Should the Predators trade Shea Weber? Could they acquire a first-line center via trade? Are the Bruins still eyeing a free-agent defenseman? Read on for the latest.
Is now the right time for the Predators to trade Shea Weber?
Should the Predators consider trading Shea Weber?
PUCK DADDY: Josh Cooper lists five reasons why the time is finally right for the Nashville Predators to trade defenseman and captain Shea Weber within the next year. He feels the offers for Weber will be in the Predators’ favor, they’re strong on the blueline without him, Weber could be heading into a decline, 2016 RFAs Filip Forsberg and Seth Jones will need big raises, and it’s time to turn the franchise over to its rising young stars.
THE TENNESSEAN: Recently responding to a reader’s e-mail over how the Predators can address their need for a true first-line center, Adam Vingan reports Predators GM David Poile acknowledged he’s got two 35-plus centers (Mike Ribeiro and Mike Fisher) he’ll have to replace in a couple of years. Given how thin next summer’s UFA market will be for centers, Vingan speculates the Predators could go the trade route to address that need. An in-house option could be recently-signed Cody Hodgson.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Or they could put Weber on the trade block within a year in hopes of landing a younger, established first-line center. Don’t expect that move to happen this summer or in training camp, but I wouldn’t rule it out by, say, the 2016 trade deadline (likely to be Feb. 29) if the Predators are out of playoff contention by then. If not, then perhaps that trade occurs by the June 2016 NHL Draft in Buffalo. Weber’s lack of a no-trade clause gives Poile a wide range of potential trade destinations and options.
Poile will undoubtedly continue dismissing the Weber trade speculation, but cap constraints and the need for a long-term solution for a top-line center could make dealing the 29-year-old superstar defenseman an eventuality within the next couple of years. While the Preds have over $47.8 million invested in 11 players for 2016-17, it’s going to cost a lot to re-sign Forsberg and Jones, especially if they continue their development as expected. They’re also a budget club that avoids spending to the cap ceiling, so their actual cap ceiling is much lower than most.
Forget about getting Forsberg and Jones under cap-friendly bridge deals. What we saw this past summer with Dougie Hamilton in Boston and Brandon Saad in Chicago is teams with limited cap space that can’t easily afford big raises to top RFAs end up trading them or risk losing them to offer sheets from rival clubs. Having gone through that once before with Weber, I daresay Poile isn’t keen to repeat that process with Forsberg or Jones.
Bruins still looking at UFA defensemen.
CSNNE.COM: Joe Haggerty reports Boston Bruins GM Don Sweeney recently acknowledged being in discussions with 38-year-old UFA defenseman Marek Zidlicky. Sweeney is also believed interested in Cody Franson and Christian Ehrhoff. The Bruins have about $4 million in cap space, meaning they might have to ship out a salaried player if they wish to add a blueliner like Zidicky or Franson. Haggerty speculates Sweeney and his staff will stand pat until training camp, when they’ll evaluate their defense corps before deciding if there’s an additional need to be addressed.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: If the Bruins are pursuing Ehrhoff they might have to move quickly, as the Columbus Blue Jackets have reportedly made a “low-ball offer” to the German rearguard. If not, it’s likely to their advantage to wait and hope the asking prices of those available defensemen drop in the coming weeks.
Trading Weber wow! I would think you get a boat load of talent. I will say if Weber didn’t get injured Nashville might of won that round. Don’t see them not being in playoff contention this or next year with that defense and goaltending. If anything they should enhance the forwards and go for the cup. Really with that D and goaltending how far are they from being Cup contenders?
Id say aways away…Ribero was decent last year but depending on his comfort level he can disappear rather easily. As good as the bluline is down the middle I dont like how the Preds matchup against some of the other teams in the west.
Decent? His 62 points had him in a tie for 39t; only 3 pts out of the top 25, in points & 12th for assists for forwards. He bounced right back to his career norms after a reasonable season playing for 1 of the worst teams in the league in Arizona; 47 points with 3rd line C minutes at even strength. Both Vermette & Hanzal had better TOI/GP & linemates, & did it last season in Nashville for a million bucks & some pocket change & will do so or better for 2 more seasons at 3.5 million.
Even with last season he is a career avg 50 point center who is not great defensively… not sure I see the press marching up with Chicago LA Anaheim ST. Louis Dallas Calgary Colarado or SJ
Down the middle that is
Weber imo has always been over rated. Sure his shot is one miles an hour, and he is big and can be physical, but I think since Suter left, his DZ coverage and decision have shown there was plenty of hype that was behind his rise. Sure someone will pay but I am not so sure he a vital cog with Preds or anywhere
wow not sure he is a vital cog in Nashville? pretty sure he is there captaine and plays 26 minutes a game does not get much more vital than that. not to mention gold in sochi, and is a 1st or second rteam all star every year, the guy is top 3 d man every year.
overated?? weber is a beast in both ends you could name a lot more dmen that are way overated compared to weber!
suters game has not looked near as good since leaving webers d partner
Nashville and St Louis will be hard pressed to make the playoffs in the West next year. The Kings. Stars, and Av’s have greatly improved, St Louis has done nothing to improve their team, instead of getting faster (like Armstrong and Hitchcock) they got slower, Brower might be bigger than Oshe, but not faster. Nashville will have a hard time with two grey beards at center with Ribero and Fischer as number one and two centers.
