Off Season Moves Thread

[MR25]

The Avs are probably signing Soderberg (no reason to trade for his rights if a deal weren't imminent).

I thought there was a player interview period now....making trades for player rights negligent?

Of course there's an interview period. But they still can't get a deal done early without the rights. By trading for Soderberg's rights, they can sign him prior to the July 1st UFA opening.

This, in theory, should force ROR to make a decision before July 1st, if they can sign Soderberg.

[Avyran]

Yohe has a lengthy post about Kessel. Putting it in spoilers.

The Penguins want to acquire a legitimate top-six winger this summer. They’d prefer him to be a gifted sniper, preferably in his 20s and someone who can augment their team speed.

Phil Kessel does meet that criteria.

And Jim Rutherford has inquired.

A deal is not imminent, but Rutherford has spoken with the Maple Leafs, who are actively shopping Kessel as part of their rebuilding under Mike Babcock, according to multiple sources I contacted since arriving here to cover the NHL Draft that begins Friday.

The response from someone with the Penguins: “We’ve kicked the tires.”

For now, the Penguins are exploring how much Kessel would cost. The Maple Leafs have made it clear Kessel won’t come cheap. They would ideally like a package from the Penguins that includes either Olli Maatta or Derrick Pouliot. Many in the organization are adamantly against trading either player, who are viewed as future cornerstones.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Rutherford is hungry to make a move. Even though he commented earlier in the week that he’s under no pressure to make an immediate deal — the season doesn’t start until October, after all — he’s still eager to improve this forward unit.

Does Rutherford want to make a significant move this weekend?

I asked another source in the organization.

“Oh yeah,” came the reply. “Absolutely.”

Kessel has a prickly personality, but the only thing that concerns the Penguins is his cap hit, which is $8 million annually for seven more seasons. To put this in perspective, Kessel’s cap hit represents 92 percent of Sidney Crosby’s cap hit during that time.

Is Kessel 92 percent the player Crosby is?

Of course not.

But he is only 27 and has been extremely productive even though he’s never played with anything resembling a good playmaking center in Toronto, Kessel is pretty much automatic to score 30-35 goals per season. What would his ceiling be in Pittsburgh?

The Penguins would require that the Maple Leafs either retain a portion of Kessel’s salary or that Toronto take on some contracts the would help the Penguins. Those of Rob Scuderi and Nick Spaling come to mind. Brandon Sutter, too, even though the Penguins are pleased with his work.

Acquiring Kessel’s cap hit for a return of prospects, draft picks, or even Pouliot or Maatta — both make less than $1 million per season — won’t work for the Penguins. They’ve got around $13.5 million of cap space. Kessel would pull that number down to $5.5 million. The Penguins still must pay restricted free agents Beau Bennett, Ian Cole and Brian Dumoulin, and that trio will likely make a combined $4-5 million this season. And this doesn’t even include cap hits to candidates to make the team like Kasperi Kapanen, Oskar Sundqvist, Scott Harrington, Bobby Farnham and Scott Wilson.

So, you see the problem. That math wouldn’t work unless Toronto is willing to take on a heavy amount of money in this deal. The Penguins must unload a heavy contract in this deal and would prefer to entice the Maple Leafs with a package that doesn’t include Maatta or Pouliot.

Will Rutherford budge on not dealing either of those players?

No one in the organization is quite sure. Given Kris Letang’s injury history and the reality that Paul Martin and Christian Ehrhoff are almost certainly gone, trading either Pouliot or Maatta would be a huge short- and long-term problem on the blue line.

But Rutherford wants a stud winger. He wants one badly. So, stay tuned.

I'll pass. But I wanted to pass on () the report. Yohe & DK are pumping out interesting articles; along with Bombulie & Molinari, they're my go-tos for Pens news right now.

Couple more tidbits...

DK: Tyler Kennedy is willing to make a major sacrifice to return to Pittsburgh, the rumblings keep coming, primarily for family reasons but also because of his love of the Penguins. No real sense from the team just yet on this count.

Yohe: Martin’s agent, Ben Hankinson, and Rutherford are meeting here this weekend. This strikes me as a polite formality more than anything else.... Negotiations are ongoing between the Penguins and restricted free agents Cole, Dumoulin and Bennett. Cole is getting married this weekend, by the way.

