Which teams were the big ticket winners? Who were the losers?
Here is my analysis;
Let's start with the first sale:
Buffalo Sabres- Winners*
Transactions(s):
-The Sabres acquired Jaroslav Halak, Christ Stewart, William Carrier, a 2015 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2014 third-round draft pick from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for super star goalie Ryan Miller and team captain Steve Ott.
-The Sabres acquired Hudson Fasching and Nicolas Deslauriers from the Los Angeles Kings for Brayden McNabb and two second-round draft picks.
- The Sabres acquired Michal Neuvirth and Rotislov Klesla from the Washington Capitals for a 2015 third-round draft pick and newly acquired goaltender Jaroslav Halak
-The Sabres acquired Torrey Mitchell, a 2014 second-round draft, and a 2016 second-round draft pick from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Matt Moulson and Cody McCormick.
- The Sabres claimed Cory Conacher off waivers.
The Buffalo Sabres were in a tough position. They were a sinking ship being weighed down by aging veterans and numerous unrestricted free agents. Thankfully for them, the 2014 trade deadline turned out to be a buyers market. Neuvirth is a proven no. 1 goalie with just a $2.5MM cap hit - worth the risk? I think so. Chris Stewart comes with a manageable $4.15MM cap hit and is signed through 2015, and Klesla figures to be a veteran rental for the time being. The asterisk next to the winners above is because only time will tell how the newly acquired surplus of prospects and draft picks will pan our for the future of the Sabres. All in all, the Sabres did a nice job picking up notable pieces to build around for the future.
Tampa Bay Lightning- Losers
Transaction:
The Lightning acquired Ryan Callahan, a 2015 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2014 second-round draft pick from the New York Rangers in exchange for Martin St.Louis.
What a trade, what a story. When is the next time you think we'll see two playoff contending captains, two Olympians, and two high profile players swapped at a trade deadline again? Who knows.
However, what I do know is that the return for Martin St. Louis is quite underwhelming for Steve Yzerman and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Yes Callahan is gritty, yes he's great for the locker room, and no he's not going to get $7mm per year in July when he becomes an unrestricted free-agent, but he can't possibly replace the offensive production that St. Louis provided the Bolts. Not to mention the Rangers will make the playoffs, meaning both draft picks will be on the bottom half of the board at best. If the Lightning were out of playoff contention and looking to sell then I think this is a great trade, but the Bolts are in the middle of playoff contention with the New York Rangers chasing them in the standings. Sometimes thing's just don't add up, but hey the Rangers aren't complaining.
Montreal Canadiens - Winners
Transaction:
-The Canadiens acquired Thomas Vanek and a fifth-round draft pick from the Islanders in exchange for prospect Sebastian Collberg and a second-round draft pick.
This was an absolute steal for the Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin. While many believed the Canadiens would have to cough up a first-round draft pick and Lars Eller to land Thomas Vanek, they basically got him for next to nothing. Currently Montreal ranks in the bottom half of the league with 2.48 goals per game. Though Vanek is only a rental, it's hard to ignore that he's a nine-time 20 goal scorer with 53 points in 60 games this year. This acquisition makes the Habs a true contender for the Eastern Conference this year.
New York Islanders - Losers (and that's an understatement)
Transaction(s):
- The Islanders acquired a second-round draft pick and Seabastian Collberg in exchange for Thomas Vanek and a fifth-round draft pick.
- The Islanders acquired a 2014 third-round draft pick, a 2015 second-round pick, and prospect Matt Mangene from the Flyers for Andrew MacDonald.
Keep in mind the return on MacDonald is fine, but like I mentioned above, the Islanders were completely robbed by the Canadiens - but I don't think they had a choice. GM Garth Snow's trade deadline plan blew up in his face as he completely underestimated the market for Thomas Vanek. In my opinion, and backed by popular opinion by plenty of Islander fans I've talked too today, Snow should be fired. 2014 will forever be remembered as the year the Islanders traded Matt Moulson, Thomas Vanek, a first-round draft pick, and a second-round draft pick for a second-round draft pick, a fifth-round draft pick and a prospect... literally. That's about as bad as it gets folks.
Minnesota Wild- Winners
Transaction(s):
-The Wild acquired Ilya Bryzgalov from the Oilers for a fourth-round draft pick.
-The Wild acquired Matt Moulson and Cody McCormick from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Torey Mitchell and undisclosed draft picks.
The Minnesota Wild addressed their two biggest needs with their deadline acquisitions - a back up veteran goalie to help groom 23 year old Darcy Kuemper and scoring. While the Wild were in the running for Jaroslav Halak and Martin Brodeur, their asking prices appeared to be a bit to high. In my opinion they got a bargain in Bryz, who should be helpful with Harding and Backstrom out indefinitely. Despite their first half of the season success, the Wild are ranked 25th in the league in offense- so enter Matt Moulson, a three-time 30 goal scorer who has 17 goals in 55 games this season with the Sabres. Will he boost the Wild offense? Absolutely. Will he re-sign with them in the off-season? Possibly.
