Many have high hopes for the Pittsburgh Penguins this season, but general manager Kyle Dubas' construction of his roster remains perplexing. They are filled to the gills with forwards, and their defensive pairings are unbalanced.
Right now, that awkward roster has had a solid start to their year, but with the numbers game going against them, Dubas pulled off a trade that sent Filip Hallander to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for defenseman Spencer Stastney.
This won't shock the world even though there have been different trade targets coming out of the shadows in recent weeks. Both Simon Edvinsson and Alexander Nikishin have made it publicly known that they want traded. Dubas didn't go after either of those bigger fish on the trade block. He had no other choice but to trade Hallander in exchange for a defenseman who many aren't familiar with.
It's a tad disappointing to see Hallander leave the Penguins after years of fighting through adversity throughout his career just to get sent away. He was off to a terrific start to the season, but for one reason or another, Dubas believes he was the most expendable of the forwards overfilling their roster. Time will only tell how this move fairs for Pittsburgh, but it shouldn't mean much.
Pittsburgh Penguins GM Kyle Dubas trade of Filip Hallander is nothing but a swap of depth pieces
Everyone wants to know who the heck Spencer Stastney is. Well, he isn't anyone to really write home about. He is an effective depth defenseman who probably won't see a ton of games in Pittsburgh this season unless injuries start to pile up.
He is someone who has shown he can produce in a sheltered role on an NHL roster, and one of the best things benefitting him is that he is a left shot defender on a team who needs more of them.
At the end of the day this trade probably won't affect either side one way or another. Hallander is off to a great start to his season, but it's unlikely that he is on a path to a breakout campaign. He is a respectable bottom six player who can help a competitive team like Edmonton compete for a Stanley Cup. It will be intriguing to see if Hallander can continue his success with the Oilers elite talent.
When it comes to Hallander, he has been a great story to monitor for the Penguins. He worked his way back from a blood clot issue last year and fought his way onto their NHL roster this past summer. The biggest issue for Hallander and many other depth forwards in Pittsburgh has been the numbers game.
There are too many mouths to feed right now, and that struggle for balance is what ultimately led to Hallander getting traded.
Pittsburgh shouldn't anticipate Spencer Stastney to do anything spectacular, in fact, he might not do much at all. Perhaps he could fill a role that Chad Ruhwedel did for a long time. The seventh defender who would be effective when given a chance. If Dubas and the Penguins get lucky, maybe Stastney will be better than anyone anticipated. That might be possible, but don't get your hopes up with him.
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