Confirmed Trade: [NYR/OTT] Mika Zibanejad & 2018 2nd round pick for Derick Brassard & 2018 7th rounder

[JT Kreider]

It's just sad to see how dismantled that 2014 team has become.

Stralman, Boyle, Brassard, Hagelin, Richards, Pouliot, Talbot gone. The last 3 had to go for respective reasons but still were a big part of the identity of that team.

Meanwhile Staal, Girardi and Nash still wear blue shirts.

I like this trade because we desperately needed young players and picks. It just sucks that one of the few players who wasn't part of a rather large problem had to go.

 

[topshelf15]

I think Colin White and Logan Brown have as much to do with this deal as Brassard does.

In 3 years, one or both might be ready for top six.

Bingo why draft them if you dont have a plan on playing them

 

[Jersey Fresh]

This is just wrong. Brass is not anything special defensivly and only scored 7 points more than Zib and he is 5-6 years younger. And NYR get a 2nd rounder. I love Brass but this was a great trade longterm for NYR.

Brassard is the more talented player by far. He was huge in the Rangers playoff run the year before. Like I said, Zibanejad has some question marks.

I get the NYR logic, that team isn't going anywhere substantial so you may as well get younger. But I think that's all it is. Doesn't make the Rangers a better team next year.

 

[Nalyd Psycho]

Is Benning the Sens GM now? The part that gets me is, why does the team giving up the younger cheaper player give up a significantly higher pick?

 

[Agent Zuuuub]

You really dont understand hockey at all Ryan is far better at it than Zibby will ever be

naa that's not true.

 

[bert]

First reaction was, Great move Sens.

But the Rangers do end up with a young upswinging asset that has scored 50 already, so that's an outstanding get.

But I didn't initially realize is how much money in real dollars this should save the Sens as well.. Zibanejad's next deal should fly past 4 mil based on this season's comparables as he continues to progress.

So, better player plus some cost savings over the next 2-3 yrs, at the expense of the longer term return.
Great move for the Sens.

Good long term move for the Rangers.

Best breakdown I have read. Ottawa also really needed a left handed shot center, running with Turris, Zibanejad Pageau isnt ideal as they are all righties.

 

[Pandaman11]

Is Benning the Sens GM now? The part that gets me is, why does the team giving up the younger cheaper player give up a significantly higher pick?

They must believe that Brassard will significantly outscore Zibanejad over the next 2-3 years

 

[JT Kreider]

Is Benning the Sens GM now? The part that gets me is, why does the team giving up the younger cheaper player give up a significantly higher pick?

I'd bet because we had to give Brassard the bonus. That right there saved Ottawa $2 million.

$2 million > 2nd round pick for Melnyk.

 

[Beer League Sniper]

I think this trade can be beneficial for both teams.

It sounds like OTT needed a left-handed playmaking center.

As a NYR fan, we certainly needed a shooter, as almost all of our wingers are pass-first guys. We got a young, right-handed, shoot first center.

People can quibble about the details of who won the trade all they want, but I can see the logic. A 2nd round pick has something like a 30% chance of playing a meaningful amount of games in the NHL. It's a nice add as a Rangers fan, but more than likely to be nothing at the end of the day.

 

[armani]

I think Colin White and Logan Brown have as much to do with this deal as Brassard does.

In 3 years, one or both might be ready for top six.

Don't forget JGP's invaluable cameo as someone who can play top-6 when the team needs him to.

JGP's cameos are like Billy Murray's in Zombieland.

 

[HatTrick Swayze]

I'd bet because we had to give Brassard the bonus. That right there saved Ottawa $2 million.

$2 million > 2nd round pick for Melnyk.

That or they could have had to outbid a team for Brassard if they really wanted him

 

[WesMcCauley]

Brassard is the more talented player by far. He was huge in the Rangers playoff run the year before. Like I said, Zibanejad has some question marks.

I get the NYR logic, that team isn't going anywhere substantial so you may as well get younger. But I think that's all it is. Doesn't make the Rangers a better team next year.

Thats the point of the trade! That we get younger and better longterm because we arent a contender anymore. Very good trade for us as i said and im a huge Brassard fan!

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Let's not sugarcoat it, this was mostly based on Melnyk being cheap. Rangers made out like bandits.

You have no idea what you are talking about.

This is basically the new GM establishing a plan that incorporates White and Brown's place in the depth chart: Brassard and Turris both have 3 years left on their friendly deals, this is not a random occurrence.

 

[IranCondraAffair]

Wasn't it the Sens who had character concerns over Couturier around draft time? I heard that a lot back then by a ton of Sens fans.

Now it seems like Zibanejad was the one all along who had the character issues lol.

The Sens scouted Couturier heavily that year since they were near the bottom for the standings for a while. Ottawa even invited him for a private pre-draft work out in 2011. Ottawa didn't dislike Couturier because of character issues, the issue was more complex.

