Anaheim Ducks Roundtable: Should they trade for a rental player?
By Ed Stein
Thoughts from Redan Lopez
With the trade deadline less than two weeks away, let’s evaluate the Ducks. They are set at goaltender with John Gibson and Ryan Miller. The first three lines spearheaded by captain Ryan Getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, and Adam Henrique are providing an adequate amount of offense.
The fourth line, however, is a subject of discussion as it could provide a little more. Chris Wagner, Antoine Vermette, and J.T. Brown have not found the back of the net for a while, but I do like the grit of this line.
The Ducks should trade for a third or fourth line scoring winger in the case of an injury to the bottom six – one name that comes to mind is Rangers winger Michael Grabner.
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At a cheap, expiring deal of $1.65 million, Grabner could give the Ducks a boost on the fourth line at even strength as well as provide reliable penalty killing. Grabner would be a shorthanded threat on the penalty kill with his speed.
I like the Ducks top four on defense – Josh Manson, Hampus Lindholm, Cam Fowler, and Brandon Montour. They are excellent puck-moving defensemen and very responsible in both ends.
The ones that I do worry about are unsurprisingly the older rear guards – 36-year old Kevin Bieksa and 37-year old Francois Beauchemin.
With the report coming in that the Ducks put depth defenseman Korbinian Holzer on waivers; it seems they may want to go younger on defense with call-up Marcus Petterson. However, it is not clear if this was the purpose.
Regardless, the Ducks do need help on the defense. Some rental players that may be on the available on the market are Pittsburgh’s Ian Cole, Red Wings’ Mike Green, and even New York Rangers defenseman Nick Holden. Green and Holden are on teams that are unlikely to make the playoffs, and Cole is a slightly younger, more skilled defenseman that Holzer.
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Look for the Ducks to make a minor move that will boost them in the short term. Either to shore up their scoring or defensive depth.