Down the Frozen River

Tag: Byron Froese

  • Calgary Flames 2019-20 Season Preview

    Calgary Flames

    50-25-7, 107 points, 1st in the Pacific Division

    Eliminated in the First Round by Colorado

    Additions: F Byron Froese, F Justin Kirkland, F Milan Lucic (acquired from EDM), D Brandon Davidson, G Cam Talbot

    Subtractions: F Tyler Graovac (signed with VAN), F Garnet Hathaway (signed with WSH), F Curtis Lazar (signed with BUF), F James Neal (traded to EDM), F Anthony Peluso (signed with Bakersfield, AHL), F Brett Pollock (signed with Iowa, AHL), F Kerby Rychel (KHL), F Linden Vey (KHL), D Oscar Fantenberg (signed with VAN), D Josh Healey (signed with Milwaukee, AHL), D Marcus Hogstrom (SHL), D Dalton Prout (signed with SJS), G Mason McDonald (signed with Colorado, AHL), G Mike Smith (signed with EDM)

    Still Unsigned: F Spencer Foo (KHL, CGY reserve list), D Matt Taormina

    Re-signed: F Sam Bennett, F Ryan Lomberg, F Andrew Mangiapane, F Matthew Tkachuk, D Rinat Valiev, G David Rittich

    Offseason Analysis: After taking home the first overall seed in the Western Conference in the regular season, the Calgary Flames proceeded to burnout in five games against the Colorado Avalanche in the First Round of the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    What are they doing to prevent another embarrassment?

    They traded James Neal.

    Flames GM, Brad Treliving, traded Neal to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Milan Lucic and a conditional 2020 3rd round pick. Calgary receives the 3rd round pick if Neal scores 21 goals and Lucic scores 10 or fewer goals than Neal this season. Very specific!

    Aside from losing other depth pieces (Garnet Hathaway) in free agency, Treliving is fully prepared to send out his core on the ice for head coach, Bill Peters, to play as he sees fit.

    The Flames weren’t bad all season until March last year, then they started losing games they shouldn’t have and went on to back themselves into the postseason without any moxie.

    As such, the Avs rolled right over them.

    For now, Treliving has put off the inevitable pay raise for Matthew Tkachuk.

    Tkachuk signed a three-year extension worth $7.000 million per season earlier this week, which may seem like a steal for Calgary, until one considers Tkachuk’s third year salary ($9.000 million).

    His next qualifying offer will at least be $9.000 million and he’s bound for a significant raise by that point if his production continues to grow, so even though he said he’s signing for less right now so his teammates don’t have to worry about not being re-signed by the Flames due to cap constraints, things may still get hairy by 2022.

    For now, the Flames are the closest to returning to the Stanley Cup Final than they have ever been since losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games in 2004.

    They just have to get out of the First Round to make critics start to believe that their regular season success was not a fluke.

    Offseason Grade: C-

    Trading Neal for Lucic isn’t a spectacular deal, but the Flames somehow convinced the Oilers to retain some of Lucic’s salary, meaning Edmonton didn’t do themselves any favors as they had hoped to in getting rid of the veteran winger.

    Fans in Calgary have come to expect uneventful offseasons, but at least the city and the franchise agreed to a new arena to get everyone even more excited about the future.

  • Philadelphia Flyers 2019-20 Season Preview

    Philadelphia Flyers

    37-37-8, 82 points, 6th in the Metropolitan Division

    Only misses the postseason in odd years (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019)

    Additions: F Andy Andreoff, F Kyle Criscuolo, F Kurtis Gabriel, F Kevin Hayes (acquired from WPG), F Tyler Pitlick (acquired from DAL), D Chris Bigras, D Justin Braun (acquired from SJS), D Matt Niskanen (acquired from WSH), D Nate Prosser, D Andy Welinski, D Tyler Wotherspoon, G Jean-Francois Berube

    Subtractions: F Justin Bailey (signed with VAN), F Cole Bardreau (signed with NYI), F Greg Carey (signed with Lehigh Valley, AHL), F Byron Froese (signed with CGY), F Tyrell Goulbourne (signed with VGK), F Ryan Hartman (traded to DAL, signed with MIN), F Corban Knight (KHL), F Jori Lehtera (KHL), F Roman Lyubimov (KHL), F Phil Varone (signed with MTL), F Mike Vecchione (signed with STL), D Radko Gudas (traded to WSH), G Mike McKenna (retired), G Michal Neuvirth (signed a PTO with TOR), G Cam Talbot (signed with CGY)

    Still Unsigned: F Travis Konecny, D Jacob Graves, D Ivan Provorov

    Re-signed: F Nicolas Aube-Kubel, F Scott Laughton

    Offseason Analysis: It’s the dawn of a new age for the Philadelphia Flyers. Gone are the days (hopefully) of the revolving door of goaltenders in a Flyers sweater as Carter Hart’s first full season is about to get underway– and with a stable defense in front of him too.

    Last season, Philadelphia set an NHL record for the most goaltenders used in a season with seven different netminders.

    This season, Philadelphia’s looking to set a record for the most current/former head coaches to be behind the bench at any given time as Alain Vigneault is the new head coach, while Mike Yeo and Michel Therrien are playing supporting roles as assistants.

    General Manager, Chuck Fletcher, nabbed Kevin Hayes in June in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets– sending a 2019 5th round pick to the Jets in return.

    Shortly after acquiring Hayes, the Flyers “re-signed” him to a seven-year, $50 million contract worth $7.143 million per season. He’s never scored more than 25 goals in a season and just had a career-high 55 points in 71 games with the New York Rangers and Winnipeg last season.

    While Hayes certainly isn’t a standout superstar, he does solidify the top-six forward group and provides a long-term foundation for Philadelphia’s core with his seven-year deal.

