A man whose house is on fire needs water to put out the fire, not to swap bicycles with his next door neighbor, but that is exactly what our Pittsburgh Penguins’ GM Jimmy Rutherford did yesterday. In what would appear to be an altruistic move, Mr. Rutherford helped the Detroit Red Wings yesterday by swapping spare part LW Scott Wilson for equally marginal Riley Sheahan, but in the process of the swap helping to relieve Salary Cap stressed Detroit by reducing their pay roll, taking on the $2,075,000 Cap hit of Sheahan in exchange for the $650,000 Cap hit of Scott Wilson. And in what may be a more mystifying aspect of the deal, Mr. Rutherford paid Detroit a third round draft pick as part of his generosity to help Detroit dig their way out of their self-inflicted hole.
Perhaps he was just trying to make amends for getting out from under Rob Scuderi’s contract when he swindled Chicago a couple of years back.
In the meantime, later yesterday, the Tampa Bay Lightning put a big hurt on our favorite flightless fowl giving embattled veteran goalie Antti Niemi a sun burn on the back of his neck from lighting the lamp 7 times for the second time in nine games our local heroes got blown out this year in only 9 outings.
Does that mean we are to expect another 18 blow outs this year?
In the 128 minutes and 8 seconds our veteran Finnish friend, Niemi, has patrolled the pipes back-stopping our Penguins, he is averaging 7.49 Goals Against per 60 minute game, stopping a whopping 79.7% shots he has faced. Last year we fans were concerned when long time legend Marc-Andre Fleury’s Save Percentage dipped below 0.900, this year Niemi has dipped below 0.800, but Mr. Rutherford chooses to help Detroit out of their financial jam rather than address the turnstile backing up Matt Murray.
Granted, I was all for letting Tristan Jarry handle the back-up role this year, so some may suggest that is the only thing the our Penguins need to do, but I am sorry to say, Jarry is himself struggling right now down in Wilkes-Barre Scranton (WBS). His goals against average is 3.96, better than Niemi’s 7.49 by a long shot, but Jarry’s numbers appear bloated against AHL level talent, not NHL level talent. Furthermore, Penguins management seems to be putting the same pressure on themselves that prevented them from winning back-to-back Cups in 2010 and up through the beginning of Mike Sullivan’s tenure in 2015-2016; their mantra seems to have reverted to the bury the kids in WBS and bring in veterans whose talent is at best equal to the kids’ talent, often times; not, but who have played more NHL games and have higher paychecks. So, it would seem that the Penguins would be more than likely try and trade away more future assets to redress this abysmal goal situation to chase that 3-peat.
As bad as Niemi has been, he hasn’t gotten any help from many of his teammates. Looking at Conor Sheary and Kris Letang and the number of even strength goals these guys give up per 60 minutes of ice time; Sheary is contributing 6.18 goals against to the Penguins woes and Assistant Captain Kris Letang is helping bury Penguin Goalies to the tune of 5.87 even strength goals against per 60 minutes of even strength ice time. Looking at the Penguins Goalies’ even strength goals against, since Murray’s is 4.24 and Niemi’s is 7.23, it would appear that at least these two players are hurting Murray’s weak showing and contributing mightily to Niemi’s bad play. (explain to me again why Letang is wearing the “A” is leading the team in poor defense among defensemen what the Penguins want their younger players to aspire to?)
But as I said, Mr. Rutherford feels that is better to help Detroit fix their problems rather than his own.
Does anyone really want to see Sheahan play second line Center if Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin miss a game? One other option right now would be to switch Jake Guentzel back to Center, even though that is not the position he has become accustomed to at the NHL level, also in the process depriving the Penguins of a legitimate scoring threat from the Left Wing. Yes the Penguins are blessed with Wingers, but most of them are natural Right Winger with some of them able to play Left Wing when needed. They aren’t that deep at Left Wing.
Of course they could bring up an Adam Johnson or a Teddy Bleuger, but as I mentioned with the Goal-tending dilemma, the Penguins seem petrified of using kids, even though it was kids like Bryan Rust, Conor Sheary, and Tom Kuhnhackl that lifted them the first of these back-to-back Cups.
Unfortunately, due to the auspices of Mr. Rutherford’s charity in taking on Detroit’s Cap debt, Pittsburgh has less than $800,000 in cap space making it very tough for them to try and bring in a quality backup Goalie or even a quality Defenseman who could shoulder some of the heat for a weak goalie, let alone a real Center to fill in when Crosby or Malkin miss games.
