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Montreal Canadiens: The pros and cons of a Derick Brassard trade

By Omar L

PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 01: Pittsburgh Penguins center Derick Brassard (19) skates with the puck during the first period. The Washington Capitals defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 1, 2018, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 01: Pittsburgh Penguins center Derick Brassard (19) skates with the puck during the first period. The Washington Capitals defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 in Game Three of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs on May 1, 2018, at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Jeanine Leech/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Montreal Canadiens
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 26: (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

Why the Interest?

Well, there hasn’t been a formal report of any interest from the Montreal Canadiens. NHL writer Jimmy Murphy tweeted out that the Penguins are active now that Max Domi is with the Habs. An article by  of Pittsburgh Hockey Now included the trade proposition where Rutherford was willing to give up one of Connor Sheary or Rust for the 23-year-old.

The same article also included Brassard as an option to be moved. He had a tough start in Pittsburgh and wasn’t able to reach the level of scoring he did in Ottawa. Before getting traded, Brassard had 18 goals and 20 assists in 58 games. That went down to 3 goals and 5 assists in 14 games with the Pens.

That isn’t terrible, but 4 points in 12 playoff games is less than ideal. Perhaps it was the lower-body injury going into the post-season that hampered Brassard. Either way, he’s now a possible option.

The Montreal angle appears with Murphy who tweeted that the Habs are possibly interested in Brassard.

The Montreal Canadiens have the space to take on Brassard and any other pieces Pittsburgh wants to send Bergevin’s way.

The Penguins used the 30-year-old as their third line centre one he was acquired. However, he would be a decent number two on most teams. Brassard has the offensive extinct to play and excel with skilled players. Additionally, he’s an effective option to have in the defensive zone.

What’s interesting is the contrast in performance between Ottawa and Pittsburgh, two different teams in clearly different directions. Brassard’s relative Corsi-for – the amount of shots directed towards his net when on the ice vs. when he was off – dropped from 5.6 with the Sens to -6.9 in Pittsburgh.

The same can be seen in his heat maps. There were a lot of shots allowed in the home plate region of the ice when with the Pens vs. Sens.

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