    Claude Giroux is only 31-years-old and signed through 2021-22 at $8.275 million per season and Jakub Voracek, 30, is signed through 2023-24 at $8.250 million per season.

    Any contract with a cap hit under $9 million for your best players is considered a steal in today’s NHL, but not all “steals” are good contracts.

    Regardless, Philadelphia has a versatile group of forwards and upgraded their defense over the offseason– something that was badly needed to help lessen the load on a high turnover of goaltenders over recent years.

    Radko Gudas was traded to the Washington Capitals in a one-for-one deal that sent Matt Niskanen to the Flyers. Though Philadelphia retained 30% of Gudas’ salary ($1.005 million) in the deal, they did not keep any of his future suspensions in the transaction.

    While Niskanen alone isn’t the most impressive thing in the world, adding Justin Braun to the mix that includes Niskanen, Shayne Gostisbehere, Ivan Provorov, Travis Sanheim, Robert Hagg and Samuel Morin certainly is.

    Provorov is still an unsigned restricted free agent with training camp opening later this week.

    Braun was acquired by Philadelphia in a trade with the San Jose Sharks in which Fletcher gave up a 2019 2nd round pick and a 2020 3rd round pick to get the top-four defender while the Sharks were looking to unload salary now that they’ve locked up Erik Karlsson to an eight-year, $92 million extension.

    The Flyers have made themselves into serious playoff contenders on paper, but the hard part still remains in front of them– actually making it.

    Luckily for them, Vigneault has been to the Stanley Cup Final more recently than Philadelphia has as an organization.

    Vigneault made it to the Final behind the bench of the Vancouver Canucks in 2011 and New York Rangers in 2014. His team lost in seven games in 2011 and in five games in 2014.

    The Flyers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games in the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.

    To win the Cup– sometimes– it takes a couple of hardships first before the sweet taste of victory.

    Philadelphia’s in “win now” mode. Future be damned.

    They have $13.417 million in cap space with Travis Konecny and Provorov to re-sign, plus Nolan Patrick in the final year of his entry-level contract this season.

    Offseason Grade: A-

    Sure Hayes is overpaid and Vigneault, Yeo and Therrien are behind the bench, but Fletcher built a legitimate defense, a mix of youth and quality players in their prime, plus he has a dark horse in net.

    How far can Philadelphia go? That remains to be seen, especially as some of the younger players don’t have a lot of playoff experience– if any at all. However, the Flyers are playoff contenders nonetheless and as long as you make the postseason, you have a chance of winning the Cup.

  • DTFR Podcast #145- We Plan To Be Good In 2021-25

    DTFR Podcast #145- We Plan To Be Good In 2021-25

    Evgeni Malkin did a bad thing, the 2019 NWHL All-Star Game broke attendance records and more trades happened in the NHL. Patrice Bergeron reached 1,000 games and David Pastrnak is injured for the Boston Bruins leaving Nick in a glass case of emotion.

    Plus, Eugene Melnyk plans to spend money, the Tampa Bay Lightning have a new alternate sweater, Randy Carlyle was fired and Scott Niedermayer will have his number retired (again) this week. Finally, Connor has a new segment.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Stitcher and/or on Spotify. Support the show on Patreon.

  • Tampa Bay Lightning 2017-2018 Season Preview

    Unknown-3Tampa Bay Lightning

    42-30-10, 94 points, 5th in the Atlantic Division (’16-’17)

    Additions: D Mat Bodie, F Michael Bournival, F Alex Gallant, D Dan Girardi, F Chris Kunitz, G Michael Leighton, D Jamie McBain, D Mikhail Sergachev, F Carter Verhaeghe

    Subtractions: F Jonathan Drouin (traded to MTL), F Byron Froese (signed with MTL), G Kristers Gudlevskis (traded to NYI), F Nikita Gusev (traded to VGK), F Henri Ikonen (signed with Jokerit, KHL), G Jaroslav Janus (signed with HC Slovan Bratislava, KHL), F Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (retired), F Greg McKegg (signed with PIT), G Mike McKenna (signed with DAL), F Tanner Richard (signed with Genève-Servette, NLA), D Matt Taormina (signed with MTL), F Joel Vermin (signed with Lausanne, NLA), D Luke Witkowski (signed with DET)

    Still Unsigned: D Dylan Blujus, F Stefan Fournier, F Mike Halmo, D Jonathan Racine

    Offseason Analysis: Steve Yzerman is a man with a plan for the Tampa Bay Lightning– not just because he’s the general manager, but because he literally has to have a plan somewhere with how he’s been able to carefully navigate avoiding salary cap hell while managing to keep a solid, young, core group of players in town.

    Nic Cage is already writing the script for the Disney movie.

    The Lightning just missed out on a 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs appearance as the Toronto Maple Leafs secured the final spot on the second-to-last day of the regular season in a comeback win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. While frustrating for some, skipping a year of the postseason might have been a blessing in disguise from the hockey gods.

    A healthy Steven Stamkos is a major bonus.

    Tampa’s plus-7 goal differential was the 2nd worst goal differential in the Atlantic Division. Not that goal differential means everything in terms of league standings, but Stamkos’s absence was felt in the drop in offensive production compared to the season prior (plus-26 goal differential in 2015-2016).

    Chris Kunitz brings his four Stanley Cups (the most of any current active player) and his 29 points in 71 games last season with Pittsburgh to the Lightning after signing a 1-year, $2.000 million deal. The 37-year-old forward has been in decline since the 2013-2014 season, but provides stability as a top-9 forward on the left side for the Bolts.

    Even for his expertise, Kunitz’s numbers won’t be enough to replace the biggest loss from this offseason *ahem, a certain trade involving the Monreal Canadiens*.

