Category: Deadline Deals

  • TRADE: Wedgewood and Rieder to L.A., Kuemper to Arizona

    On Wednesday, the Arizona Coyotes and the Los Angeles Kings completed their first trade with each other since March 9, 2006 (remember the Tim JackmanYanick Lehoux trade, anyone?).

    Arizona traded F Tobias Rieder and G Scott Wedgewood to the Kings in exchange for G Darcy Kuemper.

    Kuemper signed a two-year contract extension with the Coyotes as part of the transaction and Arizona retained 15% of Rieder’s contract. Rieder is a pending-RFA this offseason.

    Unknown-3Rieder, 25, has 51 goals and 60 assists (111 points) in 292 career NHL games– all with the Coyotes. The 5’11”, 188-pound, native of Landshut, Germany was originally drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the 4th round (114th overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

    He had a career-high 37-points in 2015-16 after making his NHL debut in the 2014-15 season. The right-winger had a career-high 16 goals last season with Arizona.

    In 58 games this season, Rieder has 8-11–19 totals.

    Wedgewood, 25, has a record of 5-9-4 with a 3.45 goals against average and .893 save percentage in 20 games played this season with Arizona. Additionally, he has one shutout this season.

    The 6’2″, 195-pound, native of  Brampton, Ontario made his NHL debut in 2015-16 with New Jersey and went 2-1-1 with a 1.24 GAA and .957 SV% in four games played that season. Wedgewood notched his first career shutout with 39 saves at Pittsburgh on March 24, 2016.

    He was originally drafted by the Devils in the 3rd round (84th overall) in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and has a career 3.05 GAA and .903 SV% in 24 NHL games.

    Unknown-3Kuemper, 27, has a 10-1-3 record with a 2.10 GAA and .932 SV% in 19 games this season for Los Angeles. With three shutouts on the year, the 6’5″, 215-pound, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native was in his first season with the Kings since signing with the team as a free agent last summer.

    He has a career record of 51-35-17 with a 2.52 GAA, .913 SV% and 10 shutouts in 104 NHL games with Los Angeles and the Minnesota Wild. Kuemper spent the previous five seasons with Minnesota and was originally drafted by the Wild in the 6th round (161st overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

  • TRADE: Habs send Jerabek to Washington

    The Montreal Canadiens traded D Jakub Jerabek to the Washington Capitals on Wednesday in exchange for a 5th round pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.

    Unknown-1

    Jerabek, 26, had one goal and three assists (four points) in 25 games with Montreal this season. He had one goal and ten assists (11 points) in 17 games with the Canadiens’s AHL affiliate, Laval Rocket this season as well. The 5’11”, 200-pound, native of Pilsen, Czech Republic signed as a free agent with the Canadiens on May 1, 2017.

    Washington Capitals LogoIn 308 games with Plzen HC in the Czech League, Jerabek had 16-83–99 totals. He also had 5-29–34 totals in 59 games with Podolsk Vityaz in the KHL.

    Poised to make a deep run (save your Second Round jokes for now, folks), Washington solidifies their defensive depth with this trade.

  • TRADE: Toronto flips Fehr to San Jose for a draft pick

    A minor move could pay off for the San Jose Sharks after they acquired F Eric Fehr from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2020 7th round pick on Tuesday.

    San Jose has been looking for a fourth line center all season and they just might have gotten their man.

    UnknownFehr, 32, has 17-11–28 totals in 34 games with the San Diego Gulls (AHL) this season. He has two penalty minutes in four NHL games with Toronto in 2017-18.

    A native of Winkler, Manitoba, the 6’4″, 208-pound center has 103 goals and 99 assists (202 points) in 566 career NHL games with the Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals.

    He won a Stanley Cup championship with Pittsburgh in 2016 and has eight goals and two assists (ten points) in 60 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. Fehr was originally drafted by Washington in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

    Unknown

    Toronto now has eight picks in the 2020 draft as a result of this trade.

    That might seem irrelevant now, but rest assured, someone’s going to have to remember the number of draft picks each team has for something in 2020.

  • TRADE: Bruins acquire Holden from Rangers

    It’s not the left-shot defenseman many Bruins fans had been hoping to acquire by the NHL’s Trade Deadline on February 26th, but it’s a defenseman nonetheless.

