Helene St James Thinks Tomas Tatar is a Tradable Asset

A cold, dreary Sunday after a Wings loss is never that much fun. Not for anybody, really. Instead of having a typical slow news day, Detroit Red Wings cardinal beat-writing Matriarch Helene St James posted a bizarre column on Tomas Tatar…

Before I go on and crack into what she said, let me go over a few things about Tomas Tatar..

He leads the team in goal-scoring (16 goals)
He’s an efficient shot-suppressing forward, with a CA/60 of 40.9 at even strength through 39 games played.
His on-ice corsi differential so far this season is +139 at even strength.

Statistically speaking, Tatar is an ace. His infectious personality brings something to the team that it has been in need of for a while: Personality. He agreed to a three-year deal over the summer, so he wants to play hockey here. There is no question that Mike Babcock is extremely difficult on him, but it’s for good reasons. Tatar’s ceiling is extremely high, and Babcock wants that best out of him.

So, onto this article HSJ posted.. I can’t tell if serious, or just needed a click-bait article.. But here are some snippets from the aforementioned piece:

Tatar had 19 goals last season, and is well on his way to topping 20 this season. To essentially be a two-time 20-goal scorer at age 24 makes Tatar intriguing as a trade asset. The Wings are eager to add a top-four defenseman who shoots right, and to get someone of quality – like Buffalo’s Tyler Myers – it would take a young hotshot. Maybe the Wings can sway the Sabres with Tatar and defenseman Jakub Kindl (who doesn’t seem to have a future in Detroit), along with a second-round draft pick. It helps tremendously that another prospect is banging on the door, as Teemu Pulkkinen is having a standout season with Grand Rapids. He’s already delivered an AHL-leading 19th goal of the season, and he shoots right, with NHL-caliber delivery.

Take from it what you want, but what I take away is that HSJ thinks trading Tomas Tatar, Jakub Kindl, and a draft pick for Tyler Myers (Owner of the worst corsi-differential in the entire NHL.) Why? Because right-hand shot? Because she’s hauling buckets for Ken Holland again? Or because she just wanted the hits the article would produce?

We all know the past with St. James and her posting articles about players like Valtteri Filppula, and Jiri Hudler. I think this is a different situation, since Tatar is under contract with Detroit for some time.

My question is… Why Tomas Tatar?

My question is… Why Tomas Tatar? Why not guys like Gustav Nyquist or Riley Sheahan (No, I am not saying I want them traded. Because I certainly do not.) Is it because Tatar has a ‘loud’ personality? There is no chatter about Babcock being extra hard on players like Sheahan or Nyquist. Two players who are young, and have more developing to do at the NHL level. How come? When I think about it, Nyquist and Sheahan are both very humble and quiet people. Tatar, and his infectious personality, are different from that. He celebrates his goals in an animated way, he’s always speaking loudly, and being a dork. We love that about him. We love his personality. When I think about it that way, I’m fairly convinced that Tomas Tatar might actually be on the trading block. While I’m the guy who thinks no player is ‘untradable,’ I have an inordinately awful feeling about trading an emerging NHL star like Tatar for a dud like Tyler Myers. While we’re on the topic, HSJ insinuates that if Tatar was traded, Pulkkinen would get his chance. Do we really think that Teemu Pulkkinen is going to step in and pick up where Tatar has left off? No. The guy has three NHL games under his belt. Let’s not be silly.

Please, speak among yourselves.. I’ll close this article out with some of the comments on the Freep article posted today:

To add to that, here is this:

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” lang=”en”><p><a href=”https://twitter.com/HeleneStJames”>@HeleneStJames</a> and yet you state the top goal scorer on the team could/should be traded.</p>— Kyle from The USA (@KyleWIIM) <a href=”https://twitter.com/KyleWIIM/status/551783764536201217″>January 4, 2015</a></blockquote>

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