Traded Erik Brännström - D - Part III

[Golden_Jet]

still blows my mind that many on here do not see the value Brann brings to our team specifically.

Like did they not see how bad the movement and creativity is without him? how we have no stable 2nd pair if we split Brann-Zub? How Brann seamlessly steps in for one of the best d in the league and the team doesn't skip a beat? How he is only 22 and clearly still figuring out the league but still productive and a net positive?

People pointing to his point totals as proof he is struggling is ignorant and stat watching. He's clearly outplaying his point totals.

Probably like some on here don’t see the value Tkachuk brings,

 

[OD99]

Probably like some on here don’t see the value Tkachuk brings,

Good point and from completely opposite views!

Some still think of Brady as the 4 goal scorer we drafted who is big and skates funny. His size was used against him showing he couldn't have skill or vision or IQ. End result, can't think of him being a valuable player.

Brann is still thought of as the return for Stone so being small but not being EK means he can't play D and is a bad player.

 

[DylanSensFan]

You cannot take wideman and play him big minutes while your best d man is out and still look competent defensively. Even pre injury.

We’ve seen brannstrom can lock shit down.

I think for me it is more a size comparison than anything else. Brannstrom is really, honestly a top-4 defender in my eyes.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

I think for me it is more a size comparison than anything else. Brannstrom is really, honestly a top-4 defender in my eyes.

I agree with you. He’s a top 4 d man in this league. Are you an elite team with him in your top 4?? Maybe not. But I also don’t think there’s are 32*4 “top 4 d men” in the league either.

 

[JD1]

I agree with you. He’s a top 4 d man in this league. Are you an elite team with him in your top 4?? Maybe not. But I also don’t think there’s are 32*4 “top 4 d men” in the league either.

And what about in two years? He's going to get better. Is he capable of providing top 4 play for a playoff team?

 

[Burrowsaurus]

And what about in two years? He's going to get better. Is he capable of providing top 4 play for a playoff team?

Remains to be seen.

 

[aragorn]

IMO this will come down to whether Sanderson is ahead of Brann or not by the end of training camp. Brann is ahead by age & experience while Sanderson is ahead by pedegree & skillset. If it comes down to one of these two, who do you want? If the Chabot/Hamonic tandem works out for next yr Hamonic could earn another contract. Eight D on the roster, six spots available, at least three are obviously taken & there are two more D in Belleville who will challenge for spots next season. Zaitsev is who the fan base wants gone, but I'm not sure what the org will do with him, if anything.

Chabot - Hamonic - they have said & are trying this combo out & want it to work
Brann - Zub - Brann is occupying the spot where Sanderson fits & should play
Holden - Zaitsev - both are signed for next yr & were used as the shutdown tandem
MDZ - what will they do with him? Probably buy him out, they still have Thomson & JBD.

 

[OD99]

Any word on Brann playing in the Worlds?

 

[Ice-Tray]

I wonder if we’re looking to role 3 pairings like want to be rolling 4 lines.

Branstrom and Kleven could make for a solid 3 pair, and an important pairing that plays a regular shift.

Having too many good players is a good problem to have. Unless we’re doing a quantity for quality move I don’t see why we would ‘need’ to trade Branny.

In my opinion he isn’t in danger of becoming Brown, his NHL career is already much better; he is an NHL player for sure, with more potential and time to reach it.

 

[GCK]

When asked about players who exceeded expectations Dorion did not mention Brannstrom but did mention Holden. He also said Sanderson is on the EK and Chabot level. Not promising words for the Brannstrom fans.

 

[AchtzehnBaby]

 

[playasRus]

Let's look at this from a contract point of view & how many one way contracts they will carry on defence & who is still eligible to go to Belleville.
...
I'm just not sure there is room on the roster except as a depth D for Brann & I doubt he wants to stay in that situation & could ask to be traded himself. After playing as a regular for half a season I doubt he will want to go back to Belleville or be a healthy scratch when he could play elsewhere, hopefully his value has gone up. After next season Kleven is coming & will be competition for a LD spot & by then Thomson & probably JBD will need one too. It's going to be very interesting how this all plays out on defence & what happens with Holden, Hamonic, Zaitsev, MDZ & Brannstrom over the summer & going into next yr.