    The Boston Bruins traded D Rob O’Gara and a 2018 3rd round pick to the New York Rangers in exchange for D Nick Holden on Tuesday.

    Unknown-7Holden, 30, recorded three goals and nine assists (12 points) in 55 games with the Rangers this season. He established career highs in goals (11), assists (23) and points (34) in his first season with New York (last season) in 80 games played. As well, Holden had two goals and two assists in 11 postseason games.

    The St. Albert, Alberta native was previously acquired by the Rangers in exchange for a 4th round pick (Petr Kvaca) in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft in a deal with the Colorado Avalanche on June 26, 2016. He was originally signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 28, 2008 and has appeared in 356 career NHL games– amassing 35-72–107 totals with the Rangers, Avalanche and Blue Jackets.

    At 6’4″, 214-pounds, Holden will more than likely slide into a bottom-pair defensive role for Boston as they continue their march down the stretch towards the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Holden will be a healthy scratch until Saturday as Boston is in Edmonton for a Tuesday night tilt.

    downloadO’Gara, 24, has yet to record his first career NHL goal in 11 career NHL games (all with Boston). In 43 games with the Providence Bruins (AHL) this season, O’Gara had two goals and six assists (eight points) and a plus-five rating.

    A native of Massapequa, N.Y., the 6’4″, 207-pound blue liner was selected by the Bruins in the 5th round (151st overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and completed a four-year collegiate career at Yale University from 2012-16. He is the only defenseman in Yale history to be a three-time winner of the John Poinier Award as the team’s Best Defenseman.

    O’Gara made his NHL debut with the Bruins on October 13, 2016 at Columbus.

    As a result of the trade, the Rangers now have seven picks in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

  • TRADE: Flyers add depth in net, acquire Mrazek from Red Wings

    After losing both Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth to injury, the Philadelphia Flyers were looking to do something to help them down the stretch.

    On Monday night, the Flyers acquired G Petr Mrazek from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a conditional 4th round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft and a conditional 3rd round pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Detroit retained 50 percent of Mrazek’s salary in the trade.

    Unknown

    The conditions on the picks involved are as follows:

    If Philadelphia makes the playoffs and Mrazek wins five games for the Flyers in the regular season, then the 4th round pick in 2018 becomes a 3rd round pick. If the Flyers advance to the Eastern Conference Finals and Mrazek wins six playoff games, the 3rd round pick becomes a 2nd round pick.

    If Philadelphia re-signs him, Detroit receives a 2019 3rd round pick from the Flyers.

    Or as TSN’s Bob McKenzie so wonderfully put it after reporting the conditions on the draft picks involved:

    download-1Mrazek, 26, had an 8-7-3 record in 22 appearances with the Red Wings this season for a 2.89 goals against average and a .910 save percentage.

    He spent the last two seasons playing in the majority of games for Detroit after unseating current starting goaltender for the Red Wings, Jimmy Howard, from the number one spot in goal and had a career best 2.33 GAA and .921 SV% (in at least 10 games played) in 54 games played in 2015-16.

    The native of Ostrava, Czech Republic is back in a backup goaltender role after amassing a career worst 3.04 GAA and .901 SV% in 50 GP last season for the rebuilding Red Wings. In 150 career NHL games, he has a 72-58-20 record with a career GAA of 2.60 and .912 SV%.

    He won a 2013 Calder Cup championship with Detroit’s AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins and appeared in three career Stanley Cup Playoff games in 2016 amassing a 1.36 GAA and a .945 SV%.

    Mrazek was drafted by Detroit in the 5th round (141st overall) in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and is a pending-RFA this July.

    This trade comes as no surprise for the Flyers as they look to maintain momentum down the stretch and make the playoffs for the first time since 2016 with both Elliott and Neuvirth injured and out of commission.

    Since Detroit retained 50% of Mrazek’s salary, the goaltender will only carry a $2.000 million cap hit for Philadelphia through the end of the season.

    The Red Wings are expected to move forward with Jared Coreau as their backup, while the Flyers look to rely on Mrazek and Alex Lyon to hold the fort down until Neuvirth and Elliott recover.

