Thoughts on the Pens' Trade-day moves

The Pens made a few moves yesterday, highlighted by the acquisition of LW Gary Roberts from the Florida Panthers and F Georges Laraque from the Phoenix Coyotes.

For Roberts, the Pens gave up their 2nd round pick in 2001, Defenseman Noah Welch. Welch was promising in his first callup in 2004, recording 4 points in 5 games, but disappointed in his development since then. He was expected to be an offensive defenseman, but inconsistency kept him on the bus between the NHL and the WBS Penguins of the AHL. He was on the AHL roster when traded.

I don't know how I feel about giving up on Welch after only 27 NHL games played, but it really doesn't matter what I think. I do see positives in his game, observed in recent seasons when he was with Toronto and Carolina and Florida. He gave the Pens fits, and his game is something the Pens didn't have previously. For an older comparison, he seems to have a lot of Kevin Stevens in him, but he seems to have retained his skills and speed better than most other players his age.

As for Laraque, we gave up AHLer Daniel Carcillo and a 2008 third round pick. For the presence he will bring, he came very cheap. He had 5 goals and 17 assists on the season, more than Dominic Moore, who was sent to Minnesota for a 2007 third round pick, and ought to fit well with Jarkko Ruutu.