Falling VORG*: Pens Trade Whitney

* Value Over Replacement Goligoski

“Personal reasons,” eh? Maybe I should have checked the Bruins schedule last night. (Update: ESPN’s Scott Burnside is reporting that Whitney’s mother had successful surgery to remove a brain tumor yesterday. The whole “family in Boston/Anaheim at Boston” thing turned out to be a coincidence, and one that’s working out well for the Whitney family in the end.)

The Pens have traded defenseman Ryan Whitney, his significant cap hit, and his deteriorating hands to the Anaheim Ducks for left wing Chris Kunitz and junior left wing Eric Tangradi.

I say “deteriorating hands” because Whitney’s play since returning from foot surgery has been typified by the sudden inability to make or receive a pass. I was never part of the crowd screaming for Whitney to hit somebody. Expecting a defenseman valued for his positional play and offensive skills to suddenly become Scott Stevens makes as much sense as expecting him to become a chipped ham sandwich. But puck-handling was one of Whit’s best assets, and he hasn’t been doing that well at all this year. He was whiffing on outlet passes. On the power play, he’d send dangerously vague floaters along the blue line to Gonchar. He might as well have been using a length of rebar for a stick, the way received passes would clank three feet away.

The final straw for Whitney was the emergence of Alex Goligoski this year. Both players are cut from the same cloth, but Goligoski is younger, cheaper, and (at least this year) more reliable. The only thing he was missing was experience and playing time, especially after Gonchar returned from his shoulder injury, so he’s back in Wilkes-Barre, a victim of the numbers game.

In return, we’re getting another attempt to solve the riddle of Sidney Crosby’s Scoring Winger, at least indirectly. Kunitz is a consistent 20-goal guy, but I’m not sure if he’d fit with Sid right off the bat. If nothing else, he’ll give Dan Bylsma a little more flexibility when line-building.

Tangradi was Anaheim’s 2nd round pick in 2007, and is in his second year of juniors with Belleville. A 6′4″ 20 year old from Philly(!), he’s posting strong numbers in a power forward role this year.

In salary cap terms, Ray Shero has opened up a little bit of space, but not much. Whitney’s cap value is around $4m, and Kunitz’s is $3.75m.

With less than a week to go before the deadline, this could be the move that sets up the move, if the Penguins are looking to be buyers. Here’s the playoff situation as it stands today:

• The Pens are 2 points out of 8th in the East.
• Buffalo has lost Ryan Miller indefinitely to a high ankle sprain, and they have no confidence in backup Patrick Lalime.
• Nobody knows what to make of the Canadiens’ circus.
• John Tortorella still has to stop the free-fall of the Rangers.
• Florida has 2 games in hand, but 3 of their 4 games with the Pens are after the trade deadline.
• Carolina is the forgotten contender, lurking in the shadows, with one more game against the Pens, in Raleigh in early April.

If I’m Ray Shero, I like my chances for the playoffs, but I also don’t think there’s a season-turning blockbuster deal out there. I’m anticipating some trades that keep the team competitive this year, while also freeing up cap space for the free agent market.

The Hockey Gods are petty and cruel, and plague mankind with suffering.

Chris Osgood shutting out the Penguins and proving his critics wrong? Marian Hossa held to an assist on a Valtteri Filppula goal? That I could live with.

Instead, it’s Ty Conklin getting the shutout, and Hossa scoring a back-breaking goal.

That’s Fate twisting the knife.

Adam Burish Gets It

The Blackhawks tough guy on Stan Tallon’s wake and Sean Avery:

I know you can argue that hockey doesn’t receive the same coverage other sports do. On one hand, hockey players don’t create the same “drama” other sports do to get that coverage. Hockey players would rather have no coverage than this type of coverage.

I’m betting this won’t make espnthemag.com’s regular “Reporting from the Jock-o-sphere” feature. Just a guess.

Hat tip to The Big Lead.

