NHL Trade Deadline: Prospect Live Blog

 

Welcome to the NHL trade deadline day! Many outlets have a live blog breaking down each deal and how they will affect each club’s playoff chances and where the teams go from here but not many really go in-depth and tell you who the prospects traded in many of these deals are. 

 

Here at Dobber Prospects, we care about the teams that are acquiring prospects and their fan’s knowledge of those prospects. So keep it locked and loaded here as we discuss all things prospects throughout the deadline! We will breakdown each trade with the main focus being on giving you the information you want about your team’s newest member of the prospect pipeline. 

 

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Live Blog

 

7:30 am: Welcome to the start of Trade Deadline day! Follow along here all day for your prospect information courtesy of the Dobber team! Follow along with me here or on Twitter @theTonyFerrari! I’ll have all the latest news on the prospects being moved all throughout the day! You can check out a quick summary of the deals that went down before the deadline below as well! 

 

 

8:18 am: The calm before the storm that has become a tradition in the last couple of seasons on Trade Deadline day. The sellers are open for business. Teams like Ottawa, Detroit, and New Jersey should be among the most active when selling players off today. Watch for teams like Montreal and Los Angeles to make some surprise moves. Could a player like Max Domi be on the move? Does Toronto trade Tyson Barrie? The Canadian teams could be very active today.

 

When it comes to buyers, there are plenty of teams that could be looking to add. Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver could all be looking to add to their bluelines. Winnipeg could be in that group too depending on where they feel like there headed post-deadline. Does Pittsburgh or Washington had a move in their back pocket? The team to have their eye on is likely Colorado. They have a boatload of cap space, a ton of quality prospects and the type of team that could legitimately be one player away once healthy. 

 

 

 

9:14 am: Where, oh where have all the trades gone? Where, oh where could they be? Seriously, I’m ready for this day to really get going.

 

9:28 am: Elliotte Friedman has speculated that Carolina has some interest in Trochek, could Jake Bean be a piece they use to get him? 

 

 

9:41 am: Not a prospect trade but the first move of the day is out of the way. Namestnikov to Colorado for a fourth-round pick in 2021. Of note here is that the 2021 draft has far less depth to it than the 2020 Draft so I like this move even more for Colorado. Low price for a quality winger. 

 

9:48 am: Pageau to the Islanders according to Elliotte Freidman, waiting on the return. Likely picks and prospects! Tyler Ennis looks to be on the move as well. 

 

9:52 am: Looks like a package of picks for Pageau. Bruce Garrioch is reporting that the Sens get a 1st and a 2nd in 2020 and a third in 2022. Conditions on all the picks.  This gives Ottawa a third 1st round pick this year and a fourth pick in the second round! That’s seven picks in the top-62! You could say the future looks good as of right now.  

 

 

10:00 am: The Senators have been busy this morning. The conditions on the Pageau deal are as follows:

1st Round Pick in 2020 is top-3 protected, moves to 2021 if the Isles collapse and win the lottery.

2nd Round Pick in 2020 has no conditions

3rd round pick in 2022 is Ottawa’s if the Isles win the cup 

 

10:10 am: The Bob-father thinks Colorado is still looking for some help on the wing. Could Kreider still be the option? 

 

10:11 am: Looks like Florida and Carolina are working on a deal that gets Trochek to Raleigh. Chase Priskie apparently part of the deal. Priskie is a player who has a ton of talent but has to figure out how to turn his skating and skill into being a serviceable blueliner. He had a solid NCAA career and has 31 points in 50 games in his rookie year in the AHL. He definitely has the upside you want in that trade. Possibly Eric Huala and Lucas Wallmark included in the deal going to Florida. 

 

10:19 am: Eetu Luostarinen also involved in the deal that sends Trochek to Florida. Luostarinen had been playing in the Liiga up until this season and has made the jump to North America fairly successfully. The center prospect has been fairly productive at the AHL level in his rookie AHL season. He plays a good safe game at both ends of the ice. Doesn’t have a ton of flash but rarely looks out of place or overwhelmed. Nice add for Florida who appears to be sellers since they don’t get the defender they need in the deal. 

 

10:31 am: Carolina looks to be still looking for a defenseman after the acquisition of Trochek. Curious to see if they opt to move Toronto’s first-round pick or whether they dip into their prospect pool again to get it done. Not looking for a rental so the price could be high.  

 

10:42 am: RHD Tyson Barrie to Vancouver rumblings won’t seem to die. Stecher likely in the return but how much else would Vancouver be willing to send to Toronto? Could Olli Juolevi be involved? It would give both Stecher and Juolevi a fresh start after possibly falling out of favour in Vancouver. 

