Line Combos: HFPens Decides - 22/23 - INTERLUDE: Decide on the Extras

[Flying Dego]

I think the fact he has played 100 NHL games is what will put him over POJ tbh.

My curiosity lies with Smith stating his skating is his strongest attribute and Devils fans saying he's essentially the worst skater ever.

 

[Gurglesons]

My curiosity lies with Smith stating his skating is his strongest attribute and Devils fans saying he's essentially the worst skater ever.

He's consistently getting beat wide. That's where a lot of their arguments come from.

 

[SEALBound]

Not so sure about that. If Smith has a good camp I wouldn't be surprised if they lose POJ or Friedman for nothing. They've never seemed that high on POJ anyways.

Disagree. They won't lose either for nothing even if they don't have a role for them. They would send Smith down and try to trade POJ first, then bring Smith up.

I would bet they would role the dice on Rudwedel or Freidman and waivers though depending on which one performs better in camp. My vote would be Rudwedel just due to familiarity.

 

[Flying Dego]

Disagree. They won't lose either for nothing even if they don't have a role for them. They would send Smith down and try to trade POJ first, then bring Smith up.

I would bet they would role the dice on Rudwedel or Freidman and waivers though depending on which one performs better in camp. My vote would be Rudwedel just due to familiarity.

They won't lose Smith or POJ for nothing.

Friedman isn't of value so he would be waived.

Ruh has been employed here for years for a reason. He ain't going anywhere.

 

[SEALBound]

They won't lose Smith or POJ for nothing.

Friedman isn't of value so he would be waived.

Ruh has been employed here for years for a reason. He ain't going anywhere.

Well Smith is waiver-exempt so...they can't really "lose" him. POJ is not exempt though, that's why I believe they will go with POJ over Smith.

 

[The Old Master]

you almost need to go with 2 fw. the rule of thumb is sit 2x the time on ice. and that would give you 3 set lines including dee pairs.

 

[Randy Butternubs]

With how this poll is pacing I'll likely close it tomorrow evening. Then I'll run concurrent polls for the extra forward and d-man.

Yep, probably just under 12 hours left in this poll.

 

[jmelm]

I highly doubt they'd waive Poehling cuz they just acquired him as a sweetener in trade. Plus he has some Center experience.

While logic would normally dictate that in a vacuum, let's remember that the Poehling trade (adding the 4th rounder to get him) happened BEFORE Heinen re-signed here. For all we know, it's possible the Pens wouldn't have even acquired Poehling if they knew Heinen would re-sign, particularly if they don't see him as a C.

The Penguins were clearly expecting to be without Heinen and the fact that he's back here will have some trickle down effects for the rest of the roster. The exact details of how that plays out remains to be seen in terms of who makes it and who doesn't, but it was clearly something they were not planning for.

I think now there will be a real battle between DOC, Z, Poehling, and perhaps to a lesser extent the younger guys (Hallander, Puusy) and Archibald as to who's really competing for those few spots.

 

[jmelm]

They won't lose Smith or POJ for nothing.

Friedman isn't of value so he would be waived.

Ruh has been employed here for years for a reason. He ain't going anywhere.

I agree that there's ZERO chance Ruhwedel would go on waivers. And I don't think they trade him unless it's pretty serious overpayment (2nd rounder + 3rd or a decent prospect). The quality of his play and the fact he's a cheap RHD would make him very attractive to other teams.

As for Friedman, I wouldn't be surprised if a team offers the Pens a 4th round pick (and maybe even a 3rd) to get him. It's obvious that some teams are really desperate for RHD. I'm NOT saying I expect this to happen, but I'm saying I wouldn't be surprised if he had some trade value that's higher than we would have initially expected given how tight things are across the league.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Friedman's biggest benefit isn't the agitation, it's that he plays both sides, so he's kind of ideal as a depth guy.

 

[Flying Dego]

Friedman's biggest benefit isn't the agitation, it's that he plays both sides, so he's kind of ideal as a depth guy.

Maybe so but to keep him they need to trade one of McGinn or Blue to have a 23 man roster.

Otherwise they would need to send down Smith and trade POJ just to keep Friedman.

You have 1 roster spot on D between those 3 mentioned as we know Ruh is a guarantee.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Oh no, no POJ. What will we ever do.

I agree that someone's going to go. Smith is almost positively down at the start of the season unless he has a killer camp. Ruhwedhel I couldn't give any less of a shit about, so it's probable he'll stay up. I'm just saying, someone like Friedman makes more sense as a depth guy than most of the other options.

 

[Flying Dego]

Oh no, no POJ. What will we ever do.

I agree that someone's going to go. Smith is almost positively down at the start of the season unless he has a killer camp. Ruhwedhel I couldn't give any less of a shit about, so it's probable he'll stay up. I'm just saying, someone like Friedman makes more sense as a depth guy than most of the other options.

This will be Ruh's 7th year here....he's 2nd tier core at this point so discussing him not being the #6/7 is delusional.

I'm not sold POJ is much of anything but Hextall will not lose an asset for nothing and POJ has a higher ceiling (lower floor) than Friedman.

If it's me I'm trading McGinn and keeping 8D to start the year as I agree, I like Friedman.

 

[HandshakeLine]

I mostly just don't get why we fetishize these dudes as untouchable, when the whole point of them is to be expendable.

Only in Pittsburgh, I tell ya.

 

[Flying Dego]

I mostly just don't get why we fetishize these dudes as untouchable, when the whole point of them is to be expendable.

Only in Pittsburgh, I tell ya.

Again don't lump me in with Hextall and Sully. I'm just stating what they will do based on their history.

There's absolutely zero indication they'd ever trade or waive Ruh.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Again don't lump me in with Hextall and Sully. I'm just stating what they will do based on their history.

There's absolutely zero indication they'd ever trade or waive Ruh.

Oh, no, I didn't mean to make it sound like that. I just don't get that trend in coaching, management, and for a good chunk of the fanbase.

It's Craig Adams/Rob Scuderi all over again.

 

[Flying Dego]

Oh, no, I didn't mean to make it sound like that. I just don't get that trend in coaching, management, and for a good chunk of the fanbase.

It's Craig Adams/Rob Scuderi all over again.

I'll say this at least Ruh is mildly decent as a #7 and is dirt cheap. If he's used sparingly I never mind him but if we start to get better options at comparable Cap? He should be out.

I agree that there's ZERO chance Ruhwedel would go on waivers. And I don't think they trade him unless it's pretty serious overpayment (2nd rounder + 3rd or a decent prospect). The quality of his play and the fact he's a cheap RHD would make him very attractive to other teams.

As for Friedman, I wouldn't be surprised if a team offers the Pens a 4th round pick (and maybe even a 3rd) to get him. It's obvious that some teams are really desperate for RHD. I'm NOT saying I expect this to happen, but I'm saying I wouldn't be surprised if he had some trade value that's higher than we would have initially expected given how tight things are across the league.

Ruh would never fetch even a 3rd rounder...he's a dime a dozen journeyman D.

If some GM offered that to Hextall he would've taken the ball and run.

 

[HandshakeLine]

Again, if these guys are the supposed lynch pin, they were terrible in the postseason and have been terrible for years when it counts, so I'm not sure why even want to hold on to any of them. But I dunno, you have to be a genius like Dan Bylsma to be a coach, so I'm sure there's a reason.