    On the blue line Tampa added Dan Girardi, which gives the Bolts three defensemen who are at least 31-years-old, but thankfully all of them have two-years and modest salary remaining on their deals, while rookies and 2017 1st rounder, Callan Foote, look to crack the roster.

    And to give credit where credit is due, Yzerman’s biggest loss this offseason might just be one of his biggest gains in the seasons to come.

    Yes, the Lightning sent forward, Jonathan Drouin, and a conditional 2018 6th round pick to the Canadiens in exchange for 19-year-old– high caliber– defensive prospect, Mikhail Sergachev and a conditional 2018 2nd round pick.

    Drouin witnessed a 21-point improvement from his rookie year (32 points in 2014-2015) to last season, notching 21 goals and 32 assists for 53 points in 73 games played. In just 21 games played the year prior, after a minor-league holdout and team suspension, Drouin had 4-6-10 totals.

    While Kunitz enters on the downhill of his NHL-career and Drouin was traded, one cannot forget that 40-goal scorer Nikita Kucherov exists. Kucherov’s 85 points led the Lightning in scoring last season and look to be matched, if not improved, this year.

    For the Canadiens, acquiring Drouin was necessary to replace the departed Alexander Radulov, however trading Sergachev– especially after trading Nathan Beaulieu to Buffalo– weakened their blue line depth and increased their average age.

    Drouin wasn’t the only forward traded away from Tampa, as Nikita Gusev found himself victim of the 2017 Expansion Draft, whereby the Lightning sent Gusev, a 2017 2nd round pick and a 2018 4th round pick to the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for future considerations (a.k.a. not selecting a certain player). Vegas claimed defenseman, Jason Garrison, as one of their own instead and the Bolts went on their way.

    Finally, the post-Ben Bishop era Lightning that we got a glimpse of last season are exactly who we expect this season. Andrei Vasilevskiy returns as the starting goaltender with Peter Budaj as his backup according to Yzerman and Jon Cooper’s master plan for getting Tampa back into the playoffs and maybe– just maybe– back into the Stanley Cup Final.

    Of course, this meant that NHL-ready backup, Kristers Gudlevskis fell victim to being too good to sit lower in the depth chart, stopping pucks for the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch. The Lightning traded Gudlevskis to the New York Islanders this offseason and received forward, Carter Verhaeghe, in return.

    Offseason Grade: C+

    For what they had to address (re-sign everyone that you can and do nothing), Tampa had an average offseason. They added guys who replaced expendable parts (like most teams these days, shelling out one or two-year contracts) and they might have shot themselves in the foot in the immediate fallout of the Drouin trade. But like anything, only time will tell.

    A “C+” here doesn’t reflect that they’ll be a bad team– they’ll be a playoff team in 2018– it merely reflects that they were smart this offseason and didn’t overspend, overcompensate in trading or have a lack of transactions.

  • 2017 NHL Free Agency- July 1st Signings Recap

    This post will be updated throughout the day as signings are officially announced. Be sure to check our Twitter account (@DtFrozenRiver) for all of the latest signings, news, and analysis throughout the day.

    Free agency begins at noon (technically 12:01 PM ET) on July 1st. All that is known is shown and will be updated throughout the day. More analysis will come later as the day wraps up.

    NHL Logo

    The Toronto Maple Leafs re-signed G Garret Sparks to a 2-year, $1.300 million ($650,000 cap hit) contract and G Curtis McElhinney to a 2-year, $1.7000 million ($850,000 cap hit) contract extension.

    D Oleg Sosunov signed a 3-year entry level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    F Garrett Wilson signed a 2-year, two-way, contract extension worth $650,000 AAV at the NHL level with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    D Alex Petrovic signed a 1-year extension with the Florida Panthers.

    F Sam Gagner agreed to terms with the Vancouver Canucks on a 3-year contract worth $9.450 million ($3.150 million cap hit).

    D Michael Del Zotto signed a 2-year deal, worth $3.000 million AAV with the Vancouver Canucks.

    Vancouver signed G Anders Nilsson to a 2-year contract worth $5.000 million ($2.500 million cap hit).

    G Steve Mason signed a 2-year deal worth $4.100 million AAV with the Winnipeg Jets.

    D Dan Girardi agreed to terms with the Tampa Bay Lightning on a 2-year contract worth $3.000 million a year.

    The Detroit Red Wings and D Trevor Daley have agreed on a 3-year contract worth $3.178 million per year.

    G Brian Elliott agreed to terms with the Philadelphia Flyer on a 2-year, $5.500 million ($2.750 million per year) contract.

    The Buffalo Sabres signed G Chad Johnson to a 1-year, $2.500 million deal.

    F Patrick Sharp signed a 1-year, $1.000 million deal with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    G Jonathan Bernier signed a 1-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche worth $2.750 million.

    F Evgeny Dadonov signed a 3-year contract with the Florida Panthers.

    Florida also signed F Michael Haley to a 2-year contract.

    G Ondrej Pavelec signed a 1-year, $1.300 million contract with the New York Rangers,

    G Ryan Miller agreed to terms with the Anaheim Ducks on a 2-year contract worth $4.000 million ($2.000 million AAV).

    The Dallas Stars reached a 3-year, $14.250 million contract agreement with F Martin Hanzal. The deal carries a $4.750 million cap hit.

    D Karl Alzner signed a 5-year, $23.125 milion ($4.625 cap hit) contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

    F Nick Bonino agreed to terms with the Nashville Predators on a 4-year contract worth $4.100 per year.

    F Nate Thompson and the Ottawa Senators agreed to a 2-year contract worth $1.650 million AAV.

    D Ron Hainsey signed a 2-year contract, worth $3.000 million AAV, with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    The Winnipeg Jets signed D Dmitry Kulikov to a 3-year contract worth $4.330 million AAV.

    G Harri Sateri signed a contract with the Florida Panthers.

