Is a Trade Within the Division on the Horizon?

Due to the influx of hockey news yesterday, there are a plethora of topics that could be discussed today.  However, I would like to revisit a topic that I wrote about last week; trading within the division.  I mentioned that in rare cases, such as the Mark Streit deal this summer, teams will trade with division rivals.  As of yesterday afternoon, there seems to be a situation in the Metropolitan Division that could cause an inter-divisional trade.

Yesterday afternoon, Carolina Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford announced that defenseman Joni Pitkanen will miss the entire 2013-2014 season.  Even before this news, Carolina was in need of help on their blue-line.  Pitkanen was originally drafted 4th overall by the Flyers in 2002.  He has never lived up to the expectations that were put on him when he was drafted, but he has developed into a solid defenseman.  In the lockout-shortened 2013 season Pitkanen played top-pairing minutes, averaging 22:49 per game.  Many games he logged nearly 30 minutes and was a reliable defender.

There are a few teams in the NHL who are going into training camp who need to drop defensemen.  The Philadelphia Flyers have nine defensemen on one-way contracts (ten including Chris Pronger).  The Toronto Maple Leafs have seven defensemen under contract (six on one-way deals, one on a two-way deal) and are still trying to sign RFA defenseman Cody Franson.  The New Jersey Devils also have seven defensemen under contract (six on one-way deals, one on a two-way deal), but have multiple prospects who are NHL ready.

Although the Maple Leafs are an intriguing option for the Hurricanes to acquire D-relief, I could just as easily see a deal being made with one of the two division rivals mentioned above.  Let’s look at why each situation has a chance of producing a trade.

PHILADELPHIA

According to capgeek.com the Flyers are $2,053,522 over the salary cap.  Although they will be able to hide cap in the AHL until Pronger becomes LTIR eligible, the Flyers could still use some cap relief.  The nine defensemen who are one-way contracts comprise $29,287,500 in cap space, nearly half of the salary cap. 

Aside from monetary considerations, the Flyers have a logjam on their defensive depth chart.  Kimmo Timonen, Luke Schenn, Mark Streit, Braydon Coburn, and Nicklas Grossman are almost assured spots on the roster barring injury.  That leaves two open spots for players like Andrej Meszaros, Erik Gustafsson, Marc-Andre Bourdon, and Bruno Gervais, not to mention young players who had a cup of coffee in the NHL last season like Oliver Lauridsen, Brandon Manning, and Matt Konan.

Pitkanen’s cap hit is $4.5 million and he will be a UFA next summer.  The Flyers defensemen who are most likely to be traded are Meszaros ($4 million cap hit), Grossman ($3.5 million cap hit), or Coburn ($4.5 million cap hit).  All three of those defensemen are solid and have some decent NHL experience.  Both Coburn and Grossman have modified no-trade clauses in their contracts in which they could block a possible trade.  Similar to Pitkanen, Meszaros will be a UFA next summer.  After running into a string of injuries, Meszaros is finally healthy and will see ice time during the Flyers preseason.  Therefore, do not be surprised to see Meszaros traded to Carolina as soon as he proves that he is healthy.

NEW JERSEY

The New Jersey Devils have very old group of defensemen.  Anton Volchenkov (31), Andy Greene (30), Bryce Salvador (37), Marek Zidlicky (36), and Peter Harrold (30) are all over 30 years old.  Adam Larsson is only 20 years old and could see time on their first unit.  However, the Devils have two young prospects who many think are NHL ready.

Jon Merrill, 21, was the 38^th overall pick in 2010 and is regarded as one of the Devil’s top prospects.  Merrill is a big left handed defenseman who has been developing at the University of Michigan.  Alexander Urbom, 22, was the Devils’ third round pick in 2009 (73rd overall).  He is also a huge defenseman (6’5”, 215lbs) who has spent the last few seasons in the AHL with the Albany Devils.  He played one game for the Devils last year and has 14 games of NHL experience over the past three years. He is now poised to make a push for the big club out of training camp.  Getting rid of one of their veterans would give Merrill or Urbom an NHL spot and help bring more youth to the Devils back end.

The defenseman that is most likely to be dealt from the Devils is Andy Greene.  Volchenkov and Zidlicky have no trade clauses and Salvador is on an over-35 contract.  Greene has a reasonable contract and would help clear the way for one of the young guns to step in.

The situation on the blue-line is very bleak for the Carolina Hurricanes.  They do, however, have options.  Unless the Hurricanes look to the Maple Leafs and opt to offer sheet Franson or pull off a trade for someone like Liles, we may see an inter-divisional trade.  Any of the above trades would help both teams involved.  The only question is, what would Carolina have to give up?  What is being demanded of them could decide which team the Hurricanes decide to work with.

 

Coming This Weekend: A breakdown and prediction for the 2013-2014 Washington Capitals.