Shortly after the Hurricanes announced a trade that sent Victor Rask to Minnesota for Nino Niederreiter I posted my initial reactionto the trade HERE.
Today’s Daily Cup of Joe looks at Nino Niederreiter’s deal from a couple other angles.
Where does Nino Niederreiter fit in the current lineup?
The potential is there for Niederreiter to be a top 6 forward in the Hurricanes current lineup. He would need to rebound and score at a pace in the high end of his range to be slotted appropriately on one of the Canes first two lines. While there are no guarantees that it works, there is at least the potential that the Hurricanes upgraded scoring-wise. Though it is possible that Niederreiter starts on a lower line while he adjusts to a new team, I would expect that he will at least receive an audition on Aho or Staal’s line.
What, if any, are the financial implications?
The additional salary cap of $1.25 million per year is modest, but I still think the Niederreiter’s acquisition could have a couple significant ripple effects. First, compared to the possibility of trading Rask away for futures, Niederreiter does cost $5.25 million for three more years.
With the Hurricanes at the bottom of the NHL in terms of 2018-19 salary cap, this lone addition does not automatically spell the end for any Canes players. The current cost structure can fit Niederreiter without forcing the team to trade or not re-sign another player. In that regard, nothing changes with Sebastian Aho or Teuvo Teravainen who are both restricted free agents this summer. And at a basic level, the arrival of Niederreiter does not alter the basics of the team’s plans going forward. But as Aho, Teravainen and other young players come off their contracts,
So at a big picture level, Niederreiter does not significantly change things.
Micheal Ferland
But Niederreiter’s arrival could play into the Micheal Ferland situation. Ferland is an unrestricted free agent this summer. The team will need to decide if Ferland should be re-signed or if he is just to pricey/risky and should be cut loose. Niederreiter is especially relevant to Ferland because at least theoretically he could fill Ferland’s slot as a scoring power forward with enough speed to play on a scoring line. By no means does the team need to limit itself to one such player, but if Niederreiter acclimates quickly and auditions well with Aho/Teravainen, that result could be significant for Ferland. First, he could become more expendable if Niederreiter can productively fill that significant slot in the lineup. Second, success by Niederreiter could suggest that Ferland is mostly just a complementary player who can be fairly easily replaced. Finally, if the team does bump down Ferland and he has a lull in terms of productivity like he did the first time, his market value could decrease significantly.
So while I would not say that this marks the inevitable end of Ferland’s time with the Hurricanes, the situation does potentially give the team some leverage in that negotiation.
Increase in Canes difficulty to play against
Niederreiter’s acquisition adds yet another player who is difficult to play against. After maybe being a bit too soft in years past, the Hurricanes have since added Jordan Martinook, Warren Foegele, Micheal Ferland and now Nino Niederreiter and in the process become significantly more difficult to play against.
The path ahead
I will be curious to see where Brind’Amour slots Niederreiter initially. Will he play initially on one of the depth lines and have some time to settle in without pressure to score? Or could Brind’Amour put him immediately on Aho’s line to see what he can do. My hunch is that Niedereiter slots initially on a lower line.
What say you Canes fans?
After a night to digest the trade news, how do you feel about the addition of Nino Niederreiter?
Go Canes!
Still feel good about it, but suspect there’s more to come.
In the ideal world the Canes could add another playmaking center by trading D, Jordan Staal or maybe Ferland.
Someone like RnH, Stone or Duchene, maybe Nylander (though I have my doubts about him), the ability to build two scoring lines is tantalizing and it feels like we’re one top 6 center away from being able to do just that.
Hopefully Necas will be that guy a couple years down the road, but I think he is not there yet, he has not been scoring lately down in Clt and by all accounts his WJC performance was a bit of a letdown, so he’s hitting a bit of a wall right now (which is natural and he could shake it off, but also he might not).
I’m curious to see what RBA decides to do with Nino right now and whether he can help elevate the team to another winning streak before the break.