    D Matt Hunwick signed a 3-year, $6.750 million ($2.250 cap hit) contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Brian Boyle and the New Jersey Devils agreed to a 2-year contract worth $2.550 million per year.

    D Benoit Pouliot signed a 1-year, $1.150 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    G Antti Niemi agreed to a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    F Justin Williams signed a 2-year, $9.000 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. Williams will carry a cap hit of $4.500 million.

    F Tommy Wingels signed a 1-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    The Carolina Hurricanes signed F Josh Jooris to a 1-year, $775,000 contract.

    G Jean-Francois Berube and D Jordan Oesterle signed 2-year contracts with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    F Tyler Pitlick signed a 3-year, $3.000 million ($1.000 million cap hit) deal with the Dallas Stars.

    F Peter Holland ($675,000 AAV) and F Byron Froese ($650,000 AAV) signed 2-year contracts with the Montreal Canadiens.

    D Adam Clendening signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Arizona Coyotes.

    D Ryan Murphy signed a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Minnesota Wild.

    F Mike Cammalleri signed a 1-year, $1.000 million deal with the Los Angeles Kings.

    The Washington Capitals officially re-signed RFA F Brett Connolly to a 2-year contract worth $3.000 million ($1.500 million cap hit).

    D Patrick Wiercioch signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

    D Paul Postma signed a 1-year, $725,000 contract with the Boston Bruins.

    F Kenny Agostino signed a 1-year, $875,000 contract with the Boston Bruins.

    F Landon Ferraro and F Cal O’Reilly agreed to 2-year, two-way, contracts with the Minnesota Wild. Ferraro and O’Reilly will earn $700,000 at the NHL level, $375,000 with the Iowa Wild in the AHL.

    G Jeremy Smith signed a 1-year, two-way, contract worth $750,000 at the NHL level with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The Nashville Predators signed F Scott Hartnell to a 1-year, $1.000 million deal.

    G Michael Leighton signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    G Anders Lindback signed a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Nashville Predators. Lindback will earn $100,000 in the AHL.

    G Cal Petersen signed a 2-year entry level contract with the Los Angeles Kings.

    Los Angeles also signed D Christian Folin to a 1-year, $850,000 deal and agreed to terms with D Stepan Falkovsky on a 3-year entry level contract.

    F Chris Thorburn signed a 2-year, $1.800 million contract ($900,000 cap hit) with the St. Louis Blues.

    F Alexander Burmistrov signed a 1-year, $900,000 contract with the Vancouver Canucks.

    D Alex Grant signed a 1-year, two-way contract worth $700,000 with the Minnesota Wild.

    The Dallas Stars re-signed D Patrik Nemeth to a 1-year, $945,000 contract.

    F Brian Flynn signed a 1-year contract worth $700,000 with the Dallas Stars.

    D Luke Witkowski signed a 1-year, $750,000 deal with the Detroit Red Wings.

    F Lance Bouma signed a 1-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks.

    The St. Louis Blues re-signed RFA F Oskar Sundqvist on a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    F Beau Bennett signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the St. Louis Blues (and promptly updated his Twitter profile pic).

    D Matt Tennyson signed a 2-year contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    F Anthony Peluso signed a 1-year, $650,000 deal with the Washington Capitals.

    F Ty Rattie agreed to a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Edmonton Oilers.

    G Matt O’Connor signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Nashville Predators.

    F Derek Grant came to terms on a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Anaheim Ducks.

    The Winnipeg Jets signed F Michael Sgarbossa to a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    D Matt Taormina and the Montreal Canadiens agreed to terms on a 2-year contract.

    F Seth Griffith signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Buffalo Sabres.

    The Carolina Hurricanes re-signed D Dennis Robertson to a 1-year, two-way contract. Robertson will earn $650,000 at the NHL level ($100,000 in the AHL). Additionally, the Hurricanes signed D Brenden Kichton to a 1-year, two-way deal, worth $700,000.

    G Niklas Svedberg returned to the NHL on a 1-year contract, worth $700,000, with the Minnesota Wild.

    F Tyler Randell signed a 1-year, $700,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators.

    D Cameron Gaunce signed a 2-year deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    G Adam Wilcox signed a 1-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres.

    D Kevin Shattenkirk signed a 4-year, $6.650 million AAV contract with the New York Rangers.

    The Buffalo Sabres signed F Kevin Porter and F Kyle Criscuolo to 2-year, two-way contracts.

    F Radim Vrbata signed a 1-year, $2.5 million deal with the Florida Panthers.

    D Joe Morrow signed a 1-year deal worth $650,000 with the Montreal Canadiens.

    F Joe Thornton re-signed with the San Jose Sharks, agreeing to a 1-year contract extension.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning inked D Jamie McBain to a 1-year contract worth $650,000. Tampa also signed D Mat Bodie to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000.

    The Minnesota Wild signed F Kyle Rau to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $700,000 at the NHL level ($200,000 in the AHL) and agreed to terms on a 1-year, $1.250 million contract with D Kyle Quincey.

    F Nick Cousins signed a 2-year contract extension with the Arizona Coyotes worth $2.000 million ($1.000 million AAV).

    The New York Islanders signed D Seth Helgeson and D Kane Lafranchise to 1-year, two-way contracts.

    F Dominic Moore signed a 1-year, $1.000 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

    Boston signed F Jordan Szwarz to a 1-year, two-way contract extension.

    F Chris Kunitz signed a 1-year, $2.000 million contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    G Mike McKenna signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Dallas Stars.

    The Philadelphia Flyers re-signed F Mike Vecchione and F Corban Knight to 2-year contracts. Additionally, Philadelphia signed F Phil Varone to a 2-year deal.

    F Max Reinhart signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa also signed F Ben Sexton to a 1-year, $725,000 deal.