Wonder how much blood Zdlicky and Eherhoff would leave on the ice? lol
Teams with centers on par with Weber…not many.
Teams Weber would maybe possibly accept a trade to..
As I noted in my comments, Weber lacks a no-trade clause. Predators can send him anywhere without his consent.
sorry pre-coffee reading…i thought he had full no-trade..
Tough to see it right now but going down since we are going down this road…Campbell is off the books after this year, the Panthers have a rather nice stable of young centers will have some caproom and how good is a top 4 of Ekblad Weber Gundbranson and Kulikov?
Weber has an $8m cap hit until he’s 39. With the new cap-hit recapture penalties, GM’s are going to see a lot of risk bringing him onto the books.
If he retires early – and why wouldn’t he with the drop off in pay for the backend of that deal? – it’s a huge problem for the team that has him.
Not an issue now, but if you trade for him and hold onto to him for 3 or 4 years and he starts to decline in his mid-30s – lookout.
Why wouldn’t he? Because making some money playing hockey is probably better than making no money or at least not as much and sitting at home or getting a real job. Still has a family and in his late 30s he still has probably over half his life left to support. I doubt any professional athlete is leaving millions on the table.
@schticky, except for Kovolchuk…….
Kovalchuk is still making money playing hockey…
Kovalchuk was a Flake. An incredibly talented Flake but a Flake non the less. He gave up nothing returning to play in Russia financially & he will be back in the NHL soon enough as the KHL is facing a difficult future financially. Rumors say as soon as his current contract expires after the 2016-17 season.
30 teams have to unanimously agree to allow Kovalchuk to return. I don’t see it happening. He’s played his last game in the NHL. And he made his bed.
30 teams would have to agree for him to be NJ property not to return as a UFA.
What? After you’ve made $100 mil, you don’t want to kill yourself to make another $3 mil. The whole point of cap hit recapture is to address this very issue.
Weber turned 29 on August 14th. He has 9 years remaining on his contract. He will be 37 turning 38 upon completion of that contract.
Weber to Edmonton,
TO Edmonton Weber
TO Nashville RNH,Klefbom,1st(2016)
Thats my guess, it is a boring summer day.
There is a reason why Josh Cooper is not a GM.
Does anyone think that Weber + something else for Stamkos make sense?
You make me wonder, What is more valuable to a team an Elite forward or Elite defenseman? Would you want Doughtey, Keith, Weber, or Crosby, Ovi or Stamkos? For me I take the elite D because I feel he can effect the offense and Defense also will average more minutes per game, hence having more impact on the game. But your elite center, could be strong two way and great on faceoff.
Weber will be a top player for minimum 5 more seasons. Nashville could flip a young D+ for a top center
But.. Weber is under contract. Stamkos is free to go where he wants after this year.
Trade would have to be other way around. Stamkos plus something for Weber.
sad to see josh cooper is sniffing glue
Weber won’t be traded anytime soon, 3 to 5 years, if ever. Weber is 1 of the 3 best Dman in the league just in his prime. If you polled GM’s & asked them to pick a Dman to build their team around Weber would be a top 3 selection if not #1 with Doughty, Subban &/or Karlsson. Oliver Ekman-Larsson would be just a notch behind but is coming fast. These are my top 5 with Burns, Carlsson, Josi, Keith & Pietrangelo just a notch behind. Letang would be in this group if not a serious injury liability. These types of Dman rarely if ever move. Simply impossible to replace & certainly not in their prime & fully developed.
Weber does it all. Logs huge minutes in all situations, scores, hits, blocks shots, etc & his cap hit moving forward is going to seem very reasonable as the current top Dman in the league are resigned. Subban has set the current standard & when Dman like Petry & Sekera are getting 5 plus million a year it makes Weber’s contract look like good value & the salary’s are going to keep going up especially for the superstars which Weber is.
David Poile has been the best cap manager in the NHL since it’s inception & I disagree with Lyle about them having an internal budget lower than the cap ceiling. David Poile expressed 3 years ago they will spend to win now & have been. No team has accomplished as much spending so little in the NHL since the implementation of the cap. This isn’t the old Nashville Predators. Their building is sold out every night, corporate sponsorship is now significant & growing rapidly. Money isn’t tight in Nashville any longer.
