Penguins Trade Talk: Available Right Side D-Men

The Pittsburgh Penguins had to mount a third-period comeback after Ottawa Senators forward Drake Batherson scored from the back-post Saturday night. The goal gave Ottawa a 2-1 lead, but more germane to the Penguins’ big picture, Batherson was able to claim the inside position near the net.

With young defenseman Jack St. Ivany’s regression, Penguins coaches have been forced into less-than-ideal solutions this season. Ryan Shea and Matt Grzelcyk have played on their off-hand to fill the void, but the Penguins badly need a right-handed defenseman. They currently have only two: Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson.

Grzelcyk has yielded several odd-man rushes in the last few games because he wasn’t able to play the puck on his backhand at the blue line.

The Penguins have some salary cap space with which general manager Kyle Dubas can work, but the larger impediment to fixing the need with vigor is the Penguins’ larger position. Simply put, Dubas isn’t in a buying mood unless the acquisition will help the team well into the future (see also Rutger McGroarty, Philip Tomasino).

However, given Dubas’s restrictive position, there is some help who may well fit the situation. Granted, Dubas won’t be shopping at Nordstrom’s unless the player is in his early 20s, such as RHD David Jiricek, whom Minnesota surrendered a first, second, third, and fourth-round pick to acquire.

No, Dubas’s price range is more like the clearance aisle at Gabe’s, so don’t compare the Penguins’ possibles to high-profile availables.

Possible Penguins Trade Targets, RHD

1. Alexandre Carrier, NSH

He’s a right-handed version with much of the same skillset as Matt Grzelcyk, except he wouldn’t be encumbered with playing on his offside. Carrier, 28, is in the first year of a three-year deal with a $3.75 million salary cap hit. His name has appeared on a couple of NHL trade boards as this team, the Nashville Predators, are languishing near the bottom of the Western Conference.

The carrier is under 6 feet and less than 180 pounds but is a scrappy defender who can skate and move the puck.

The acquisition cost should be relatively affordable because of the three-year contract and the player’s relatively low offensive output; he has seven points (1-6-7) in 28 games this season.

Nashville also has rock-ribbed righty Luke Schenn, who just turned 35. He, too, would be affordable but might cost more than Dubas would fork over.

2. Vincent Desharnais, VAN

The hot-off-the-press NHL trade rumor du jour this weekend, including on Hockey Night in Canada, Saturday was that the Vancouver Canucks were unhappy with the defenseman they signed to a two-year, $4 million deal to be their third-pairing guy.

It’s not working, and Vancouver wants to move on.

Desharnais, 28, is 6-foot-7 and 226 pounds, so size isn’t a factor. He knows his role isn’t one to try to get fancy with the puck. There’s some debate if he’s physical enough for his size, but the Penguins won’t pony up for a top-shelf replacement to “win now.”

The Edmonton Oilers let him walk via free agency, and Vancouver is ready to move on, so the trade cost could be about zero or LESS than zero.

If Cody Glass commanded a third-round pick from his trading team, acquiring Desharnais might require little more than a late-round pick, or perhaps Vancouver would affix a mid-round pick to make it happen.

Clearly, the Penguins could use a righty to steady the defensive zone and guard the net. That’s Desharnais.

3. Zach Bogosian, MN

Minnesota is currently making good use of its depth righty. Bogosian has played 30 games this season, but waiting in the wings for NHL ice time is Jiricek, for whom Minnesota general manager Bill Guerin paid a king’s ransom.

Minnesota has multiple young defensemen ready to make the leap to the show, but Bogosian is in the first year of a two-year, $2.5 million deal. Injuries have taken a toll on the defenseman, so he’s no longer a 20-minute guy, and he doesn’t quite skate like he used to, but the 34-year-old would possess real value for the Penguins — if Minnesota will part with him.

Bogosian probably would come at a cost, but the 6-foot-2, 200-pound blue liner would be a plug-and-play third-pair option.

While Dubas has repeated that squeaking into the playoffs holds no appeal for him, perhaps a little help to the current team in the midst of the muddled and muddy Eastern Conference playoff race and the potential millions in playoff revenue could make ownership happy (and earn him more dollars to spend on players like Glass and Kevin Hayes in the rebuilding effort).

Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel

Justin Barron. The Montreal Canadiens are showcasing the righty with lots of ice time. He’s prone to turnovers and doesn’t use his 6-foot-2, 200-pound size to his full advantage. However, he’s only 23.

Tyson Barrie. The 33-year-old defenseman has a right-handed stick but has been relegated to a lot of press box nachos in Calgary (actually, they only have popcorn in Calgary). He’s played just nine games this season and is on a one-year, $1.25 million deal.

Barrie was previously one of the more sought-after righties on the market, a point-producing power play QB type. However, a third pairing of Ryan Graves and Barrie might be enough to turn coach Mike Sullivan’s hair gray mid-game unless assistant coach David Quinn thinks he can extract one more good year from Barrie.