JN AirMail: I See Trouba Down The Line

It’s AirMail time again!

You send your questions to us either by the Twitter machine or by e-mail be they related to the Winnipeg Jets hockey franchise or about hockey in general. and our crack staff will do their very best to answer them in a most satisfying way.

Art: I don’t know what he should be getting paid (I’ll chicken out and let others take wild guesses as a money amount) but I think the Jets still have to absolutely sign him and I don’t think they’ll have to overpay to do it. The Jets have had a solid track record now of keeping their young stars signed for very reasonable deals. Keep in mind as well, Trouba’s issue isn’t so much money as it is how he gets used on the ice. Keep him happy on the ice and I don’t suspect it will take much to keep him happy off it.

WPGChief: A season or two ago, many of us were prepared to pay Trouba whatever the hell he wanted, as he was a young defenceman continuing to be on the rise with considerable impacts on the ice. While the points are not coming as easily these days, there are many comparables out there that should land Trouba around a reasonable deal for the team with many young players having expiring contracts and an already expensive defensive core. The question then becomes: who is the odd man out should the Jets sign Trouba and have him stay? Byfuglien or Myers?

Cassie: Teams do best when there is depth and having both Trouba and Poolman are a good thing. If the price is right, and it should be, keeping Trouba is the best option. Even if the price is a little high, it’s still the best option.

Kyle: I am not good with speculating contracts and numbers and such, but honestly I haven’t been too impressed with Trouba’s play this season. It seems like he is having a tough time controlling the puck, and he has been beat quite easily on a few goals. If he really wants to maximize value (over 6 million) he will need to pick it up for the rest of the year and truly become that number one defensemen.

Tony: Overpaying for a player is never a good thing but if you do overpay for one a team should overpay for talent. That said there are tons of comparables for a Trouba contract so the Jets should be able to work something out even having to add the “Winnipeg tax”.

Art: Will he be given one? I have my doubts. Does he deserve one? No, not really. He’s been a nice story and everything, but I think Sunday night proved that he’s an ok player, but he needs help (re: Perreault) to be truly effective. He’s 36 years old. He’s likely done after this season. As for coaching, I wouldn’t be surprised if he did, but it won’t be in the NHL to start off with.

WPGChief: I believe Garret Hohl was the original person I heard this from: if you’re going to spend money on a “glue guy”, make the person a coach or someone close to the team that isn’t putting their less-than-desirable results on the ice in favour of younger players who can. That being said, he certainly has had better results than his history (most of which coming from playing with the likes of Armia and Perreault), so the coaches, management, and players will like having him around – for the time being.

Cassie: I think that if he stays with the team, it should be in a coaching capacity. His impact on the ice right now is mostly because of Armia and Perreault, so he’s not worth keeping around in my opinion.

Kyle: It’s going to be tough for him to play another year. I can’t really see it happening given the current situation. That being said, there are plenty of coaching jobs available, either as assistant coaches or specialty coaches within NHL teams. If he wants to find work as a coach, I am sure he can.

Tony: No! At his age and his impact it just doesn’t make sense.

Art: Already talking trades and possible deadline additions? Cool! Put me down for a depth defenseman, maybe even a top four rental.

Cassie: Yay! Deadline talk already! I’d like depth and even a top scoring winger. If the organization was feeling nostalgic, Evander Kane is available. Not my first choice, but he’s out there and top 10 in the league in scoring at the moment. I think playoff insurance and depth would be the best bet all around.

Kyle: I want an upgraded Tanev and Copp. Someone to solidify that line as a two way threat. There are really no other needs currently.

Tony: Before the Jets look to add, they really should see if any of the players running wild in the AHL are ready to help the team out.

Art: If I had to guess, No. Not unless disaster strikes and the Jets suffer an injury to Wheeler or Scheifele. He’s doing well on the Moose and it sure looks like the Moose are going to go on a pretty good playoff run too. Again, unless you put Jack in the top six – which the Jets wouldn’t even with an injury – why waste his time?

Kyle: He may get a game or two throughout the year, although it is unlikely. There seems to be a few other guys who will get called up to play (Lemieux, Petan) before Roslovic. Let him win MVP in the AHL before moving up next year.

Tony: He should because he is ready for the NHL. Jets will have some injuries and Roslovic will get a chance.

Art: Well you kinda answered your own question, so… But what I will say is Jets fans should be very excited that this team is doing as well as they are, and there is still more in the pipeline both in the AHL, in juniors and over in Europe. It’s going to be exciting, but also make for some very tough decisions in the future.

Kyle: Another big strong Finn? Sounds good to me.

Tony: He is very good. For players in their draft +1 seasons in Liliga some of his comparables are the following:  Mikael Granlund, Teuvo Teravainen, Artturi Lehkonen, Joel Armia.