Pierre-Olivier Joseph gives Ron Hextall leeway to trade a certain player

I recently had the pleasure of having Taylor Haase from dkpittsburghpsorts.com on my podcast. We talked a lot about what the Pittsburgh Penguins will do and should do this offseason. Taylor, along with other people that cover the Penguins are pretty sure Pens' defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph is ready for a full-time spot on the big club. Joseph, a former first-round pick, was the key part in the trade that sent Phil Kessel to Siberia, I mean Arizona. 

Joseph is a key part of the Penguins going forward mostly because there is no other NHL-level defenseman in the pipeline. The cupboard is bare, especially after the Penguins sent Calen Addison to the Minnesota Wild to acquire Jason Zucker. Not to mention, the Penguins have made one first-round selection in the last five seasons, and that was used on a forward. This is the cost of trying to compete for championships every season I suppose. 




Joseph appeared in 16 games for the Penguins and made an impact right away, tallying a point in five points in his first seven games. Joseph looked competent, especially when it came to skating with the puck and getting the puck to the net. Joseph did struggle when covering in front of the net, but that is also to be expected from a younger-lighter defenseman. Joseph has reportedly done a good job of getting stronger and putting on weight in his conditioning by all reports. Joseph's play did tail off toward the end of his call up but I still felt he was playing above replacement level and the metrics seem to agree. 

Now with a small 16-game appearance under his belt, and a few seasons of AHL pro hockey, Joseph should be ready to be a part of the starting lineup this season. The thing is, the Penguins already have three left-handed defensemen on the roster. Brian Dumoulin, who isn't going anywhere, Mike Matheson, whose contract makes him all but unmovable, and Marcus Petterson. 

If the Penguins agree that Joseph is ready, and Mike Sullivan is ready to give him a spot in the lineup full-time, the logical thing for GM Ron Hextall to do is to try and trade Petterson. Petterson is only 25, and despite not offering much in the way of offenses, is a really solid defensive defenseman who does a good job of suppressing the opposing team's offense. A lot of people in Pittsburgh were critical of Petterson throughout last season, however, I thought he played well down the stretch and turned in a respectable season for a second-pair guy. 




So why trade him? I know you're asking that. Well, you're not going to trade Dumoulin, and no one is going to take Matheson's contract. The Penguins are up against the cap and need a right-handed dman, a goalie, and a top-9 forward. Petterson still has some perceived value and makes accounts for  $4 million against the cap. Trading him for a draft pick or two, something the Penguins desperately could use, would be a great and logical decision by Hetxall. 

Keeping the current defense the way it is really doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense to have $8.9 million combined for Petterson and Matheson, nor does it make sense to keep POJ off of the roster. POJ would be wasting away like Laura Flynn Boyle in the AHL this upcoming season. 

Sure, you are going to lose quality when it comes to in-zone coverage, but I suspect POJ's puck movement and speed will allow him to quickly make up for that. 

Let me know what you think
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