Though I'm sure that many of you aren't even reading this because you're too busy visualizing the delicious treat that would be log jam on toast (I imagine it would be something like Nickelodeon slime, but brown and with sawdust mixed in it). Either way there are quite a few teams with too many quality players at certain positions, and even more teams with the exact opposite problem. So first we'll break down the teams with the surplus of positional players, and then we'll outline possible destinations for these excess players.
The New York Rangers
The New York Rangers have quite a few positional clogs, the first of which is the entire roster. The Rangers have a plethora of young talent, from Derek Stepan, to Chris Kreider, to Ryan Buorque, to Dylan McIlrath, to Ryan McDonagh, to Mike Sauer, to Corey Potter, to Evgeny Grachev, to Christian Thomas. There are too many young players and not enough roster spots to have them all. Nevertheless, the worst clog up of any position is at defenseman. The Rangers currently have eight NHL ready defenseman: Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Steve Eminger, Michal Rozsival, Ryan McDonagh, Matt Gilroy, Michael Del Zotto, and Wade Redden. Add in prospects Mike Sauer and Corey Potter, and you've got ten players vying for six positions. Additionally, they have too many young forwards that they need to bring up (Stepan, Kreider, Thomas, Grachev, Buorque, Aasen) and a lot of truly awful players that are taking up their spots. The forward log jam can't be fixed by trade, rather they just need to bury Enver Lisin and Brian Boyle, and wait for Prospal and Drury to retire.
Still, the Ranger's biggest problem for this season is at defense. No, having a lot of defenseman is not a problem necessarily, but it's stupid to have untapped wealth wasting away within an organization while bad players with large contracts watch pucks go in the net. The first problem is with age. From a talent perspective the corps should consist of Girardi, Staal, McDonagh, MDZ, Eminger, and Sauer. Yet that won't happen. The Rangers need a veteran presence on the ice, and unfortunately for them the closest things they have to veterans are Eminger, Rozsie, and Redden. Eminger will crack the roster- that's why they traded for him- but Redden and Rozsie are different stories. Rozsival will most likely be on the team just due to the fact that the coaching staff and management like him (I don't know why). Redden on the other hand, most likely won't. His cap hit is huge, and the Rangers now have a plethora of players who are ready to take his spot. My guess is that he'll be waived (because no one will trade for him), and then Gilroy will be traded. Many may disagree with that, as Gilroy was the winner of the Hobey Baker- the award for the best player in college hockey- but here's how I see it. Gilroy is a 26-year old sophomore player, who struggled in his first season as a pro. Am I ready to give up on him entirely as a pro? Absolutely not. But am I ready to give up on him as a Ranger? Yes. There just isn't enough evidence to think that the upside of keeping him here outweighs giving their other players a crack at the roster. Thus, I think the corps will look something like Staal, Girardi, Eminger, Rozsie, MDZ, and McDonagh, with Sauer possibly being a seventh defenseman, a scratch, or first in line for call ups. Then once Rozsie's gone, Sauer will come up.
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are incredibly backed up at center. Between Seguin, Krejci, Bergeron, and Savard, the Bruins have more centers than you can shake a stick at (the stick shaking number for centers is three, by the way) Now according to the Bruins, their solution is to just move Seguin to the wing, and leave it at that. That's not going to work. They will still have three premier centers competing for top six forward spots. Thus, I'd expect Savard to get shipped out of there in a hurry. There have been rumors swirling for a while, and he makes the most sense to move. He's injury prone, older, and is the most established of the three. A team in need of first line center like Edmonton or Toronto would certainly trade for a player like him.
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pens are just another team with too many centers. Their solution is also to move a center to winger, with Staal having been mentioned quite a few times for a position change. Either way their issue is really a non issue. They now boast arguably the best defensive corps in the East, and have never had a problem scoring goals despite being so deep down the middle, and so shallow along the boards.
