Are the Ducks, Sharks, and Mammoth Looking to be Buyers?
Dave Pagnotta of the Fourth Period joined Sirius XM NHL Network Radio on Monday with Gord Stellick and Scott Laughlin. He was asked about the Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, Utah Mammoth, and Chicago Blackhawks playoff chances. However, Pagnotta hinted that the Ducks, Mammoth, and Sharks are looking to add.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
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Gord Stellick: “So Dave, in the West, and we’re going to Bill Armstrong in about 45 minutes, the general manager of Utah. So you had the three New Kids on the Block, the two California teams in Anaheim and San Jose, and the two perennial non-playoff teams in Chicago. Same with Utah/Arizona, and they all had moments early on.
Now, it seems like nobody’s going away. Chicago looked like they’re going away, and they’ve had a pretty good week. And I’m just curious of those four, as we get to the dog days, and who you feel the most optimistic, if you had to rank one or two of them best suited to make the playoffs. So Anaheim, San Jose, Chicago and Utah.”
On the Anaheim Ducks:
Dave Pagnotta: “Gord, I still like what Anaheim has been able to do. And I, I thought they would regress a little bit as the season kind of moves along. And they still might, but I still view this team as a playoff team with how they’re performing, with the goaltending that they’re getting from (Lukas) Dostal with Leo Carlsson, Troy Terry and Cutter Gauthier kind of leading things offensively, (Beckett) Sennecke as well.
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And they’re a well put-together, deep team, deeper than I expected in terms of overall production. Chris Kreider has got 13 goals on the season. He’s been contributing. They’re getting assistance from their depth in their bottom six as well. And this is a team that I think continues to lurk, kind of in the weeds with the GM in Pat Verbeek that’s looking to see if he can make another splash and add to this group, not just now, but for the foreseeable future. Looking for a player that they can bring in that’s controllable with term. Kind of in their mid 20s, maybe early to mid 20s, kind of range. May not be now. May have to wait till the summer, but I just like the overall makeup of the Ducks.”
On the San Jose Sharks:
Pagnotta: “I like San Jose as well, especially with, obviously, how can you not with the way that Macklin Celebrini has performed this season, third in the NHL in scoring. I just, I think they’re not, I don’t think they’re there just yet. I think the depth needs to kick in. Some of the younger guys are definitely that are helping him out, are on the cusp of, I think, really starting to break out. But I think if they can add a couple of pieces, which, this is another team, Mike Greier is looking, but he’s also listening to a number of his players.
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They got Alex Wennberg signed to a three year extension yesterday, but they’re also listing on some of their defensemen, and I could see San Jose being both a buyer and a seller leading up to the March 6 trade deadline. I just don’t think there’s enough there just yet depth wise, to be a legit, consistent playoff team. They’re going to get there, no question. This is going to be a fun team to watch, and so are the Ducks consistently as well. But I kind of look at San Jose a little bit differently.
On Utah Mammoth and Chicago Blackhawks:
Pagnotta: “Chicago, same situation, depth-wise, yeah, there. And that’s the thing with the league, especially now, and with these teams, you’ve got all these teams with these young studs that are really performing, and you just need to have that extra little bit of horsepower to put you over the top. I don’t think San Jose and Chicago are there just yet.
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And I think Utah is kind of that bubble wildcard type of team that, if they can add, which I’m sure Bill won’t tell you, he keeps things close to the chest, but he’s another guy that’s always out there lurking and looking to see if he can make a splash, and he’s got the ownership backing to do it.
So out of the three, excuse me, out of the four, I look at Anaheim as a team that is going to keep going and has enough in the tank to push for the playoffs. I think the other three probably just on the cusp. And we’ll see what type of moves they make to perhaps help their chances. Be int now or going into next season.”
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