Even from a contract point of view, Sanderson will be the odd man out to go to Belleville, and league wide not ready prospects go down, while Ottawa has shown two way contracts go down regardless of how ready they are.

It's also short sighted to get rid of a potential middle pairing D before he hits his stride just because PD made poor roster decisions in Zaitsev MDZ and Harmonic but we've shown that were willing to bury MDZ, and if anything someone might want him or Holden or Harmonic with 1 year left.

We have 8 defensemen, one injury prone (Chabot), one barely playable (Zaitsev), one who's never played a professional game (Sanderson), four NHL quality D, and three expiring contracts.

I'd argue there's plenty of room for Brannstrom. JBD and Thomson get 20 games this year to ease them in to next year to replace MDZ/Harmonic/Holden and hopefully we can also get a decent UFA/trade in 1-2 years like Severson/Graves or we'll be short in NHL D again in 3 years with:

Chabot - Zub (strong chance loss to UFA)
Sanderson - JBD
Brannstrom - Thomson
Kleven

If Zub leaves and neither JBD or Thomson break out in a way they haven't shown any glimpse of yet, we're desperate and bottom in the league again and reaching for a 40 year old Duncan Keith.

 

[DJB]

Good ol' Pierre. Always pumping tires of guys he wants to get rid of lol.

Remember Colin White winning training camp? LMAO

 

[aragorn]

Even from a contract point of view, Sanderson will be the odd man out to go to Belleville, and league wide not ready prospects go down, while Ottawa has shown two way contracts go down regardless of how ready they are.

It's also short sighted to get rid of a potential middle pairing D before he hits his stride just because PD made poor roster decisions in Zaitsev MDZ and Harmonic but we've shown that were willing to bury MDZ, and if anything someone might want him or Holden or Harmonic with 1 year left.

We have 8 defensemen, one injury prone (Chabot), one barely playable (Zaitsev), one who's never played a professional game (Sanderson), four NHL quality D, and three expiring contracts.

I'd argue there's plenty of room for Brannstrom. JBD and Thomson get 20 games this year to ease them in to next year to replace MDZ/Harmonic/Holden and hopefully we can also get a decent UFA/trade in 1-2 years like Severson/Graves or we'll be short in NHL D again in 3 years with:

Chabot - Zub (strong chance loss to UFA)
Sanderson - JBD
Brannstrom - Thomson
Kleven

If Zub leaves and neither JBD or Thomson break out in a way they haven't shown any glimpse of yet, we're desperate and bottom in the league again and reaching for a 40 year old Duncan Keith.

First, what was the point of extending Holden last yr if they are not going to be playing him next season? Hamonic, Holden, MDZ & Zub all go into next season as UFAs & all have a chance of being gone by the TDL although IMO Zub gets re-signed & maybe Hamonic. Holden is really the only guy I see traded at the deadline & that's because I think they have a replacement in Kleven coming by the end of next season.

The biggest problem this yr for Ottawa was goal differential, they can put up pts most of the time, but it was preventing them that is the problem & that's where Brann at times is seen as a liability. You do make a good point regarding Sanderson, he is waiver exempt & could be sent down, but the way he has been introduced to the NHL & the way they are talking about him he seems destined to be a regular next season. I still think it might come down to one or the other, Sanderson or Brannstrom, but we'll see

I imagine MDZ could get bought out next month, but I don't see them as able to move Zaitsev, but you never know. They could also bring Sanderson along slowly in & out of the lineup learning what he needs to do. While he is taller than Brann he doesn't look very strong & seems rail thin. The defence has a lot of question marks going into the summer that will need some clarity for next season, IMO it's their biggest weakness going into next season.

 

[Senator Stanley]

Good ol' Pierre. Always pumping tires of guys he wants to get rid of lol.

Remember Colin White winning training camp? LMAO

He also said they've already started talking extension with his camp.

 

[bert]

I still think Chabot needs someone reliable so that he is free to push the play and jump up when required.

I'm not sure Brannstrom is that guy.

Ideally he'd be locking down that third pairing with 2nd PP QB duties.

