Allowing Jared McCann or Kasperi Kapenen to go unprotected is nuts

The NHL has a new team, the Seattle Kraken, and because of that, we are blessed with another NHL entry draft. I got to admit, these drafts are pretty cool. They are a real-life version of a fantasy draft for a new team, with real-life and salary implications. As you may know, the Pittsburgh Penguins have will have to leave certain players unprotected, seven forwards, 3 defensmen, and a goalie to be exact. If you're unaware, the Penguins have to protect Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, and Evgeni Malkin, because of their no-movement clauses. That leaves five forwards left and I have to be honest, I'm a little taken back by the suggestions I've seen by both fans and local media regarding these lists. 

Let's start with coming up with the rationale of why you would and wouldn't want to protect certain players. The number one thing is salary and value. Take for example Jake Guentzel, the Penguins' best and most productive winger. I've seen some calls, albeit wrong calls, for the Penguins to trade him and get bigger. In theory, I get it, although I'm of the mindset that if you make a trade, the team that gets the best player in said trade wins the trade, and I have a hell of a time imagining a scenario where the Penguins get a better player in return for Guentzel. That said Guentzel is a no-brainer when it comes to protecting. So is Bryan Rust, another trade prospect. Rust is a very productive player with one year left on his deal. I wouldn't be surprised if the Pens trade Rust, but there's no way in hell they leave him unprotected.

The other logic going into this would be to get Seattle to take on a contract you're looking to move. Mike Matheson would be a dream come true when it comes to this but that isn't happening. Marcus Petterson would be another example of the Pens shedding over four million in cap space. Forward Jason Zucker is intriguing. He's a solid player although he hasn't exactly fit in well with Pittsburgh. Seattle taking Zucker would free up over five million in cap space for the Penguins, and for Seattle, it's a low-risk pick, because Zucker only has one year left on his deal. Perhaps Zucker finds his way with Seattle. 

So that's four forwards down, three to go. The next two obvious choices are Jared McCann and Kasperi Kapanen, which is funny to me because I've seen many Pens' media members and fans not have them on their lists. That's an absurd notion and it is based on emotional bias more so than logic because these same people are protecting d the likes of Branden Tanev and Teddy Blueger. Look, I like both of those players, and in a perfect world, the Penguins would get one more season out of that great fourth line, which also features Zach Aston-Reese, a player I'd be looking at if I were Seattle. These guys provide the Penguins with great forechecking, energy, and grit. I think that's where this lack of logic is stemming from. The Penguins floundered in the first round, again, and people are blaming that on a lack of grit and size, so the last thing these people want to see happen is for a gritty hard-nosed player like Tanev or Bleuger to leave, while the Penguins bring back more finesse style players like Kapanen and McCann. 

Blueger played well beyond my expectations for him but I'm not sure his ceiling is much higher and he's also due a nice little raise. He's not going to produce as much as McCann and he's surprisingly not as good in his own end as McCann is. I get it, he's a blue-collar, hard-nosed, gritty guy, the kind of undergo the yinzers love to cheer for. But what's that old saying, facts over feelings.....

Their logic is flawed here and here's why; asset management. Even if in your heart of hearts truly believe that the Penguins would be better off having all of the Tanev/Blueger/ZAR line back instead of McCann and Kapanen, you're still not understanding the fact that losing a player like McCann, who just had a career-high production rate, who's only 25, who can play center and wing, and who is a restricted free agent, for nothing instead of draft picks, prospects, or other players, would be full negligence on the Penguins' front-office. Your feelings of these players are irrelevant because perception is reality, and in the NHL McCann and Kapanen both hold much more value in possible trades and on-ice production than these noble fourth liners. 

If you want the Penguins to become a bigger-grittier team go for it, put McCann, Rust, and Kapanen on the trade block and see what happens. I'm still looking to possibly sign McCann long-term. I think he's a great two-way forward and can play on the second or third line. Even when he's not scoring goals he's helping your team. Just not the way some Pens' fans want him to help. Kapanen is a guy I'd probably look to trade while he still has some value. 

Ending here, the seventh forward to protect is up to debate for me. You could leave Zucker unprotected for reasons stated above, but man would it be rough to lose him for nothing after giving up a solid prospect and first-round pick for him. With Evgeni Malkin starting the season on IR, I think keeping Jeff Carter protected makes sense, because he can slide into the second-line center spot. But would Seattle really take a 35-year old center in the draft? Either way you're not going to protect Blueger or Tanev over any of those guys and Ron Hextall should be criticized if he doesn. 

Thanks for reading.