Dan Hamhuis & Jason Arnott trade reaction is lively and mixed

by Dirk Hoag on Jun 19, 2010 10:00 PM EDT

Hot Saturday afternoons in late June are usually reserved for working outside or going to a wedding, but when word came over the wire that hockey trades were going down, the online conversation in Middle Tennessee quickly turned to hockey.

With today's two trades, (Dan Hamhuis to Philadelphia for Ryan Parent, and Jason Arnott to New Jersey for a 2nd-round pick and prospect Matt Halischuk) the Nashville Predators have set the fan base buzzing with a mixture of celebration, concern, and anticipation for what lies ahead. Follow after the jump for a video interview with David Poile recapping the day, and a look at reaction from around the 'net...

First off, let's hear from the man himself, as interviewed by Tom Callahan:

Perhaps the most encouraging bit there comes in the final moments, as Poile sounds like he does have at least a little change in his pocket to go shopping with on July 1 to help fill the void up front.

Hamhuis departure expected

Most fans understood that with free agency approaching, Dan Hamhuis was not likely to remain a Nashville Predator. Here are some selected items from the @Predfans Twitter group:

codeyh [Codey from Section303.com]: Philly's loading up for another run. Pronger/Timonen/Hamhuis on D.. Wow.

raiku66: i know there wasn't much hope. It just makes me sad, lol. I love Hammer.

chuckmilam: Wasn't going to miss #2 until I saw him lay a great hip check then come right back down and score from the blue line. Awesome. [presumably referring to the hit on Dustin Byfuglien and subsequent goal in Game 6 vs. Chicago]

clarasax: so who gets the pooh costume next? I always get a little misty-eyed at the Children's Hospital pictures. So glad the guys visit. [referring to Dan's visits to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital]

smashville: It's a sad day for @sarahcupfinal. http://twitpic.com/1y77wr

I think it's safe to say that Predators fans wish Hamhuis the best of luck and understand that this is simply the way professional sports works sometimes.

Cap-crunching the Dan Hamhuis trade - From The Rink
Mike Chen writes that the Flyers will have some work to do just to fit Dan Hamhuis into their lineup under the salary cap.

Paul McCann - The Times They Are A-Changin'
As Paul notes, the Hamhuis trade at least brings back another asset that was initially sent to Philadelphia in the Peter Forsberg trade from 2007...

Dan Hamhuis traded to Philadelphia for Ryan Parent… | Section 303
Jeremy was a bit surprised to see the Preds take Parent back instead of a draft pick.

A surprising farewell to the Captain

Again, selected comments from the Predfans Twitter group to the sudden departure of the guy named last fall on this site as the center of the All-Time Nashville Predators Team:

newpowersoul: We could have received a Snoopy Sno-Cone machine in return for Arnott & I'd be joyous. That's just me.

raiku66: HOLY CRAP! If we were gonna trade Arnott WHY WOULD WE NOT SPEND MONEY ON HAMMER?!?!?!?!?!

preds101: Arnott had $4.5 under contract for next season, then UFA. Good a time to move him as any, I suppose. Enough $ to match 4 grebs?

stephenyeargin: So, Captain Legwand, right? Right? (ducks)

HaroldDeLaney: Poile better have something BIG up his sleave... If not, he needs to pack his own bags & get out of Nashville.

rockandrollvan: thank you god.no more arnott.now let's get some young aggressive legs in here.Captain Weber sounds great.

mikebarnes5: The Preds have an opportunity to put the "C" on the right guy.... Shea freakin Weber!!!

hockeyfan303: would of rather traded arnie for a pp coach instead of a pick

PredsOddManRush: Seeing a lot of the casual fans griping about the Arnott trade...I love it. Can't wait to see how we used the savings!

jackmac: Man. Now that Arnott's gone......I think I'm gonna miss him. :-( Did a lot for the club.

ablairnash: Arnott wasn't the greatest captain but I think he did a pretty good job. Wish him and his family all the best of luck.

dandbradleyETG: nice work today by the GM, front office. We shed players we had to and gained propects in the process.

N ashville Predators trade Jason Arnott, Dan Hamhuis- The Tennessean

In an interview with John Glennon, Jason Arnott says that leaving Nashville was a mutual decision between himself and the team, as there wasn't much interest in signing him to a contract extension, so it made sense to go ahead and make the move this summer.

Jason Arnott Trade - Behind The Net
Gabe sees this as "Nashville dumping one year of a contract that represented a slight overpay for Arnott's talent." I'd go along with that. The hockey value coming back is negligible in this trade with New Jersey, and was meant to simply clear salary space. Thus, the determination of whether this was a good trade or not depends on what David Poile does with his new-found spending money.

Brandon Felder - Here Today, Gone Tomorrow. It's a New Hockey Landscape in Nashville
Brandon won't mourn the departure of Jason Arnott, but to say "Initial reaction from some may be that the Devils got a deal, but I actually would call this pretty even" is stretching things a bit. In hockey terms, Nashville got a guy who might someday play on the 4th line and a 2nd-round draft pick in exchange for one last season from their #1 center. That's a poor return, but again, the salary considerations ruled the day on this one, and the market was presumably limited by Arnott's No Trade Clause, which he had to waive for this deal to go through.