  • TRADE: Blackhawks unload Kempny to Washington for a conditional pick

    The Chicago Blackhawks have begun to unload some salary as they contemplate a looming rebuild. What’s that? It was only $900,000 and they’re still tight against the salary cap? Oh. Carry on then.

    On Monday, the Blackhawks sent 27-year-old defenseman, Michal Kempny, to the Washington Capitals in exchange for a conditional 3rd round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

    Washington Capitals Logo

    A native of Hodnin, Czech Republic, Kempny notched 1-6–7 totlas in 31 games with Chicago this season and has three goals and 12 assists (15 points) in 81 career NHL games (all with the Blackhawks). A pending-UFA this July, he signed with Chicago as a free agent on May 23, 2016 and carries a cap hit of $900,000.

    imgresThe conditional pick the Capitals are sending in return will be the higher of Washinton’s own 3rd round pick or Toronto’s 3rd round pick (previously acquired from the New Jersey Devils in the offseason Marcus Johansson trade).

    With the acquisition of this conditional 3rd round pick, the Blackhawks will have seven picks in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

  • TRADE: Sens send DiDomenico to Chicago for Pokka

    The Ottawa Senators are doing the Pokka. No, not the polka, the Pokka. You heard that right.

    On Thursday, Ottawa sent F Christopher DiDomenico to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for D Ville Pokka.

    imgresDiDomenico, 28, broke into the NHL last season appearing in three games with the Senators before playing in 24 more this season. He has six goals and four assists (10 points) in 27 career NHL games and recorded a career-long three game point streak (2-3–5 totals) in late October.

    The Woodbridge, Ontario native has split time with the Belleville Senators and Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL) this season, notching six goals and nine assists (15 points) in 28 AHL games.

    He was a 6th round pick (164th overall) of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2007 and will report to the Rockford IceHogs where he will have a homecoming of sorts, having played in 74 games with Rockford from 2010-12.

    In fact, DiDomenico was previously acquired by the Blackhawks (along with Viktor Stalberg and Philippe Paradis) in a trade with the Maple Leafs on June 30, 2010. Chicago sent Kris Versteeg and Bill Sweatt in return.

    Unknown-6Pokka, 23, has yet to appear in an NHL game and had 28-99–127 totals in 266 games with the IceHogs from 2014-18.

    A native of Tornio, Finland, Pokka was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 2nd round (34th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He was originally traded to Chicago as part of the Nick Leddy trade on October 4, 2014, in which the Blackhawks acquired Pokka, T.J. Brennan and the rights to Anders Nilsson in exchange for Leddy.

    In 46 games with Rockford this season, Pokka had four goals and 18 assists (22 points). He will be assigned to the Belleville Senators.
  • TRADE: Leafs send Soshnikov to St. Louis

    Unknown

    It’s a deal that will either become a footnote in hockey history or pay off well for the St. Louis Blues– taking a gamble, tight against the salary cap and looking to cash in on a Stanley Cup championship one of these days– but the Toronto Maple Leafs traded 24-year-old forward, Nikita Soshnikov on Thursday.

    St. Louis received a 4th round pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in return.

    imgres-1Soshnikov played in three games with Toronto this season and was placed on the injured reserve on December 12 with a lower body injury. The Nizhny Tagil, Russia native has 7-7–14 totals in 70 career games with the Maple Leafs since signing as a free agent in 2015.

    Undrafted by any NHL team, Soshnikov played two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League. In his last season with Moscow (KHL), he had 14-18–52 totals in 57 games played.

    He will report to St. Louis after he has obtained a U.S. visa.

    In related news, the Blues are taking a stab on another forward with something to prove, but without many results in the NHL thus far (a la Nail Yakupov, 2016-17, and Magnus Paajarvi, 2013-18). Time will tell.

  • 2018 Trade Deadline Preview: Central Division

    Unknown

    1. Nashville Predators– 34-12-9 (77 points, 55 GP)

    The Nashville Predators are amazing. They’re pulling off their spectacular season on the heels of last year’s Stanley Cup Final run with almost $3.000 million in salary tied up in buyouts.

    Oh, and they somehow added to their depth down the middle in the whole Matt Duchene, three-team trade saga that saw Kyle Turris swap out Ottawa Senators gear for a Preds sweater.

