• March 28, 2024

Should Flyers Hold Onto Draft Picks in Lieu of Trading for an Elite Defenseman?

It’s amazing how many people have latched onto the idea that the Philadelphia Flyers should trade for Ryan Suter or Shea Weber from the Nashville Predators the minute that it was announced Chris Pronger would not play for the rest of the season.

Never mind the fact that the Flyers would have to perform some serious roster juggling to afford either of them this season, but Weber alone is looking at $7.5 million per year in the future.

There have been other names thrown in the mix as well.  Hockeybuzz creator “Eklund” believes the Flyers are looking at Niklas Grossman of the Dallas Stars. Grossman, 26, currently makes just $1.625 million per year but will be an unrestricted free agent after this season.

No matter what scenario is played out, it is very likely that it will cost the Flyers an arm and a leg to trade for a defenseman mid-season. Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren acknowledged weeks ago that with so many teams around the league nursing their own injuries on the blue line, it’s difficult making any kind of trade of value without being hosed.

The question that I ask, then, is this- if it would take a 1st round pick, or in fact multiple draft picks, to acquire an elite defenseman by the trade deadline, is it even worth it?

The Flyers traded their first round draft pick in 2011 to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Kris Versteeg in the hopes that he would complement their goal scoring.  It didn’t pan out.

The Flyers traded their first round draft picks in 2009 and 2010 as well as their previous first round draftee, defenseman Luca Sbisa, for Chris Pronger.  I think that trade worked out well, though the length of the contract extension he was signed to may come back to haunt the organization.

Last season, the Pittsburgh Penguins made it as far as the Flyers in the post-season, but managed to hold onto their first round draft pick. That pick ended up being defenseman Joe Morrow.  They managed this with both Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin out of the line-up.

Holding onto the first round draft pick, in and of itself, would allow the team to continue building up a farm system that has been in heavy demand this season.

Another reason to consider holding onto the pick for at least this season is the fact that the 2012 draft rankings have been thrown out of whack by a considerable number of injuries.  Nail Yakupov (ranked #1 by The Scouting Report), Alex Galchenyuk (#3), Ryan Murray (#4), Morgan Rielly (#10), Slater Koekkok (#14), and Martin Frk (#15) are all out with injuries of varying severity.

Sean Couturier was, at one point, considered a #1 overall prospect before contracting mono. With limited scouting available for the year, he fell right into the Flyers’ lap at the #8 position.

That’s not to suggest a previously ranked #5 overall prospect will fall to #25, but depending on how the team finishes, defenseman Slater Koekkok (which I have no idea how to pronounce) could reasonably fall several positions. As the Flyers are in need of defensive prospects above anything else, they could potentially grab a late round steal. Let’s not forget, Weber was drafted #49 overall in 2003; if the Flyers ever held onto their picks, they could have found talent within the system without overpaying for it on the open market.

If there is a good trade to be had at the deadline on February 27, then by all means the organization should do what they can to assemble a Stanley Cup-worthy team.  This may be a great year for holding onto their picks, though.

For the latest Flyers news and updates, you can follow me on twitter (@JoshJanet).

Josh Janet

Josh Janet was raised in Northern New Jersey, but by an odd set of circumstances, is a Philadelphia sports fan. While recently converted to the Phillies, Josh is a diehard Flyers fan and can be expected to stay on top of the latest NHL news.

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paulman
paulman
December 18, 2011 3:25 pm

Whether it’s for this Playoff Season of for future Seasons, the reality is that the Flyers are pretty thin along the Blue Line and to continue to count on Pronger or even Timonem for next season and beyond is not wise…If team is going to make a trade then they need to make sure it’s a good Defenseman for not only this Season but for the next couple of Seasons.. The Defense will be exposed by Playoff Time and the Top 4 would have logged too many minutes and will be worn down by Playoff time which does not bode well when have your #1 Goalie with a very poor Save % as “Bryz” currently has..

DCar
DCar
December 18, 2011 3:39 pm

I don’t care what it takes! If you have a chance to get Weber, who in my opinion, is the best all around D-man in the NHL, or a young stud like Suter, you do it. Pronger is likely done. Kimmo is not too far behind. Carle is an upcoming FA, that isn’t going to be worth the $$$ he gets. Just as Leino did. Carle benefited by Pronger with him, as Leino did with Briere. Isn’t this supposed to be a rebuilding year anyways? Don’t let the record fool you. They are playing well, but if the D doesn’t get fixed, & if Brys doesn’t get his head out of his @$$, it doesn’t matter anyways. Get him, trade Fartsmell & whoever else to make the team younger & better. I wasn’t expecting a Cup anyways.

paulman
paulman
December 18, 2011 4:11 pm

DCar, remember what I said about Pronger before the Season.. That it would be a mistake for Flyers to build their Defense around him and count on him as an elite player over an 80 game schedule and that he didn’t have much left in the tank and his body was breaking down, (not that I expected a Concussion to put him out for the Season) but he’s done and they are going to get stuck with his contract … I think by late next Season, we will be saying the same thing about the Deal they gave to Bryz as far as overpaying and getting stuck with a bad contract.. Why do Philly teams keep signing under-performing players to huge contracts that eventually tie the organizations hands and limits their abilities to makye other moves.. Can’t any of the Philly Teams get a smart GM in their organizations… (look at GM Roseman,Amaro Jr, Roseman and whoever the Sixers guy is now…) it’s a joke how they continually throw good $$$ after players who have peaked and then get stuck with them .. Maybe one of the fine Universities in Philly can start teaching SPorts/GM/Roster Management courses to develop some younger talent who understand the SPort and Finances.. Philly teams can’t seem to find those GM’s who have a blended knowledege of both..

phillyguy195
phillyguy195
December 18, 2011 4:19 pm

We should get someone because the goal is to win Lord Stanleys Cup! And with pronged out we should take that chance to become the winners of the cup in 35 years!

Boyer
Boyer
December 20, 2011 10:56 am

You gotta get Weber if possible. Hear me out on this…

You would have to trade Carle and a 1st. With Carle gone and Pronger on IR, you have that 7.5 mil. That leaves you with Kimmo-Coburn, Weber-Meszaros, Bourdon-Gustafsson. You MAKE Pronger sit out next year on LTIR to keep that cap space while he rests his body and gets in tremendous shape (he’ll still have 4 years on his contract). Then Kimmo retires like he said he would after his contract was up. Then you re-activate a healthy and rested Pronger and still have 1.5 million in additional cap space with Kimmo gone.

Then your pairings are Weber-Mez, Pronger-Coburn, “Who Knows”-“Your Guess” in 13-14 thru 16-17. That’s one hell of a scary D.