The NHL trade deadline has come and gone, and there weren’t that many bad trades due to a general manager panicking. Let’s go through the key ones.
Vegas Golden Knights acquire forward Tomas Hertl, a 3rd-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and a 3rd-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft from the San Jose Sharks for forward David Edstrom and a 1st-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
This one is great because the Golden Knights are slumping, and they didn’t give up much to get him. I’m surprised the Sharks didn’t ask for more, but Hertl has only had two thirty-goal seasons.
Carolina Hurricanes acquire forward Jake Guentzel and defenseman Ty Smith from the Pittsburgh Penguins for forward Michael Bunting, forward prospects Vasily Ponomarev and Ville Koivunen, the rights to forward Cruz Lucius, a conditional 1st-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a conditional 5th-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
The incentives in this are insane. If the Hurricanes win, the Penguins get a first and fifth-round pick. If they don’t make it to the Stanley Cup finals, the Penguins only receive a second-round pick. I know who the Penguins will be rooting for. I still think the Penguins should have kept Guentzel but if they didn’t think they could resign him as a free agent, this move made sense. It’s great for the Hurricanes because they need a star to take over playoff games. Both teams did well. The Penguins needed prospects and picks, which they got. They better hope one pans out. Bunting is underrated. The Hurricanes didn’t give up too much unless they win it all, and then they won’t care.
Edmonton Oilers acquire forwards Adam Henrique, Sam Carrick, unsigned draft choice goalie Ty Taylor and a 7th-round draft pick in the 2024 NHL Draft in a three-team trade with the Anaheim Ducks and Tampa Bay Lightning. Anaheim receives 1st-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a conditional 5th-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft from Edmonton. Tampa Bay receives 4th-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft from Edmonton.
This is a strange trade for the Oilers. For the first time in a long time, they don’t need forwards. Henrique is decent, but he’s not needed. The rest is useless. Giving up a first-round pick sucks because, with their salary cap issues, they need cheap talent. This is an awful trade by the Oilers.
Florida Panthers acquire forward Vladimir Tarasenko from the Ottawa Senators for a conditional 4th-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and a 3rd-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
The Panthers learned from their mistakes. The last time they made a big trade in first place, it failed spectacularly. They gave up Owen Tippett, a 2024 first-round draft pick, and a 2023 third-round pick for Claude Giroux, who left in the offseason after the Panthers lost in the second round. Tippett is now an almost 30-goal scorer, and we don’t know what the pick will turn into yet. It’s sad how much Tarasenko has fallen and that he’s only worth two mid-round picks. I don’t think the Panthers need him, but I suppose it’s worth a try. The Senators have been such a disappointment.
The Tampa Bay Lightning’s pickup of Anthony Duclair is a good, low-key move that may pay major dividends, as Nick Paul did.
Things I like
- The Dallas Stars were down 6-3 to the San Jose Sharks, which is pathetic. But they battled back to score three goals in three minutes during the third period and then finished it in overtime. Logan Stankoven and Wyatt Johnson made the comeback possible with their speed and hockey IQ. They were the Stars’ first and second-round picks in the 2021 draft, and man, did they hit home runs. Stankoven had two goals and two assists, Johnson had three goals and two assists. One or both were involved in the Stars’ final four goals. I really like the Stars’ chances to win it all.
Things I don’t
- We didn’t need to wait long until we had another coach firing. This time, the New Jersey Devils fired Lindy Ruff. I get it. The Devils are a disappointment. But there are several reasons for that. The Eastern Conference got better, Jack Hughes was injured for a month, the Devils have no goalie, and young teams generally go backward after they move forward. The last two are key. It’s hard for any team to win without a goalie. What happened with Akira Schmid is disappointing and sets the team back. If you don’t believe me on the last point, just look at how the Vancouver Canucks played the previous three seasons. It really sucks to be an NHL coach. Also of note the Devils are so desperate for a goalie they traded for Jake Allen. Yes, that will really help you, Devils.
Fights of the Week
Special thanks to hockeyfights.com for making this section a little easier to do.
Sam Carrick vs Mathieu Olivier
A great fight with some helmet popping.
Josh Anderson vs Luke Schenn
Short but with lots of punches.
Goal of the Week
Sam Reinhart - Florida Panthers
It’s mostly about the incredible coordination of Aleksander Barkov to keep control of the puck and then dish to Reinhart.
https://www.nhl.com/video/fla-nyr-reinhart-scores-goal-against-igor-shesterkin-6348240496112
Goat of the Week
Warren Foegele - Edmonton Oilers
The Oilers played some spectacularly sloppy hockey to end this week. After big wins over the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins (see below) they followed it up with losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Buffalo Sabres. The Oilers dug themselves a 0-3 hole against the Blue Jackets. This was the third goal. Foegele decided to pass to someone who wasn’t open as opposed to just skating forward.
https://www.nhl.com/video/edm-cbj-voronkov-scores-goal-against-calvin-pickard-6348426308112
Against the Sabres, the Oilers had a turnover on the game-tying goal and the overtime winner that was called back due to offsides. But they lost in the shootout.
Stat Line of the Week
3/05/24 Edmonton 2 vs. Boston 1
| Skater | TOI | G | A | +/- | SOG | Blk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| L.Draisaitl | 21:33 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
In typical Oilers fashion, they found themselves trailing late in the third period. But all you need is some Connor McDavid to Draisaitl magic to solve that. They did it once with a minute twenty left to force overtime, then did it again in overtime. Evan Bouchard got the secondary assist both times. This was the only Bruins loss this week, they crushed the Penguins and Maple Leafs twice. The Bruins tried to trade Linus Ullmark, but he has a no-trade clause for half the NHL, so he went nowhere. Maybe don’t put that in the contract.
Numbers, Numbers
6 – Unanswered Colorado Avalanche goals against the Detroit Red Wings
6 – Teams Tyler Toffoli has played on the past five years after being traded to the Winnipeg Jets
-111 – Goal differential of the San Jose Sharks
12 – Teams that scored six or more goals this week
1 – Ejection of John Tortorella against the Tampa Bay Lightning
4 – Goals scored by the Tampa Bay Lightning at that point
7 – Goals scored by the Lightning at the end to the Philadelphia Flyers 0
Rankings
The rankings are based on how the teams are currently playing.
Top 5
- Florida
- Nashville
- Carolina
- NY Rangers
- NY Islanders
Bottom 5
- Chicago
- Ottawa
- San Jose
- Montreal
- Arizona