Rock Bottom

Zero goals.

Fifteen shots.

Against the godforsaken Tampa Bay Lightning.

If Michel Therrien isn’t peeling paint off the walls right now, consider this season over now.

That’ll Snap You Out of a Funk

Yeah, the Islanders were scuffling along heading into last night’s game. But with the Penguins playing their second game on back-to-back nights, and Sid suffering from an uncharacteristic case of the yips, my expectations weren’t that high.

Certainly not “first career hat tricks for Sykora and Dupuis” high. Not “3 5-on-3 power plays” high. Not even “New York dresses 20 traffic cones in Islanders sweaters” high. I would have settled for Curry holding his own and a 3-2 trapfest.

Instead, I’ll take a 9-2 laugher into Philthy. Much better.

Taking a Break

I have no desire to be a part of the circular firing squad the hockey blogosphere has formed around Sean Avery and Gary Bettman, and I can only repeat myself so many times.

The real definition of “detrimental to the League or game of hockey”

Would you like to understand why Sean Avery’s “sloppy seconds” performance art was worth an indefinite suspension? There are plenty of factors within the media’s reaction. (The false dichotomy with Colin Campbell’s Wheel O’ Suspensions is a popular one. So is the Pac-Man Jones factor.)

The fact that there’s something for the media to react to in the first place is the real reason Avery’s statement is suspension-worthy.

If there was no such thing as bad publicity, the Jim Cohens of the sports world wouldn’t have to work so hard to manufacture it for the NHL. So when the real thing comes along (for example, a mouthy winger who crosses the line by making misogynistic statements about an opposing player’s girlfriend), it’s like giving the Hockey Haters Club a freebie. All of the spleen-venting, none of the prep work.

The moment Avery opened his mouth, he put Gary Bettman in a no-win situation. You’ve seen the reaction to his suspension. Now imagine how much damage control Bettman would have to do if Avery had played last night, and Dion Phaneuf and friends turned the game into a bloodbath. Stars owner Tom Hicks has publicly stated that the team would have suspended him anyway, so that would have been avoided regardless of the League’s actions.

In the end, I’ll take Bettman’s side on this one. Avery’s behavior was repulsive and dishonorable. For as violent as this game can be at times, it still sets a higher bar for off-ice conduct than other sports leagues, and Sean Avery fell far below that bar yesterday.

Not Mellon Arena’s Finest Moment

During the last TV time-out of the first period tonight, the Penguins welcomed the Versus broadcast crew.

And the fans booed.

People, John Buccigross isn’t walking through that door. Gary Thorne and Bill Clement aren’t walking through that door.

Versus won’t be winning any Emmy awards for a while, but that’s no excuse for being rude and ungrateful to the only network willing to air hockey games in the United States.

Ooh! What Does This Button Do?

Once upon a time, Mario Lemieux would single-handedly turn around hockey games by sheer force of will.

The Penguins would have a rough 1^st period, fall behind by 2 or 3 goals, and shamble around for the first 5:00 or so of the 2^nd, just for good measure. Then Mario would get disgusted and say to himself, “Yes, I do have to carry the entire team tonight, so I better get started.”

And the Pens would then reel off 4 straight goals, and 66 would have a hand in all of them, and a 3-0 deficit would end up a 5-3 win. (Guess who got the empty netter?)

It was like Mario had a secret button hidden somewhere on the bench. One of those big red industrial emergency stop buttons with a Lucite molly guard marked “FUCK IT, WE’RE WINNING THIS GAME!”

Now I’m picturing Jordan Staal in last night’s Pens/Red Wings game. It’s the 3^rd period, he’s just finished a shift, he’s back on the bench, and he has to adjust a shin guard. He leans over, and something catches his eye. There, mounted under the top sill of the dasher, is that red button. The inscription on the plastic cover tempts him. He wonders, “Is that hooked up to us or the Wings? Is this a trick? Can Coach see me? Nah, he’s giving Hasenfratz the stink eye over that interference call on Sid… It’s already 5-2, what’s the worst that could happen?”