    They don’t need to add, but general manager David Poile still might work a little magic by adding without subtracting if he can. Mike Fisher, 37, is trying to come back from retirement because he believes Nashville’s time is now. Only time will tell if he can go from his current PTO to a one-year deal that just might get him his first taste from the Stanley Cup.

    If Poile wants to add anything, he’s going to have to do so with about $3.200 million in cap space currently.

    Potential assets to trade: Honestly, don’t.

    Potential assets to acquire: F Derek Ryan (CAR), D Cody Franson (CHI), F Boone Jenner (CBJ), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Michael Grabner (NYR), F Thomas Vanek (VAN)

    jetslogo

    2. Winnipeg Jets– 33-15-9 (75 points, 57 GP)

    Injuries are beginning to mount for the Winnipeg Jets and it’ll be interesting to see what the GM Kevin Cheveldayoff does by February 26th considering his team’s current backup goaltender is 22-year-old, Eric Comrie. Their starter is 24-year-old, Connor Hellebuyck, who’s emerged as clear-cut starting goaltender this season (aside from his All-Star appearance back in January).

    But what considerations has Cheveldayoff made with Jacob Trouba out for a signifcant portion of “the stretch”? What’s the game plan if a guy like Kyle Connor or Patrik Laine goes down?

    Winnipeg has about $5.400 million in cap space to play with as of this writing.

    They are what should be a destination for rental players looking to take a team that’s on the verge of breaking out in the postseason deeper than they could ever imagine.

    And the Jets have just enough to offer other teams to bring in the right pieces to the puzzle.

    Potential assets to trade: D Ben Chiarot, F Matt Hendricks, F Nic Petan

    Potential assets to acquire: F Boone Jenner (CBJ), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Alex Galchenyuk (MTL), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Nick Holden (NYR), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), F David Perron (VGK)

    imgres-1

    3. St. Louis Blues– 34-21-4 (72 points, 59 GP)

    There’s almost $125,000 in cap space for the St. Louis Blues right now. While it’d be great for the Blues to add one or two of their missing pieces that’d send them right over the edge of victory (once-and-for-all), the better time to readjust appears to be this summer.

    Besides, Joel Edmundson, Robby Fabbri and Carter Hutton will all need new contracts. Not that they’re going to cost St. Louis tens of millions of dollars, but it’ll likely mean that someone will have to get traded either at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft or later this summer.

    Jay Bouwmeester is 34-years-old and has a $5.400 million cap hit through next season. He also has a no-trade-clause that could make things difficult for the foreseeable future, given that when the Blues are on their “A” game they can really make a claim for Cup contender status this season.

    It’d be unwise to part with Bouwmeester now, but it only makes sense to do it later.

    Just don’t get behind the eight ball is the best advice for St. Louis looking past the end of this month. Otherwise, salary cap hell isn’t all that fun.

    Potential assets to trade: D Jay Bouwmeester

    Potential assets to acquire: F Derek Ryan (CAR), F Blake Comeau (COL), F Matt Cullen (MIN), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Nikita Soshnikov (TOR), F David Perron (VGK)

    Unknown-2

    4. Dallas Stars– 33-20-4 (70 points, 57 GP)

    The Dallas Stars currently cling to the first wild card spot in the Western Conference, though they trail the St. Louis Blues by two points for 3rd in the Central Division in what’s shaping up to be the tighter points battle in the West compared to the lackluster Pacific Division.

    Yes, I’m fully aware Los Angeles did something to their defense Tuesday night, why do you ask?

    The Central is all about racking up points while the Pacific bangs bodies off of each other in hopes of amounting to something more than your standard pylon.

    So where do the Stars fit into the playoff picture? They should be in the running for at least a wild card spot coming down the stretch– and with almost $889,000 in cap space right now it’s going to be hard to add what they really need to push them over the hill.

    Backup goaltender, Kari Lehtonen, is a pending-UFA at season’s end, so it’s not like Dallas needs to make a move there, but they could help their starter, Ben Bishop, a little more.

    While other teams in the league are searching for the right rental forward, the Stars should be looking for the right rental defenseman. Whether that’s a Mike Green or a Cody Franson, well, only Stars GM Jim Nill will know, based on what he must give up.

