News/views: Penguins trade Goc for Lapierre

Maxim Lapierre celebrates a December goal in St. Louis against the Panthers. — GETTY

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

News: The Penguins just traded fourth-line centers with the Blues, acquiring Maxim Lapierre for Marcel Goc.

Views: Not much to see here. Goc is better on faceoffs, and they’re equally productive offensively — which is to say not at all — so this clearly came down to simple preference for grit over a specific skill set. Lapierre has only 16 penalty minutes this season, but he’s usually in the 60-70 range. I won’t begrudge Jim Rutherford and the coaching staff seeking more sandpaper.