Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford addressed the media on Monday afternoon following the trade deadline. Pittsburgh acquired defenseman Erik Gudbranson from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for forward Tanner Pearson in their biggest move of the day. To add depth they also grabbed defenseman Chris Wideman from the Florida Panthers for Jean-Sebastien Dea, with Wideman reporting to the AHL. “We have issues on defense with injuries,” Rutherford’s first comments were after formally announcing the trades. “I don’t know some of the statuses of these guys,” he said, referring to Olli Maatta (out indefinitely with a badly separate shoulder), Brian Dumoulin (concussed on Saturday) and Kris Letang (believed to suffered a neck injury on Saturday). “Even without the injuries, getting the type of player that Gudbranson is, [that] was something we talked about for a while. He wasn’t available, to my knowledge, until today - so we’re very pleased to bring Erik in to join the team.” Rutherford took questions as follows. Here’s his own words to get a sense of what he was thinking and looking to add. On if it was important to add size: “Yeah. We’re comfortable in a sense with [Zach] Aston-Reese and [Garrett] Wilson, guys that can push back in those more physical games. But having another guy, especially on the back end is going to give more of a comfort level” Did the events vs San Jose change his mind for the deadline: “No not really. We’ve always felt that way - but you have to find somebody that is available and that can come into your team and play a little bit. There’s some guys out there, but they wouldn’t fit our team. The nice thing about Erik is he’s a character guy, he’s a team guy. He’s going to help in the room. He’s going to make guys feel more comfortable. He’s got experience playing in the league.” On if Rutherford, like Sullivan, is “encouraged” about Letang’s status: “Yeah. I think since he was injured the other night we’re encouraged to the point that we’re still not exactly sure when he’s coming back. He’s not coming back tomorrow night. But based on what could happen with those injuries, we’re definitely encouraged. On if the Pens are preparing for Letang to be out “weeks and weeks” “No.” Has he had a year where he’s made this many trades? “Coming out of camp, we knew we were [going] to make some changes. The fact that we traded Pearson [so soon] after we acquired him doesn’t mean we didn’t like him. We were looking for somebody that would produce a little more than [Carl] Hagelin did and Pearson did that. But at that the same time, when you have a chance to get a player like Gudbranson you have to give somebody for him. We made most of these moves early enough [in the season] that it shouldn’t take a long time for guys to fit in. Hopefully Gudbranson can fit in pretty quick, there’s not a lot of margin for error here down the stretch and we definitely need defensemen.” On the timing of the Gudbranson deal, if it happened all today: “I wouldn’t say it was later in the day. I was available he could be available within the last week. Then just talking about things about who we might make available [back]. It took until this time to make that decision what direction we wanted to go.” On if the 2019 first round pick almost got traded before the deadline: “No, it didn’t. This is a year we’re on the bubble to get in [the playoffs]. I did not want to risk that. But also it’s a very good draft and it was important this year to keep that pick.” On trading Jamie Oleksiak and how that changed the defense picture: “The Oleksiak trade was part of going forward, to make room to make the trade with Florida. And [also] where he fit in the lineup and whether he was going to play regularly. So that was made for that reason. With Gudbranson becoming available and the situation with the injuries, the landscape changed again, so we needed that player.” Why not promote minor leaguers instead of making trades: “We didn’t have enough guys there that could come in and do what we wanted, but [Zach] Trotman will come in, we’re recalling him and he’ll play tomorrow.” Was Gudbranson being right handed important: “At this point it didn’t matter as much that we had [Justin] Schultz back and [Chad] Ruhwedel playing, but right handed shots are hard to find.” On inconsistency and how he feels about the team down the stretch: “We’re good enough to get in, we’re good enough to take a run. We’ve played stretches against top teams and we’ve played well. but there’s some inconsistencies in our play. We have to have