One of the things that came from that draft was that the Sens scouts felt Couturier didn't step up his offensive game enough to become a top-end player. More of an "competitiveness" issue than a "work-ethic" issue from what I remember. I guess you can call it a character issue. As it turns out, one of the players they drafted that year, Pageau, was identified because he played so well against Couturier

Zibanjead was a big "riser" in his draft because he did well at the end of the year against good competition (wow, just realized that describes his whole career, LOL). No one had any concerns about his competitiveness or upside because his size/physicality was good. Obviously, the "slow start" issue never resolved itself yet.

I don't think the scouts were too off base with this one.

 

[internetdotcom]

What the @#$%@# !? I don't even... I'd rather have Zibby than Brassard, he has great upside, and is younger and cheaper, and WE give up the far better pick!? I don't get this...

 

[Jersey Fresh]

Thats the point of the trade! That we get younger and better longterm because we arent a contender anymore. Very good trade for us as i said and im a huge Brassard fan!

Like I said, I get the logic. People are just going too far with the "Rangers fleeced them" stuff. It's not without it's own set of risks.

 

[harrisb]

Who were Brassard's linemates last year?

After Turris went down to injury Zib was supposed to easily step in as our #1 centre. What developed was he was passed on the depth chart by JGP and remained a temporary second line centre and was likely headed for 3rd line duties after JGP's performance last year. He's been afforded top notch wingers his entire career and never been able to put in the effort. Methinks he won't have nearly the talent of Hoffman and Ryan flanking him next year with Karlsson feeding the puck. Any player spending significant time with those 3 is bound to get points, I think Zib was a beneficiary more than a contributor.

He does go beast mode about 6 games a year though.

 

[WesMcCauley]

Who were Brassard's linemates last year?

After Turris went down to injury Zib was supposed to easily step in as our #1 centre. What developed was he was passed on the depth chart by JGP and remained a temporary second line centre and was likely headed for 3rd line duties after JGP's performance last year. He's been afforded top notch wingers his entire career and never been able to put in the effort. Methinks he won't have nearly the talent of Hoffman and Ryan flanking him next year with Karlsson feeding the puck. Any player spending significant time with those 3 is bound to get points, I think Zib was a beneficiary more than a contributor.

He does go beast mode about 6 games a year though.

Zuccarello, Nash, Stepan, kreider, Miller. He will be fine.

 

[Bossy Mike]

With brassard, you know you're getting a decent player. With Zib, you're not sure what you're getting in a nightly basis. Trade of stability for erratic (great or invisible). Sounds fair based on what the teams may be looking for.

 

[BrawlFan]

My $0.02 is that Zibby potential is 65pt potential consistent give or take 5 pts in his prime/post prime.

So it comes down to what is he worth next year? Roughly around $4.5-5.5 Million and he doesn't show any signs of progressing in the next year.

Compare that to Brassard who played well with Stone at the world championships. Right now Stone and Turris had good chemistry as did Ryan and Turris. But Ryan is struggling without Turris, and earns a high cap hit.

I feel they wanted to have Turris with Ryan to get him going and saw the strength of Brassard and Stone. So they made the deal to have consistent two lines. Of course you run the likely risk of Zibby breaking out but there is still the risk he never progresses, which isn't as unlikely as others have thought. By the time he breaks out he will have priced himself out of Ottawa anyway and would have been replaced by Logan Brown or Colin White (assuming they both sign)

So you get two consistent scoring lines now and potentially get Ryan going consistently. That's well worth the risk of losing 15 points annually on a streaky center.

Mika is a good player who can be great but Ottawa has been through this with Cowen, Weircoch, Rundblad, and several other players that they need to move away from living in potential if they actually want to make the playoffs.

 

[Sens Rule]

Don't forget JGP's invaluable cameo as someone who can play top-6 when the team needs him to.

JGP's cameos are like Billy Murray's in Zombieland.

Pageau is a god.

The most godlike player since I was a teenager and Leafs fan and Gilmour was at his best.

I really don't know if Zibby is better then Pageau. I like Pageau more. He plays like a wolverine. Every shift. If Zibby had Pageau's heart. In addition to his extra 80 pounds and 8 inches... He would be the best player in the league. Zibby has talent in every aspect except IQ over Pageau. Pageau has heart beyond belief.

 

[Pyrophorus]

we have our own zuccarello...his name is Mike Hoffman and on top of that he will also have ryan

Ryan really hasn't done great.
Will you have Hoffman after arbitration?

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Zuccarello, Nash, Stepan, kreider, Miller. He will be fine.

Both players in this deal will be.

The insistence on picking a winner really shows how juvenile the discussion gets on the trade board.

 

[jcfogerty]

Ottawa has a team ?

 

[bert]

Ryan has never scored 2 hat tricks against us

Zuccarello right now is better.

Id say the best way to evaluate a player is how he has fared against the worst team in the NHL over the last 10 years.