I was not happy with the signing of Niemi in the first place, his poor showing has surprised me any. I was no fan of paying Vegas a draft pick to take the best goalie in the expansion draft. I was angry over paying a late first round pick and a spare part center for Ryan Reaves. Now I am extremely unhappy at paying Detroit a 3rd round pick in exchange for taken on their Cap debt. They should have paid us that 3rd round pick allowing them to sign Andreas Athanasiou.
Oh, by the way, even though we now have allegedly the toughest guy in the league, we have gotten softer to play against. Last year after 9 games the Penguins dished out 240 hits compared to the whopping 202 that they have dished out this year, a drop of 38 hits. Without Bonino, they have only blocked 139 shots this year compared to the 148 they had last year. Hits and blocked shots are supposed to be possession related, but last year the Penguins were even in their CORSI (Shots For – Shots Against; this year after 9 games they are -18). So, since CORSI stats are also a more accurate measure of puck possession even though the Penguins are possessing the puck less, they are doing even that much less to retrieve.
No, Mr. Rutherford, your house is on fire. You need to put the fire out, before you swap spare parts with Detroit. Worse yet paying them in the process, putting yourself in a weaker position when time come to repair the fire damage.
FYI, there was an exchange of draft picks a 5th round for a 3rd round. I’m not sure which team got which. Nhl.com is saying the Pens got the third rounder, TSN is saying Detroit got the 3rd rounder.
I’m not sure what the problem is, the Pens got a much needed big third line center for a smaller healthy scratched winger?? Isn’t that what they wanted?
You’re talking about goaltending and losing all of the back to back games. The real question is, why did Sullivan play Murray in the obviously easier of the back to back games?
Hey Phil,
My problem isn’t the players, it is the change In cap space and the poor play of the Goaltending and team defense. Yes a third line center is also needed, but as bad as the other two parts of the team is that is a luxury. That cap space would have been better spent on a solid back up or a solid D-man.
Do I believe that heir is someone in the system that could answer those questions?
Yes, emphatically yes, but the Pens have shown a regression to the days of let’s not play anyone with less than 200 games or so NHL experience. So, they will need to trade for those players. Unfortunately, they no longer have cap space to deal with.
Furthermore, I really do not think that Sheahan is that much of an upgrade over McKegg or Rowney. Therefore the trade is nothing more than trading for the sake of trade, it really doesn’t upgrade the team that much and definitely not in the areas that the team needs to upgrade right now.
Sorry, I forgot to add, in the process the Pens actually helped an opposing team get better, by now giving that team cap room to add what could be an important player. So, not only didn’t the trade make them significantly better, it allowed another team to close the gap between them.
The more I read about Sheahan, the more I like the move. The timing couldn’t have been better with Rowney going down. We traded two guys who are the same age, one that was a 21st overall pick who has way more NHL experience and size for another who was a 209th overall and is smaller and has never proven to be anything. I could care less if we helped another team out. The only question is whether or not the Penguins made themselves a better team. The answer is a resounding yes.
If the 3rd for 5th draft pick worries you, we just got a first rounder for a 7th round pick. Wilson was the 28th pick of the 7th round. If the Penguins didn’t pick him, they probably could have got in as a free agent as he was the 3rd to last pick in the entire draft.
I agree that there are also other needs. Rutherford gets his needs when the deal is good and only then.
I still question if Niemi is the problem or the fact that Sullivan doesn’t believe in Murray enough to play him the tough game of the back to back.
Hey Phil,
Perhaps wallowing for a disintegrating Detroit did hurt Sheahan’s value, that is a distinct possibility. Perhaps, if he at least returns to the form of a couple of years back, his CORSI numbers would represent an improvement over some of the players on this team, right now, both his raw CORSI and his CA/60. However, those numbers he put up back then may have been more of a question of Detroit’s system and not any personal ability, just like I doubt Sheary would but up the numbers he does anywhere else other than here. But all of these number, as I said are only marginal improvements over the Cs on the team now and will not address the real issues, leaving no $$$$ space to maneuver for addressing the real issues. So, in affect hurting the team.
I was surprised to see Murray play the front end of this last back-to-back series, since FLA represented the weaker of the two opponents, but there may be something other than a lack of confidence in Sullivan’s move. I was actually glad to see the move. I will explain later.
However, again looking at all of the Pens records and although I don’t get to see many games in person like you, so my eye test is not as fortunate as yours, I can’t watch the the play behind the play like you, from what the camera’s show, does back up the statistical evidence; the Pens real problem right now is a Swiss Cheese defense and Goalie and team play that is Softer than Dairy Queen Ice Cream.
