team for the last 6 years is like arguing what Browns quarterbacks were the best in the last 6 years.

Stop pumping Henrique up. He is what he is. A 45 point forward who can easily be replaced on basically every team. Can every team easily replace a Vatanen? No.

 

[Blender]

lol

Hyperbole is awesome.

He's not good as a centerman, that doesn't mean he isn't a good player. Even when he was playing center, he was still operating on the ice mostly like a winger would.

 

[Saugus]

I don't understand the need to rip down Henrique after the fact, or pump Vatanen's tires before we've really integrated him into the team. This doesn't need to be a deal where we fleeced them blind. Both teams gave up value, both teams got a good player that fills a need and makes the team better in return.

 

[Blender]

I don't understand the need to rip down Henrique after the fact, or pump Vatanen's tires before we've really integrated him into the team. This doesn't need to be a deal where we fleeced them blind. Both teams gave up value, both teams got a good player that fills a need and makes the team better in return.

I agree with everything you are saying. I don't consider saying true things about Henrique to be "ripping him down" though. He's better as a winger, he's a complimentary player, and he is pretty bad defensively. He's a good 2LW or 3C and is good for 40-45 points a season.

 

[Unknown Caller]

Henrique is a very solid complimentary top 6 player. He won't drive offense or put up huge numbers, but he's extremely valuable and effective when put with the right players. He's also the type of guy that can be a big piece on special teams and a player you love to have in the playoffs. At the same time, he can float for extended stretches of the season and I think Hynes and Shero were unhappy with his compete level. That's Adam Henrique in a nutshell. For a team like Anaheim that already has a number of drivers and can afford to live with his cold streaks, he is an incredibly important addition. I think he'll flourish on the ice with Getzlaf, Kesler, Perry, etc. He hasn't played with that level of offensive talent since he was with Kovalchuk and Parise.

 

[Blender]

Henrique is a very solid complimentary top 6 player. He won't drive offense or put up huge numbers, but he's extremely valuable and effective when put with the right players. He's also the type of guy that can be a big piece on special teams and a player you love to have in the playoffs. At the same time, he can float for extended stretches of the season and I think Hynes and Shero were unhappy with his compete level. That's Adam Henrique in a nutshell. For a team like Anaheim that already has a number of drivers and can afford to live with his cold streaks, he is an incredibly important addition. I think he'll flourish on the ice with Getzlaf, Kesler, Perry, etc. He hasn't played with that level of offensive talent since he was with Kovalchuk and Parise.

Shero said in the offseason players who were floating last year wouldn't be back, and I was actually surprised Henqrique wasn't moved in the offseason to be honest.

 

[My3Sons]

This trade suggests to me that Shero is still thinking about future seasons more than this one. He’s got a fully staffed RHD for now. Nobody amazing but all potentially good players. He’s got two pieces at LHD if Mueller and Butcher continue to progress. Greene will fade and become the next Lovejoy as he ages. Vatanen sounds like a guy who adds some pushback which the team can use more of. If NJ can get a consistent 2c and a LHD1 the roster might be sorted for a while. Not that a first pairing D is anything less than a tall order.

 

[MartyOwns]

a few days later, it still hurts to ship rico out…we’re losing a lot of leadership and intangibles with him. that said, overall, we’re a better team now than we were without vatanen. having a guy like mcleod waiting in the wings makes me feel a lot better about losing rico, that’s for sure. I hope he gets a call up at some point

 

[Zajacs Bowl Cut]

a few days later, it still hurts to ship rico out…we’re losing a lot of leadership and intangibles with him. that said, overall, we’re a better team now than we were without vatanen. having a guy like mcleod waiting in the wings makes me feel a lot better about losing rico, that’s for sure. I hope he gets a call up at some point

McLeod is back to the OHL for the year

Maybe he comes up after their season ends, but other than that, we'll see him next year