    D Erik Burgdoerfer signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV with the Ottawa Senators.

    F Buddy Robinson signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Winnipeg Jets.

    G Danny Taylor signed a 1-year, $850,000 contract with the Ottawa Senators.

    D Andre Benoit signed a 1-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

    F Paul Carey agreed to terms with the New York Rangers on a 1-year, $650,000 contract.

    The Calgary Flames signed F Marek Hrivik to a 1-year deal.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins signed D Chris Summers, D Jarred Tinordi, D Zach Trotman and F Greg McKegg to two-way contracts worth $650,000 at the NHL level. Summers signed a 2-year deal, while Tinordi, Trotman and McKegg inked 1-year deals.

    Pittsburgh also re-signed F Tom Sestito and D Frank Corrado to 1-year, two-way deals worth $650,000. The Penguins signed G Casey DeSmith to a 2-year, two-way contract, worth $650,000 AAV, marking the first time DeSmith has signed an NHL contract with the club (he had previously played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on an AHL contract).

    D Cameron Schilling reached a 1-year, two-way contract agreement with the Winnipeg Jets worth $650,000.

    F Alex Gallant signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

    D Brent Regner signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the Dallas Stars.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs signed F Colin Greening to a 1-year contract and F Chris Mueller and D Vincent LoVerde to 2-year contracts. Greening’s 1-year deal is worth $750,000 AAV, while Mueller’s 2-year deal carries a $650,000 AAV price tag and LoVerde will earn $725,000 AAV over his 2-year contract.

    The New Jersey Devils signed F Brian Gibbons to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level and F Bracken Kearns to a 1-year, two-way contract worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    Arizona signed F Zac Rinaldo, F Michael Sislo, D Andrew Campbell and D Joel Hanley to 1-year, two-way contracts.

    F Cole Schneider signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV with the New York Rangers.

    The Edmonton Oilers signed F Mitch Callahan and D Ryan Stanton to 2-year contracts. Additionally, the Oilers reached agreements with F Grayson Downing, F Brian Ferlin, D Keegan Lowe and G Edward Pasquale on 1-year deals.

    G Antoine Bibeau signed a 1-year, two-way contract with the San Jose Sharks.

    The Colorado Avalanche signed F Andrew Agozzino and D David Warsofsky to 2-year contracts, as well as G Joe Cannata to a 1-year contract.

    G Darcy Kuemper signed a 1-year, $650,000 contract with the Los Angeles Kings.

    F Jacob Josefson signed a 1-year, $700,000 deal with the Buffalo Sabres.

    The Vegas Golden Knights signed D Brad Hunt to a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV.

    D Chris Casto signed a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    G Maxime Lagace agreed to a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    F Paul Thompson signed a 1-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    The Vegas Golden Knights and F Stefan Matteau agreed to a 1-year deal worth $650,000 at the NHL level.

    F T.J. Tynan signed a 2-year contract worth $650,000 AAV at the NHL level with the Vegas Golden Knights.

    The Pittsburgh Penguins re-signed D Justin Schultz to a 3-year, $16.500 million contract (worth $5.500 million AAV).

     

  • 2017 NHL Expansion Draft: Available Lists

    30 of the NHL’s 31 teams submitted their protected lists on Saturday by 5 p.m. ET. The protected lists were made public at 10:30 a.m. ET (originally scheduled for 10 a.m.) on Sunday. Additionally, the available lists of players to choose from were released.

    vegas_golden_knights_logo

    The Vegas Golden Knights will now spend the next few days constructing their roster, with the full reveal set for Wednesday night during the NHL Awards Ceremony at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

    Vegas can choose from the following available players:

    Anaheim Ducks

    Forwards: Spencer Abott, Jared Boll, Sam Carrick, Patrick Eaves, Emerson Etem, Ryan Garbutt, Max Gortz, Nicolas Kerdiles, Andre Petersson, Logan Shaw, Nick Sorensen, Nate Thompson, Corey Tropp, Chris Wagner

    Defensemen: Nate Guenin, Korbinian Holzer, Josh Manson, Jaycob Megna, Jeff Schultz, Clayton Stoner, Sami Vatanen

    Goalies: Jonathan Bernier, Jhonas Enroth, Ryan Faragher, Matt Hackett, Dustin Tokarski

    Arizona Coyotes

    Forwards: Alexander Burmistrov, Shane Doan, Tyler Gaudet, Peter Holland, Josh Jooris, Jamie McGinn, Jeremy Morin, Mitchell Moroz, Chris Mueller, Teemu Pulkkinen, Brad Richardson, Garret Ross, Branden Troock, Radim Vrbata, Joe Whitney

    Defensemen: Kevin Connauton, Jamie McBain, Zbynek Michalek, Jarred Tinordi

    Goalies: Louis Domingue

    Boston Bruins

    Forwards: Matt Beleskey, Brian Ferlin, Jimmy Hayes, Alex Khokhlachev, Dominic Moore, Tyler Randell, Zac Rinaldo, Tim Schaller, Drew Stafford

    Defensemen: Linus Arnesson, Chris Casto, Tommy Cross, Alex Grant, John-Michael Liles, Adam McQuaid, Colin Miller, Joe Morrow

    Goalies: Anton Khudobin, Malcolm Subban

    Buffalo Sabres

    Forwards: William Carrier, Nicolas Deslauriers, Brian Gionta, Derek Grant, Justin Kea, Matt Moulson, Cal O’Reilly, Cole Schneider

    Defensemen: Brady Austin, Mathew Bodie, Zach Bogosian, Justin Falk, Taylor Fedun, Cody Franson, Josh Gorges, Dmitry Kulikov