    Potential assets to trade: F Martin Hanzal, D Greg Pateryn

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), D Mike Green (DET), D Nick Holden (NYR), D Ian Cole (PIT), D Ben Hutton (VAN)

    Unknown-2

    5. Minnesota Wild– 31-19-6 (68 points, 56 GP)

    There’s good news and bad news for the Minnesota Wild as the trade deadline nears. The good news is that the Chicago Blackhawks are more than likely taking a pass on this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. The bad news is the Wild might do that too (oh, and Minnesota only has about $129,000 in cap room– with Jason Zucker and Matt Dumba as pending-RFAs this July).

    For all of the talk regarding trading Jonas Brodin, there sure hasn’t been any radio chatter this time around as the deadline nears this month.

    Though the Wild hold on to the second wild card spot in the Western Conference, there’s at least two California based teams (Los Angeles and Anaheim) that should be in the playoff picture coming down the wire.

    If it’s make or break, then Minnesota has all the time in the world to wait and see what’s to come this summer.

    But if they’re on the fence about determining whether to buy or sell, well, they could do a bit of both. If they’re looking for a quick retool, it’s within their means, but if they’re content with sinking before they swim, there’s always the reset (rebuild) button.

    Still, it’d be a shame to rebuild with Devan Dubnyk in net. Alas, this is the world of the salary cap and bad contracts *ahem, Ryan Suter and Zach Parise*.

    Potential assets to trade: D Jonas Brodin, F Matt Cullen, D Kyle Quincey, F Chris Stewart, F Daniel Winnik

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), F Jordan Kyrou (STL), D Ben Hutton (VAN)

    Unknown-1

    6. Colorado Avalanche– 31-21-4 (66 points, 56 GP)

    In theory, the Colorado Avalanche could be buyers at this year’s trade deadline.

    They’re in great shape cap-wise, with about $8.400 million to spend currently, but Avalanche general manager, Joe Sakic, knows it by now– the best thing to do for Colorado is let their youth gain experience, make minor moves until the offseason, then address specific needs.

    Colorado has expendable components, but cannot touch its core.

    With Matt Duchene out of the picture, the focus has turned to making the Avs– in every way– Nathan MacKinnon‘s team. Gabriel Landeskog‘s just along for the ride at this point. If he’s patient, many rewards may find their way to the Mile-High City. If he’s sick of waiting, Sakic might be forced to reap another surplus of players, picks and prospects like he did in the three-way Duchene deal.

    After Francois Beauchemin‘s $4.500 million buyout penalty comes off the books at season’s end, the Avalanche will have at least $13 million to spend on giving backup-turned-potential-starting goaltender, Jonathan Bernier, a fair raise while also making decisions on several pending-RFAs.

    Potential assets to trade: D Tyson Barrie, F Gabriel Bourque, F Blake Comeau, F Rocco Grimaldi, G Semyon Varlamov, F Nail Yakupov

    Potential assets to acquire: Literally anyone, F Jeff Skinner (CAR), F Boone Jenner (CBJ), D Jack Johnson (CBJ), G Petr Mrazek (DET), F Gustav Nyqvist (DET), F Tomas Plekanec (MTL), D Ryan McDonagh (NYR), F Rick Nash (NYR), F Mike Hoffman (OTT), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Nikita Soshnikov (TOR), D Ben Hutton (VAN), F James Neal (VGK), F David Perron (VGK), F Nic Petan (WPG)

    imgres

    7. Chicago Blackhawks– 24-25-8 (56 points, 57 GP)

    Reward contracts have killed the Chicago Blackhawks dynasty. This is what drives parity in a salary cap league (see “Detroit Red Wings downfall since 1998, thanks to 2004-05”), so once again, welcome to the Salary Cap Era.

    Depending on your methods of calculation, the Blackhawks will either have $0 to spend at the deadline or maybe up to about $3.100 million in wiggle room.

    Regardless, they’re not buying this year. They’re buying for the future– so draft picks and prospects. One thing that might get in their way (other than the salary cap) is what they have to offer.

    Large reward contracts were handed out to Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews while Duncan Keith took a discount. Marian Hossa is on the books at a cap hit of $5.275 million through the end of the 2020-21 season, whether he plays or not.

