Word broke this week of Zach Bogosian wanting out of Buffalo. This comes on the heels of only playing 10 games this season, and never having played a full 82 game slate in his career, which spans 12 seasons.
Bogosian, standing at six feet three inches, would be a big physical presence for a team looking to lock down on defense. Weighing in at just over 220 pounds, he fits the bill.
With news swirling about Flyers’ Shayne Gostisbehere attracting attention on the market, is the timing right for a one-for-one swap with Buffalo? Maybe the change of scenery benefits both clubs. Let’s look at the positives and negatives of a Ghost-for-Bogosian deal.
Negatives
For starters, the fact that Bogosian has not played a full 82 game slate in 12 years in the NHL should be worrisome. He played 81 games back in 2009/10 with the Atlanta Thrashers. His second highest number of games played came the following season with Atlanta, where he played 71.
Aside from his consistency issues, he isn’t exactly the type of defenseman that the Flyers are looking for. With the game constantly evolving, and drifting towards a more speedy, skilled type of play, Bogosian doesn’t quite fit the mold. As a more stay-at-home defenseman, his upside with the Flyers is limited.
Not to mention, the Flyers already have two stay-at-home defensemen on the roster in Justin Braun and Robert Hagg. Adding another player of that type to the blueline doesn’t make much sense at this point.
The biggest deterrent to a Ghost/Bogosian deal would be the cap implications. Gostisbehere’s contract comes with a cap hit of $4.5 million, and has him under Flyers control until the end of the 2022/23 season. Bogosian’s cap hit comes in at slightly over $5.1 million. The Sabres would have to take an albatross contract off of the Flyers hands to make this deal work, especially considering the “bang-for-your-buck” that they’d get for Bogosian.
According to CapFriendly, the Sabres have no cap room. The Flyers, according to CapFriendly, have slightly over $57,000 in cap room. The deal would have to be more than just Gostisbehere for Bogosian. It won’t work any other way.
Positives
There are none.
Any way you look at it, this deal doesn’t make sense. When everyone is healthy, the defense looks good for the Flyers. Gostisbehere as a sixth defenseman is a much better option than Bogosian. While it may be easy to lure Bogosian away from Buffalo now that he’s requested a trade, that shouldn’t be reason to acquire him.
