Playoffs - not young
At Pittsburgh: Gary Roberts
To Florida: Noah Welch
The Penguins felt the power. They believed that they were already capable of forging iron in the playoffs. And Roberts is another confirmation of this. A fairly productive power forward, who has tremendous experience as a bonus to his 40th birthday. It is very likely that Roberts will play on the left edge of the first link - with Crosby and Recca. And he will look after the young talent, while yet another acquisition of Pittsburgh - Georges Larac - will gain strength between shifts, and will score goals.
Profession: Bodyguard
At Pittsburgh: Georges Larac
In the Phoenix: Daniel Carchillo + 8th round
True, the second acquisition of the “Penguins” is not particularly going to rest. Work will be. Diamonds, which are collected in the team of Mario Lemieux, need very careful protection. In any case, Larak himself took this exchange with enthusiasm. In “Phoenix” he was not happy with playing time, and, it seems, his status and the number of wards in need of protection.
Second Shark Attempt
At San Jose: Bill Guerin
In St. Louis: Ville Nieminen, Jay Barriball, Round 1
It seems that Guerin should fulfill a mission that Mark Bell, acquired in the summer from Chicago, could not cope. Namely, to make, finally, a full-fledged three of the duo Thornton - Chichu. He definitely has more chances to deal with it. Because at least that he is a player of a much higher class. And what about the role of Gerin on the extreme right, like Chichu, in this case is insignificant. Some of them can be retrained in the left. Moreover, Guerin, in hot pursuit of the exchange, has already announced that he is ready to play in any position.
Russian castling
To Ottawa: Oleg Saprykin, 7th round
To Phoenix: 2nd Round
If you remember, Ottawa has already changed with Phoenix with the participation of a Russian player. On January 3, the “senators” brushed off the “coyotes” of Alexei Kaygorodov, who did not take root at the club. And now they took another Russian from them. Therefore, the balance is maintained. For Saprykin, this is a very good chance. It is unlikely that they took him to torment on the bench or pickle in the farm, and a place in the third (if not even the second, with a good deal) link of the Ottawa gives him the opportunity to rise to a new step in his career.
For wool shred
At Detroit: Todd Bertuzzi
In Florida: Sean Matthias, “conditional” (depending on Bertuzzi’s career in Detroit) draft picks in 2007 and 2008 (2nd round)
In the pursuit of rejuvenation, the Detroit team broke up with Brendan Shenahan in the summer. And there was no one to replace him. It’s not so easy to find a silovik who regularly nails the puck. At the same time, Florida, apparently, was somewhat disappointed in Bertuzzi. And therefore, this exchange seems to be ideal for both teams. "Florida" in this case with a black sheep, even a shred of wool - in the summer, Bertuzzi becomes an unlimited free agent. And Detroit is a very inexpensive chance to replace Shenahan. After all, if Bertuzzi doesn't succeed, then who? Cool siloviki in the league at all.
Great combinators
In Buffalo: 2nd round (Philadelphia), Ty Conklin (Columbus), Dainius Zubrus, Timo Helbling (both Washington), Mikko Lehtonen (Nashville)
From Buffalo: Martin Biron (Philadelphia), 5th round (Columbus), Jiri Novotny, 1st round (both Washington), 4th round (Nashville)
When the “Buffalo” at the beginning of the day made two deals with goalkeepers at once, it became clear that some serious exchange was being prepared. Having given Biron to Philadelphia, and then taking Konklin to this place from Columbus, the blades unloaded the sheet by more than one and a half million. And so it happened. Without waiting for the last minutes, “Buffalo” exchanged Zubrus for “Washington” (how can he and Ovechkin be without each other now?). Given the epidemic of injuries, it is among the attackers that this exchange seems to be the key for the club. Bison is a versatile player, both useful and defensive in attack. And in the center is not bad, and on the edge. Lindy Ruff will figure out where he needs the Bison. Another question is that I had to give up the first two rounds (Novotny - 22nd draft number of 2001) for a player who can live for another team in the summer for a great life. But, apparently, the acute need for an intelligent striker served as a vaccine against greed.
There is such a nuance. In summer, not only Zubrus enters the market, but also two leading Buffalo centers - Drury and Brier. And the appetite of these guys has grown significantly. So with a very high degree of probability, the “blades” will have to invest in one of them, losing the other. Therefore, the calculation may also be based on the fact that the Zubrus does not request exorbitant money and closes the position of the second center.
Torn heart
At The Islanders: Ryan Smith
In Edmonton: Ryan O'Marra, Robert Nilsson, 1st Round
Despite many rumors, Smith didn’t believe in Smith’s departure from Edmonton. This is not just a player - a team leader. Her heart. Can a heart be measured in money? Therefore, I could not believe it. But the Islanders offered a price that was not easy to resist. Two young talents and the first round are a great investment in perspective. Moreover, the devil is not joking, maybe in the summer Smith will return. Money is money, but the heart is not a stone.
For fun
In Boston: Dennis Widman
In St. Louis: Brad Boyce
When you see such exchanges, it is difficult to overcome the feeling that someone has cheated someone hard. It seems that in this case they fooled Boston. More precisely, he inflated himself. It's not that Wideman is a bad player. And the fact that the “bears” first shoved Mara into the “Rangers”, and then seemed to catch up: priests, there is not enough attacking defender. And they urgently found him in St. Louis. Only had to give a loudly announced last year a young striker. With a very good prospect, even though this season he lost a little.
Anyway, with Bidon, at least Bidon will not be bored. Doubt it? Just look at how he can execute bullets.