Confirmed with Link: Sens trade 9oa for Eklund and prospects

[BigRig4]

San Jose took advantage of the situation Staos was in.

Similar top Washington with Chychrun.

It's just the reality of dealing as the Senators. NMCs, small market team, etc.

I guarantee we had better options for the 9th overall, but the players likely had protection, or were RFAs who didn't want to sign here.

Staios needed to make a move. He simply couldn't go into the season without a replacement in the top 6 for Tkachuk, and Florida wouldn't give him a roster player.

Also had 5 days to do it.

 

[PlayersLtd]

I don't know how it's going to mesh but Stutzle was at his best playing a dogged two way game and if Eklund is the two way guy people seem to be claiming he is... as long as he has some offensive game sense and a decent shot it could work out well for us where they feed off each other and outwork, outskate the opposing team.

A lot of ifs but could work out well.

It's exactly what he has. Nothing that jumps off the charts offensively but more than serviceable in several offensive categories (work rate, shot, iq)

 

[Pavelski2112]

Sharks fan coming in peace

Eklund rules. He had a bit of a rough year re: scoring, but he was one of the only forwards on the Sharks who excelled at puck retrieval and just generally causing chaos in the O zone. He won't score a ton of goals, but he will be a big part of goals being scored. Very Stankoven-lite in how he uses what size he has to gain possession.

 

[JaredCowen4Norris]

Again, credit to Steve for not waiting around to make these trades. It's a lot of wheeling and dealing to wrap up in a short amount of time. Easy to get hosed when making a deal under pressure, but this is pretty good value. Any guy we're taking at #9 you would hope becomes an Eklund type player. Skipped the time waiting for the 9OA player to develop and added some good forward depth to our prospect pool. I like the move.

 

[L'Aveuglette]

Much prefer Eklund than DeBrusk for 9th

I mean, Eklund is a better overall player but we just blew our load and we are still starved for offense. How are we going to do anything on the PP with this crew?

 

[LynxBud]

I wasn't excited about the announcement of this, but this trade is growing on me quickly.

I think the added benefit of giving Zetterlund a boost will pay dividends. From what I've been reading those two guys are best buds and play great together.

They could end up being the perfect wingers for Stu, who knows. I'm optimistic about this trade.

 

[Boud]

Staois knows what he's doing. As always he's targeting guys that aren't top of the list on trade boards. Eklund will be the first forward we have that can help Stutzle and match his skating and talent level. This is the type of move that's going to improve other players on the team. Eklund is a very good playmaker and he has great vision and IQ in the offensive and defensive zone.

I was banging the drum quite a bit with Bratt in these last few months. Eklund is a similar mold of player. I like this deal a lot because it'll help us maximize value by committee.

The contractual situation is perfect for us. 3 years at low AAV and will be RFA. Still young and room to improve. This is exactly what we needed to do.

 

[Wallet Inspector]

Dorion: Loses 2019 pick and wastes 2021 pick on Boucher,

Staois: Obtains Cozens(drafted in 2019) and Eklund(drafted in 2021).

Staois making up for Dorions errors (yes I know it's not exactly the same in terms of assets being moved but let me cope).

 

[inthewings]

Has to be a 70pt player to be worth it.

Is 70-point 2-way forward the barometer for a successful 9th OV pick? I think that would actually be an unusually successful outcome for that draft slot.

 

[Senator Stanley]

San Jose took advantage of the situation Staos was in.

Similar top Washington with Chychrun.

It's just the reality of dealing as the Senators. NMCs, small market team, etc.

I guarantee we had better options for the 9th overall, but the players likely had protection, or were RFAs who didn't want to sign here.

Staios needed to make a move. He simply couldn't go into the season without a replacement in the top 6 for Tkachuk, and Florida wouldn't give him a roster player.

To me, this trade happening on Tuesday, less than 48 hours after the Brady trade and three days out from the draft, suggests that this was target was pretty high on their list.

 

[NyQuil]

Hard to pry young top six forwards away from teams.

Interesting stuff.

We needed a LW and we got one. Now let's see what happens next.

 

[Micklebot]

I mean, Eklund is a better overall player but we just blew our load and we are still starved for offense. How are we going to do anything on the PP with this crew?

Eklund had what, 4 fewer PP pts than Brady? I think we'll survive.

 

[Grinner]

Sharks have gotten so damn lucky. Winning the 1OA and having Celebrini turn out the way he has. Then winning the 2OA this draft. Damn.

