We traded Theodore to protect Vaatanen from Vegas, he wasn't claimed in the expansion draft (was not claimable due to lack of NHL games), at the time it looked like a decent decision, in hindsight it looks bad in a vacuum.

In context, we traded Vaatanen for Henrique, so technically we gave up Theodore to get Rico, still not convinced it was a good trade overall, but it looks a lot less bad in context.

Yeah, I was going to say that Theodore didn't require protection. But Gibby beat me to it.

Thanks for the insight. I wasn’t aware that Theodore was ineligible, I thought they exposed him to protect Manson/Vatanen. So I guess it doesn’t make a difference whether it’s him or Pouliot.

Knowing Chiarelli you probably could've dropped the pick as getting fleeced was his favourite activity.

Haha this trade may have ended up being worse than Hall for Larsson!

Think this team would have 3 peated?

I think you’d get by Washington, but I think the run ends there as your next opponent would’ve been the lightning and this was not the 2016 team you beat in the same round, this bolts team was better in almost every way

That team was doing good before the disastrous trade that just looks more and more bad the more I look at it. And it just continuously gets more bad the more I think about it. The Brassard trade is one that I’ll hate the most by the Penguins in my life.
That line up was doing really well though before that trade. It was the beginning of the end for us I think.

Jake/Sheary-Sid-Rust/Hornqvist
Hagelin/Jake/Sheary-Geno-Kessel/Hornqvist/Rust
Jake/Hagelin/Sheary-Sheahan-Rust/Kessel
Kuhnhackl(miss him)-Rowney(miss him as well)-Reaves

Dumo-Letang of course
Cole/Oleksiak/Maatta-Schultz
Cole-Oleksiak

Murray
Jarry
DeSmith

They were a great team before that trade. I don’t think there was really anything else they could’ve added. And instead we traded a 1st round pick that became K’Andre Miller, Ian Cole, Ryan Reaves, and Filip Gustavsson. K’Andre Miller is now a solidified top 4 defencemen, Ian Cole is still a solid defensive defencemen, Ryan Reaves is still a feared tough guy that actually doesn’t produce that badly at all, and Filip Gustavsson has been proving himself as a solid goaltender in the league and still relatively young. As for Brassard we got maybe only Hallander out of the Brassard trade tree. Honestly imma say it again that trade really set back a few years I think.

I don’t necessarily agree, felt the 2017-18 TBL was not much different than the team that lost to CBJ in the first round a year later. They had not yet developed the Coleman-Gourde-Goodrow unit.

I’d agree that the trade set us back, but still it was necessary for us to find a 3C at the time. I think if we went into the playoffs with Sheahan, he was good but didn’t provide enough offence, he was more suited for the shutdown role with ZAR and Kuhnhackl.

Brassard was a great player at the time but he lacked commitment to be a 3C, it’s hard to explain why. Think he didn’t want to play with Simon or Rust which is very strange cuz both players suited his strengths. But it was just a very bad team in general with JJ and Maatta declining that year.

My main disagreement with the Brassard trade is that they should’ve targeted younger players with more potential. RNH would’ve cost fewer assets at the time and been a long term W. Sam Bennett or Max Domi would’ve also been very good.

I don’t think the need for a 3C was a problem at all cause Sheahan was actually playing some pretty solid all round hockey. I also remember him playing really strong offensively as our 3C before Brassard came along. Looking at game logs Sheahan was playing at least 15 minutes a night and Brassard came along and ruined that. Within a span of 11 games post all-star break I think, Sheahan had recorded 9 points and really was earning that ice time. Brassard came along and it ruined that hot streak Sheahan was on and overall I think he hurt the teams chemistry. Really not much good I have to say for Brassard.