Game Analysis: Back-To-Backs Vs. New Jersey, At Pittsburgh

wonder how many shots on goal by pitt were off rebounds?

I hear you and agree. I liked what I saw early on, but as the game went on and things tilted in Pittsburgh’s favor, I definitely thought rebound control slipped.

well I would love to see any of us try to get up knowing a player like Malkin was behind the net… I have and it is not easy..

Peters did an amazingly good job when being bombarded with shots from one of the NHL’s best teams; and in a game in which the Hurricanes were coming off an exhausting win the night before. Granted, there were some plays among the innumerable shots where Peters in hindsight should have used different positioning; but he kept the team in the game.

But nothing says Ruutu stays….(see Eric Cole)….at least you get something of value….I think it is more risky to keep him.

I think you could get back a top 6 player for Ruutu, but it’s going to have to be a package deal of some sort. We would probably have to take back an underperforming player, but I think a deal could be worked out. For example:

With all of their UFA’s and RFA’s coming due at seasons end, would Colorado like to rid themselves of Paul Stastny’s contract? The Avs are just 2 points out of the 8th spot and Ruutu would provide them with some goal scoring and a physical element. Since they have no 1st round pick this draft, we would probably have to include one of our 2nd’s for it to work; but I think it is possible. And wouldn’t Stastny be a nice setup center for Skinner?
or
Since St. Louis looks playoff bound, they may look for a playoff rental. With their team’s injury history, Ruutu would be both a top 6 insurance policy and a player thats style of play would do well with Ken Hitchcock. Chris Stewart is a RFA at the end of the season and is underperforming so far (he’s averaging 0.42PPG this season while his NHL average is is 0.71PPG). Might St. Louis be willing to part with Stewart for Ruutu & a 3rd to better compete this season and in the playoffs? Stewart could be a power forward RW that can score around 30 goals a season for the Canes.
or
Montreal is always trying to make the playoffs and its obvious that their current team as constructed is not likely to do so. They have a few large contracts that really restrict them, so maybe they would be willing to trade one of those contracts for Ruutu who is having a career goal scoring year. Maybe Ruutu could help them sneek into the playoffs and since his contract expires, it would open up some room for them. Would they be willing to move Cammalleri for Ruutu & maybe Sanguinetti? Cammalleri has been a 30+ goal scorer and usually plays better with a big center. Maybe Cammalleri would provide Staal with a scorer to play with?

Just to let you know, Cole was a 3rd round pick.

The real key to this whole Ruutu thing is what direction are the Canes going to go in? Are they going to do a true rebuild? If so, trade him away for a pick & prospect; yeah we’ll suck for a few more years, but eventually we should be good if we can actually develop players. If we are going to do a half rebuild, then we need to resign him to a good contract or trade him for a young, proven player that can contribute immediately and still grow. Or if we can try to resign him after the season and put together a similar lineup to this season & have the same discussion next year because all we did is put the same basic team on the ice against a much stronger conference/division.

Don’t know if Nashville will give up a ‘D’ man with Weber on the shelf with a concussion and no timetable for return.

Overall though I like the idea…..maybe they give us an underachieving prospect from their farm system.

I don’t know if I would do that deal. Blum is a talented, young defenseman; but he is not physical and only adds to our weak defense. Hornqvist is a very good player, but it seems like we are giving up a lot for him. I think a more reasonable deal would be Ruutu + a 2nd for Hornqvist.

And other than a playoff run this season, I don’t see how this helps Nashville. If they are willing to spend money, they have plenty of room for both Suter & Weber. What they really need is an offensive force for years to come to help round out their team. They have the defense, they have the goalie, they have the forward depth; they just need that top-notch forward.

It’s time for Jim Rutherford to accept the fact he has to negotiate contract extensions mid-season while there is a contract. If he had done so with Cole, he’d have realized, he had to trade Cole. If he had done so, he’d have realized he had to take the best offer for Whitney that Whitney would accept (if any). Losing Ruutu for no compensation is unacceptable; but failing to re-sign Ruutu is also unacceptable. Ruutu’s perhaps the most sought after player the Hurricanes have who is an UFA. The reason is that his a very difficult player to replace.

Hopefully, not only has Jim Rutherford learned his lesson from the Cole fiasco, but hopefully he has learned the right lesson. Big, fast, skilled physical forwards with character are hard to find. They are almost impossible to replace once they are nurtured and developed within a team’s structure. It’s a marketplace. The more rare the object, the more it costs.

Adding to the confusion and intrigue are RFAs. They can also be players with high salaries that expire. It’s complicated. Some teams may have to trade RFAs because they can’t afford to re-sign them even within the limitations of the RFA status under the current CBA. The next CBA may well address RFA status as well.