Eric Gelinas Might Be A Match In Toronto

Things have been surprisingly quiet surrounding the Leafs given that we’re just eight days away from the trade deadline.  It comes as little surprise though, given that Lou Lamoriello is the GM.  He was well-known for running a tight-lipped Devils organization, and it looks like he’s (smartly) brought that same mantra to the media circus that is Toronto.

Information is bound to slip through the cracks though, and it looks as though Lamoriello might actually be up to something with his old team.

Here’s Larry Brooks of the New York Post speculating about a possible fit between the Leafs and Devils:

It’s hard to say how much there is to this rumor considering the connection is more implied rather than explicitly stated.  After all, Brooks never flat-out says that the Devils are interested in P.A. Parenteau or that the Leafs want to trade for Eric Gelinas.

it’s an interesting thing to think about though.  From the Devils end it makes a decent amount of sense – they’re currently sitting just outside of a wildcard spot, and if they want to make the playoffs, they’ll likely need to add some scoring help.  They’re not built to win this season though, so they wouldn’t want to give up much if they’re bringing in a rental.  Given that they have a ton of organizational depth on defense, as well as the fact that Eric Gelinas has played sparingly for them this season, the price might be right as far as they’re concerned, and Parenteau could help the league’s worst offense at least a little bit.

For the Leafs, a Parenteau for Gelinas swap, or something to that tune, would make decent sense as well.  Gelinas is almost 25 – not exactly young, but certainly not old either – and he’s got some promise of upside given his fantastic underlying numbers.  The Leafs have work to do as far as rebuilding their blueline goes, and Gelinas would fit the mold as a low-risk lottery ticket.  Trading Parenteau for him though, would mean foregoing a 2nd-round pick or something similar from another team.

I think it would be a good trade.  Gelinas’ underlying numbers are so good that for my money he’s an even better bet than a 2nd-round pick at becoming a meaningful asset for this team.  The Leafs did something similar in trading for Martin Marincin, and even though many would disagree, I think Marincin’s played really well this season and should be getting more ice-time.  Gelinas has played more NHL games and has even better underlying numbers, so there might be even more likelihood of success there.  But the bottom line is bringing in guys like this with strong underlying numbers is bound to hit you some home runs, and could be a really cost-effective strategy as far as rebuilding the blueline goes.

So as long as the price is right, and I think it is with P.A. Parenteau, sign me up for bringing Eric Gelinas to Toronto.