Quoting: Pensfan89
I think it’s dumb for both sides. The pens only have 2 right shot defensemen. So trading the guy that plays 25-30 minutes a night and in all situations for another left shot defenseman that we have 483726493635 of seems a bit stupid to me. And Washington already has Carlson for only 750k more who is in his prime right now. I’m sure they don’t want to bring in Letang to replace him. And Letang wouldn’t go anywhere where he would possibly be a second pair defenseman except maybe Montreal. If the pens were to trade Letang, they might as well blow it up if they aren’t getting at least another top 4 RHD+ in return.
Agree the Pens get thin on RHD. Lemme try to build their side.
I don't like adding Letang as #2RD behind Carlson, but if Carlson and Kuznetsov can really land Drai, then I think the Caps have avoided a rebuild: when Ovechkin, Backstrom, and Letang retire, Washington is left with a top line of Vrana, Draisaitl, Wilson, a top pair of Fehervary and Alexeyev, and probably Samsonov in net.
But I think you're overlooking just how many average, run of the mill, 18-19 minute RHD are available in UFA this summer. With a flat cap, a lot of them are going to be cheap. Pittsburgh could make this trade, sign Krug at 8.5M, and then sign Ceci at 1M, and be just fine at RD.