A couple of hours ago; David Pagnotta of NHL Network insinuated that the Carolina Hurricanes are speaking to a list of six teams with the express goal of doing a “hockey” trade for Center/Winger Martin Nečas.
One of those teams happens to be the Seattle Kraken. At least, according to Pagnotta, anyway.
Well that’s fun! It’s been a minute since the Kraken have been in the mix on anything except a draft pick!
So, with that in mind, Let’s discuss Martin Nečas and figure out why Seattle might want him…and whether or not it makes sense to move pieces to get him.
Who is Martin Nečas?
Martin Nečas is a Czech-born Center/Winger who’s played 7 years in the NHL with the Carolina Hurricanes, rocketing up the team’s roster as a scoring center with a silky smooth hands, a seeming inability to give up on plays, and skates like he’s got a jet booster on his back.
Analytically, Nečas is exactly the kind of guy you’d expect a speed demon who can score to be: all gas, no brakes, and probably not ideal on defense. In his case with Carolina, the team’s defense is good enough to overcome it most of the time. He’s also critically a major force of on-ice danger for the Canes, who otherwise may be good, but relying on perimeter chances and sheer volume of shots to carry the day. Nečas is the guy who often tries to create the dangerous chances alongside guys like Seth Jarvis and Sebastian Aho.
…The other one. Not that one. The-you know what, just look at the charts.
So yeah, analytically speaking, it’s clear Nečas exists in the Canes system as a sort of force multiplier. He might make a few players around him a lot more squirrelly on defense thanks to his own issues…but the Canes get a lot more dangerous with him out there.
Given Seattle’s goalscoring issues this year, it’s feels like a given that they’d be interested in a player who even mildly suggests at being a force for good on offense, and Nečas has proven that time and time again.
Why would Carolina move on from him?
Basically? He’s been a strong presence for them…but they don’t want to pay him.
Nečas, who’s never hit the 30 goal mark with Carolina, is likely asking for more than his counting stats can safely ask for, the Canes are antsy about changing things now that they’ve failed to make the Cup Final with such a positive regular season record for the 5th year running, and the team’s response towards getting him back in Red, White and Black was apparently so bad that at the World Championships, his father basically admitted in front of a reporter that his son would never play for Carolina again.
So yeah! It’s all smiles between these two parties! Definitely no desire to get some distance between each other!
What does Seattle have that Carolina would want?
This is the tricky part.
Because they’re looking to do a “hockey” trade, any of Seattle’s extra picks and prospects would have to be sweeteners for any prospective trade; not the main course.
Given what makes the Hurricanes tick, I would believe that their eyes would be set on some guys who may or may not be load-bearing walls on certain lines: Oliver Bjorkstrand would likely be in contention, as would Jordan Eberle or Jaden Schwartz. Guys who’ve had a down year (who didn’t) but great on-ice impacts; of which all three are the poster children for. Bjorky in particular would be a hard loss; the Maestro does a lot of heavy lifting for the third line’s defensive prowess, and would likely need to be replaced and quickly. They could trust a young player with it, but put themselves in a position to potentially kneecap themselves in the pursuit of goals.
Alternatively, Carolina’s baffling insistence on giving players with net negative on-ice impacts like Tony DeAngelo and Brent Burns ice time may mean they look for guys like Will Borgen or god forbid, Ryker Evans as potential boosts to their blueline. Pieces that help the Canes…and significantly impact the Kraken ever getting to develop their blueline the way they want to.
Which is, of course, the rub. The Canes demand a player back, they want a player back. Should Seattle part with any of it’s better pieces in an attempt to get better quicker?
Should Seattle do it?
I personally am of two minds on the subject.
I understand entirely the concerns with Nečas’ production and his defensive impact. For a team who’s on-ice save-% is…spotty, let’s call it, there’s a real sense of apprehension. On top of that, Nečas wants to play in the top six and on a top power play unit, and I don’t think he’ll be getting that in Carolina…I personally struggle to think if he’d find his way to Seattle’s either. On top of that, he’d likely continue to play wing for the Kraken if brought in; unless they can find space for him by moving one of their depth centers…there’s gotta be space for Shane Wright to make this team. There just has to be.
Further, there’s a reputation around the ‘Canes that they’re a real sneakily good negotiation squad; able to pull the really good assets out of a team in exchange for depreciating ones on their own. Now that Eric Tulsky; a former analytics blogger who’s been a huge part of their rise into being a prominent Eastern Conference squad is in charge? The Canes will know what Seattle actually has in their talent. Even if Seattle’s analytics department consults GM Ron Francis personally through the whole negotiation, the concern of being fleeced is always there.
On the other hand…It is very hard to suggest that Nečas isn’t the exact kind of player that would’ve been really useful to have last year. Nečas is exactly the guy that Ron Francis’ pointed out as the team needing long term: someone fast who can score at even strength. Nečas’ dynamism, when he’s really on his horse, cannot be denied, and he even seems to fill the call for more speed that Ron Francis asked for. It seems like the Kraken generally tend to bring defensive responsibility to whomever plays there, and under Dan Bylsma there’s a chance he could be given a more important role…and given how he likes his teams to play, I think Nečas could make for a good addition under the right conditions.
What do you think?