Kennedy at a major discount... he would add some speed & shooting (at the goalie crest) to the bottom lines. That one, I'd do. 1.25 or below and I'd be happy.

[Pavement]

I'm just not sure about Kessel. The Leafs would need to keep a hefty chunk of the cap hit and I wouldn't be keen on moving Pouliot, which I guess could be a part of the deal.

[Dickie Dunn]

- Kennedy wanting to return makes sense. Gotta let the wife continue making her mattress commercials. I was a fan of his up until the bitter end, but damn was it ever a bitter end. He's had a rough go of it since leaving, so if he comes back hungry and cheap I'll take it.

- I would love Kessel, just have no idea how it could ever work. Pouliot, Harrington, and Sutter, plus dumping Kunitz's salary for th financials? No idea.

- Cole is getting married? Traded.

[Jim]

Kennedy would need to be a league minimum type contract, so something like Comeau did last year. If he wants 7 digits he can get it elsewhere. Frankly, if we are signing the two Russians, then there is no place on the team for him.

[Tico Rick]

Cole is getting married? Traded.

Hockey players seem to love getting married on draft day weekend.

[Tico Rick]

Kennedy would need to be a league minimum type contract, so something like Comeau did last year. If he wants 7 digits he can get it elsewhere. Frankly, if we are signing the two Russians, then there is no place on the team for him.

Sign Cooke and Kennedy, trade Sutter and Dumoulin for Staal. Boom! Best third line in hockey.

Seriously, if the two Russians are in fact going to sign, there's a potential logjam on the bottom six. No need for retreads like TK.

[Avyran]

To add to the Kessel rumor...
https://twitter.com/DamoSpin/status/614126899070111744
*Shrug* Cox just tweeted "All indications are possibility for major news today from Leaf camp. We shall see." 10 minutes ago or so. Talk about a vague announcement. "There is a potential for something to possibly happen later today. Maybe."

[columbia]

No thanks.

[mikey]

Damien Cox wants young Penguin D.

[cadams]

Kennedy could be an effective 4th liner right now if we want to have 4 lines that can try to score. If his defense has improved even a little bit he fits the mold of what Rutherford wants. Bringing him in at no more than $1 million wouldn't be a bad move.

[Factorial]

No thanks.

Not with that contract.

[Kicksave]

Realistically, how much of that contract could Toronto eat? Could they get his cap hit down to $6.5-7 million?

If they ate enough salary AND took Kunitz/Scuderi....I mean, it's possible.

[meow]

Toronto has been fairly open about not wanting to retain salary and just take bad contracts back.

[Kicksave]

Ok, so they get Kunitz, Dupuis, Scuderi, Spalling and Pouliot for Kessel and a 1st

[Defence21]

The idea of having a pure sniper in Kessell on Crosby's wing makes me salivate with excitement. Then I step back and think of the reality, and while there's one real thick layer of great, there are a bunch of layers of bad to real bad.

1. Cap hit: His $8 million per year cap hit extends for another seven years, I believe. Add that to the Crosby, Malkin, Letang, and Fleury cap hits and this team is going to be exactly what they've stated they don't want to be: a two line team with a drastic drop-off and zero depth. Doesn't sound like a recipe for success.

2. Asset cost: Toronto does not have to trade Kessel. There likely is a decent market for Kessel. Those two factors combined mean Kessel isn't coming at a discounted price. If Rutherford wants Kessel, he's going to have to part with, as a start, one of Maatta or Pouliot, Kapanen, and next year's first rounder. And, again, that's likely just the start of it. There will be other pieces. If they expect Toronto to eat a part of Kessel's salary or take on a burdensome contract, such as Scuderi's, they'll want even more in return than the starting point (plus other pieces) mentioned above. How, exactly, are they going to fill the roster now, and more importantly in the future, given that they're trading away so much young talent? Doesn't sound like a recipe for success.