everything going that makes you a good team. Our goaltending has to be consistent and strong. We have to get healthy on defense - hopefully we can do that by this weekend. And our forwards have to do what they’re capable of doing. I feel comfortable with this team but I say that at this time, being a little bit nervous whether we’ll get in. It’s going to be a battle to the end. But we’re certainly good enough to get in and take a run.” On Teddy Blueger being sent to the minors: He wasn’t going to be in the lineup tomorrow, so the non-waiver guys it’s kinda a paper transaction, [Juuso] Riikola also. We won’t hesitate to recall him, he played very well. We’re only going to have 12 forwards tomorrow night, we’re going to have nine active defensemen. But they’re active on the roster, but they’re injured, we don’t want to put them on the IR. So we had to juggle the numbers around to get to 23 and Teddy Blueger gets caught up in it.” On what it means to acquire defensemen with bad analytical stats, what is it he’s looking for? What is it your seeing that won’t be the case?<doc-sep>TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 05: Vancouver Canucks defenseman Erik Gudbranson (44) waits for a face-off during the first period in a game between the Vancouver Canucks and the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario Canada. The Toronto Maple Leafs won 5-0. (Photo by Nick Turchiaro/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) The Erik Gudbranson trade proves the Pittsburgh Penguins have no freaking idea what they’re doing. They say the worst decisions you make are those that you rush. This is certainly the case with the NHL trade deadline. The teams who make illogical, rushed moves are going to regret them while the teams who do their shopping beforehand and pick up bargains are going to like theirs. It’s safe to say the Pittsburgh Penguins are an example of the former after trading for defenseman Erik Gudbranson. The trade sums up everything that is wrong with the Pens. It’s remarkable how the Penguins have completely abandoned the strategy which won them two consecutive Stanley Cups. They’ve been heading in the wrong direction for a while. But now, the Penguins are stuck in the middle of nowhere. It all started after Pittsburgh hoisted its second Stanley Cup in two years. For some odd reason, general manager Jim Rutherford abandoned the “let’s outskate everybody and score a ton of goals” strategy that had just won them two straight titles and decided the Penguins needed more grit. They traded their 2017 first-round pick for enforcer Ryan Reaves, thinking he would fit in with the team. He did not. In fact, Reaves wound up being shipped out to the Vegas Golden Knights in the now infamous Derick Brassard three-way trade. The addition of Jamie Oleksiak via a smart trade in November of 2017 rendered him surplus. Rutherford doubled down on his grit, character, and sandpaper sermon by signing defenseman Jack Johnson to a five-year deal worth $16.25 million. It was a bad deal before the ink dried and it somehow looks even worse now. Back in January, Rutherford made the controversial decision to trade Oleksiak back to the Dallas Stars. Ironically, they got back the same pick they gave up for him. So the Penguins pretty much rented Oleksiak for just over a year. A month later, the trade looks really bad because they wound up needing him thanks to Olli Maatta’s injury. On Saturday, Feb. 23, just a few days before the NHL trade deadline, the Penguins lost both Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang due to injuries. Luckily, it appears the latter will be fine. But the former is out with a concussion. Had the Penguins gone after a defenseman earlier like they should have, they might have been able to get Nick Jensen from the Detroit Red Wings. Instead, they watched as their biggest rivals not only traded for him, but gave him an extremely reasonable four-year extension. This left the Penguins scrambling at the deadline for defensemen. Rutherford didn’t go after old friend Ben Lovejoy. Nor did he go after a rental defenseman like Adam McQuaid. Instead, Rutherford tripled down on grit, character, and sandpaper by trading for Gudbranson. Gudbranson is really bad. In fact, he’s one of the very few defensemen who has been worse than Jack Johnson this season. Gudbranson’s shot impacts are terrible across the board. Even if you’re an old school person who thinks plus-minus is a respectable stat, guess what? Gudbranson has the worst in the NHL. This trade obviously hurts the Penguins in the