The 2011 NHL Trade Deadline came and went yesterday, without much of a peep from most clubs as much of the shopping and bargain hunting seemed to occur in the weeks preceding the deadline this year. February 18th, a day that saw Tomas Kaberle, Ian White, Erik Johnson, Chris Stewart, Craig Anderson and Eric Brewer dealt, had much more impact on the league. If I were to summarize the big winners and losers on deadline day alone, this would be a very short column, so I will instead expand my focus to the month of February and all of the deals contained within.
In no particular order, I present my NHL trade deadline winners and losers:
Winners
The Washington Capitals – GM George McPhee identified some key needs for his club and picked up another mobile blueliner in Dennis Wideman and veteran presence up the middle with Jason Arnott. Wideman can cover for the injured Mike Green, and will join a group that includes solid youngsters in John Carlson and Karl Alzner. Arnott can provide a secondary scoring threat and size up the middle, an area they lack. They managed to add these pieces without giving up much of their current roster or depth. They were able to add to their depth for nothing by claiming Marco Sturm off waivers from the LA Kings.
The Boston Bruins – The Bruins are another Eastern Conference contender that made some noise prior to the deadline. The Bruins acquired Tomas Kaberle from the Maple Leafs, as GM Peter Chiarelli has long coveted the slick puck-moving defender. The Bruins also moved Blake Wheeler to Atlanta for Rich Peverley, giving them solid depth up the middle and solidifying their defense. They also grabbed Chris Kelly from Ottawa for further effect. The Bruins have gone undefeated since the Kaberle trade, and look primed to make some noise in the playoffs.
The Pittsburgh Penguins – The strong play of Kris Letang in Pittsburgh enabled the Penguins to ship out budding power play quarterback Alex Goligoski, sending him to the Dallas Stars for Matt Niskanen and power forward James Neal. Neal, at just 23 years of age, is the perfect winger compliment to Sidney Crosby. He brings size and scoring punch and should give Crosby more space to work upon his eventual return. The Penguins then fleeced the Ottawa Senators in re-acquiring winger Alexei Kovalev for what amounts to next to nothing, a conditional 7th round draft pick. Niskanen has fit well into Dan Bylsma’s defensive system, and the additions will help the Penguins in both the short term and long term.
The Toronto Maple Leafs – The Maple Leafs made three major deals prior to the deadline, sending out Francois Beauchemin, Tomas Kaberle and Kris Versteeg. The return? 2 late 1st round draft picks, 2008 first round draft picks Joe Colborne and Jake Gardiner, two-way winger Joffrey Lupul, a conditional 2nd round pick, a 3rd round pick and a conditional 4th round pick. And the best part? The Leafs have gone on a 7 game points streak 4-0-3 since making the moves earlier this month. Acquiring 5 prospects and picks without sacrificing the product on the ice makes the Leafs a big winner here.
Losers
The Colorado Avalanche – The Avalanche made a few puzzling moves, the first being a bad goalie swap with the Ottawa Senators (more on them later) that saw them acquire middling goaltender Brian Elliott. They then dealt away power forward Chris Stewart and Kevin Shattenkirk for defenseman Erik Johnson, and grinder Jay McClement. Johnson, the 1st overall pick in 2006, has seen injuries mar his development, but the Avalanche are banking on a lot of potential in Johnson, but they had most of that potential already in Shattenkirk.
The Ottawa Senators – The Senators dealt Jarkko Ruutu, Chris Kelly, Alex Kovalev, Brian Elliott, Mike Fisher and Chris Campoli. The return? 1 1st round pick, 2 2nd round picks, a conditional 3rd round pick, a 6th round pick, a conditional 7th round pick, Ryan Potulny, a prospect who’s on his 4th NHL team in just 119 NHL games played, and Craig Anderson, who seems dead set on ruining the Sens chances at the #1 overall pick this year with his strong play in goal. The Senators decided to re-sign what could have been their biggest trading chip in Chris Phillips, and failed to move some of their higher priced veterans like Spezza, Gonchar and Neil. Aside from their own picks, all the picks they acquired are in the later half of the round they are in, and the 2011 draft is being called a down year.
The Los Angeles Kings – The Kings didn’t really address many needs until deadline day itself when they acquired Dustin Penner, a solid if unspectacular power forward that can be counted on for 20-30 goals a season. Penner is an unrestricted free agent after next year, and the Kings dealt a 1st round pick and highly touted defensive prospect Colton Teubert, as well as a conditional 3rd round pick to acquire him. The Kings also dealt future considerations to Boston for Marco Sturm, a player they ended up putting on waivers and losing to the Washington Capitals. Given all of the assets at GM Dean Lombardi’s disposal, this is a thorough disappointment.
The Montreal Canadiens – I didn’t think it was possible for this team to get any older, but then they managed to acquire Paul Mara and Brent Sopel in the days leading up to the deadline. They have seen their share of injuries on the blue line this season with Andrei Markov, Josh Gorges and now Jaroslav Spacek out for considerable periods, but this team didn’t address their needs going forward to add toughness and size to the forward group while getting younger legs on the blue line. To top it off, they acquired goaltender Drew MacIntyre, who won’t be much of an upgrade if any to back up Alex Auld. The Canadiens entire season rests on the shoulders of Carey Price.
Analysis
It seemed that many teams were hesitant at the deadline, and the dealing of Penner to the Kings set the price a little too high for most managers who wanted to make a move. I also get the feeling that some clubs, particularly in the Western conference like the Avalanche, Wild and Blues don’t seem to want to compete with the big boys in Detroit, Vancouver and San Jose. It seems they are instead holding off until old age and the salary cap take these clubs down a peg before they start to believe they seriously have a shot.
With only a few sellers at the draft like the Oilers, Sens and Panthers, it did drive the price up somewhat, and I think we can expect to see some more moves upon the conclusion of the season, as teams with long term focus like the Maple Leafs, Blues and Blue Jackets get some shopping done when the prices are lower. Overall it was a disappointing deadline, but the deals made leading up to the day more than made up for the day itself.
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Born and raised in Northern Ontario but currently living in Toronto, Tyler wouldn't have it any other way. Home to his two favourite sports teams, Tyler revels in the day to day sports experience that is Toronto. 