Should the Pens consider dealing Letang?

[Corvidae]

Yes because his career will likely wind down to perma-LTIR within the next few years. The the fact that he's looked like a 1st year AHL defenseman this year doesn't help either but if you can get a substantial roster player and/or prospect + freeing 7.25/year in cap space, do it. But with that said, they likely can't and almost certainly won't try.

But with all that said I totally get the counter-arguments for keeping him and don't think there's a clear right or wrong here.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

I think the main question is, is Letang simply slumping or has the recent surgery and him having to adjust the way he plays affected his ability for good?

It's easy to say it's crazy to trade him because at his best he's a top 10 defenseman in hockey, but that's assuming he's still capable of that level of play after such a serious injury and after having to basically change a lot of what made him so good.

I'm not suggesting he should be dealt ASAP. But if the right deal comes along, I'd listen.

 

[Peat]

I forget which game it was, but I remember watching Letang turn it over and then chase down a forward with 2-3 steps on him and strip the puck off of him. I don't think his athleticism is gone, I don't think he's having to compensate for that.

I think the only thing that's going wrong is overthinking, brought on by a lack of confidence and a desire to avoid more injuries. And I think that's correctable.

 

[ColePens]

I think the main question is, is Letang simply slumping or has the recent surgery and him having to adjust the way he plays affected his ability for good?

It's easy to say it's crazy to trade him because at his best he's a top 10 defenseman in hockey, but that's assuming he's still capable of that level of play after such a serious injury and after having to basically change a lot of what made him so good.

I'm not suggesting he should be dealt ASAP. But if the right deal comes along, I'd listen.

That is the only fair argument, IMO. My concern is typically with his most recent injury, it ends careers and people slump significantly to the point where they aren't the same player anymore.

But I'm not a doctor. Everyone handles injuries differently. I'm not the team trainer. I can't speak to how Letang feels each day. So while it's a concern, I just can't make it my argument.

 

[Speaking Moistly]

I found this (found it again?) and thought it was interesting.

https://www.nhl.com/penguins/news/determined-letangs-journey-back-to-the-ice/c-291518334

 

[larueskee]

The Pens just won a cup without him and he comes back and the team looks lost and Letang looks terrible. The Pens have 7.250,000 in cap space wasted on him ( like he is today ) and another wasted 4,100,000 million on Dumo. Those two players are on pace to be first and second in minus for the year. Rutherford does not need to try and get any player back of equal value at this point he needs to just unload that salary if he can find a team stupid enough to take it.

 

[Ogrezilla]

The Pens just won a cup without him and he comes back and the team looks lost and Letang looks terrible. The Pens have 7.250,000 in cap space wasted on him ( like he is today ) and another wasted 4,100,000 million on Dumo. Those two players are on pace to be first and second in minus for the year. Rutherford does not need to try and get any player back of equal value at this point he needs to just unload that salary if he can find a team stupid enough to take it.

 

[Andy99]

Fixing Kris Letang:
1) set him up with a sport psychologist
2) play him with someone who's defensively good and conservative, probably Cole, maybe Hunwick
3) start him out again playing limited minutes against lesser competition so he can slow his overthinking and stop panicking
4) give him permission to be fearless again and stop worrying about taking hits. Sully and JR did him a disservice when they talked to him about tweaking his game. He is who he is and if who he is is someone subject to injury because his head is down or he's trying to make a play when someone is on him, then so be it. He hurts us less injured on LTIR than he does playing the way he's playing now

As most have already said, we will not get a return that makes sense if we try to trade him

 

[Joejosh999]

I think it's possible a team or two out there would give decent return for Letang despite his history, and I'd be fine w JR exploring those options.
Letang simply has the IQ of a gnat and his confidence is shot. I'd say if the return is worth it, move him.
Won't happen of course, for the same reason the Pens continue to pretend he has the brains to be a PP1 QB.

 

[Joejosh999]

Andy I agree a good return is unlikely but don't think we should assume it's not there and not try.

I guess it's possible a psychiatrist will suddenly turn around a career of careening confidence, but I doubt.

Having said - like dealing Letang, also worth a try.

Not confident on either front.

 

[Joejosh999]

And whoever said the $ is wasted on Dumo, assume that is snark.

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

That is the only fair argument, IMO. My concern is typically with his most recent injury, it ends careers and people slump significantly to the point where they aren't the same player anymore.

But I'm not a doctor. Everyone handles injuries differently. I'm not the team trainer. I can't speak to how Letang feels each day. So while it's a concern, I just can't make it my argument.

I think the concerning part with regards to how Letang handles this recent injury/surgery and how it affects his game is, he's always been someone who thrived when playing on instinct. He's at his best when he just lets his athleticism take over and doesn't think about things too much.

This surgery, and the subsequent talk about him adjusting his game to avoid taking big hits, seems to be making him think about every single thing he does out there. He's not playing on instinct, he's thinking about every move he makes. That's when he's always gotten into trouble.

So my fear is him being aware that he has to adjust his game after his surgery means he'll no longer just do what comes naturally, but will over think everything. And that could permanently affect how good he plays from here on out.

 

[Joejosh999]

Yeah and he tends to overthink like crazy anyway.....

