By Matt Ross

Yesterday the Panthers made a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Panthers Acquire:

• Derick Brassard
• Riley Sheahan
• 2nd round pick (2019)
• 4th round pick (2019)
• 4th round pick (2019)

Penguins Acquire:

• Nick Bjugstad
• Jared McCann

Thanks to Bjugstad and McCann for their time in cat sweaters.

The big speculation, of course, about this deal is that it was a move by the Panthers to free up cap space in an attempt to land Bobvrosky and/or Panarin from Columbus. Both players seem to be disenchanted with the Jackets and have been linked to the Panthers for some time. It sounds like Bob is the immediate guy to acquire now and the Breadman would be the summer target.

It’s interesting to note that while Brassard struggled with Penguins and would probably find his game with the Panthers if given high minutes, the rumor is he will most likely be flipped to another team.

Both Brassard and Sheahan are UFA’s this summer and moving them if you’re trying for Bob and/or Panarin now could make sense.

What kind of goes against the rumors of Brassard and possibly Sheahan being flipped (thought the latter is less likely), is Dale Tallon’s quote regarding the trade:

“We got two good players that can help us in the run, that have experience and have talent and fit a need for us…and we (set ourselves up) for an aggressive summer in free agency.”

It could just be the GM being a GM and saying what you have to, but from that, it seems the cats believe they can ramp things up in the second half and have a shot at making a playoff run. These two players could certainly help there, but there are other issues that still need to be addressed now…like goaltending

Bob

Personally, I think the cats will keep their new acquisitions around unless a team in the hunt makes an offer for Brassard (and anyone else for that matter) that makes sense– which is totally realistic for teams looking to bolster up for a deep playoff run.

I think there are a few avenues the cats can go with these newly acquired pending UFA players:

1. Flip Brassard for picks/prospects and free up more space while simultaneously giving you more ammo that could be appealing for trade dance partners
2. Package Brassard and another player(s) in order to get someone/something Columbus wants and then flip that for Bob/Breadman (if in fact the rumors are true); I still think Reimer will be moved to CBJ as part of the Bob deal and Lu will stay on and retire this summer
3. Both guys play out the second half of the season and let them walk in the summer to get the cap space - I think this only happens if trade offers aren’t good/don’t fall in line with Tallon’s plans for an “aggressive offseason”

On to last night’s loss to the Preds…

There’s not a team in the league I dislike more than the Nashville Predators. I hate losing to those guys.

Last night was a good example of playing a 40-minute game and not the full 60 minutes. It’s no secret that at this level (or any level for that matter) you have to play the full game to win. You have to be Ric Flair, the “60-Minute Man.” WOO!

Showing up for only two periods will not get you the W and last night’s 4-1 loss was an exercise in just that.

The cats started out great. Coming off the All-Star break, I thought they were moving really well. They were quick on the puck and were getting quality chances – resulting in them being the first to strike in the dwindling minutes of the second period.

Then they took the foot off the gas a bit and through a combination of sloppy play, turnovers and one that Luongo probably wants back (Arvidsson’s goal), the Panthers lost control and ultimately the game all in the third period.

Maybe the new acquisitions will be in the lineup tonight (if not flipped) and help the cats bounce back against a visiting Golden Knights team.

Go Panthers!

Join the Discussion: » 1 Comments » Post New Comment

» Wally Pipp Moment

» KRAKEN HOCKEY IS BACK!

» Release the Kraken!

» The RF Plan

» THE CURIOUS CASE OF THE KRAKEN GOALTENDING