Brassard running out of time
Failure to shoot continues to play major role in his overall lack of production
SAN JOSE, Calif. — When the Penguins traded for Derick Brassard, they had the best of intentions. He’d pack more offensive punch than Brandon Sutter or Nick Bonino, they thought. With the right linemates, Brassard might even give Jordan Staal a run for his money.
That hasn’t happened. Nearly 11 months after the trade, we’re still talking about it, in large part because Brassard’s production — he has one more point than Marcus Pettersson this season — has left that door ajar.
Before we get into how this might play out, there is something you should know about Brassard: He’s not happy about his lack of production, either, and he’s hoping to change that in the near future.
“I’m going to try to be more involved,” he said. “I’d like to chip in a little bit more. I’m going to try to do my best here and keep working in the right direction. The team’s doing well, so that’s the only thing that matters.”
That’s one way of looking at it. And an admirable one, too, for Brassard to put the team above
“Whatever role that I have, if I have 12 minutes or 14, I have to try to make the best out of it.” — Derick Brassard
individual success. The counterpoint would be this: Imagine where the Penguins could be if they had a third line that, on most nights, was actually a threat?
On pace for 91 points, Phil Kessel could approach his career-best mark set last season. Meanwhile, Tanner Pearson has seemingly rediscovered his offensive form, with eight goals in 30 games as a Penguin.
There’s little question Patric Hornqvist could be a valuable contributor on any of the top three lines when he returns, and Dominik Simon has shown signs of meshing with Crosby and Malkin. Plus, the coaching staff really likes his game.
Add to that the top line (the Penguins’ best for a while now) and a pretty good fourth line of Matt Cullen, Riley Sheahan and Zach Aston-Reese (when healthy), and you don’t have many question among the forwards.
Except one, of course. “I’d like to chip in offensively a little bit more,” Brassard said. “A couple bounces here and there have helped. I just have to try and stay positive and keep working. Eventually, it’s going to come, I guess.”
One potential step in the right direction occurred Tuesday, when Brassard scored on a solid shot from the right circle. But that sort of goal has come far too infrequently for anyone’s liking this season, most notably Brassard.
A large part of that has been his number of shots on goal. That number has not been kind to Brassard, who has fired two or fewer shots on goal in 17 of his past 18 games. Overall, he is averaging 1.6 shots on goal per game, a precipitous drop from the 2.4 he averaged two years ago in Ottawa.
“I always try to get at least one decent shot a period,” Brassard said. “Lately, it’s been a little harder. Some nights you’re going to be at the right place. Some nights you’re going to find your teammates.”
And it hasn’t always been pretty, which is why the Penguins are open to the idea of trading Brassard for the right return. The problem is what that might be. It’s not a terribly strong list of available
centers to replace Brassard.
Is Kevin Hayes, currently with the New York Rangers, the answer? He has just two more goals than Brassard (108) and a much higher cap hit ($5,175,000 to the $3 million Brassard costs the Penguins).
Charlie Coyle (7-15–22, $3.2 million) might work, but the Minnesota Wild currently hold a playoff spot. Same for the Dallas Stars and another player often suggested as a fit, Radek Faksa (7-9–16, $2.2 million).
The Penguins might be better off targeting someone like Carolina left wing Micheal Ferland — who has 13 goals and makes just $1.75 million — though the acquisition cost would be high.
Going center shopping could be tough because none of those players offer an incontrovertible upgrade over Brassard, who’s on pace for 15 goals and does have a history of performing well in the playoffs.
The problem, though, is the context around that 15goal number. Brassard doesn’t kill penalties and has won just 48.2 percent of his faceoffs over his career.
He also has scored a lot of his goals on the power play — 50 of 170, or 29.4 percent. Those minutes aren’t available with the Penguins, which means he must produce five-on-five, creating things with his linemates.
Brassard also is getting less time to make it work — 15:04 over 51 regular-season games with the Penguins compared to 17:47 in Ottawa and 17:00 with the New York Rangers. Worse, Brassard is getting just 14:20 over the past 18.
“I just have to try and make the best out of it,” Brassard said. “Whatever role that I have, if I have 12 minutes or 14, I have to try to make the best out of it.”
Coach Mike Sullivan said Brassard “had his moments” against the Sharks Tuesday night, and general manager Jim Rutherford has echoed similar comments recently as well.
But take a look at the roster, plus the assets Rutherford has at his disposal — a top-six defenseman and a former second-round pick in goal — and it’s not hard to see that if Brassard plans on making this marriage work, it probably needs to happen soon.