So many of you probably know that Garrioch posted an article saying that "league sources" say Shero is interested in trading for Gonchar.

Assuming there is a season, Murray would have the chance to shop Gonchar should he choose to do so.

Part of me says why not? Sergei Gonchar is a 38 year old defenceman coming off a 37 point season. Sure, he's a shoe-in for the Hall of Fame, but he's the kind of guy you add as that "final piece" to bring veteran leadership into the locker room, something which Ottawa doesn't really need at the moment. What Ottawa does need is depth on the blueline. Outside of Ceci and Wierioch (both of whom are tearing up their respective leagues), Ottawa really doesn't have any quality defensive prospects -- something which Pittsburgh has in abundance. Take a look. With names like Despres, Pouliot, Harrington, Maata, Morrow and Dumoulin, the Penguins aren't exactly in dire need of defensive prospects. Obviously, Murray won't be able to swing Gonchar for one of these guys straight up, but if the right package was put together I bet you could pry one of those gems from Shero's grasp.

The other part of me says no way. Cowen's out for the season, which severely damages an already-frail blueline. The reality is if we want to even be a bubble team again, we more than likely need Gonchar. If we traded Gonchar, what would our blueline look like? Here's my guess:

Methot-Karlsson
Phillips-Lundin
Benoit-Wiercioch
Boriwiecki

Yikes.

Ultimately (assuming there is a season), I think the Senators should hold onto Gonchar until at least the trade deadline. If Ottawa is in contention, then keep him like they did with Kuba. If all they're going to get for Gonchar is a late round pick, I'd say it's better to just hold onto him. If they can package him and get some value in return, I'd say there's an argument to be made there.

Of course there's always the option to trade him right away and roll forward with one the worst bluelines in the league and draft MacKinnon, right?