The Pittsburgh Penguins emerged as the early winners of Friday’s three-team trade that saw the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions acquire Derick Brassard as they prepare for a three-peat.
But Don Cherry isn’t so sure. While all the focus has been on how Brassard will fit into the Penguins’ already-dangerous group of forwards, Cherry believes the team’s decision to move Ryan Reaves to Vegas as part of the deal will ultimately prove costly — especially for Sidney Crosby.
“Everybody’s talking about Brassard, but wait a minute. Remember, this year Crosby has not missed a game due to injuries. So far in his career, he’s lost 185 [games to injury],” Cherry said on Saturday night. The Penguins captain is a popular target for pests as teams search for ways to get under his skin, and the addition of Reaves last July seemed to solve that.
“Do you remember last year what [then-Senators defenceman Marc] Methot did to him?” Cherry said, referring to last spring’s Eastern Conference Final clash between the Penguins and Senators that saw Methot and Crosby exchange plenty of shots. “I guarantee you, if Reaves had been there, this would have never, ever, ever happened.”
“[Penguins general manager] Jimmy Rutherford makes him go, and he’s gone … he went to Vegas, Reaves, he made a big mistake. And you give up a first-round draft choice for him,” said Cherry. “Big mistake, Jimmy. You’re going to be sorry because he protected Crosby.”
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