3. Age effect: Looking at points one and two make this deal a bad enough idea alone. Combine them and you'll see that not only are they setting themselves up for failure by means of cap hell, but now they're also losing some of the guys who factor to be cheap talent for years to get him. I am all about sustainability right now. This team NEEDS to start layering their stars. In Crosby, Malkin, Letang, and Fleury, they have a bunch of upper-20s stars. They'll be exiting their prime soon, and while they'll still be highly productive, having a new wave of young players -- obviously not quite as good as those mentioned above, but very good none-the-less -- will allow this team to be successful this year and for the long haul. You know, kind of the way Chicago has been, how Detroit was for so long, etc. This trade will empty a gas tank that already was near "E." Doesn't sound like a recipe for success.

4. Roster impact: I've alluded to this already, but adding Kessel is going to make this team very top heavy, as the balance of the roster will have to come cheaply. Given that many of the team's top, young, cheap players will be gone in such a deal means the roster will not only come cheaply, but likely won't be very good, either. Having a top-heavy, two-line team is not the way of success in the NHL. The teams that have repeatedly gone deep int he playoffs have rolled four lines capable of scoring. If we thought last year's roster was lacking in depth, we haven't even seen the start of it. Get used to quad-A players, has-beens, and never-will-bes filling out the bottom half of the roster. And get ready for a continued trend of early playoff exits. Doesn't sound like a recipe for success.

Kessel might be the best player on the market, but he's a homerun for a team that needs more in the way of doubles. This team needs a winger or two that are young (25 or younger), affordable (under $5 million), and talented. They're not growing on trees, and they won't come cheaply. But it is a much easier proposition to trade up-and-coming talent for young, proven talent that can help now and for years to come. The names of Hertl and Skinner have been mentioned, and these are perfect examples of what this team needs. It won't be easy to accomplish, but then again if it was easy to accomplish, it likely wouldn't be worth it.

Sorry for the long post, but this whole Kessel thing has had me thinking for the last 16 hours or so, and if it happens, barring a miracle where Rutherford fleeces Toronto, I will not be in the least bit happy. And those aren't words you often hear from my mouth about the Penguins.

[Avyran]

Between Skinner & Kessel, I'd rather look at Skinner (and would prefer neither, to be honest) for the reasons Defence listed. I think Kessel's getting the stronger national spotlight because Canadian media loves Toronto.

[Gaucho]

JR has all but declared Maatta untouchable and I hope he sticks with it.

[Gaucho]

I think Kessel's getting the stronger national spotlight because Canadian media loves Toronto.

He's also the far superior player.

[cadams]

JR has all but declared Maatta untouchable and I hope he sticks with it.

It would have to be a deal so good that you would be crazy to refuse like an already established superstar sniper on his ELC and a very high draft pick in return along with other med-range forward prospects that have a solid chance of panning out to develop in WBS.

And even then, I don't know if I do it.

[llipgh2]

Darren Dreger seems fairly certain the Pens and Blues are going to pull off a significant deal, one that will shake up both clubs.

This is the guy who also reported Malkin wants out. Take it with a grain of salt.

[meow]

Ok, so they get Kunitz, Dupuis, Scuderi, Spalling and Pouliot for Kessel and a 1st

Then we have Phil the Thrill and a bunch of AHL players. Is that what you want? IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT?

[Avyran]

I think Kessel's getting the stronger national spotlight because Canadian media loves Toronto.

He's also the far superior player.

Ah yeah, for sure. I mean they're throwing him around with the Pens because Kessel is a much more attractive item to talk about in the media. Skinner isn't nearly as exciting. That's all.

[beachboy76]

Maybe we see Oshie to PIT with a young prospect like Rattie and Brandon Sutter going the other way. (Via @DarrenDreger)

I like the sounds of this. More balance, probably cheaper cost.

[Defence21]

Darren Dreger seems fairly certain the Pens and Blues are going to pull off a significant deal, one that will shake up both clubs.

This is the guy who also reported Malkin wants out. Take it with a grain of salt.

I could be wrong here, but I don't recall Dregger getting in on the Malkin wanting out talk. I thought it was Friedman who mentioned it casually in a radio conversation -- and even then, not as a rumor, but as a means of thinking out loud.

I've always known Dregger to be pretty spot-on and reputable.