This is not an easy set of games, but time is running out for the club to make the playoffs.
the next challenge, find a way to trade scott darling for something, anything, since I thought Rask was untradeaand was proven wrong I can still hope.
Love this pickup. I recall the 2010 draft where Nino went 5OA and was impressed with the footage and pedigree this player had. While that draft was deep and we made a solid selection w/Skinner at 7OA, anytime trade rumblings occurred Nino would cross my mind. Now here we are…funny how that works.
I am no expert nor trying to sound like one, but Nino’s size, possession skill, and shooting mentality of being a proven 20-goal guy likely means he was brought in to compliment the top line w/Aho, Turbo (at least for starters).
I also think the decision has been made on Ferland. While I wouldn’t be shocked if management extends Ferland, I still believe the smarter move is to deal Ferland + Defenseman + Prospects/Picks as a package or separately for a young top 6 forward and a 1st (maybe even to bolster goaltending for next year). Either way, I like the way things are continuing to shape up.
I still like the deal. I still believe the team preference is to re-sign Ferland – and it’s my preference, too – but spending an extra $1.5m both as a hedge, to get out from under an unproductive contract, and to make room for up-and-coming centers is a reasonable allocation of resources to me.
Other former Canes have done well elsewhere and I wish the same for Rask, particularly since he’s in the West; hopefully a change-of-scenery helps NN just as much. He gets a fresh start in the prime of his career.
We talk about trading a RHD (maybe in a package) for a Top-6 scorer and that seems like the most obvious answer, but I’m not sure anyone saw this coming so it wouldn’t surprise me if the next deal surprises us to. Our defense if playing quite well and is our ticket to the Playoffs. Ferland is obviously a trade-chip in play that could be used to return a different kind of offensive player. It’s not a disaster if trading a RHD waits until the offseason.
This trade is happening at an ideal time. The Canes recent successes have corresponded with more goals. Historically, whether it is Skinner and Aho with Carolina or other players who play a partial season in the NHL, scoring often increases substantially after 30-40 games. I am expecting one or both of Wallmark and Svechnikov to increase goals after the break.
Whether the lineup is Niederreiter/Aho/Teravainen
Ferland/Wallmark/Svechnikov or FAT and Niederreiter with the rookies, one of the lines should become more dangerous. That is always a plus.
If the Canes trade Hamilton or Faulk (trading Pesce should be off the table) for another scoring winger, then the Canes will be even more dangerous. When Staal returns center will be decent on all four lines. Things could come together nicely.
From all I have read and heard, half the league is interested in obtaining the services of Michael Ferland. I don’t doubt that is true.
So, what is the primary reason for bringing in NN?
Is it to show Ferls that he can be replaced with relative ease? Is it to show us fans that Ferls can be easily replaced? Or is it that management recognizes that even with Ferls, we still need more grit?
I hope it is the latter. Because we do need more grit. Look at the Washington Capitals. Is Tom Wilson gritty enough to be the only one on the team? No. Not by a long shot. Smith-Pelley and Orpik are good for little else than grit. And there are a few lesser lights in the constellation of grit. Anyone who doubts that grit was a major component of the Caps’ successful pursuit of the Cup, is delusional.
Ask the Caps what they would want in a trade for Wilson. He is unavailable. I think Ovi would quit.
There are very few players like Wilson and Ferland. Wheeler and Trouba of the Jets, maybe.
That is not to diminish the value of Martinook, McKegg, McGinn, Fogele, Bishop,Roy, and Niedereiter. They are very important to the team not placing too much reliance on one gritty guy.
We still need a nasty big and strong defenseman.
If they put NN on the line with the Finns, Ferland is lost, and so are we.
You are right about Wilson. The Caps have him at just over 5 million which I think is a great deal for them.
I’m sure Ferland is looking for more maybe as much as 7. 7 is what Evander Kane and JVR are making. We will see what he gets this summer.