Calgary Flames- Losers
Transaction:
- The Flames acquired a third-round draft pick from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Lee Stempniak.
-The flames acquired a second-round draft pick from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for goalie Reto Berra.
Perhaps I'm so anti- Calgary Flames after the trade deadline because I'm a Devil fan, but the Flames had one job to do this week- and that was to get a decent return for upcoming unrestricted free-agent Mike Camalleri. Camalleri is 31 years old, in a decline, and does not fit the future of the flames, yet GM Brian Burke failed to pull the trigger and unload him. Would the Devils have been a good fit? I'll leave that up to you to decide. Either way, the return on Camalleri obviously wasn't going to be an instant fix for Calagary's problems, but it was a no-brainer he should have been dumped to free up salary. Chalk up a loss for Alberta.
Los Angeles Kings- Winners*
Transaction:
The Kings acquired Marian Gaborik from the Blue Jackers in exchange for Matt Frattin, a second-round pick, and a third-round pick.
The Los Angeles Kings were the one California team desperate for offensive production, as they ranked 27th in the NHL with 2.32 goals per game. Why the asterisk? While Gaborik is proven sniper and can be an instant fix for the Kings- he is injury prone and already missed some time this season with a broken collar bone and a lower body injury. At 32, Marian Gaborik will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, but the last time the L.A. Kings acquired a goal scorer from the Blue Jackets in Jeff Carter they found themselves hoisting the Stanley Cup, will history repeat itself? God I hope not... but you never know. Definitely a win if Gaborik stays healthy.
Vancouver Canucks - Losers
Transaction(s):
-The Canucks acquired goaltending prospect Jacob Markstrom and Shawn Matthias from the Florida Panthers in exchange for the high profiled Roberto Luongo and a prospect.
- The Canucks acquired a fifth-round draft pick from the New York Rangers in exchange for Raphael Diaz
Based off the trades above and the emergence of Eddie Lack in Vancouver, you can see their is nothing wrong with these acquisitions... if and only if the Canucks are fully committed to a rebuild. The move they didn't make is the reason why they landed on the losing side of the trade deadline. Ryan Kesler reportedly wanted out of Vancouver since before the season started and submitted a list of six teams he would lift his no trade clause to... two of those six teams - the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Philadelphia Flyers, who were rumored to have offered nearly the house for Kesler. The Canucks could have acquired a top six forward, one of Brayden Schenn or Ryan Dumoulin, and a first round-pick from either of the two teams. So why didn't Mike Gillis pull the trigger? Apparently the Vancouver Canucks ownership refrained Gillis from committing to any Kesler trade. Not good.
New York Rangers- Winners
Transaction(s):
- The Rangers acquired Martin St. Louis from the Tampa Bay Lightning for Ryan Callahan, a 2015 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2014 second-round draft pick.
- The Rangers acquired Matt Diaz from the Vancouver Canucks for a fifth-round draft pick.
Good job Glen Sather. Good job. The Rangers stood their ground and traded their captain after failing to reach a contract extension. While many feel downed by the departure of Captain Cally, his monetary demands on a new contract are as bizarre as they come (see my previous article). While in the long run the Ranges forfeited some draft picks, this trade made them so much stronger in the short run. St. Louis, 38 is signed through next season and will provide speed, grit, leadership, and instant chemistry with Brad Richards. This move makes a ton of sense for the Rangers because multiple reasons, but the one glaring reason is the fact that they need to win, and they need to win now. Lundqvist isn't getting any younger.
St. Louis Blues- Winners
Transaction:
-The St. Louis Blues acquired Ryan Miller and Steve Ott from the Buffalo Sabres for Jaroslav Halak, Christ Stewart, William Carrier, a 2015 first-round draft pick and a conditional 2014 third-round draft pick.
The St. Louis Blues, who entered the trade deadline at second place in the Western Conference, may be the biggest winners of the 2014 trade deadline. Goaltending has long been considered the teams one glaring weakness. While Halak was solid for the Blues, he was never going to be that big time goaltender to out duel Jonathan Quick or Carey Price come playoffs. The final piece of the puzzle was filled with their acquisition of 33 year old veteran Ryan Miller, who is good enough to carry a .923 SV% on the bottom feeding Buffalo Sabres over with him to St. Louis. We saw how good Ryan Miller has played with a good team in front of him when he was on Team USA is the past two Olympics, look for the same with him on the Blues. The Blues are my favorite to make it to the cup out of the West. Win, big big big win.
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