 

[Joejosh999]

What's more worrisome is he seems to be working closely with Sarge (from all reports) and thus far doesn't seem to be doing a lot of good....
He really looks SO hesitant out there w his reads and commitment. Ugh.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

If the right offer came along I'd definitely pull the trigger.

Problem is...what's that "right" offer??

 

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

I will say that I have hope that Letang's putrid play can be attributed to the coaching staff asking him to change his style a bit to be more controlled and less reckless. That's my hope anyway, because if it's his body breaking down or a long-term effect of his latest serious injury/surgery to his neck--oof.

 

[cassius]

The classic Pens x comment will be met with the same thing people challenged you and pixies for all summer, yet you cannot come up with an answer. Heck, Emp just challenged you last week and you couldn't provide answers:

Letang w/ health issues, poor play, and a NMC. The league with a salary cap and most teams strapped with spending whether it's internal salary cap space or actual cap space. Who in the world do you trade Letang for? And dont' just say picks/prospects. Salary has to come back. And he has to not have that team on his NMC.

So give me a realistic plan.

Think what you want bud, but I think I laid out the case for trading Letang and the case against in a pretty logical manner. I laid out both sides as well.

Even if the Pens don't get full value for him now, if his play continues this downward trajectory - he is a depreciating asset. I'd rather get $0.75 on dollar now than $0.50 in the future, especially given that huge salary cap that will be on the books for the next several years.

I think Pens fans need to come to grips that Letang may never go back to his former level of play. It's rough coming back from a host of health problems including concussions and neck surgery. Not saying he won't get back, but we might have to re-adjust our expectations.

 

[Ogrezilla]

I will say that I have hope that Letang's putrid play can be attributed to the coaching staff asking him to change his style a bit to be more controlled and less reckless. That's my hope anyway, because if it's his body breaking down or a long-term effect of his latest serious injury/surgery to his neck--oof.

I haven't seen one single play that makes me think any of this is his body breaking down. He's making awful mental mistakes. If that's something he can't get over, you're right, we're in trouble. But physically he looks completely fine to me.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

No. Easy no to that question. They'll never get the kind of return to even remotely justify trading Letang.

Ok, let's say they definitely won't.

The alternative is Letang continues to play this poorly (as we've seen with some players around the league just completely being shells of their former self for years), then what? The team is stuck with Letang for the rest of his contract.

There's that "problem" too.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I haven't seen one single play that makes me think any of this is his body breaking down. He's making awful mental mistakes. If that's something he can't get over, you're right, we're in trouble. But physically he looks completely fine to me.

The problem with Letang is that he hardly improves his mental parts of his game from before this year. The guy constantly put himself in danger to make stupid plays or to admire his own pass, he'd constantly fumble the puck near the blueline on the powerplay or just make the wrong decision to shoot or pass. His mental errors were always there, now they're just so frequent it's hard to ignore or back up as mistakes.

I'm a fan of Letang, but this year, he's making it really tough to be positive about him. If his mental issues about the game can be fixed, cool, amazing even. But when would they go that route? After a year is wasted?

 

[Ogrezilla]

Ok, let's say they definitely won't.

The alternative is Letang continues to play this poorly (as we've seen with some players around the league just completely being shells of their former self for years), then what? The team is stuck with Letang for the rest of his contract.

There's that "problem" too.

And if he does turn it around (as he has done after every other rough patch of his career) we'd really be kicking ourselves for trading him when his value was low.

The problem with Letang is that he hardly improves his mental parts of his game from before this year. The guy constantly put himself in danger to make stupid plays or to admire his own pass, he'd constantly fumble the puck near the blueline on the powerplay or just make the wrong decision to shoot or pass. His mental errors were always there, now they're just so frequent it's hard to ignore or back up as mistakes.

I'm a fan of Letang, but this year, he's making it really tough to be positive about him. If his mental issues about the game can be fixed, cool, amazing even. But when would they go that route? After a year is wasted?

He'll never completely eliminate it from his game. If he could, he'd be right with Karlsson for best D-man in the league. But this is a guy who 57 games ago was voted 3rd for the Conn Smythe even with his warts. It's so damn early to sell low on him.

 

[Pengu]

I am not close to that point yet, but another 10 games of the same drivel he's been serving up this season and i'll say yes as it will be more than just a slump imo.
Hockey is a sport like most others which asks the question: what have you done for me lately and Letang is plaing like a 700,000 d, let alone a 7 million d.
If he sits at -25, -30 by the end of the month,it just can't go on.

 

[Peat]

May. He also may end the season in top form and be a key part in the quest for Stanley, in which case he'd best be on our team.

Which is more likely? To be honest, its a bit hard to say after less than 20 games either way. Maybe if we were having this conversation at the end of the season, or even halfway through the season, when we've got some solid evidence either way, maybe this thread would be different.

But doing it now? At best its all guesses, at worst its all overreaction.

And at best trading Letang grabs us a grab bag of assets (Kessel style) vs not having to give them up to get rid of him and at worst, we get that grab bag but lose one of the league's top 10 dmen. I don't see how the reward matches the risk. Particularly when we're talking about it during the season, when teams with the space to take on a 7.25m dman without sending dross back are limited.

 

[Dipsy Doodle]

Would you trade Letang straight-up for Weber?

 

[Ogrezilla]

Would you trade Letang straight-up for Weber?

not with Weber signed for 45 more years, no.