present. Pittsburgh is going to trot out two of the worst defensemen in the league. Even if Maatta, Dumoulin, and Letang all return, let’s be honest, does anyone think the Penguins are going to scratch Johnson? They haven’t done it yet despite being given every reason to do so. Why would the Penguins do it now? Though it’s possible for Gudbranson to improve, fans shouldn’t count on it. Sure, Justin Schultz got his career saved by defensive coach Sergei Gonchar. But Schultz had something to build on. When the Penguins got him, he was an athletic puck mover. The Penguins have put Schultz in situations that have let him flourish. Gudbranson has very little going for him, especially in a league that is getting faster and more skilled every year. This trade also hurts them in the future. The Penguins blueline situation is extremely crowded. They currently have six defensemen signed through the 2019-20 season – Letang, Dumoulin, Johnson, Maatta, Gudbranson, and Schultz. This makes Marcus Pettersson’s future in Pittsburgh uncertain at best. He’ll be a restricted free agent, so he’ll need a new contract. Pettersson has been pretty darn solid for the Penguins in a sheltered role, but he might be stuck as the seventh defenseman unless something changes. The Gudbranson trade makes Pittsburgh worse than they were before, both in the present and the future. They’ve been heading down this road for a while. Now it’s up to Rutherford, who’s the biggest reason why they’re lost to begin with, to lead them out.<doc-sep>The Vancouver Canucks have traded veteran defenceman Erik Gudbranson to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for forward Tanner Pearson. Hearing Erik Gudbranson on the move, from VAN to PIT. — Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) February 25, 2019 Tanner Pearson for Erik Gudbranson. PIT-VAN deal. — Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) February 25, 2019 In 57 games with the Canucks this season, the 27-year-old has two goals and six assists. Gudbranson had been with the Canucks the past three seasons after being acquired from the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward Jared McCann, who is now also on the Penguins roster. In 448 career games split between the Canucks and Panthers, Gudbranson has 16 goals and 46 assists. Pearson has split the season between the Penguins and Los Angeles Kings, registering nine goals and six assists in 61 games. In 369 career regular season games, Pearson has 78 goals and 80 assists. The Canucks also announced they have acquired forward Linus Karlsson from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for forward Jonathan Dahlen.<doc-sep>The Pittsburgh Penguins picked up two veteran defensemen in a pair of deals before the NHL trade deadline Monday.Chris Wideman was acquired from the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward prospect Jean Sebastian Dea.Pittsburgh also got Erik Gudbranson in a swap with Vancouver. The Pens sent Tanner Pearson to the Canucks.Wideman and Gudbranson will join a Penguins team that has depth issues on the blue line, with Olli Maatta, Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang all dealing with injuries.Wideman, 29, started the year in Ottawa before he was traded to Edmonton and then to Florida. He has two goals and five assists in 25 games.Gudbranson, 27, has two goals and six assists this year. He is signed through the 2020-21 season.Pearson struggled to gain traction after coming to Pittsburgh from Los Angeles in a November trade. He had nine goals and five assists in 44 games with the Pens.Dea, 25, has five goals and two assists in 29 career games with Pittsburgh and New Jersey.The Associated Press contributed to this article. The Pittsburgh Penguins picked up two veteran defensemen in a pair of deals before the NHL trade deadline Monday. Chris Wideman was acquired from the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward prospect Jean Sebastian Dea. Advertisement Pittsburgh also got Erik Gudbranson in a swap with Vancouver. The Pens sent Tanner Pearson to the Canucks. Wideman and Gudbranson will join a Penguins team that has depth issues on the blue line, with Olli Maatta, Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang all dealing with injuries. Wideman, 29, started the year in Ottawa before he was traded to Edmonton and then to Florida. He has two goals and five assists in 25 games. Gudbranson, 27, has two goals and six assists this year. He is signed through the 2020-21 season. Pearson struggled to gain traction after coming to Pittsburgh from Los Angeles in a November trade. He had nine goals and five assists in 44 games with the Pens. Dea, 25, has five goals and two assists in 29 career games with Pittsburgh and New Jersey. The Associated Press contributed to this article.<doc-sep>