Nashville captain Arnott traded to New Jersey… | Section 303
With Arnott gone, Jeremy looks ahead to the young centers who might get a greater opportunity to play in Nashville.

Nashville Predators need offense now more than ever - The Tennessean
In an incredibly rare Predators column, David Climer wonders how David Poile plans to fill the goal-scoring void left by this trade.

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Comments

Climer...

want some cheese with that whine? We threw away our top goal scorer, waaahhh!!!! Preds won’t pick up anyone because that’s not their thing, waahhh!!!

You’re right, Climer. This team is about one thing, “blue-collar hockey”. Jason was good but had white collar salary and lately the attitude to match. As DP said in the interview above, they want guys that work hard all the time. Big hint. Our prospect system is stacked with youth willing to fight hard and we might just get a couple “Hornqvists” this year!

Not to mention we have cap room for someone like Weiss, which may not be the “solid names” you’re looking at but he’s a 60 point scorer. That’s more than Arnott has put up recently.

I’ve seen what the Minnesota Twins have built in baseball to and see this team going much the same way for hockey.

by DonBorvio on Jun 20, 2010 12:15 AM EDT reply actions

Perspective

On one hand,
getting one month of Forsberg for a grand cost of Upshall, is a great trade deadline move.
But, if you a a Flyer fan, the Preds giving up on re-signing Hartnell, Timonen, and now Hamhuis (assuming he ends up a Flyer) and sending them three players in their prime , for all the cost of a broken down Forsberg, is even a better deal.
From what I hear, Weiss might replace Arnott. It’ll cost us assets, but that can be considered a lateral move. Can Parent replace Hamhuis? Or Sulzer?
We shall see what Poile does with his newfound cap space…….i say go big, or go home.
Marleau. Spezza. Plekanec, Cap space isn’t an issue with us. Give fans something to be excited about, and reason to hope for better than a first round exit.

by DontfeedtheBelak on Jun 20, 2010 12:42 PM EDT reply actions

huh?

hartnell and kimmo were traded before we lost them to free agency. you know, the leipold fire sale. had nothing to do w/ foppa. really the same deal for hammer except we cant afford what he will get when we need scoring much more. i think you can count out spezza since he is under contract for 7 mil for several years plus he it would take alot of picks/prospects to get him and we wont do that. marleau i guess is possible but he will be in the 7 mil range too so i think you are dreaming a little, but we can all dream cant we.

by predswilrule on Jun 20, 2010 5:53 PM EDT up reply actions

We can dream

But I don’t think big-game hunting is where the Preds should go unless they’re going to get a permanent upgrade in their budget. Plus next year, you have to re-sign Webber (iirc).

What would make sense (and would not suprise me given Poile’s track record) is a sign and trade deal at the draft w/Grebeshkov. He has some value as a puck moving defenseman on a bad Edmonton team. Good on the PP, does not shoot enough, might look real good as part of a re-tooling in Florida (get Weiss or Horton). Dollars might work for both teams and you have more scoring depth next season.

Colin Wilson should take a big step forward next season and hopefully Hornquist does not take a step back.

Would stay away from Plekanic. His price will be bid up because there’s not a lot of FA depth at forward and he’s dissapeared for long stretches in Montreal.

by oilerdago on Jun 20, 2010 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions

Dream

From a flyers view, they look pretty good dealing with Nashville, is all. Forsberg was related, since 2 of the three parts traded to Philly (Parent, #1 pick resulting in Blum) came back for there negotiating rights. You are right, Hartnell, Timmonen, and Hamhuis were likely going to walk anyway. It was nice to get that Blum pick back, Parent, who knows. Upshall for a Forsberg rental is well worth it in hindsight. But from the other side, It also seems it has been well-worth the flyers time doing some pre-July 1st shopping in the Predators store so far.

Until Geoffrion and Wilson come of age, this team needs a big time player up front.
You have to pay something to get something. Going on the cheap will get us exactly where we have been before: between a first round ouster ceiling, and a plucky fight for, but just miss, playoff spot worst case scenerio floor.

by DontfeedtheBelak on Jun 20, 2010 6:04 PM EDT reply actions

Nashville East

Thats how I refer to Philly. Kimmo and Hartnell have been great for the Flyers. Just think would could have been if the Preds had been able to keep them. But alas, this is the nature of the NHL in Nashville. I agree that a high level player is needed to replace Arnott to anchor some of the young guys that are starting to assert themselves. Who that is I don’t know, I’ll leave that to others. As for Grebby I’ve heard that he could be an impact player but I don’t know if the front office saw enough of him last year to pony up the money to retain him. So maybe he is trade bait to get a center in return.

by jerseypredsfan on Jun 20, 2010 9:54 PM EDT up reply actions