The question must be swirling through the Bruins locker room after word came down that Vladimir Sobotka has been assigned to Providence. He was reportedly told that he would return to the big club after this weekend.
Now considering the move only, it makes sense for the Bruins... Kobasew is expected back for Thursday's game and Sobotka has been a healthy scratch for most of this time with the parent club this season. Sending him down allows him to actually get some ice time in a game environment and continue with his development. It also allows Kobasew to get back on the ice while keeping a forward in reserve (Noke?) should anything happen.
Obviously, all of this is fairly elementary and any Bruins fan can understand the reasoning behind this move, whether they agree or not. The big question is, what's with the quick return? Obvious trade candidates are Fernandez (unlikely with massive contract), Axelsson (cheap defensive presence) or Sturm (underperforming)... I don't see any of these happening but who knows... should prove interesting.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
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4 comments:
While I wouldn't support the move, I wouldn't be shocked to see the Bruins move a guy like Nokelainen. They are just a bit logjammed right now with depth players (Thornton, Noke, Sobotka, Yelle, Hnidy, Hunwick) and could move either a forward or a defenseman without hurting too much.
But Nokelainen is one of the league's leading penalty-drawers, according to the Forechecker. So I'm not so sure about them trading Noke. And if they do, it's a big mistake.
I agree, it would be a terrible mistake because he's a top-quality fourth liner. They will win games because of him, which is more than you can say for most guys who play few minutes and score few points. But he's the only fourth-line winger who is neither a prospect nor a specialist, and therefore the one most likely to be moved.
Ultimately it comes down to whether Sobotka is better off playing in Providence. I think he will do fine there, getting good ice time and developing his offensive skills. And we can expect a major injury sooner or later, so it'll be nice to have a quality player on hand for call-up.
Fernandez is a likely trade as his contract ends this year and as long as he has value on the market (as little a value it is) he'll be traded rather then being let go to free agency with no return from him.
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