    Goalies: Anders Nilsson, Linus Ullmark

    Calgary Flames

    Forwards: Brandon Bollig, Lance Bouma, Troy Brouwer, Alex Chiasson, Freddie Hamilton, Emile Poirier, Hunter Shinkaruk, Matt Stajan, Kris Versteeg, Linden Vey

    Defensemen: Matt Bartkowski, Ryan Culkin, Deryk Engelland, Michael Kostka, Brett Kulak, Ladislav Smid, Michael Stone, Dennis Wideman, Tyler Wotherspoon

    Goalies: Brian Elliott, Tom McCollum

    Carolina Hurricanes

    Forwards: Bryan Bickell, Connor Brickley, Patrick Brown, Erik Karlsson, Danny Kristo, Jay McClement, Andrew Miller, Andrej Nestrasil, Joakim Nordstrom, Lee Stempniak, Brendan Woods

    Defensemen: Klas Dahlbeck, Dennis Robertson, Philip Samuelsson, Matt Tennyson

    Goalies: Daniel Altshuller, Eddie Lack, Michael Leighton, Cam Ward

    Chicago Blackhawks

    Forwards: Kyle Baun, Andrew Desjardins, Marcus Kruger, Pierre-Cedric Labrie, Michael Latta, Brandon Mashinter, Dennis Rasmussen, Jordin Tootoo

    Defensemen: Brian Campbell, Dillon Fournier, Shawn Lalonde, Johnny Oduya, Ville Pokka, Michal Rozsival, Viktor Svedberg, Trevor van Riemsdyk

    Goalies: Mac Carruth, Jeff Glass

    Colorado Avalanche

    Forwards: Troy Bourke, Gabriel Bourque, Rene Bourque, Joe Colborne, Turner Elson, Felix Girard, Mikhail Grigorenko, Samuel Henley, John Mitchell, Jim O’Brien, Brendan Ranford, Mike Sislo, Carl Soderberg

    Defensemen: Mark Barberio, Mat Clark, Eric Gelinas, Cody Goloubef, Duncan Siemens, Fedor Tyutin, Patrick Wiercioch

    Goalies: Joe Cannata, Calvin Pickard, Jeremy Smith

    Columbus Blue Jackets

    Forwards: Josh Anderson, Alex Broadhurst, Matt Calvert, Zac Dalpe, Sam Gagner, Brett Gallant, William Karlsson, Lauri Korpikoski, Lukas Sedlak, T.J. Tynan, Daniel Zaar

    Defensemen: Marc-Andre Bergeron, Scott Harrington, Jack Johnson, Kyle Quincey, John Ramage, Jaime Sifers, Ryan Stanton

    Goalies: Oscar Dansk, Anton Forsberg, Joonas Korpisalo

    Dallas Stars

    Forwards: Adam Cracknell, Justin Dowling, Cody Eakin, Ales Hemsky, Jiri Hudler, Curtis McKenzie, Mark McNeill, Travis Morin, Patrick Sharp, Gemel Smith, Matej Stransky

    Defensemen: Mattias Backman, Andrew Bodnarchuk, Ludwig Bystrom, Nick Ebert, Justin Hache, Dan Hamhuis, Patrik Nemeth, Jamie Oleksiak, Greg Pateryn, Dustin Stevenson

    Goalies: Henri Kiviaho, Maxime Lagace, Kari Lehtonen, Antti Niemi, Justin Peters

    Detroit Red Wings

    Forwards: Louis-Marc Aubry, Mitch Callahan, Colin Campbell, Martin Frk, Luke Glendening, Darren Helm, Drew Miller, Tomas Nosek, Riley Sheahan, Ben Street, Eric Tangradi

    Defensemen: Adam Almquist, Jonathan Ericsson, Niklas Kronwall, Brian Lashoff, Dylan McIlrath, Xavier Ouellet, Ryan Sproul

    Goalies: Jared Coreau, Petr Mrazek, Edward Pasquale, Jake Paterson

    Edmonton Oilers

    Forwards: David Desharnais, Justin Fontaine, Matt Hendricks, Roman Horak, Jujhar Khaira, Anton Lander, Iiro Pakarinen, Tyler Pitlick, Zach Pochiro, Benoit Pouliot, Henrik Samuelsson, Bogdan Yakimov

    Defensemen: Mark Fayne, Andrew Ference, Mark Fraser, Eric Gryba, David Musil, Jordan Oesterle, Griffin Reinhart, Kris Russell, Dillon Simpson

    Goalies: Laurent Brossoit, Jonas Gustavsson

    Florida Panthers

    Forwards: Graham Black, Tim Bozon, Jaromir Jagr, Jussi Jokinen, Derek MacKenzie, Jonathan Marchessault, Colton Sceviour, Michael Sgarbossa, Reilly Smith, Brody Sutter, Paul Thompson, Shawn Thornton, Thomas Vanek

    Defensemen: Jason Demers, Jakub Kindl, Brent Regner, Reece Scarlett, MacKenzie Weegar

    Goalies: Reto Berra, Sam Brittain, Roberto Luongo

    Los Angeles Kings

    Forwards: Andy Andreoff, Justin Auger, Dustin Brown, Kyle Clifford, Andrew Crescenzi, Nic Dowd, Marian Gaborik, Jarome Iginla, Trevor Lewis, Michael Mersch, Jordan Nolan, Teddy Purcell, Devin Setoguchi, Nick Shore

    Defensemen: Matt Greene, Vincent Loverde, Brayden McNabb, Cameron Schilling, Rob Scuderi, Zach Trotman

    Goalies: Jack Campbell, Jeff Zatkoff

    Minnesota Wild

    Forwards: Brady Brassart, Patrick Cannone, Ryan Carter, Kurtis Gabriel, Martin Hanzal, Erik Haula, Zack Mitchell, Jordan Schroeder, Eric Staal, Chris Stewart, Ryan White

