Mezaros to TB for Kuba, Picard and a 1st

Thoughts?

What's the best site to research players?

Picard's numbers in the Q look pretty impressive - and only 23. What's his story since then?

Hayden wrote:What's the best site to research players?

Picard's numbers in the Q look pretty impressive - and only 23. What's his story since then?

not so great :x

WTF? This actually happened?

Hayden wrote:What's the best site to research players?

Picard's numbers in the Q look pretty impressive - and only 23. What's his story since then?

Before today, Sportsnet.ca was the source I used to read up on players' histories. Something's wrong with that part of the site at the moment, however, and I can't get any player info on anyone.

Picard was drafted in the 3rd round by Philly in 2003. His rookie numbers are nothing special -- he flirted with a .5 points per pace game twice -- although they are decent. He played a few games in 2005-06, but not enough to kick in his entry-level contract. He's accrued 2 seasons in the NHL since, playing 62 games for Philly in 2006-07 (scoring 22 points -- remember that this Philly team was awful) and 24 games between Philly and Tampa last year (scoring 6 points -- remember that this Tampa team was just as bad). He's got two years left on his current $800,000 entry-level contract; his entry-level deal was 4 years and not three, as I understand it, because he signed it when he was so young (18 years old). He will be an RFA in the summer of 2010.

From what I can tell, he's a young puck mover with some finesse of the Lee variety. He's a decent size, too, at 6 foot tall and 220 pounds. Dobber, my source for these things, tells me he was a 99% lock to make the team this year and projected him to score 29 points this year, with a decent chance at hitting 40. Those are precisely the numbers he projects for Lee.

All in all, he looks like a good pick up -- perhaps he won't look so good immediately, granted, but he looks quite promising -- though not as promising, I'd say, as Meszaros.

504Heater wrote:WTF? This actually happened?

:D yep, check tsn
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=247902&lid=headline&lpos=topStory_main

Remember: Murray wants players that want to be here....

Number Twenty Nine wrote:Remember: Murray wants players that want to be here....

thats a great way to build a team

Let's also clarify that the 1st round pick is that of San Jose's which came over in the Boyle trade.

A great deal though in my opinion. Kuba has a hell of a shot, and did fairly well for me in my fantasy pool last year. 3 mil isn't bad, and we've still got 5 mil to play with, and some competition for a spot in D!

I'm interested to see how Murray uses this 5 mil.

Pretty sure we're going to have the most competitve training camp for the 5th and 6th spot on D. I'd be upset if shubby doesn't get a shot at D for the full season, Nycholat has to be traded now (if picard is going to make it) and Bell has a shot (although a long one - especially now).

Hayden wrote:Thoughts?

OK, now on to my thoughts on this trade.

First, Kuba. He's big (6'3, 200+ pounds), he's not old (31 years old), he's in the last year of his contract (so we can just ditch him if we don't like him, or if something better comes along), he's mobile, he's a decent puck mover, and he's definitely got some offensive punch. On the negative side, he's kind of expensive ($3 mil a yr), he doesn't use his size all that effectively, he's not known for his consistency, and he's never had a 40+ point season (granted, he has spent much of his career with bad teams -- FLA, MIN, and TB). Bottom line: is Kuba from last year a big drop from Meszaros last year? No, not at all. Mesz has more potential and upside obviously, but right now, they're playing at about the same level, except that Mesz is more physical than him. Grade: B/B+.

Second, Picard. Well, I've already gone over this. To summarize: Picard has good size and mobility, decent potential and upside, and he's young and cheap ($800,000 a year, two years). I like this pick up quite a bit, but I'm not jumping in the streets over it. Not just yet, anyway, until I see more of him. Grade: A-.

Finally, the pick. If the pick had been Tampa's instead of San Jose's 1st rounder, I would have been much happier. Still, a 1st is a 1st, I suppose, and perhaps we'll be able to parlay it into a higher pick or use it to trade for a goalie or D of our choosing. Grade: B+.

Not a bad trade overall, but it's not one we can say we "definitely won" until we see what Picard can do, and what we do with that extra pick.

I can't believe this actually happened... I'm sad.

Hayden wrote:Pretty sure we're going to have the most competitve training camp for the 5th and 6th spot on D. I'd be upset if shubby doesn't get a shot at D for the full season, Nycholat has to be traded now (if picard is going to make it) and Bell has a shot (although a long one - especially now).

It's a very, very interesting situation, I admit. Locks, presumably, are Phillips, Volchenkov, Smith, Kuba, and Lee. That leaves Schubert, Picard, Nycholat, and Bell fighting for one spot.

Bell was always a long-shot at best, I think, and now he's totally out of the picture.

If it's puck mobility we want -- and it seems like we do -- it will come down to Nycholat and Picard. Nycholat has a leg up in terms of his 1-way deal, but as you suggest he may just be traded now. I also would find it strange that Murray would demand Picard only to send him down this year. That would put Picard in.

All this puts Schubert in a strange spot. He wants to play D, but now he might not get a shot. To me, that suggests that Schubert will probably have to play wing again -- which crowds our forward ranks again -- and play D on the PK, or -- and I don't like this idea -- we trade him to get offensive help.

Not a bad trade... Some unknowns though. Kuba was a disappointment last year, Picard has been a disappointment since he hit the NHL. San Jose's first could be hit or miss...

Of course, it seemed like nothing was going to get Meszaros to stay so I would say Murray got a decent return.

Number Twenty Nine wrote:Remember: Murray wants players that want to be here....

Do we know if Kuba and Picard had a choice in the matter? I don't know, Kuba will certainly have better numbers once he comes over here, so it's not a stretch to assume he'll do at least as well as Meszaros did last year. But he's likely gone next year unless. I know nothing about Picard, but I doubt he's got Meswzaros' upside.

So, here's hoping that San Jose really, really tanks this year, and *not* just in the playoffs.