Nashville rolls 4 lines & 3 D pairings balancing minutes quite well. Even their 4th line C; Gaustad, played over 12 mins a game. I don’t see Forsberg nor Jones getting huge cap hits on their next contracts & when you have Smith at 5 more years at 4.25, Wilson 4 at 3.938, Neil 3 at 5, Josi 5 at 4, Ellis 4 at 2.5 with the contracts remaining of Rinne & Weber the current core in Nashville they have buckets of money they can spend if necessary.
Poile won’t be intimidated & pull a Sweeney moving a player for fear of a contract offer; if you buy that argument. See the Weber offer from Philadelphia & has the cash to match if required. He bridges players. They earn their money properly & no 1 gets paid before it’s earned unless made an offer forcing Poile’s hands but those situations are rare in the NHL.
People can talk about Hamilton & Saad being moved for fear of RFA offers but I don’t buy the argument. Those players were moved for cap; Saad, & personal; Hamilton, issues not for fear of offers. Calgary & Columbus both took those players with no concerns of offer sheets & got both signed for money they were willing to pay, 5.75 & 6 respectively. More money than they had yet fully earned but money that the 2 teams were willing to spend. Boston will regret their deal but frankly I think Chicago won the Saad trade. This is the new cap world.
If it becomes necessary to move a Dman in Nashville in the next 3 to 5 years I assume it will most likely be in the following order Ellis, Josi then Jones. I believe Ellis will be moved 1st. He & Josi will be UFA’s coming out of their contracts & inline for significant raises. Not next summer but the summer following when the right deal materializes.
Nashville has some C’s coming. Watson & Sisson’s. Jarnkrok is developing, just completed his 1st full season in the NHL. Smith & Wilson can both play C. I think Ellis will be moved for help at C when he has better established his value & is further developed. Moving Ellis to Edmonton for Draisaitl makes perfect sense to me when it makes sense financially & personal wise should the opportunity come or for a similar future #1 C. Both positions are hard to fill but D more so than C.
Usually I don’t care if you disagree with me, Striker, but you’re dead wrong claiming that the Predators don’t have an artificially lower cap ceiling.
As per NHLNumbers.com, for 2015-16, their current cap hit is just over $61.9 million, nearly $10 million under the current cap ceiling of $71.4 million. Last season, it was also around $61.9 million, well below the $69 million ceiling. In 2012-13, it was $54.8 million, well below the prorated $70.2 million coming out of the lockout. In 2011-12, they were at $51.9 million, nowhere near the $64.3 million cap. In 2010-11, it was $52.2 million, well under the cap ceiling of $59.4 million. And in 2009-10, their payroll was $44.7 million, while the cap ceiling was $56.8 million.
The only time since 2009-10 their payroll was close to the cap ceiling was 2013-14, when it was at $62.5 million while the league ceiling was $64.3. Interestingly, they were still among the lowest-spending teams in the league that year. Apart from that anomaly, however, the Preds have consistently spent below the league cap ceiling during this decade.
I agree, Striker, they invest their dollars more wisely than most,and their revenue is obviously increasing, but they continue to consistently spend well below the league ceiling. It’s very clear that they have a self-imposed ceiling and remain a budget team.
if your going to reference Sweeney then you need your facts straight. He traded Hamilton because he knew he didn’t want to play in Boston and will going to be a difficult sign, considering that Dougie team didn’t reply to the contract offers on the table. What he signed for in Calgary own proved Sweeney correctly and as Don has said he only wants players in Boston who want to be in Boston. Therefore this was not in fear of an offer sheet because they was of simply matched or taken the draft picks and depending on the offer sheet could’ve been better then the trade.
Webber to Edmonton makes all kind of sense. RNH+alot would be the starting point. Point to rememeber is his actual cash value remaining is quite abit less than his cap hit because of his upfront signing bonuses. That makes it attractive for every owner.
Not quite yet. He still has 14, 12 & 12 to go before dropping to 6 for 4 years, then to 3 & finally 1.
I’m sorry, but I have a very hard time trading a player as important as Weber for young players from a floundering, loser of an organization. Probably my own prejudice, but its like taking on a dog after its been beaten by a previous owner. Damaged Goods.
Besides, no one really knows about these kids in Edmonton. Only one that I’d trust to be as good as Edmonton thinks they are is Hall, and he’s always hurt. Oiler fans totally overrate RNH, Draisatil, Nail.
You just can’t trade Weber for a bunch of high-pick gambles.
Why trade Weber ?
He is not over rated, he is simply one of the best in the league.
Nashville would be nuts to trade Weber, Josi or Jones any time soon.
Precisely. Nashville is positioned to compete for the cup now & for several more years. Why would they jeopardize that opportunity by moving Weber. Fisher & Riberio both took 2 year deals. That gives Poile time to find or develop long term solutions at C.