Niemi’s Save% and GAA are abysmal and not NHL caliber. The sample volume is low but as bad as it is, where there is smoke there is fire. I do think that Casey DeSmith would represent an upgrade right now, or at least worth a look and with the number of back-to-back games, either he or Jarry would still get plenty of work.
Although the Pens D is really bad (I’ll discuss that in a minute), Niemi isn’t helping his own cause. For a veteran he has very poor rebound control. The team is actually blocking a higher % of the shots he faces than they do for Murray, yet his Sv% is falling like a led balloon.
Now for the D, I was glad to see Letang’s skating ability wasn’t hurt by his injury and long lay-off, but his over-all play has regressed. So has Ian Coles play. As I mentioned below, looking at the number of goals against at even strength when Letang is on the ice is almost as bad as Niemi’s GAA at even strength. He is making poor decisions putting his goalies in a bad position. The Pens really need to find a Paul Martinesque D man to shore up Letang’s defensive lapses again. It would be great if the Dumoulin or Maatta would mature that quickly to cover for the veteran and assistant captain, Letang, but that really is asking a great deal. Cole would first need to pick his own game back up first to be that man, and so far he has never shown any chemistry with Letang, even when he was at the top of his game. That means the Pens will need to look elsewhere and that won’t be cheap; again, they have precious little room to maneuver now.
My initial shock over, I can now see a way out of this, what I think is a bad trade, and that would be to find a way to unload Reaves and free up that money. It would have been great if JR would have traded Sundvist and Wilson to Detroit in the off season for Sheahan and not Reaves but he didn’t.
Since Reaves has joined the team, the team has gotten a lot softer to play against. The have the puck less and do less to get the puck back as I have shown elsewhere. He doesn’t fit the teams system. If the team unloads him and uses Archibald and Rowney when he gets back as the RW on the 4th line, that may address some of the problems. You can be as big and bad as you want but if you can’t get to the play until it is over, then all of your size and toughness doesn’t matter.
There is a reason why the Pens have only 2 games with anything resembling authority over there first 9 games and he has nothing to do with the third line Center.
Again, sorry,
After the fact I remember something else I wanted to say. Even though Sheahan is 6’2, he plays small. He softens the team even more. Looking at his real time stats over the years, he doesn’t hit and he is about half the shot blocker that Bones was. So, he may help in some departments but not in the areas the Pens need help in.
Hey Other Rick,
I think an ember or two landed on me, just by reading your article … 🙂
A very passionate and provocative piece, to say the least! I’ll toss my two cents in. While I’m not jumping for joy over the deal, I’m far from unhappy with it. I felt the Pens needed to address the hole at center and get bigger up front, and they accomplished both with this trade.
Obviously, we’ll have to see how Sheahan pans out. He actually had decent production for a third-line center over his first three seasons before falling into a black hole last year. Let’s hope he re-emerges and becomes the player he’s historically been.
If so, I call it a win. If not, we’re not tied to him beyond this season.
I actually liked Wilson, but thought he seemed a little hesitant and unsure of himself when playing with the big boys. Conversely, he seemed more comfortable…and better suited to a bottom-six role. I especially liked his grit and speed.
In terms of Rutherford’s overall approach, let’s just say you and I represent different schools of thought. I’m not saying JR’s done his best work this past summer. But I think you have to take his moves in context of where the team is…admittedly a work in progress. I guess I prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Rick
Hey Rick,
I probably shouldn’t sugar-coat my opinions so much. some people may have a hard time knowing exactly where I stand on an issue 🙂
I do agree, the team is a work in progress, all teams are. Unfortunately, as I wrote below, the loss of $1.5 mil in cap space makes it a lot harder to mold this team into a 3-peater. It is hard enough to do that without self-inflicted financial wounds.
I don’t think we are all that far apart on schools of thought. If I could have every player I wished for, I would rather see a lineup of 6’4″ 230lb Mario Lemieux, 6’3″ 230lb Jaromir Jagr, and 6’3″ 230lb Kevin Stevens.
However, I would never settle for 6’6″ 223lb Chris Wells, 6’8″ 252lb Steve McKenna, 6’4″ Jay Caufield. (No offense to those guys), but size for size sake even in the current state of hockey, let alone, where it probably will have to go with the all of this concussion discussion is a different story.
I am hoping for the best (since there are no give back) but just like when I complained about Niemi and Reaves, I don’t see it really making much difference on the ice and hurting the team off the ice.