The Pittsburgh Penguins got a 6-foot-5, 217-pound defenseman with terrible advanced statistics Monday afternoon. The Penguins dealt nearly invisible winger Tanner Pearson to Vancouver for hulking defenseman Erik Gudbranson and were pleased to do so. The Penguins aren’t wrong to be pleased, or at very least curious. The Twitterverse was less than pleased. Actually, for an afternoon, the Penguins received the royal Pirates treatment as every move GM Jim Rutherford has made over the past two years came under heavy scrutiny. Everything the Penguins have done or thought about doing was wrong, and there was no shortage of explanations. Fortunately for Penguins fans, the Penguins management isn’t as bad as they’re being portrayed online (though that wouldn’t be possible). PHN can now confirm the San Jose Sharks nearly dealt Erik Karlsson to the Penguins in exchange for Tanner Pearson but Rutherford insisted on the right-handed Gudbranson instead. Please note the dripping sarcasm. Here’s how to put this trade in context: The Penguins gave up a non-impact player who deserved more press box time for a right-handed defenseman who may deserve press box time when the Penguins defense is fully healthy but in the meantime will provide NHL caliber defense, someone to pushback on the garbage which has recently been hurled at the Penguins superstars, and some blood and cuts character. The contractual terms of Pearson and Gudbranson are nearly identical. Gudbranson is signed for two more years at $4 million per and Pearson has two more years at $3.75 million. Gudbranson is only 27-years-old and was the third overall pick in 2010, not that it matters in 2019. According to our real Penguins source, the Penguins believe there is more to Gudbranson’s game and want to see how he performs in an uptempo, puck-moving environment. Again, they lost only Tanner Pearson, which clears space for Teddy Blueger when everyone is healthy. And they get someone in the locker room who may be an emotional leader. Gudbranson and Blueger for Pearson–are you saying no? Beyond the near perpetual outrage which has gripped the Penguins fanbase, there is sound logic to this move. If the move doesn’t work, the Penguins will be able to recoup an asset for Gubranson this summer. In the meantime, the Penguins get sorely needed help on the blue line and–again–someone able to throw punches when a Wayne Simmonds type plows a Brian Dumoulin type. Or an Evander Kane wanders into the Penguins huddle. Credit Jared McCann for recently going after the bad actors but does anyone want to see Evgeni Malkin or Kris Letang injured again because they’re doing their own dirty work? “Getting the type of player that Gudbranson is, is something we’ve talked about for a while. He wasn’t available, to my knowledge, until today,” Rutherford said. “In Erik’s case, he’s a real heart and soul guy, a good dressing room guy. He’s got good character. And he can protect our players.” Gudbranson’s stats aren’t pretty. There’s no churching up how bad they are. They’re flat awful. He’s been on the ice for about 34 percent of goals-for. His Corsi rating is about 43 percent. And his scoring chance ratio is also in the 38 percent range. That means he’s not driving any offense. Did I miss the part when Tanner Pearson drove offense? The Penguins added some much-needed help in exchange for an unneeded body. That’s how to read the trade. “He puts us in a position to push back when we get into more physical games,” Rutherford said. “Somes teams play a skating, skill game and some teams play a more physical game. He’s going to bring that element to our team.” The Penguins did nothing yesterday which cannot be undone in the summer if needed. However, they also believe they may have found a missing piece–there was some excitement internally over the deal for those very reasons. At very least, Gudbranson fills an immediate need. Of course, Commissioner Gary Bettman may extend the trade deadline for the Penguins and San Jose may reconsider the offer of Pearson or Jack Johnson for Karlsson to Pittsburgh. While we wait for that decision, perhaps we’ll pause to see how Gudbranson fits and what effects he may have on the team. In the worst case scenario, he has the same non-effect as Pearson. In other words, the Penguins can’t lose this trade, at least until San Jose comes to its senses.