NHL Draft: Five Moves Worth Watching For
By Adam Savard
Jun 27, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Kasperi Kapanen poses for a photo with team officials after being selected as the number twenty-two overall pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the first round of the 2014 NHL Draft at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
The NHL Draft is less than two weeks away and rumors are starting to heat up. There will be plenty of talk about the obvious like Cam Talbot getting traded. I want to spend more time on teams and trades that may (or may not) happen flying more under the radar. Much of this will be gut feeling looking at rosters and others will be going against popular opinion or rumor. With that in mind let’s get started.
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The Pittsburgh Penguins will trade into the first round.
The Penguins are a team going into the draft after a disappointing first-round playoff loss and, looking at their roster, they aren’t getting much younger up front. Despite having two of the best players in the league with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, the window is closing on the Penguins and they need to get younger and faster to support them.
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Marc-Andre Fleury isn’t going anywhere and neither is Malkin despite rumors otherwise. It’s a long shot but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Penguins dangle Kris Letang. Based on this recent mock draft the place I can see the Penguins looking to move as high as the eighth pick in the NHL Draft.
The Columbus Blue Jackets were hammered with injuries last year, ruining a promising season. Getting healthy and bringing in Letang at the NHL Draft would create expectations I believe the Blue Jackets can meet. They would have to send some salary back to Pittsburgh to make the trade work. Rene Bourque on an expiring contract after the season could work. Bourque is also a player whom could be traded at the deadline for futures, helping the Penguins get younger still.
If Pittsburgh moves up this high look at Pavel Zacha to be the choice. He can play center or left-wing like Malkin can and has the puck possession game to succeed at the next level. He projects as the type of player to perfectly complement the two big guns and still be there after they move on. Zacha is projected at the bottom of the top ten picks. Pittsburgh could certainly make a play for him ahead of San José.
If the Penguins don’t trade that high, I still expect a trade to shed salary and get into the NHL Draft first round. Their future success depends on their ability to do so soon.