 

11:04 am: Not a prospect trade but worth noting. Patrick Marlaue is headed to Pittsburgh pending a trade call per Bob McKenzie. It looks to be a third-round pick going back to the Sharks. If you’re a fan of Pittsburgh, just don’t look at their prospect pool. Between picks being traded and top prospects going out the door every year, it’s not going to be good for a while. That’s the cost of being a perennial contender. If you feel the need to, check out Pittsburgh’s page here. Third rounder-could become a second if the Pens win the Cup. Great deal for the Sharks. 

 

11:18 am: Looks like Chris Kreider is off the trade bait list. Rumour had been Kreider wanted to stay with the Rangers and it looks like they’ve made that happen. 

 

 

11:25 am: Kreider’s extension is seven years at $6.5 million per year. Also of note for the Rangers, Igor Shestyorkin and Pavel Buchnevich were involved in a car accident in Brooklyn. Shestyorkin looks to be out a few weeks with a fractured rib. Buchnevich is out day-to-day, nothing too serious it seems. This leads to further speculation that the Rangers’ goalie situation works itself out in the summer. 

 

11:32 am: Guess who’s back? The Toronto Maple Leafs make a move to re-acquire D Calle Rosen from the Colorado Avalanche for G Michael Hutchinson. Toronto gets the better player here. Rosen should help the Leafs bide their time through some injuries on the back end. The Avs get a warm body in net. 

 

11:36 am: Looks like Andreas Athanasiou is on his way to the Columbus Blue Jackets! Curious to see what the Red Wings get back. Anaheim and Philly are working on a deal for Derek Grant as well. Looks like a player and a pick going back. 

 

11:40 am: It looks like its Derek Grant for Kyle Criscuolo a 4th-rounder. 

 

11:52 am: Wayne Simmonds to Buffalo for a 5th in 2021… it could become a 4th rounder if the Sabres make the playoffs and Simmonds plays 10 games. But I have to ask why? 

 

 

12:05 pm: Dmytro Timashov has been claimed off waivers by Detroit from Toronto. He’s a decent bottom-six option brings some skill and speed but hasn’t really solidified himself as an NHLer and Detroit will give him that chance. Good move for Steve Yzerman. Now tell me what the return for Athanasiou from Columbus. 

 

12:08 pm: It looks like we could be waiting a bit to find out if Athanasiou is truly Columbus bound and what the return could be. Looks to be out of Detroit though. Likely looking for a deal similar to the Blake Coleman deal or better. High pick, good prospect. 

 

12:25 pm: It’s lunchtime for the GM’s as things seem to have calmed down for now. The chatter and rumblings will commence again shortly. 

 

12:27 pm: Boston forward Danton Heinen looks to be on his way to the Ducks for Nick Ritchie. Heinen looks to get his game back on track in Anaheim. Still just 24, it feels like he’s been around a while. Heinen has some skill and could be a good player for the Ducks. 

 

12:33 pm: Lunch didn’t last long apparently. Looks like the Wild and Isles have a deal that involves Parise and Ladd per Frank Seravalli. Could possibly be picks and prospects involved to even out value. 

 

12:40 pm: Montreal has sent Matthew Peca to the Ottawa Senators for Aaron Luchuk and a 7th rounder this year. Its a fairly ‘meh’ AHL deal.  

 

1:01 pm: It sounds like Edmonton is making a push for Athanasiou. Looks like Steve Yzerman is getting his wish of creating a bidding war for Athanasiou. Edmonton and Columbus both in on Athanasiou at the moment. Less than two hours until the deadline now. 

 

1:12 pm: Athanasiou to Edmonton. Return is still in question but looks to be a done deal. That’s a ton of speed to play with McDavid or Draisaitl. As I reported earlier, Steve Yzerman waited and pushed his price up on this one. Now we wait for the details.  

 

1:21 pm: Looks like no prospects going back to Detroit but they get two second-round picks for Athanasiou per Darren Dreger. A bit underwhelming considering the returns in other deals across the league. Price set and matched though.

 

1:35 pm: Ryan Kuffner is also headed to Edmonton in the Athanasiou deal. Kuffner is likely AHL depth but he does have a decent shot and could be a goal-scoring option on the wing in Edmonton where they lack a whole lot of punch. I won’t be shocked to see Kuffner get a chance with the Oilers. 

