The Stanley Cup was awarded to the Florida Panthers last night. I guess I should start this off by saying Fuck You to the Florida Panthers….. or congrats, or whatever. It’s pretty sad when you’re simply wanting your team to have the ability to get to the 2nd or 3rd round regularly, so I’m bitter, okay?
Now that Gary Bettman can relax his sphincter due to the Cup staying south of the border and this way too late season has ended, the rest of the teams around the NHL can begin the heavy lifting that comes with shaping their rosters for next year. That heavy lifting has already been well underway for some teams, as some major trades have already taken place. The Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators decided to ignore what has always appeared to be the unwritten rule of not completing a trade on the same day as the Stanley Cup Final Game #7 and pushed through a trade that saw Linus Ullmark end up in our nations capital right before warmups began last night. The question now is what might the Toronto Maple Leafs have up their sleeve?
One depth addition they could look at is centre Alex Wennberg
Alex Wennberg
Position: Centre
Shoots: Left
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 197lbs
If I’m being completely honest, Wennberg’s numbers and usage read a lot like Teddy Blueger, who I wrote about here.
What you’d be getting from Wennberg is a natural centre that can be used extensively in hard matchups and defensive situations, while also having the ability to produce at the other end of the ice. While it’s true that Wennberg has taken a step back offensively, he’s still capable of producing 30+ points a year and should be able to continue that trend for the next few seasons. He’s far removed from his 13 goal, 59pt career year, which he posted in 2016-17 with the Columbus Blue Jackets and with 30pts in 79 games this season, split between the Seattle Kraken and New York Rangers, any team that signs him may be hoping for a little bit of a resurgence moving forward.
Where the Leafs are in desperate need of help up front is centre depth, penalty killing and scoring depth and Wennberg would provide both. He leans more towards playmaker than shooter, which may be something that helps the chemistry of the team, as his countryman, Calle Jarnkrok, can score goals and every goal scorer could use a setup man. Alongside two of those checking forwards a rookie (Easton Cowan? Fraser Minten?) could likely thrive, as the two Swedes would serve as something of a safety net, allowing any young player to wade through the ups and downs of their first NHL season more comfortably.
Where my biggest concern lies with Wennberg is his contract, both in terms of caphit and term. @AFPAnalytics has his next contract estimated at $3.9M per season over 4 years. I think that’s a little steep, but wouldn’t be surprised if he got that or more. GM’s often make mistakes on July 1st and while I believe Kyle Dubas said a lot of weird things, his theory that if you’re going to overpay anybody it should be the guys at the top of your lineup wasn’t totally off the mark. Personally, I don’t think you should overpay anybody and he basically admitted that he did just that right out of the gate when he signed the Leafs stars, but not we’re getting into a debate that should be had over a few beer at the local pub, I digress…
If between now and July 1st if there are some changes made that make the Leafs’ lineup appear closer to being a Stanley Cup contender than they currently are, then it’s possible Wennberg would opt to chase a Cup here and take a bit of a haircut. However, that’s likely more hopeful than I should be.