    If Hossa never plays again, Chicago can always place him on the long-term injured reserve (eh, just paperwork), buyout his contract (yikes) or trade him to a team like the Arizona Coyotes (preferable) who took on the large salary of Pavel Datsyuk in his final NHL-contract year just to meet the cap floor, knowing he had jettisoned for the KHL.

    The bottom line is Chicago’s cash-strapped. Someone important is going to have to be dealt in order to protect the organization’s future endeavors.

    With Toews and Kane at a combined $21.000 million cap hit through the 2022-23 season, unless the cap rises significantly, this just might keep the Blackhawks down in the dumps for a while.

    Potential assets to trade: F Artem Anisimov (before his NMC/modified-NTC kicks in), D Cody Franson, F Marian Hossa (if he’ll waive his NMC), F Brandon Saad, D Brent Seabrook (if he’ll waive his NMC),

    Potential assets to acquire: Draft picks, prospects and cap room

  • TRADE: Sens deal Phaneuf to Kings, add Gaborik

    Welcome to the 2018 NHL Trade Season, folks. We finally have our first “big” deal before the looming 2018 NHL Trade Deadline later this month (February 26th).

    On Tuesday night the Ottawa Senators sent D Dion Phaneuf and F Nate Thompson to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for F Marian Gaborik and F Nick Shore. Ottawa retained 25% of Phaneuf’s salary as part of the transaction.

    Unknown-3Phaneuf, 32, is in the midst of his 13th NHL season and had 3-13–16 totals in 52 games for Ottawa entering Tuesday night’s matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    The veteran defenseman was pulled from the action during the game as the final details of the trade were being sorted out– reminiscent of how current Senators forward, Matt Duchene, was pulled out of a game between the Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders the night Colorado, Ottawa and the Nashville Predators pulled off a three-team trade.

    Phaneuf has 133 goals and 345 assists (478 points) in 955 career NHL games between the Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames. The Flames’s 9th overall pick in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft is a native of Edmonton, Alberta and will now be playing for his first non-Canadian NHL team.

    He has played in 51 career Stanley Cup playoff games.

    Thompson, 33, was a 6th round pick (183rd overall) of the Boston Bruins in that same 2003 draft. He had four goals and seven assists (11 points) in 43 games for Ottawa this season entering Tuesday night.

    The Anchorage, Alaska native has 52-70–122 totals in 593 career NHL games with the Senators, Anaheim Ducks, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Islanders and Bruins and has appeared in 58 career playoff games. He carries a $1.650 million cap hit and may become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season (2018-19).

    He missed Tuesday night’s game in Pittsburgh due to an injury, but is expected to travel there soon and meet up with the Kings as they take on the Penguins on Thursday. Phaneuf is already in Pittsburgh and will await the arrival of his new Los Angeles teammates.

    Unknown-6Gaborik, 36, has recently been plagued by injuries and has been a healthy scratch on many other nights. The 3rd overall pick of the Minnesota Wild at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft had 7-7–14 totals in 30 games played this season with the Los Angeles Kings entering their Tuesday night battle with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The 17-season NHL veteran has 808 points (403 goals, 405 assists) in 1,019 career games played with the Kings, Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Wild. Gaborik was a key component of Los Angeles’s 2014 Stanley Cup championship amassing 14 goals and eight assists in 26 games.

    A native of Trencin, Slovakia, his current contract expires at the end of the 2020-21 NHL season and carries a $4.875 million cap hit.

    Shore, 25, broke into the league in 2014-15 with Los Angeles after being drafted in the 3rd round (82nd overall) by the Kings in 2011. Through 49 games played this season, Shore has four goals and 11 assists (15 points).

    In 221 career NHL games, he has 14-35–49 totals all with Los Angeles and has a career plus/minus of minus-16. The Denver, Colorado native is currently making $925,000 and is a pending restricted free agent at season’s end.

    With the Senators retaining 25% of Phaneuf’s $7.000 million annual cap hit, the Kings will be charged with a $5.250 million cap hit on Phaneuf for the remainder of his contract that runs through the 2020-21 NHL season.

    This trade comes a little more than two years after the Senators acquired Phaneuf from Toronto. Meanwhile, Thompson is headed back to California after spending the last three seasons with Anaheim before signing with Ottawa on a two-year, $3.300 million contract on July 1, 2017.