 

1:43 pm: I’m surprised that there hasn’t been more prospect movement today. It probably means teams are valuing picks over prospects because they can at least make a choice with the pick. Curious to see if the prospects start moving soon. 

 

1:58 pm: About an hour from the deadline, reports are surfacing that the Rangers are looking to send Brady Skjei out of town. Carolina is the destination being talked about. The Canes are willing to move a first-round pick but might have to move some salary as well. 

 

2:04 pm: Less than an hour out from the deadline, the Flames make a pair fo deals adding forward Derek Forbort from the Los Angeles Kings for a fourth-round pick. They also add defender Erik Gustafsson from the Chicago Blackhawks, still no word on the return. Gustafsson is 27 but still feels a lot younger than that after breaking out last season. Good add for Calgary here. 

 

2:05 pm: Edmonton makes another move by acquiring Tyler Ennis for a 2021 fifth-round pick. Ennis can provide a bit on the wing for Edmonton. 

 

2:13 pm: Calgary gives up conditional picks in both deals. No players/prospects going back to LA or Chicago. 

2:22 pm: The boss tweeted, I have to share it. 

 

2:30 pm: Pittsburgh continues to load up. Bringing Conor Sheary back into the fold along with Evan Rodrigues for young forward Dominik Kahun. Kahun is a young, skilled player who now joins his third team since the start of last season. He was with Chicago last year, Pittsburgh this year, and now Buffalo. Hopefully, he can find a home soon because he has the skill to play at the NHL level. 

 

2:35 pm: 25 minutes until the deadline. For reference, the best prospect traded today is either Chase Priskie or Eetu Luostarinen, both going to Florida in the Vincent Trochek deal. Beena quiet day on the prospect front. 

 

2:42 pm: The Stars and Panthers make a minor move. Emil Djuse to the Panthers for a sixth-rounder. Djuse is almost a prospect. At 26, he likely is what he is which is a decent AHL option on the blueline. 

 

2:50 pm: T-10 minutes until the deadline! Is the one more big move, maybe two? 

 

2:53 pm: WE HAVE A PROSPECT TRADE! Vatanen to the Canes for a pick and a prospect. 

 

2:58 pm: Lehner to Vegas screams picks and prospects! 

 

3:00 pm: The deadline is here. Trades will likely trickle in for a bit still. 

 

3:10 pm: Trades and details trickling in.

 

3:12 pm: The Ducks send Devin Shore to Columbus for Sonny Milano. Milano is a highly skilled player who hasn’t been able to break through with Torts behind the bench in Columbus. He has great hands and skates like the wind but he doesn’t play a ton of defense which was always a sore spot for the Torts led Blue Jackets. 

 

3:13 pm: The Canes used LTIR to help get around cap issues. 

 

3:17 pm: With Vatanen heading to Carolina, the Devils are receiving a 2nd round pick and Janne Kuokkanen. The young Finnish forward has been very good in the AHL. He is a versatile player who can be relied upon to play in any situation and up-and-down the lineup. He is a responsible player defensively and plays a very skilled game offensively. He has good vision in the offensive zone, utilizing it to be an effective playmaker. 

 

3:25 pm: San Jose tries to help make up for their lack of picks and prospects and get a first-rounder from the Tampa Bay Lightning for Barclay Goodrow. Seems steep but the Lightning wanted the player and got him. If they win the cup, it doesn’t matter. If they get swept by the Blue Jackets again, not so great. 

 

3:27 pm: The Vancouver Canucks acquired netminder Louis Domingue from the Devils for goaltender Zane McIntyre. This was a deal made to help the Canucks while Jacob Markstrom deals with a knee injury. They likely have no issue with Thatcher Demko getting the majority of the starts for a short period of time but they likely didn’t want to go with a Demko/DiPietro tandem for any period of time. 

 

3:55 pm: Vatanen deal is a little different than originally reported. 

 

3:58 pm: Chicago is getting Slava Demin along with Malcolm Subban and a second-rounder from Vegas for goaltender Robin Lehner. Slava Demin is a solid prospect and stay-at-home defender. He shows the ability to move the puck up the ice but his value comes in his own end. His offensive ceiling isn’t all that high but he could be a solid 4/5 defenseman in the future. 

 

4:00 pm: Daniel Sprong goes from Anaheim to Washington in a deal that sees Christian Djoos head to the Ducks. Sprong has been bubbling under the surface for a while now. His offensive potential has never been questioned but he needs to play a more complete game at the next level. There has been times where he’s fallen out of favour with a couple of teams but he has the talent and the Capitals should be able to help get him on the right track. Djoos is a puck-moving defender who seems to have all of the skills in the world but fell out of favour in Washington for some reason. He could jump onto the Ducks immediately and likely plays on their second powerplay. This seems like a good move of teams swapping prospects who need a fresh start. 