I know some think he'd be better on the 1st but it's hard to put Chabot on the 2nd with his stature and role on the team.

Great post, bang on. I have no problem with Brannstrom being a depth d man there are always injuries and he is better than Zaitsev that's for damn sure. I still think this team needs a 25 year old Hamonic. Need more guys that are hard to play against that can actually play.

Need to find a cost effective way to get rid of 22.

 

[OD99]

Good ol' Pierre. Always pumping tires of guys he wants to get rid of lol.

Remember Colin White winning training camp? LMAO

Well to be fair Brann did improve quite a bit.

At the same time, who else could he name from the big club, LOL?

"Holden is really starting to come in to his own".

 

[GCK]

I missed the first 20 minutes. That is a good omen that Brannstrom might stick around. If he can give solid third pair play behind Chabot and Sanderson that is good for the team.

Post automatically merged: May 1, 2022

Great post, bang on. I have no problem with Brannstrom being a depth d man there are always injuries and he is better than Zaitsev that's for damn sure. I still think this team needs a 25 year old Hamonic. Need more guys that are hard to play against that can actually play.

Need to find a cost effective way to get rid of 22.

22 is as good as gone IMO. They need to make room for Thomson or better yet acquire a top 4 RD with Thomson as one of the pieces. Either way La femme Nikita will not be here.

 

[JD1]

First, what was the point of extending Holden last yr if they are not going to be playing him next season? Hamonic, Holden, MDZ & Zub all go into next season as UFAs & all have a chance of being gone by the TDL although IMO Zub gets re-signed & maybe Hamonic. Holden is really the only guy I see traded at the deadline & that's because I think they have a replacement in Kleven coming by the end of next season.

The biggest problem this yr for Ottawa was goal differential, they can put up pts most of the time, but it was preventing them that is the problem & that's where Brann at times is seen as a liability. You do make a good point regarding Sanderson, he is waiver exempt & could be sent down, but the way he has been introduced to the NHL & the way they are talking about him he seems destined to be a regular next season. I still think it might come down to one or the other, Sanderson or Brannstrom, but we'll see

I imagine MDZ could get bought out next month, but I don't see them as able to move Zaitsev, but you never know. They could also bring Sanderson along slowly in & out of the lineup learning what he needs to do. While he is taller than Brann he doesn't look very strong & seems rail thin. The defence has a lot of question marks going into the summer that will need some clarity for next season, IMO it's their biggest weakness going into next season.

There's lots of reasons to extend Holden, starting with and at the top of the list he's shown a demonstrated willingness to sit. He did it in Vegas. Having a vet D men that can play but sits is good. He's not being paid an amount to that sitting isn't a problem.

On this site, guys wail on Zaitsev. Drags everyone down is the common theme. Playing against the other team's top offensive players it is always XXX and Zaitsev. If Zaitsev goes, that capability needs to be replaced. The top two guys in ice time on the PK are Zaitsev and Holden. If Zaitsev goes, we've got a gaping right side problem. Hamonic helps. And Chabot hasn't really done much of anything to show that he's ideal to play against top pairs. If Holden sits and Zaitsev is gone, you're missing your top two pk players.

You mentioned goal differential. Preventing them being the problem. We're actually further from middle of the pack in scoring then in prevention. The D got tighter as the year went on. Our ability with Forsberg in net to keep it close is why we were in games. Finding 40 more goals is a huge priority. Preventing 20 is also a priority. Those 20 have to come at even strength because the PK was good.

I cannot see Sanderson playing any time in the AHL unless camp clearly determines that he needs that. He's going into a D+3 year and he's got a 5oa pedigree. Everything from team commentary to ice time utilization says Brannstrom is going to play. Look at his ice, PD's exit comments and recent DJ comments. Brannstrom will play or he returns the asset we're looking for which is a decent quality top 6 winger

 

[aragorn]

There's lots of reasons to extend Holden, starting with and at the top of the list he's shown a demonstrated willingness to sit. He did it in Vegas. Having a vet D men that can play but sits is good. He's not being paid an amount to that sitting isn't a problem.