Hey Coach,
I hear your words my friend and many are so very,very true.I have not had time to look at the corsi numbers as you have, but for me I see it in a slightly different manner. JR has tried to get pieces to replace Bones and Cullen but has had no TAKERS. We seem to value our players, much higher than the rest of the league and as a result no one will trade with us.As my piece I did over the summer showed our FARM SYSTEM was last !! That should not surprise any one given all the 1st, 2nd and 3 rd picks we have given away for the past 5 to 7 years. We brag about all our US College kids but most of them are 5’10” or smaller. Small terms of equal skill can not beat larger ones. Plus because we play our players TO MUCH MONEY we do not have the Cap space to buy better ones. This Detroit trade was the best JR could do as he knows to get real change, he has to break up the CORE !! Not gong to happen Coach…
I agree 100% with what you wrote, i just see it from a different perspective.
But if you asked me would I take a RFA 25 year old, 6’3″ 214 # Center for 2 million as opposed to smurf like Wilson at $ 650,000….Given i can not get any one else…I would…. The big question is would i package him up with a Connor Sheary and try to get an upgrade at Center and bring up Sprong…
I would as well.
Good stuff Coach
Cheers
Hey Jim,
First, a quick little ditty; about 10 years ago I was working for a company that would eventually go bankrupt. During those last several months of their death throes the company changed CEOs something like 4 times. Each time a new CEO took over, the Regional and Area Vice-Presidents shuffled the deck and moved low level management from site to site in an effort to make the new CEO think they were actually doing something to keep the company from sinking.
To me, that is all JR has done. He has just shuffled the deck. Worse than that, he did not identify the most pressing need of the team. As I mention above, the Defense and the Goalies (Well at least one Goalie) are the bigger problem, not the third line Center.
If this was 1990, with no salary Cap and an owner that liked to poor money down the drain, then of course, I agree, a 6’3″ Center would be better than a 5’11” (Although I have seen some sites that generously list him as 6’0″ that must have been on skates) winger. However, not only are we living in a salary Cap era in which that extra $1.5mil now becomes critical, Sheahan is not really replacing Scott Wilson, he will be replacing either 6’0″ Gregg McKegg or 6’2″ Carter Rowney. So the team isn’t getting all that much bigger.
The $2mil the Penguins used to have in Cap room could have been better used or even better yet, if they couldn’t find anyone to trade with, saved to try and shore up the team financially.
As Rick suggested on his post, Casey DeSmith may be summoned to fill the gap in goal for the Pens, since Jarry is struggling right now himself. But, as it stands, because of this really bad trade the Pens really don’t have too many other options, financially. They have a lot less Cap room to play with, when they finally get fed up with these blowouts. They will have to either trade away a core player for a backup goalie, or talk a team into eating part of the salary.
They also have to find a way to fix the team D. Giving Letang some press box time would be a good place to start. Not only would it be a wakeup call for him to stop making dangerously bad decisions, forcing his goalies, one 23 year old kid and one 34 year old fisherman who never has to worry about telling tales about the one that got away since his net is always filled with pucks, to come up with super-human efforts to cover for the veteran with the “A” on his sweater, but it would serve notice to everyone that if you don’t play, you sit, regardless of how much you get paid.
However, although Sullivan did that as soon as he took over the reins of this team when he put smurfette Sheary on the ice to open his tenure, he hasn’t repeated that. Big name veterans have once again gotten a free pass and the kids take the heat for veteran mistakes.
The greater probability is that the Penguins would want to look for another player. Again, with the loss of $!.5 mil in Cap space, they Pens aren’t likely to get more than another retread, deck shuffle.
In the end this trade looks like a trade to pretend that we are doing something, rather than really working.
Hey Jim,
A mild pushback on the farm-system rating. As I recall, the Blackhawks were one notch above us on the list. With the notable exception of Tampa Bay, most of the Cup contenders were in the bottom half and the have-nots were in the top half.
As you so aptly pointed out, contending teams tend to shed draft picks to plug immediate needs, a practice that helps in the short run but obviously has long-term implications regarding the draft and player development.
Also, the Pens generally are picking in the bottom portion of each round…another consequence of being a contender.
Rick
Hey Rick,
Another real problem that causes teams on top to have poor farm systems; they wait too long to trade current roster players, rather than risking bringing in kids who are just as good and trading off the veteran for draft picks. I have always complained, year after year, watching the Penguins hold on to players well past their prime, thinking that their experience would somehow benefit the team. Fortunately, Sullivan broke that mold a couple of years back and started using more kids, but JR still seemed to hold on to aging spare parts that he could have traded for picks or swapped spare parts.