Luke Schenn traded to Philly

[ATLTimekeeper]

I thought Schenn would be our next captain and he had some stretches of solid play for a young player rushed into the pros. So I'm bitter that we just handed to job to Dion to make him feel like a man again. I have no idea if there's any truth to the rift between the two, but it wouldn't surprise me.

[frizzer1]

Defencemen take longer than forwards to develop and a 22 year old is not even close to being in his prime whereas a 23 year old forward may have already achieved his "potential".
So for me it's difficult to assess this trade.

[TheRealistGM]

I really thought Schenn would flourish next year with a more structured team defence. I don't feel too good about this trade. He was one of my favourite players on the team too. Im glad I didnt get his jersey though

[_venom_]

I like the trade. Schenn has seen no improvement in his game since he came into the league and seems to really suffer with confidence issues. He'll never develop an offensive game which means he can ultimately only be a shutdown dman. Having a power forward who can get you 30 goals is much more valuable. Van Riemsdyk clearly has question marks mainly due to injuries but if he can stay healthy this a homerun for us.

[YogiStewart]

outside of one playoff run JvR has been average at best. now well put him in a perfect position to fail even worse. bad trade.

i'm not as pessimistic as you...i think there's hope for JvR, but i did have a good laugh when Philly re-upped him based on one good playoff run.
he had an injury-riddled last season, which should scare leaf fans. think of Connolley, but with a SIX YEAR contract. yikes.
i was never high on Schenn. guess he hit a lot. but that means nothing to me. dude has zero offensive game, zero point shot. so a one-dimensional player whose 1 dimension looked pretty bad last year.

i'd think the Leafs won this deal, except of the significant contract they get in return. if JvR sucks, you have him sucking for a long, long time.

I'd only be worried about the contract if there's a no movement clause. You'll probably be able to still trade him in a few years if he doesn't develop or send him to the Marlies. He's still young enough that even in a few years, a team would probably take a chance at acquiring him if he hasn't developed here.

talk is that the new CBA will eliminate that "down to the minors" loophole.

[whysoserious]

talk is that the new CBA will eliminate that "down to the minors" loophole.

I can't see the owners caving on that one. That's their one out for when they make bad signings.

Either way, JVR is still young and signed for 5-6 years and in 3 years if he hasn't developed, there will still be teams taking a chance on him. Also, since the lockout, the cap has done nothing but increase meaning the cap hit gets dimished ever slightly as every year passes.

[sanity]

JVR can play center

I wish this trade took place several months ago. I love Shenn's game and I think the media/Murphy were on his ass waaaaaaay too much, so its not as if we're screwing Philly by any means

[Morris_Shatford]

On the surface its not a bad deal;
Both guys benefit from a change of scenery, and maybe they can make a stride to improve on their new teams;

However; JVR is under contract till the end of the 2017-18 season making $4,250,000 a season till then; Whereas Schenn was making 3.6 till 2015-16,

That is a very long term commitment with lotsa bucks to JVR who's best season saw him net 40 points; he is going to have to make some solid strides very quickly to not be a cap liability.

[YogiStewart]

talk is that the new CBA will eliminate that "down to the minors" loophole.

I can't see the owners caving on that one. That's their one out for when they make bad signings.

Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa, Minnesota, Columbus, Phoenix, St Louis....those are some quick names off the top of my head that will definitely want to close this loophole.

[mini]

JVR can play center

I wish this trade took place several months ago. I love Shenn's game and I think the media/Murphy were on his ass waaaaaaay too much, so its not as if we're screwing Philly by any means

Burke was doing a bit of a talk the other day and had something to say about JVR playing centre...

He said "JVR played some C in college, our coach thinks he can play C, I don't see it but..." Burke is open to the idea, but he didn't seem too enthusiastic about it.

He also said "I like big, tough teams. All of my teams have been big and tough. Here we are small and skilled. It's not my type of team yet, but we drafted Biggs and Devane...blah blah" Now... the last part isn't exactly word for word as I can't remember, but that is the gist of it. I thought it funny that he built a team that he doesn't "like". I don't know if he's just scapegoating and putting it on Wilson because that is his type of team, but there you have it. He seemed to imply that in a couple years we will see his type of team (I guess the JVR, Ashton deals are a shift toward the larger guys).

[Griff83]

If JVR can stay healthy we will win this trade hands down.

Guys with his skillset (big, fast and skilled) are much harder to find then slow, lumbering, defensive defensemen. The reality for Schenn is that the game has almost gotten to fast for weak skating defensive guys and they are becoming exposed more and more 5 on 5. Unless he drastically improves his footspeed and mobility hes going to be nothing more then a 2nd pairing foot soldier in the Luke Richardson mold which isnt bad but not exactly something you cant live without. Schenn is a good kid but hes been mad overrated since day one (mostly because of a solid WJC and being drafted/traded up for by the Leafs). I remember starting a thread 2-3 years ago on another board and basically saying these one dimensional defensive defensemen are going to become outdated and ineffective as the game gets faster and faster and you see this in so many guys from Regehr, Hannah, Commodore, Komisarek to Luke Schenn. Speed and skating is so important in the league nowadays and if your even just a mediocre skater as a defensemen your going to be fighting a constant uphill battle.

With so many defense prospects like Holzer, Finn, Blacker, Percy etc this trade made so much sense from our end.