This is a very young team. Nashville has the best D in the league now & with the exception of Weber the rest are just kids that aren’t even fully developed yet & improving exponentially. With Rinne they have 1 of the best goalies in the league. That coupled with the current core which also has bright young forwards developing in Forsberg, Wilson & Smith as well as some stud prospects coming is set every where but at C. Poile has 2 years to address that issue with Fisher & Riberio locked in.
In Fisher, Riberio, Jarnkrok/Hodson; 1 will move to wing, & Gaustad, Nashville may not have a top flight option at C but it is more than sufficient to potentially win a cup with the strengths at D, in goal & current wingers.
Yeah I don’t see how Weber is overrated, he does everything well. Add Roman Josi to the conversation too – the guy is very underrated in my book.
You trade a superstar only if you can get one in return. if the Preds can get a #1 center,then you think about making the deal. Preds’ top 6 forwarders are what’s holding them back.
Holding them back? Nashville lost to the eventually Stanley cup winner in 6 games having lost Weber in game 2. 2 of those games went to OT, 1 of those double OT. 3 of Chicago’s wins were by 1 goal the 4th by 2. Had Weber not been injured who knows what might have been.
3 of Nashville’s top 4 wingers are just kids, Forsberg, Wilson & Smith. They will get better, significantly so. Neil was actually quite disappointing in the regular season. I didn’t expect him to duplicate his #’s with Malkin but 23 goals & 37 pts in 67 games was disappointing. Perhaps injury & adjusting to a new team were part of that issue. He sure looked better in the playoffs.
Forsberg, Riberio, Neil.
Wilson, Fisher, Smith.
Hodgson, Jarnkrok, Moses/Faila.
Bourque, Gaustad, Nystrom.
Weber, Josi.
Ellis, Jones.
Ekholm, Jackman.
Bartley, TBD.
Rinne, Hutton.
That is a solid Stanley Cup contending roster. Like several teams they have the misfortune of having to play in the much stronger top end in the West.
Weber to Buffalo for Reinhart+.
This Webber talk is fun. I find it hard to believe a team would ever trade such a superstar and captain of their team. So I don’t think it will happen. I also think players of Webbers stature are traded for multiple pieces so if it were to happen mAking a deal with Edmonton makes sense.
It is to invision a trade option anywhere else. Perhaps Florida, or Carolina could make it fit. If Boston decided to move out Krejci or Bergeron. Wow what a block buster that be
Yet I will only believe it when it happens.
Agreed.
You can’t say it will never happen, it just seems very unlikely but we have all seen enough to know that nothings impossible.
Striker – would you call the Preds’ current top 6 forwards a group comparable to a Stanley Cup contending team? Take a look at the centers you listed and tell me you would take any of these 4 guys on your team as top players. Indeed, this groups of forwards will hold a team back from advancing deep into the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Preds are built from the back out, goaltending and defense and serviceable group of forwards. You have Cody ont he 3rd line, a guy just paid to leave from the woprst team in the league.
Time will tell.
I great many teams have won cups with rosters I never assumed could win it all. NJ numerous times, Carolina, etc. Add in others that some how made it but lost & it happens.
Nashville’s top 6 is not as good as some of the other contenders but their overall roster has them right there. 20 players minimum play every game, not just 6.
I never said Nashville would win the cup although I wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if they did but this is a very well balanced team that has a great opportunity to do so. They make my top 5.
I don’t solely base success on cups. Winning the Stanley Cup is the hardest Championship to win in all of sports. It’s a 2 month grind & the disparity between the best in the west & the best in the east is significant. Getting out of the west is almost impossible. Getting out of the east isn’t any where near as difficult.
Columbus does not low ball anyone..They probably offered about 5 million for the year
Bruins have one boarderline top 4 D-Man all the rest are 5-6..Marek Zidlicky isn’t a top four ……..
Weber is far from being overrated!!! he is a legit #1 D regardless of what people say. I would love for him to be on the Ducks. He is the one piece that can help them get over the top. But at what cost.
Fowler would have to be in the deal for sure. But they wouldnt be getting Getzlaf. So what else?
He is a game changer. and i would love to have him on the Ducks. But it will never happen. Its a dream of mine…. but it just wont come true.
Krejci & a 1st round pick for Weber
Was also thinking Krejci but as a Bruins fan I think the cost would be much more.
Krejci,Koko,Subban and our first.
That sounds good
Hold on… give me the make up of the Bruins lines without Krecji (the two time playoff scoring leader, Krecji).
Krecji, Bergeron and Rask are the Boston Bruins right now. If you trade either one this is officially a rebuild. Bruins are going to need to develop two of Morrow, Trotman, Arnesson, O’Gara, and C Miller into legit top 4s. Really doubtful the Bs are going to be able to fix their D by trading or free agent with the cap as it is.