The day after losing 3-0 to the Vancouver Canucks in an embarrassing fashion the Pittsburgh Penguins have begun making some roster changes. Not only did the Penguins lose to Vancouver, but they lost another forward. Patric Hornqvist is out and there has been no update on his status. He was the last forward Pittsburgh could afford to lose.
With Hornqvist out of the lineup the Pittsburgh Penguins have just three of their top six forwards left.
The #Pens have acquired Rob Klinkhammer and a conditional '16 draft pick in exchange for Philip Samuelsson. Release: http://t.co/EIcMXfxKAa
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) December 5, 2014
It was announced less than an hour ago that Pittsburgh has traded former second pick Philip Samuelsson and a conditional 2016 draft pick to acquire forward Rob Klinkhammer.
Editors Note – When this rapid reaction was written, It was misread that Pittsburgh sent a pick. Apologies
Not only does this move not make sense, but it was a waste of assets by GM Jim Rutherford. Rob Klinkhammer is not a scoring forward or a top six player, however he will most likely be asked to play as one until the Penguins get healthy. In his career he has played 129 games and has a mere 36 points (19 G – 17 A). Last season was his most productive with the Coyotes where he tallied 20 points (11 G – 9 A) in 72 games played.
I do not argue that the Pittsburgh Penguins’ bottom six forwards needed to be reinforced, but Rob Klinkhammer is not the answer. Not only is he not someone that the Penguins truly need, but the price they paid for him was way too high. Pittsburgh right now needs top six forwards and players who can lineup with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.
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The most frustrating thing about watching, writing about or being a fan of the Pittsburgh Penguins is seeing all of the defensive talent in the system. Pittsburgh has prospects that are capable of excelling in the NHL, but ownership refuses to give them a chance.
Philip Samuelsson is much more talented than many people realize and the Penguins never gave him a chance. This same problem existed with Simon Despres but he eventually was given a chance with Pittsburgh and has shown this season what he is capable of, all of this despite his limited role.
Hopefully we will see a larger trade soon that actually fixes the Penguins problems.