Trade Rumors and Free Agent TalkTrade rumors, transactions, and free agent talk. Rumors must contain the word RUMOR in post title. Proposals must contain the word PROPOSAL in post title.
With the news today that Visnovsky staying in the KHL it puts the Islanders in a pinch for help on D. Ballard's name has been thrown around in the recent past. It seems like he could be a good fit and help sure up the Islanders Defense.
With Visnovsky being a jerk and not honoring his contract, the Islanders are in need of a top-4 defenseman.
Let me start by saying that the only way they take him is by not giving up a lot of value for him. He's a good defenseman, but his trade value has dropped significantly and won't be getting anything very valuable in return. This means the Islanders won't give up guys like Frans Nielsen and Matt Martin to get him.
I'm going to offer Aaron Ness and a 3rd round pick in 2014 for Keith Ballard and Yann Sauve.
What about Visnovsky for Ballard? Ballard would play for the Isle... Vancouver gets the better defenseman and he'll most likely come back to play for the better team.
What about Visnovsky for Ballard? Ballard would play for the Isle... Vancouver gets the better defenseman and he'll most likely come back to play for the better team.
He said the Islanders treated him very well and his agent said it would have been the same case for any other NHL team.
Bottom line is here the guy went home because of the lockout. Got comfortable being in his home country with his family and now does not want to leave. He's also 37 years old. I am going to say he's done in the NHL
What about Visnovsky for Ballard? Ballard would play for the Isle... Vancouver gets the better defenseman and he'll most likely come back to play for the better team.
I'm going to offer Aaron Ness and a 3rd round pick in 2014 for Keith Ballard and Yann Sauve.
Canucks decline.
Ballard played well for us towards the end of last season + playoffs, so I'm kind of interested to see how he plays this season.
Also, the Canucks don't need to dump Ballard just yet. They only need to move him in the off-season, and by that time they could just use an amnesty buyout on him.
If we dump Ballard, it leaves a big hole on the bottom pairing and leaves us without any defensive depth.
So Ballard would only be moved to fill a need/get an upgrade.
He said the Islanders treated him very well and his agent said it would have been the same case for any other NHL team.
Bottom line is here the guy went home because of the lockout. Got comfortable being in his home country with his family and now does not want to leave. He's also 37 years old. I am going to say he's done in the NHL
I think we're better off holding on to him until the deadline, unless it's absolutely necessary we trade him due to salary reasons.
I want coach AV to gift wrap minutes for him and put him in situations where he can succeed, like he did with Hodgson, to drive up his value a bit before trading him.
I think we're better off holding on to him until the deadline, unless it's absolutely necessary we trade him due to salary reasons.
I want coach AV to gift wrap minutes for him and put him in situations where he can succeed, like he did with Hodgson, to drive up his value a bit before trading him.
With a shortened season there is less opportunity to do that. The NW division has gotten tougher this year. The Canucks cannot afford to have a sub-par d-man being showcased. If Ballard wants to play top minutes, he'll have to earn them.
I think we're better off holding on to him until the deadline, unless it's absolutely necessary we trade him due to salary reasons.
I want coach AV to gift wrap minutes for him and put him in situations where he can succeed, like he did with Hodgson, to drive up his value a bit before trading him.
There is no reason to trade him this season unless we're getting an upgrade on defense/filling a need (3rd line center/top 6 forward).
Either wait until the off-season to dump his salary (to make room for Edler) or use an amnesty buyout on him.
Ballard won't be traded unless there is a clear upgrade in his roster spot, or unless there are salary cap concerns... Both just aren't currently there... Without one or the other, Ballard isn't available... Ballard's been pretty good enough, progressing, and has a great attitude... No reason right now to trade him... especially with his value lower than it, IMO, should or could be... If low value, and with no better player than him in hand to take his roster spot, and no need to make cap room, why trade him? He's a player that can turn it around and have a good statistical season, IMO, if anyone is looking for potential steals last round in a many round hockey pool...
Mike Gillis has been on the record several times explaining that Keith Ballard is basically a necessary evil. For the Canucks to have any chance making it out of the Western Conference with the realities of their travel schedule they need to carry 8 defenders. For cap reasons they can't carry 8 top defenders so they opt to pay 5 top 4 guys. Ballard played well in the brief post season appearance the Canucks made last spring which was deservingly overlooked by the fact the Canucks might as well have been swept.
Ballard isn't a #5 or #6 D on a lot of teams. His value has taken a beating since he's the guy who didn't make the top 4 and he's also a whipping boy for Canuck fans.
Anyways, I'm not saying he's Jari Kurri reborn I'm just saying that if you look at what he's done on paper since joining the Canucks I can understand why you perceive his value to be incredibly low but if the reality is he won't return anything it might be better to keep him. Maybe we do need to trade him for cap purposes, time will tell. A Ballard deal may include Vancouver keeping salary but not cap space if that's possible in this CBA which would boost his trade value presumably.
The problem with Ballard is that the Canucks did not use him properly. He's playing on his off side. That's very hard to do especially for a D-man seeing how your fore-hand puts the puck in the middle of the ice instead of closer to the boards. He's going to struggle as long as AV decides to play him on the wrong side. He has improved a lot since last year and I would like to see the Canucks hold on to him and see how he plays this year.
Wingers coming down the off-wing have an advantage seeing how can they use the natural curve of a stick to snipe it short side. Defensemen playing on the off-side = dangerous territory since they leave the puck exposed in the middle of the ice and can not use their body to shield the puck.
With a shortened season there is less opportunity to do that. The NW division has gotten tougher this year. The Canucks cannot afford to have a sub-par d-man being showcased. If Ballard wants to play top minutes, he'll have to earn them.
Agreed, but I mean AV should loosen the chain a bit and give him more slack for playing his game and see if he improves.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nuckles37
There is no reason to trade him this season unless we're getting an upgrade on defense/filling a need (3rd line center/top 6 forward).
Either wait until the off-season to dump his salary (to make room for Edler) or use an amnesty buyout on him.
Agreed, unless the return for Luongo includes some salary and we need to get rid of him, especially near the end of the season before Edler/Higgins/Lapierre enter free agency.
But there is no reason, as of right now, to trade Ballard. He fills a role, albeit a small one, for the team and his value is at an all time low. He should be healthy and concussion symptom free, so his value can only increase this year. The Canucks also ALWAYS struggle with injuries on the blue line, so it's nice to have the depth for him to step up when we need it.
