Brassard should draw some interest
Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Pittsburgh Penguins forward Derick Brassard could be one of the more sought after centerman leading up to the trade deadline.
Other centers that could be available include Brassard, Matt Duchene, Kevin Hayes, Brayden Schenn, Charlie Coyle, Nick Bjugstad and Jeff Carter.
Last year the Detroit Red Wings received a first, second and third round pick for Tomas Tatar. The St. Louis Blues got a first-round pick and a solid prospect for Paul Stastny.
A first-round pick and solid prospect seem high. The Penguins would also need to acquire a third line center to replace Brassard. Riley Sheahan may not be a suitable option for the Penguins.
The Penguins have depth on the blueline that they could package with Brassard.
Pierre LeBrun said the Penguins could have interest in Micheal Ferland.
The Colorado Avalanche could be looking at NY Rangers Kevin Hayes. The Winnipeg Jets had been linked to Brassard in the past.
The San Jose Sharks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Carolina Hurricanes, and Dallas Stars could have interest in the centerman.
A complete change for the Oilers is needed
Chris Nichols of Nichols on Hockey: Ray Ferraro was on TSN 690 and was talking about the Edmonton Oilers and how there needs a complete change on how they run their hockey business.
“So for me, if I’m Bob Nicholson, the general manager that I hire – as I’m talking to him I say, ‘By the way, there is a moratorium on trading picks. You can’t. If you do, I will fire you. The only way that we can trade a pick under any circumstance is if we get a player back that is in the 21, 22, 23 range. But we are not trading picks to try to make the playoffs. We don’t have enough prospects. We don’t have enough skill.’
“Then I go to the scouting department and I say, ‘Above all, it’s skill, skill, skill.’ They do not have enough.
“And then when I talk about the developmental part, they cannot bring players that are underage to the NHL. They failed, and failed, and failed with that vision.
“And to me, it means a completely new vision from any road that they’ve been driving on for the past 13 years. It doesn’t work their way.”