 

4:14 pm: The Coyotes acquire Markus Hännikäinen from the Blue Jackets for a conditional 7th-round pick. Hännikäinen is a crafty, bottom-six player who has seen time with the Jackets in the last few seasons but seems like a guy who is stuck between the AHL and NHL. Decent two-way forward who has a good shot.  

 

4:15 pm: And with that, I say thank you for joining me on this Trade Deadline day! We had some fun, I avoided real life for the day and a lot of trades were made! If any other trades trickle in, specifically involving any prospects, I’ll be back to update things here! Thank you again, I hope you enjoyed it! 

 

Before the Deadline

 

There’s been a ton of action before the deadline this year! The action really started about two weeks ago with the Jason Zucker trade in which the Minnesota Wild added Calen Addison to their pipeline as well as a first-round pick this June. Just a few days later, The New Jersey Devils got a bit feisty making a pair of deals. They sent their captain Andy Greene to the New York Islanders for a second-round pick and defensive prospect David Quenneville before making a bigger deal by adding a first-round pick (VAN) and prized prospect Nolan Foote in a deal that sent Blake Coleman to the Tampa Bay Lightning. For a break down on those deals, check out this piece here.   

 

Madden goes from Canuck to King 

 

The day after the Coleman deal went down, the Vancouver Canucks looked to make a splash of their own when they acquired Tyler Toffoli from the Los Angeles Kings who continue to add to their league-best prospect pool. In addition to forward Tim Schaller, an inclusion to make the money work, the Kings received a second-round pick, a conditional fourth-round pick, and prospect Tyler Madden. Madden adds to the unreal center depth that the Kings have in their system with players like Alex Turcotte and Rasmus Kupari already working their way to the big club. 

 

Madden’s game is predicated on speed. The Northeastern forward has the high-end skating ability and the slick playmaking skills that make him dangerous every time he steps on the ice. His tenacity and high-motor make him a high-end forechecker who forces turnovers, creates scoring opportunities and plays an uptempo game. The Kings are adding a player who has won two straight Beanpot titles with Northeastern University and was in the Hobey Baker conversation as college hockey’s best player before going down with a hand injury. 

 

Canes-Rangers Swap Prospects

 

A prospect swap was done by the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers. Carolina sent 2016 first-round forward Julien Gauthier to the Rangers for defender Joey Keane. It seems like a swap of prospects who were behind a bit of a logjam at their position and they are moving to a spot with a bit more opportunity, more so in Gauthier’s case. 

 

Keane is having an excellent rookie season in the AHL with 30 points through 49 games on the backend. Keane has good puck-moving ability but has exploded onto the scene in his first-year pro as he has produced at a very good rate, seemingly taking the step from junior to the AHL with no major issue. He profiles as a middle-pairing defender who can contribute a bit at both ends of the ice with intriguing offensive upside thanks to an advanced IQ with the puck on his stick. He has some work to do in reigning in his risk-taking at times but overall he does a good job of being a positive impact player.

 

Gauthier steps into the Rangers system and looks to make his way to the NHL sooner rather than later. Improving his production rates in each of his first three seasons, he’s had a cup of coffee with the Hurricanes this season but wasn’t able to stick around. Now with the Rangers, he is getting his NHL shot. He can be a bit one dimensional, primarily serving as a goal-scoring threat thanks to a good shot and the propensity for finding open space. Scoreless through three games with the Rangers, Gauthier will look to solidify a spot by seasons end. 

 

Axel helps Grease the Wheel for a Kase Deal

 

In the next big trade involving prospects, the Anaheim Ducks traded forward Ondrej Kase in a deal that has them taking on 75% of David Backes’ contract as well as a first-round pick and defensive prospect Axel Andersson. Andersson joins the Ducks growing Ducks prospect pool and helps provide another option on the backend, where they are the thinnest.

Andersson brings a diverse skillset that can best be described as good at a lot, not great at anything in particular. He came over to North America to start this season, joining the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL after a year of limited use in the Allsvenskan in Sweden and he’s seemed to acclimate himself well. He has good puck-moving ability, making a good first pass and having the confidence and skating ability to move the puck on his stick if needed. His defensive game is fairly average and likely won’t ever be the calling card of his game but he has shown the ability to be a capable defender who utilizes his skating and stick work to limit chances.