In Shero we trust

By Jeff

The Pittsburgh Penguins shipped out their 2011 first round pick, Joe Morrow, yesterday for Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow.

Joe is a highly touted defenseman who is said to have great potential as a two-way player. Brenden is a tough guy who is supposed to be an excellent leader and lockerroom prescence, and he scored 33 goals just two seasons ago.

I have hardly seen Brenden play and have never seen Joe play, so I have no idea who wins this trade. I am just trusting in Penguins general manager Ray Shero, as he usually makes the right decision when it comes to moves like this.

The deal could work out great for the Pens. Morrow should fit in well with Evgeni Malkin and James Neal. If you look at the years where Malkin and his line has taken over the league in Crosby's absence, and you'll notice a trend. In 2007-08, Malkin played with the gritty, net-front presence Ryan Malone and sniper Petr Sykora. Crosby missed substantial time that season and it fell on Malkin's line to pick up the slack. They did. Malkin put up 106 points, Malone had a career high-51 points and Sykora had his best season since 2002-03 with 63 points.

Now look back on last year. Malkin played most of the year with the gritty, net-front presence Chris Kunitz and sniper James Neal. Malkin tallied 109 points and league MVP, and Kunitz and Neal scored career-highs 61 and 81 points, respectively.

It's not an exact science, but it appears that when the Pens surround Malkin with someone who crashes the net and a sniper, things tend to work out for all parties. Brenden is supposed to be of the Kunitz and Malone mold, so matching him up with Malkin and Neal looks like the second line should thrive, on paper at least.

Of course, this is pure speculation on my part. Like I said above, I've never really seen Brenden play. I'm just going by what national hockey media members and Stars bloggers are saying.

What makes me think this trade has a better chance of working out than say the Alexei Ponikarovsky and Alex Kovalev deals is Brenden's reputation as a hard worker and leader. Both Poni and Kovy came to the Pens with serious character question marks. Poni was a big body that didn't like going to the dirty places and working for garbage goals. Kovy has always been enigmatic with his effort. Those are the types of players that don't find success in this system.

The Pens operate a high-tempo, high effort offense. If you're not willing to work, you're going to be benched. And when everyone else is skating their asses off, it's noticeable when you're not going all out with them, which leads to the fans turning on you quickly.

On the flip side, from what I hear, Brenden is older than his 34 due to his style of play. It seems everyone wants to point out he is not the 2010-11 version of Brenden Morrow who scored 33 goals. If he comes in and struggles it will be disappointing, but can it really hurt the team that much? The Pens already lead the league in scoring. Brenden won't hurt that, and the potential he could reach with Malkin and Neal is scary to think about.

Joe may never be a top two defenseman in this league. Shero saw a chance to improve the team for a Cup run and who am I or any of us to question him? Remember how Luca Caputi and other highly touted prospects were traded away and never to be heard of again? It could happen here, and that's why we should trust Shero.