    Defensemen: Victor Bartley, Matt Dumba, Christian Folin, Guillaume Gelinas, Alexander Gudbranson, Gustav Olofsson, Nate Prosser, Marco Scandella, Mike Weber

    Goalies: Johan Gustafsson, Darcy Kuemper, Alex Stalock

    Montreal Canadiens

    Forwards: Daniel Carr, Connor Crisp, Jacob De La Rose, Bobby Farnham, Brian Flynn, Max Friberg, Charles Hudon, Dwight King, Stefan Matteau, Torrey Mitchell, Joonas Nattinen, Steve Ott, Tomas Plekanec, Alexander Radulov, Chris Terry

    Defensemen: Brandon Davidson, Alexei Emelin, Keegan Lowe, Andrei Markov, Nikita Nesterov, Zach Redmond, Dalton Thrower

    Goalies: Al Montoya

    Nashville Predators

    Forwards: Pontus Aberg, Cody Bass, Vernon Fiddler, Mike Fisher, Cody McLeod, James Neal, P.A. Parenteau, Adam Payerl, Mike Ribeiro, Miikka Salomaki, Colton Sissons, Craig Smith, Trevor Smith, Austin Watson, Colin Wilson, Harry Zolnierczyk

    Defensemen: Taylor Aronson, Anthony Bitetto, Stefan Elliott, Petter Granberg, Brad Hunt, Matt Irwin, Andrew O’Brien, Adam Pardy, Jaynen Rissling, Scott Valentine, Yannick Weber

    Goalies: Marek Mazanec

    New Jersey Devils

    Forwards: Beau Bennett, Michael Cammalleri, Carter Camper, Luke Gazdic, Shane Harper, Jacob Josefson, Ivan Khomutov, Stefan Noesen, Marc Savard, Devante Smith-Pelly, Petr Straka, Mattias Tedenby, Ben Thomson, David Wohlberg

    Defensemen: Seth Helgeson, Viktor Loov, Ben Lovejoy, Andrew MacWilliam, Jon Merrill, Dalton Prout, Karl Stollery, Alexander Urbom

    Goalies: Keith Kinkaid, Scott Wedgewood

    New York Islanders

    Forwards: Josh Bailey, Steve Bernier, Eric Boulton, Jason Chimera, Casey Cizikas, Cal Clutterbuck, Stephen Gionta, Ben Holmstrom, Bracken Kearns, Nikolay Kulemin, Brock Nelson, Shane Prince, Alan Quine, Ryan Strome, Johan Sundstrom

    Defensemen: Calvin de Haan, Matthew Finn, Jesse Graham, Thomas Hickey, Loic Leduc, Scott Mayfield, Dennis Seidenberg

    Goalies: Jean-Francois Berube, Christopher Gibson, Jaroslav Halak

    New York Rangers

    Forwards: Taylor Beck, Chris Brown, Daniel Catenacci, Jesper Fast, Tanner Glass, Michael Grabner, Marek Hrivik, Nicklas Jensen, Carl Klingberg, Oscar Lindberg, Brandon Pirri, Matt Puempel

    Defensemen: Adam Clendening, Tommy Hughes, Steven Kampfer, Kevin Klein, Michael Paliotta, Brendan Smith, Chris Summers

    Goalies: Magnus Hellberg, Antti Raanta, Mackenzie Skapski

    Ottawa Senators

    Forwards: Casey Bailey, Mike Blunden, Alexandre Burrows, Stephane Da Costa, Christopher DiDomenico, Nikita Filatov, Chris Kelly, Clarke MacArthur, Max McCormick, Chris Neil, Tom Pyatt, Ryan Rupert, Bobby Ryan, Viktor Stalberg, Phil Varone, Tommy Wingels

    Defensemen: Mark Borowiecki, Fredrik Claesson, Brandon Gormley, Jyrki Jokipakka, Marc Methot, Patrick Sieloff, Chris Wideman, Mikael Wikstrand

    Goalies: Mike Condon, Chris Driedger, Andrew Hammond

    Philadelphia Flyers

    Forwards: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Greg Carey, Chris Conner, Boyd Gordon, Taylor Leier, Colin McDonald, Andy Miele, Michael Raffl, Matt Read, Chris VandeVelde, Jordan Weal, Dale Weise, Eric Wellwood

    Defensemen: Mark Alt, T.J. Brennan, Michael Del Zotto, Andrew MacDonald, Will O’Neill, Jesper Pettersson, Nick Schultz

    Goalies: Steve Mason, Michal Neuvirth

    Pittsburgh Penguins

    Forwards: Josh Archibald, Nick Bonino, Matt Cullen, Jean-Sebastien Dea, Carl Hagelin, Tom Kuhnhackl, Chris Kunitz, Kevin Porter, Bryan Rust, Tom Sestito, Oskar Sundqvist, Dominik Uher, Garrett Wilson, Scott Wilson

    Defensemen: Ian Cole, Frank Corrado, Trevor Daley, Tim Erixon, Cameron Gaunce, Ron Hainsey, Stuart Percy, Derrick Pouliot, Chad Ruhwedel, Mark Streit, David Warsofsky

    Goalies: Marc-Andre Fleury

    San Jose Sharks

    Forwards: Mikkel Boedker, Barclay Goodrow, Micheal Haley, Patrick Marleau, Buddy Robinson, Zack Stortini, Joe Thornton, Joel Ward

    Defensemen: Dylan DeMelo, Brenden Dillon, Dan Kelly, Paul Martin, David Schlemko

    Goalies: Aaron Dell, Troy Grosenick, Harri Sateri

    St. Louis Blues

    Forwards: Kenny Agostino, Andrew Agozzino, Kyle Brodziak, Jordan Caron, Jacob Doty, Landon Ferraro, Alex Friesen, Evgeny Grachev, Dmitrij Jaskin, Jori Lehtera, Brad Malone, Magnus Paajarvi, David Perron, Ty Rattie, Scottie Upshall, Nail Yakupov

