NHL deadline trade tracker
The following trades have been completed as the NHL trade deadline approaches. The deadline falls on Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET, but teams were prevented from making deals during the league's break for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
Yahoo! Sports breaks down the deals that have been done and will analyze the latest trades as they happen heading up to Wednesday's deadline.
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McKEON ANALYSIS: Interesting deal considering Ponikarovsky is due to be an unrestricted free agent and the Pens, who could be looking at the forward as a rental, had to give up Caputi, who has been considered a pretty good prospect in the organization. The 29-year-old Ponikarovsky is having a decent season with 19 goals and 41 points in 61 games. He could add punch to Pittsburgh's attack, at least that's the plan. The 21-year-old Caputi has to be thrilled to be going to Toronto considering he's a native of that city and played his junior hockey at Mississauga. (Trade completed March 2, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: The journeyman defenceman, who was once projected to be a star in the league, will provide depth on Chicago's blueline and only hopes to return to the NHL fulltime some day. He has been in the minors for the last month, and appears to be headed from Manitoba to Rockford following this deal. The 31-year-old has played for four different organizations since 2005. (Trade completed March 2, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: The 34-year-old rear guard has come a long way since breaking in with a bit of attitude with San Jose in 1998. Yes, he's 6-foot-6, but Senators' fans shouldn't be confusing Sutton as the long, lost replacement for Zdeno Chara(notes). Sutton is more your 20-minutes-a-night blue liner who makes the defense corps more a sum of the parts. Due to be an unrestricted free agent, Sutton is clearly as rental for the Senators and the Isles are just happy to get something for the future. (Trade completed March 2, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Grebeshkov, a member of the Russian Olympic team, logs big minutes and can play in all situations. The thinking here is that Nashville needed to acquire him if it is serious about dealing Dan Hamhuis(notes). The Oilers clearly are in salary-dump mode. (Trade completed March 1, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: No need to get too excited here; this is not going to change anything that's happening on the big-league rosters, if you will. All players are expected to move from one squad's top development team to another. Toivonen and Richmond have seen some NHL time, but both are ticketed for depth in the Blackhawks organization.(Trade completed March 1, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: The Panthers' dismantling and salary dump continues. Leopold becomes another nice pickup by Penguins GM Ray Shero, who didn't get enough credit at the trade deadline last year for assembling the final key pieces for a Stanley Cup winner. While Leopold has moved around a bit in recent years, he still is only 29 and certainly a dependable blue liner who can be expected to provide depth and veteran experience. (Trade completed March 1, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Once Donald Brashear(notes) requested a trade, it was time to go get another enforcer. Shelley provides a good fit for the role as well as brings strong locker-room presence, which the Rangers certainly could use. The Sharks are just happy to shed a little more salary-cap space with a player who didn't figure to dress in the postseason anyway. (Trade completed Feb. 12, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: A journeyman forward, the 29-year-old Moore joins his eighth franchise – and his fourth in two years. Moore, who struggled with the Panthers, figures to fill a third-line role in Montreal, which will undergo more moves before the deadline strikes. (Trade completed Feb 11, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Lehtonen, a poor man's Rick DiPietro(notes), if you will, couldn't stay healthy enough to fulfill the expectations that came with being the second overall draft pick in 2002. A fresh start in Dallas might help to clear Lehtonen's mind, and if he proves himself, he'll be in line to take over for Marty Turco(notes). Vishnevskiy, also a first-round pick, has obvious offensive skills but needs to develop his defensive side to stick in the NHL. (Trade completed Feb. 9, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: The Sharks filled the void of experience on defense and it didn't cost anything off the roster. That means San Jose crept even closer to the ceiling of a tight salary cap, and it still might need more help on defense. Wallin should be a good fit here as a guy who isn't expected to do anything more than supply 16-18 solid minutes a game. Any offense he provides will be a bonus. (Trade completed Feb. 7, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: One of the few prospects who didn't take advantage of his chance with the Red Wings, Leino is an highly skilled forward who still has much to prove in the NHL. It could be a real steal for the Flyers if Leino develops. Tollefsen gives the Wings toughness on the blue line. (Trade completed Feb. 6, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: This was the blockbuster before the trade freeze, the Devils winning the Kovalchuk sweepstakes. He certainly elevates the Devils' profile offensively and in terms of Eastern contenders. Kovalchuk is young enough to be part of New Jersey's long-term plans, but he is set to be an unrestricted free agent so he could wind up being a rental. If that's the case, he wasn't all that expensive, and while Oduya is a nice defender, the Devils didn't really part with that much. The Thrashers were forced to take less than desired for Kovalchuk when it became obvious they would have to trade the Russian scorer. (Trade completed Feb. 6, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Jokinen's stay in Calgary was a short one. Looked at as one of the big acquisitions at the trade deadline last year, it turns out Jokinen couldn't develop enough chemistry with Jarome Iginla(notes) to spark the Flames' offense consistently. This largely becomes two teams trading pieces that didn't fit; the speedy Kotalik and potential scorer in Higgins couldn't make it work in the Big Apple. The offensively challenged Flames will take their chances with the pair of forwards. (Trade completed Feb. 1, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Giguere is reunited with former Ducks goaltending coach Francois Allaire, who brought out the best in the Montreal native during their time together in Anaheim. Giguere had slipped the last couple of seasons, partly due to struggles on the ice and personal matters off of it. If the 32-year-old is going to rediscover his game, it will be in Toronto, assuming the fishbowl life and media scrutiny don't get to him. Toskala had his chance to be a starter and it didn't work out. Now he'll serve as the backup to Jonas Hiller(notes) in Anaheim and be an unrestricted free agent in the summer. The Ducks are on the hook to pay Blake $3 million each of the next two full seasons, but he can be a productive and versatile forward if he avoids injury. (Trade completed Jan. 31, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: The key to the trade is Phaneuf, who burst on the scene looking like the next great defenseman only to gain a reputation in Calgary as being a not-so-great guy in the room and on the ice. Phaneuf can be a dominating player if he puts his mind to it, and that's what the Leafs are counting on. Toronto has the makings of a very nice blue line if Phaneuf rebounds. The Flames had to do something with its fractured locker room and freefall in the standings. They got useful pieces from the Leafs – mostly in terms of role players – but Hagman might be the sleeper here. He's showing offensive upside. Mayers is a nice addition for a playoff roster. Stajan will get a chance to produce as a top-six forward while White provides depth on defense. (Trade completed Jan. 31, 2010.)
McKEON ANALYSIS: Chimera is the playoff-style role player that will help give the Caps grit and experience when the calendar turns to April. He'll stick up for his teammates, too, and be that glue-type guy many contenders look for at this time of the year. The veteran Clark's departure enabled Washington to hand the captaincy to Alexander Ovechkin, something that figured to happen sooner rather than later. Clark's career is winding down, but he has a year left on his contract. Jurcina, once a promising defenseman when he broke in with Boston, hasn't fulfilled his potential and is due to become an unrestricted free agent in the offseason. The Blue Jackets basically get a free three-month look to see if they want to try to keep the 6-foot-4 26-year-old. (Trade completed Dec. 28, 2009.) |