Yeah, but we got bumped down from 1 and lost out on Schaefer.

You guys picked up a very solid 200 ft winger in Eklund. I don't see either of the two parties here being bamboozled
Good luck William Eklund

 

[Relapsing]

It is kind of funny because he might wear #7 since #72 is taken.

Do it. It would be hilarious!

 

[RyCam]

Just for perspective, Anton Lundell is a year older and has yet to hit 50 points with the Panthers despite roughly the same ATOI as Eklund. We pretty much got a better player than Lundell(plus some decent prospects) in place of the 9OA from the Panthers.

 

[h2]

Not at all who I was hoping we would be targeting with the pick. We are a much softer team without Tkachuk, and this definitely doesn't help that.

I'll give him a shot though, and the Finnish kid seems like a solid prospect.

I pretty much have the same thoughts. After contemplating about this for a few minutes, It's a good trade for the #9 overall. Getting a player like Eklund if you use the #9 pick would be considered a good result. So I like the fact we have added a legit top 6 talent to the forwards. However, I think our team is incredibly soft on forward and defense and I think that's something that needs to be rectified.

 

[Icelevel]

Initially disappointed with Eklund but will stay optimistic and am looking forward to being pleasantly surprised

One big goal scorer still needed.

 

[swiftwin]

Sharks fan coming in peace

Eklund rules. He had a bit of a rough year re: scoring, but he was one of the only forwards on the Sharks who excelled at puck retrieval and just generally causing chaos in the O zone. He won't score a ton of goals, but he will be a big part of goals being scored. Very Stankoven-lite in how he uses what size he has to gain possession.

Sounds like the perfect fit for Travis Green style hockey.

 

[Boud]

Just for perspective, Anton Lundell is a year older and has yet to hit 50 points with the Panthers despite roughly the same ATOI as Eklund. We pretty much got a better player than Lundell(plus some decent prospects) in place of the 9OA from the Panthers.

Lundell is a big two-way centre who takes defensive matchups. Lundell has more value it's just completely different. Not to be compared imo.

 

[Senator Stanley]

This is likely the nail in the coffin for me as a Sens fan if Staios made this shitty trade with an intention to keep Zetterlund. It would be a clear indication that Staios doesn't know what he is doing and just doubles down on his bad moves.

Zetterlund is where you draw the line? Did you miss the last decade under Melnyk/Dorion?

 

[milkbag]

Has to be a 70pt player to be worth it.

Lol what, why? 9th overall isn't a magical treasure trove of 70 pt players

 

[Sensmileletsgo]

This is likely the nail in the coffin for me as a Sens fan if Staios made this shitty trade with an intention to keep Zetterlund. It would be a clear indication that Staios doesn't know what he is doing and just doubles down on his bad moves.

I don’t think Zetterlund has anything to do with this trade.

 

[BonHoonLayneCornell]

I think this guy will end up more of a net positive than Brady. Also got younger. Couple prospects added in even if they're not world beaters. I like it.

 

[PlayersLtd]

Neither would be Ottawa Senators if I had a say in it, but gun to the head, I'd pick Mctavish everytime.

Yes, his skating needs to improve, but he's a much more projectable player than Eklund, who tries but simply doesn't possess the same upside.

Good on Staios for getting the assets he did in the Brady trade in the first place. However, this is a very poor use of the biggest one of them so far.

LOVED the Cozens trade from day 1 and LOATHED (still do) the Chychrun one. This Eklund deal reeks of desperation and is right up there with the latter.

At a time when we need shrewdness, Steve Staios continues to be a mixed bag.

I'm a pretty big McTavish fan but a trade for him comes with way more risk, not because of his skating but because he plays lazy. That sometimes never goes away and is especially concerning for a guy with a frame like his.

Eklund has a much safer floor and I would say the upside between the two is equal. Different players and I think the only way McTavish is a better pick up is if you're willing to bet on the upside of that specific profile (big with hands, goes to dirty areas, potential leadership qualities etc..). But you cant deny that McT's stock has dropped, which isn't promising at this stage.

 

[GCK]

Eklund is a fine addition on his own, but he's absolutely not worth the 9OA at all, and now Staios will need to pull off a miracle to get us a player who can actually create offense. Eklund is anything but a shooter.

He is not a shooter but we have 2 shooters first centres who need playmaking wingers.