Buffalo Sabres
It's not so much of an issue with having too many men at one position, it's more that they need to get certain players a change of scenery, if you catch my drift. Tim Connolly and Drew Stafford, two players closely connected with the franchise by many around the NHL, both need to be traded immediately. Some think Derek Roy also needs to be moved due to his yearly disappearing act in the playoffs, but I disagree. He's a good producer during the regular season, and I'd like him as a first line center on my team, even if he does suffer from Joe Thornton-itis. Nevertheless, they need to acquire a good second line right winger, and Stafford seriously needs to get out of Buffalo. He doesn't produce, and Buffalo needs a fresh regime to carry them to a Cup with Miller in net. The same goes for Connolly, as Tyler Ennis (who scored almost a point per game as a rookie last season in the regular season, and then scored 4 points in six games in the playoffs) is more than ready to take the reigns of the second line. With Niedermayer anchoring their bottom six, Buffalo has to secure a top six that can put the puck in the net, and that means getting rid of the scrubs.
Montreal Canadiens
They're really deep down the middle, and very shallow along the boards. Luckily for them, center is the best place be backed up at, no matter what you intend to do with the assets. If you intend to trade, a good center is always needed by a team somewhere in the league, and if you intend to keep them, centers can usually move to left wing with ease. My guess is that the latter will be case with the Habs. With Lars Eller and Dustin Boyd now in the fold, things get very complicated for them. Nevertheless, I think that the solution is simple; move them to the wing. Gomez and Gionta will most likely need a left winger to complement them, and I'm not entirely sure if Benoit Pouliot is the guy to do that. Thus, I see Eller getting time on the left wing with the two former Devils. Boyd on the other hand, will most likely take the third line center spot. Unless he brings something special to camp, he just doesn't have the kind of production in his history that would warrant top six time.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Leafs have quite a few defenseman under contract, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but considering their needs at other positions, it would be wise to move some extra assets to try and fill the holes. One name that comes to mind is Tomas Kaberle. He's an elite offensive defenseman, and would fetch a very handsome price I'm sure. The Leafs most dire need is a first line center- so don't be surprised if they go to the Bruins (who have a hole to fill at the blue line) to try and acquire a center.
Now to the teams with the needs.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Despite the fan base clamoring for a first line center to play with Rick Nash, the thing they really need is a blue liner. The Blue Jackets' defensive corps this year was worse than "Atrocity 2: On Ice- The 3D Movie Event". Kris Russell was a diamond in the rough- going +3 with 22 points under his belt in his third season in the NHL. Not bad for a 23 year old on the Columbus Blue Jackets. Still, the fact that people in Columbus desperately want Anton Stralman back on the roster is just a testament to the horrid nature of this blue line. Now their GM isn't one to make blockbuster deals, so don't expect Kaberle to be heading there anytime soon (not that the BJ's have anything that the Leafs want). But I would expect them to make a move for a solid blue liner. Now before we explore the options can we just take a moment to laugh at the fact that the team is the Columbus BJ's? Anyway, a quick way to shore up the blue line is to sign a guy like Willie Mitchell. It's a risk due to his concussion problems this season, but the upside would be tremendous. Nevertheless, there are cheaper alternatives, though they won't bring the same crease clearing physicality. They could trade for Kevin Bieksa, whose rumored price is merely a prospect and a pick. Alternatively, they could also sign a guy like Paul Mara or Marc-Andre Bergeron. Mara is a solid depth guy who played pretty decently for the Habs last season. He can move the puck well enough, and would be a good addition to this utterly awful corps. Bergeron on the other hand is an offensive weapon that is killer on the powerplay. He has his issues- he's small, and is not the greatest defenseman- however, he'd make a great number six guy who could take the point on any team's first powerplay unit. Even a trade for one of the Rangers' many prospects (like Mike Sauer or Pavel Valentenko) would make sense.
Atlanta Thrashers
Need a depth blue liner that is defensively responsible. I'd say probably a third pairing guy because the top four are pretty much locked in stone. Paul Mara would be a good fit for them, however Shaone Morrisson was always solid in Washington, and would be a cheap pick up.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Are in desperate need of a first line center. I'd look for a trade with Boston for Savard or Krejci.
Florida Panthers
Need top six forwards. They need a guy who can put the puck in the net to relieve pressure from Voukoun. A pure sniper like Frolov, if he can get the pieces together, would immensely help the team's anemic offense. Their first round pick will shore up their blue line immensely, as will the addition of Dennis Wideman, though his production has waned in the past couple of years. The Panthers have some good young pieces in place; a pure sniper will bring the whole thing together.
Sorry guys, I got a little lazy at the end of this post, but you guys get the basic gist of the situations. Leave a comment if you want more depth and I'll do another post.
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