On this site, guys wail on Zaitsev. Drags everyone down is the common theme. Playing against the other team's top offensive players it is always XXX and Zaitsev. If Zaitsev goes, that capability needs to be replaced. The top two guys in ice time on the PK are Zaitsev and Holden. If Zaitsev goes, we've got a gaping right side problem. Hamonic helps. And Chabot hasn't really done much of anything to show that he's ideal to play against top pairs. If Holden sits and Zaitsev is gone, you're missing your top two pk players.

You mentioned goal differential. Preventing them being the problem. We're actually further from middle of the pack in scoring then in prevention. The D got tighter as the year went on. Our ability with Forsberg in net to keep it close is why we were in games. Finding 40 more goals is a huge priority. Preventing 20 is also a priority. Those 20 have to come at even strength because the PK was good.

I cannot see Sanderson playing any time in the AHL unless camp clearly determines that he needs that. He's going into a D+3 year and he's got a 5oa pedigree. Everything from team commentary to ice time utilization says Brannstrom is going to play. Look at his ice, PD's exit comments and recent DJ comments. Brannstrom will play or he returns the asset we're looking for which is a decent quality top 6 winger

That's fair & I agree with most of it, IMO if Brannstrom is still on the team to start next season it might be as a 7th D. The question then becomes how long will it take before he asks to be traded somewhere where he might have a better chance of becoming a regular. IMO Holden plays over Brannstrom but we'll have to wait & see if that transpires, however, both Holden & Hamonic will be UFAs next season & both could be traded by the TDL. If that happens they have two almost NHL ready D in Belleville with JBD & Thomson waiting their turn. IMO the defence is their weakest link & improving the defence is a priority, I assume that next season there will be less games missed due to injury & illness & a number of guys will increase their scoring, increase by committee.

 

[cudi]

 

[GCK]

Listening to Dorion today and also by the fact they didn’t send him to Belleville for the playoffs, it sure seems he has a place on the team next year. I really hope they move Holden to the right side with Brannstrom rather than the inverse. Brannstrom is much better on the left side than the right side. Ideally we would find a top 4 RD and have Hamonic spend the year with Brannstrom with Holden rotating in to that 3rd pair.

 

[Alf Silfversson]

First, what was the point of extending Holden last yr if they are not going to be playing him next season? Hamonic, Holden, MDZ & Zub all go into next season as UFAs & all have a chance of being gone by the TDL although IMO Zub gets re-signed & maybe Hamonic. Holden is really the only guy I see traded at the deadline & that's because I think they have a replacement in Kleven coming by the end of next season.

The biggest problem this yr for Ottawa was goal differential, they can put up pts most of the time, but it was preventing them that is the problem & that's where Brann at times is seen as a liability. You do make a good point regarding Sanderson, he is waiver exempt & could be sent down, but the way he has been introduced to the NHL & the way they are talking about him he seems destined to be a regular next season. I still think it might come down to one or the other, Sanderson or Brannstrom, but we'll see

I imagine MDZ could get bought out next month, but I don't see them as able to move Zaitsev, but you never know. They could also bring Sanderson along slowly in & out of the lineup learning what he needs to do. While he is taller than Brann he doesn't look very strong & seems rail thin. The defence has a lot of question marks going into the summer that will need some clarity for next season, IMO it's their biggest weakness going into next season.

It wasn't alked about much but Holden really struggled down the stretch after playing well most of the season.

Of course he WAS paired with Zaitsev during that time. That could explain it. Or he might just be a soon to be 35 year old who played more hockey this year than he should have.

 

[coladin]

Disappointed that Dorion is high on Brannstrom. I am hoping they move him as I don't see him fitting. if he comes back it will most likley be as a 7th. Maybe if he buries one early next year, it may change his trajectory. Clearly, Dorion desperately needs Brannstrom to pan out due to the pricetag of his trade, and probably the only reason

 

[Tuna99]

Listening to Dorion today and also by the fact they didn’t send him to Belleville for the playoffs, it sure seems he has a place on the team next year. I really hope they move Holden to the right side with Brannstrom rather than the inverse. Brannstrom is much better on the left side than the right side. Ideally we would find a top 4 RD and have Hamonic spend the year with Brannstrom with Holden rotating in to that 3rd pair.

I’ll say his next contract is 2yrs x $1.85 million