Panthers acquire center Steve Reinprecht from Phoenix

by Donny Rivette on Jun 19, 2009 2:51 PM EDT Comment 8 comments

Florida's Randy Sexton has fired the first shot of the free agent season, picking up Steve Reinprecht from the Coyotes for winger Stefan Meyer. As reported on both the Sun-Sentinel and Miami Herald websites, the trade was agreed upon yesterday, while negotiations on a new three-year contract were banged out last night. Salary numbers were not announced.

Steven Reinprecht

#0 / Center / Florida Panthers

Height: 6-0

Weight: 195

Born: May 07, 1976

Not a blockbuster by any definition, it's a solid addition up the middle in return for Meyer, whose inconsistency at the NHL level has hindered his progress beyond Rochester.

Stefan Meyer

#0 / Left Wing / Phoenix Coyotes

Height: 6-2

Weight: 194

Born: Jul 20, 1985

I said earlier on Facebook that this is A deal, but is it THE deal? Florida's roster at center now includes Reinprecht, Stephen Weiss, Gregory Campbell, ~~Chad Kilger~~, Brett McLean, and Kamil Kreps. Factor in Rochester's Shawn Matthias and Drew Larman, and it's evident the organization is stocked with second-line (or lower) centers.

Figure McLean and Kreps are toast, with Matthias being the first call-up.

So...what's next?

On a related note, the Panthers employed a bizarre strategy for drawing eyeballs to their Facebook and Twitter sites: claiming an "announcement" was coming from the team "hopefully in the next hour". The anticipation was a bitch but all around it was kinda fun. Certainly got folks talking.

Poll

Happy with the deal?

Yes...Reinprecht's got a solid history

31 votes

No...This is our big-time number one Center??? Here they go again

21 votes

Unsure...Let it play out

20 votes

72 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | Comment 8 comments |

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Comments

I like that he’s a sold, dependable 2nd-3rd line center. And that he’s a natural center not a transplant from the wings.

This frees up Nathan Horton to be, well, Nathan Horton. Which is a good thing.

I know (or at least secret hope very strongly – so much that my season tickets depend on it), that this isn’t the end of the wheeling and dealing this offseason. The Panthers need to make a big deal – leverage Bouwmeester’s rights and, if they are going to trade Vokoun, get someone(s) who are going to take this team to the next level – the playoffs, as well as energize the fans.

by coasterg on Jun 19, 2009 3:41 PM EDT reply actions

There will be more.

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by Donny Rivette on Jun 20, 2009 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions

Panther's moves

I continually find it odd that the Panthers always seem to collect a bunch of “spare” parts and hope that somehow these guys and their lunch pails can make a playoff run.

I mean, they seriously have done a good job of drafting unheralded talent, and they have at times made some serious gambles (ie. bringing in Pavel Bure a decade ago, his younger brother, uh, not so much), but when is management going to step up to the plate again and bring in some legitimate first line talent? BTW, Briere (TSPF-the Sugar Plum Fairy) is not the answer to this question. Some of you may laugh, but why not make a run at Hossa (yes, I know, he wants to play for a contender, but that’s not my point) Now I realize that tossing around boatloads of cash does not a contender make (see 2008/09 TB Lightning), but I think there are legitimate deals to be made out there.

by HockeyOutsiders on Jun 19, 2009 5:30 PM EDT reply actions

Agreed that over the past few years “spare parts” have been utilized (assume you’re speaking of the Peltonens/McLeans/Dvoraks/Stumpels, but I’m not ready to lump Reinprecht into that crowd. He just “feels” more tailor-suited to this club, and he’s been lauded as a high-character individual, on and off the ice.

And I still don’t believe the Sexton Adminisration (such as it is) has completed their work. Let’s see where they are in two weeks.

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by Donny Rivette on Jun 20, 2009 2:57 PM EDT up reply actions

Tsn reported that reinprecht will get 1.8 the first year and 2.05 for the next 2 years with a cap hit of 2.05 for all three years (http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=282319) which is a reasonable amount of money for this guy in my opinion. I agree reinprecht is a solid, reliable player and I cant think of many negatives about acquiring him, he’ll chip in 40 or so points (roughly the same as zednik) and hortons numbers will probably increase but does that take the cats to the next level in the offensive category? Absolutely not. If theres anything bad about this trade its that reinprecht wont be anywhere near as important to the team as ufa’s like dvorak and skrastins, I hope Sexton understands his priorities.

by pukeoncops on Jun 19, 2009 9:17 PM EDT reply actions

Thanks for the link, Puke.

Again, he’s a “piece” in a larger orchestra. Can’t wait to see how he works with the likes of a Frolik or Horton on his side.

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by Donny Rivette on Jun 20, 2009 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions

I think this is a good return for someone like Stefan Meyer, who just flat out wasn’t going to make the team. He’s a solid player for a decent price. They’re referring to him as a “second-line” center, which makes me think that Sexton and DeBoer are seeing Weiss as the first-line guy this year. And if Weiss, Booth and Frolik have career years, yes, maybe. But I hope they’re not counting on that and are still looking for first-line talent.

I don’t see any negatives here other than it may crowd out guys like Radek Dvorak who should be brought back. I think McLean may be toast, but I’m thinking Kreps may be playing wing on Campbell’s line (Kreps-Campbell-Dvorak?).

by Johnny B on Jun 19, 2009 10:00 PM EDT reply actions

In the end…that is exactly what this was: something for nothing. Meyer had no shot next year, and it can’t hurt to have another experienced center. Basically, Kreps just lost his job.

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by Donny Rivette on Jun 20, 2009 3:00 PM EDT reply actions

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