It's trade deadline week.
Rumor has it that there's not going to be the volume of trading that has occurred in years past. And by rumor I mean there's been little activity or speculation going around on the message boards. After the World Juniors the price for Jordan Eberle has skyrocketed I'm sure, while the price for Luca Sbisa has dropped. Ok, maybe not dropped, but I'm sure there's fewer teams willing to take a chance on him for the price they would have to pay.
What's Bob going to do? I have no idea. I never do, he's a sneaky one. Predicting what Bob is going to do is like thinking a quick-pick lotto ticket will be the road to success. I don't know that the team NEEDS anything, at least not for the price that would need to be paid. A Fadden or YellowHorn type scorer would be nice, but expensive and not vital. Just have to make sure they keep up with the scoring by committee stuff.
I think the defence is very deep, I can't see wanting to tweak that. Yes, Plouffe could be better, especially as a 20, but whatever. I can see Bob maybe trying to shop him, but doubtful any team would pick him up. He's a slightly-more-than-mediocre (at this point) defenceman. My hope is that he'll get his shit together come playoff time, he's got a ton of playoff experience. If he can get back on his game, the AMS will be golden.
Nick Patterson up in Everett has an excellent piece about why trading volume will likely be down this year:
* The lack of sellers: As of now there appear to be just three teams that are lost causes when it comes to the playoffs, those being Prince George, Edmonton and Lethbridge. Edmonton and Lethbridge have already sold off many of their top assets, so there isn’t much talent left to mine from those teams.
Also, declining attendance league wide means teams are more dependent upon playoff revenue to turn a profit. Therefore, it’s possible mid-level teams that would have been willing to give up an impact player for the right deal will be less inclined to do so this season. (Emphasis mine)
*High prices: Recent trades suggest the price for top players is sky high this season. Not only is there a scarcity of available talent, the Brandon Wheat Kings have propped up the prices. Brandon is hosting the Memorial Cup and has shown the willingness to meet any price to build a team capable of winning it. Those prices may be too high for anyone else.
*International injuries: The most-coveted position on the market is defense, and the two best defensemen who are thought to be available are Lethbridge’s Luca Sbisa and Moose Jaw’s Travis Hamonic. However, both suffered injuries at the World Junior Hockey Championships that will sideline them for a substantial period, Sbisa to his hip and Hamonic to his shoulder. In addition, Sbisa was also named to Switzerland’s team for the Olympics, making him unavailable for most of February. Will teams be willing to deal for players whose availability will be limited?
Despite those issues, there’s still expected to be some activity which will shift the balance of power in the league. Just perhaps not as much as in seasons past. (Nick Patterson at Everett's HeraldNet)
3 comments:
I don't think that Bob will do anything before the deadline and will probably stick with who is on the team now. I don't disagree with that decision and think overall the ams have a fair shot at making a playoff run, I don't think with this team they'll go too deep into playoffs unless some big improvements are made within the team but it's certainly possible, just my opinion.
Another variable is how other teams start playing come playoff time. It seems to be others will be mediocre the entire season and go deep in playoffs when the ams play a great full season and can't hold up in playoffs.
I agree that I'm sure Bob will stick with this lineup. As for improvements, I think what's missing is consistency. Yeah, it's scoring by committee (phrase of the season) but it's inconsistent.
As far as deep into the playoffs, I think they're totally *capable* of beating any team any night IF they play full-out for 60 minutes. Which we have yet to see on a consistent basis, in my opinion. And not just the loss to big-time Saskatoon, but those nights when no one showed up and they got blown out of the water 6-1, 7-1, or whatever.
Other teams will be better come playoff time, just because of development, chemistry, experience and whatnot, AMS are no exception. Whether it will be good enough is anyone's guess.
As my husband was just reminding me about playoffs: Remember, the Ams only have to worry about the West Division until the end. They've proven that they can take on Vancouver, Everett and Portland. The biggest worry is Spokane, but at this point I'd put my money on the Ams in a best of seven, especially with home ice advantage. We can only hope that whoever comes out on top in the East has been beaten up by the other Eastern teams. They have to contend with Calgary, Medicine Hat, Saskatoon and Brandon.
You're right that Plouffe has a ton of playoff experience and from what we've seen, has been a force to be reckoned with in said playoffs. If he can get it together and play like he did at the end of last season, his leadership will be important to this young team.
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