Paul Holmgren admit he is trying to work a deal for another d-man given Ryan Parent's surgery but he's not having luck 17 minutes ago from web Retweeted by sbaicker and 3 others
I don't want another D-man. I think we're okay on the blueline. I'd rather him go out looking for something to make the team better in general, not worry about a specific need.
I agree with this, but I feel confident with the following:
Pronger, Timonen, Carle, Coburn, Parent (healthy)
I feel semi-confident with the following:
Parent (if he's not 100% after return), Bartulis, Syvret
I feel unsafe with the following:
Tollefsen, Lehtivuori, Marshall, Bourdon, etc.
So that puts us at 7 I guess. Maybe an 8th wouldn't be so bad.
In 2004, not having 8 defensemen killed us. And that was before the salary cap. They thought it was more important to give Chris Therien and Eric Weinrich somewhere to play, and they got burnt. Injuries may be an excuse for some, but not when you had the depth and personnel and gave it away for draft picks (funny, considering that the tables turned on us there since Holmgren became the GM), then it's not an excuse.
In 2006, not having 8 defensemen killed Buffalo, as well (look at their lineup for Game 7 vs. Carolina).
You can't trust Parent to stay healthy, and if OKT is on the NHL roster, you can't really count on him either to not only stay healthy, but be good enough regardless.
This is very true, however I think they are in the market for a defensive guy and a right handed shot on the blueline would be more helpful on the offensive side of the game. Although it would probably help with the flow and moving the puck up ice.
I have been thinking about this option a bit lately and scanned around a bit after suitable players. I've come up with two, maybe three, players I'd look into more deeply if I were anything more than a wannabee GM.
Could Colaiacovo be an option? The Blues have quite a lot of defenders coming up/signed for a longish time, so I doubt they're thinking about resigning him in the summer. If they have trouble staying in the playoff race he could perhaps be had for a mid-level pick + maybe someone like Matsumoto.
Paul Mara seems to be on his way out of Montreal as well. He's had a tough season, but I liked him as a Ranger, and he seemed to step it up a bit in the playoffs (plus we'd get his beard). Don't know if it's possible to fit him under the cap that easily though.
As a bit of a wild card, I'll throw in Nick Boynton's name here as well. I haven't seen much of him in recent years, but I liked him when he was a Bruin. As of right now he's having trouble keeping Eminger behind him on the depth chart it appears, so he must be having some trouble in Anaheim. Maybe a change of scenery would do him good?
I'm generally way off when I try to guesstimate what a player's value is in a trade/salary, but I think they are guys we could attain without giving up any roster players we wouldn't "want" to trade. Maybe the Canadiens could use Boucher as a back up if they ever intend to trade Halak? All three have contracts that expire in the summer.
Given the Flyers’ sixth, seventh (Danny Syvret) and eighth (Ole-Kristian Tollefsen) defensemen have all been hurt this season, the team needs more depth.
“Danny Syvret is still a couple weeks away, and to be honest, we talk all the time, around the league to improve your hockey team, so that doesn’t change,” the Flyers’ general manager said after Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Penguins.
“Whatever kind of defensemen you are looking for, they are a hot commodity. It’s hard to make a deal.”
Parent came to the Flyers from Nashville along with Scottie Upshall as part of the Peter Forsberg trade in 2007. He arrived with back issues. On Monday, he will have a disc fragment removed from his lumbar spine.
“Of course, I’m nervous,” Parent said in a text message. “But if I wasn’t confident in the surgery, I wouldn’t be having it.”
Bartulis, yes. Syvret, questionable. You'd have to tally him up.
I've liked what Bartulis is shown, but ideally he's pushed off the lineup by any acquisition. It's really a shame Syvret got hurt, because he was coming on rather well before the injury.
How about Jordan Leopold from Florida? Earlier in the year he was rumored to be on the trading block (according to Eklund at least). I'd be psyched to get a guy like that.