[CLICK]

One hat trick and a Grand Theft Datsyuk later, he’s partying with Ruslan Fedotenko. The Penguins have extracted a small measure of revenge on the Red Wings. The Detroit faithful are walking away frustrated by the night, and maybe a little worried about a real rematch in this year’s Finals.

The last three meetings between these clubs ended with two overtime wins for the Pens after game tying goals at the death and one near miss. When the Wings play perfect hockey for 60 minutes, they’ve proven that they can beat the Penguins. But the split second they show a weak spot in their defenses, the Pens attack it, break through it, and then it’s the Wings hanging on for dear life.

Last year, the Pens had a breakthrough game in November against the Ottawa Senators, defending Eastern Conference champions and off to a torrid start. From that day forward, they made strong, steady progress toward a division title, and laid waste to the Eastern Conference side of the playoff bracket. Could this be another November Breakthrough? Does this mean that the Penguins are finding that next level that will lead them to the promised land?

We may not need the button again this year.

Hear that, boys? It’s open season!

UPDATE: The Commish is wise. He has indeed overturned the fine on Tuck after reviewing the tape.

 

Another day, another series of fines from Comrade Goodell. And one of them is likely to backfire on the National Football League.

Justin Tuck of the Giants was fined $7,500 for this hit on Cowboys quarterback Brooks Bollinger:

There aren’t very many people who are happy about that fine.

When the quarterback more or less jumps into the hit, it’s a bad call. When the tackler lets go as he’s falling to prevent his “full body weight” from coming down on the quarterback, it’s a bad call. Hell, when Troy Aikman, an ex-quarterback who retired because of too many concussions, disagrees with a call that ostensibly protects the quarterback, it’s a bad call.

If the NFL was smart, they’d overturn this on appeal, because every linebacker and defensive end in the league is developing this attitude right now: “If I’m going to get fined whether the hit is dirty or not, I might as well get my money’s worth and go for the dirty hit.” Don’t think for one minute that this sentiment isn’t floating around your team’s locker room right now.

Obviously, the NFL has good reason to protect quarterbacks, considering this list of starting QBs on Injured Reserve, or listed as Out or Doubtful for this week: Kyle Boller (BAL), Tom Brady (NE), Brodie Croyle (KC), Matt Hasselbeck (SEA), Damon Huard (KC), Jon Kitna (DET), Dan Orlovski (DET), Kyle Orton (CHI), Carson Palmer (CIN), Matt Schaub (HOU), Alex Smith (SF). Croyle and Orlovski replaced Huard and Kitna, respectively, when they went on IR. Detroit just pulled Daunte Culpepper off the street.

Ben Roethlisberger is officially listed as probable, but will probably be a game-time decision, and may be one more hard hit away from really being out. His backup, Byron Leftwich, is only with the Steelers because Ben’s original backup, Charlie Batch, is on IR.

Tony Romo is questionable, coming back from an injury to his throwing hand, which is why Bollinger was in there in the first place.

That’s all the more reason to ensure that Justin Tuck’s hit is not fined. If the league office, after poring over replays from every camera angle, can’t tell a clean hit from a dirty one, how do they expect referees and players to tell the difference, at full speed, in the heat of battle? That’s why plays like that are reviewed later. If the refs miss a dirty play, then that player should be fined, and when the refs botch a clean play, then the league should admit it, learn from it, and move on.

With every bad fine for a clean hit, you’ll see more and more players thinking, “Ah, $%&@ it. It’s clobberin’ time!” And if the league responds with more and/or larger fines, it will just keep escalating until, God forbid, somebody suffers an injury that is career-ending, life-altering, or possibly fatal.

Dirty hits will be punished. We get that message, loud and clear. It’s time for the NFL to send the message that clean hits will not be punished.