    Defensemen: Robert Bortuzzo, Chris Butler, Morgan Ellis, Carl Gunnarsson, Jani Hakanpaa, Petteri Lindbohm, Reid McNeill

    Goalies: Jordan Binnington, Carter Hutton

    Tampa Bay Lightning

    Forwards: Carter Ashton, Michael Bournival, J.T. Brown, Cory Conacher, Erik Condra, Gabriel Dumont, Stefan Fournier, Byron Froese, Yanni Gourde, Mike Halmo, Henri Ikonen, Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond, Tye McGinn, Greg McKegg, Cedric Paquette, Tanner Richard, Joel Vermin

    Defensemen: Dylan Blujus, Jake Dotchin, Jason Garrison, Slater Koekkoek, Jonathan Racine, Andrej Sustr, Matt Taormina, Luke Witkowski

    Goalies: Peter Budaj, Kristers Gudlevskis, Jaroslav Janus, Mike McKenna

    Toronto Maple Leafs

    Forwards: Brian Boyle, Eric Fehr, Colin Greening, Seth Griffith, Teemu Hartikainen, Brooks Laich, Brendan Leipsic, Joffrey Lupul, Milan Michalek, Kerby Rychel, Ben Smith

    Defensemen: Andrew Campbell, Matt Hunwick, Alexey Marchenko, Martin Marincin, Steve Oleksy, Roman Polak

    Goalies: Antoine Bibeau, Curtis McElhinney, Garret Sparks

    Vancouver Canucks

    Forwards: Reid Boucher, Michael Chaput, Joseph Cramarossa, Derek Dorsett, Brendan Gaunce, Alexandre Grenier, Jayson Megna, Borna Rendulic, Anton Rodin, Drew Shore, Jack Skille, Michael Zalewski

    Defensemen: Alex Biega, Philip Larsen, Tom Nilsson, Andrey Pedan, Luca Sbisa

    Goalies: Richard Bachman, Ryan Miller

    Washington Capitals

    Forwards: Jay Beagle, Chris Bourque, Paul Carey, Brett Connolly, Stanislav Galiev, Tyler Graovac, Liam O’Brien, T.J. Oshie, Zach Sill, Chandler Stephenson, Chrisitan Thomas, Nathan Walker, Justin Williams, Daniel Winnik

    Defensemen: Karl Alzner, Taylor Chorney, Cody Corbett, Darren Dietz, Christian Djoos, Tom Gilbert, Aaron Ness, Brooks Orpik, Nate Schmidt, Kevin Shattenkirk

    Goalies: Pheonix Copley, Philipp Grubauer

    Winnipeg Jets

    Forwards: Marko Dano, Quinton Howden, Scott Kosmachuk, Tomas Kubalik, J.C. Lipon, Shawn Matthias, Ryan Olsen, Anthony Peluso, Chris Thorburn

    Defensemen: Ben Chiarot, Toby Enstrom, Brenden Kichton, Julian Melchiori, Paul Postma, Brian Strait, Mark Stuart

    Goalies: Michael Hutchinson, Ondrej Pavelec

  • NHL Trades Since January 1st, 2017

    NHL Trades Since January 1st, 2017

    As usual, here’s our annual recap of all of the trades made in the NHL since the change of the calendar year. For anything prior to January 1, 2017, check out NHL.com’s official Trade Tracker (as I’m sure we all will be saving that as our homepage and refreshing it every few minutes from now until the deadline).

    This year’s trade deadline is Wednesday, March 1, 2017. All trade calls must be made by 3:00 PM EST on Monday in order for any deal to potentially go through.

    This post will be updated as frequently as possible leading up to March 1st.

    The Toronto Maple Leafs kicked things off in the year of our current era two-thousand-seventeen by trading G Jhonas Enroth to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a 2018 7th round pick on January 11th.

    Longtime member of the Colorado Avalanche, F Cody McLeod was traded to the Nashville Predators on January 13th. The Av’s acquired F Felix Girard in return.

    January 21st witnessed the trade between the Los Angeles Kings and the Chicago Blackhawks in which F Michael Latta swapped LA living for the Windy City. D Cameron Schilling was pretty psyched for sunny skies and California weather, as he was sent in return from Chicago to the Kings.

    The Ottawa Senators made a splash with the acquisition of F Tommy Wingels from the San Jose Sharks on January 24th in exchange for F Buddy Robinson, F Zach Stortini and a 2017 7th round pick.

    D Nikita Nesterov was sent to the Tampa Bay Lightning by the Montreal Canadiens on January 26th. D Jonathan Racine and a 2017 6th round pick were sent to the Habs in return.

    36-year-old F Vernon Fiddler was traded to the New Jersey Devils on February 4th. New Jersey sent the Nashville Predators a 2017 4th round pick in return.

    D Tom Gilbert was traded by the Los Angeles Kings to the Washington Capitals for future considerations on February 15th.

    The New Jersey Devils kept themselves busy two weeks after acquiring Fiddler from Nashville and traded F Sergey Kalinin to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for D Viktor Loov on February 18th.

    February 20th was a busy day for John Chayka and the Arizona Coyotes as the 27-year-old general manager sent D Michael Stone to the Calgary Flames in exchange for a 2017 3rd round pick and a conditional 2018 5th round pick.

    The Carolina Hurricanes and the Montreal Canadiens swapped minor league defensemen on February 21st. D Keegan Lowe went from the Hurricanes organization to the Canadiens as D Philip Samuelsson did the reverse (MTL –> CAR).

    On February 23rd, the Carolina Hurricanes made their second trade in three days and sent D Ron Hainsey to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Carolina acquired F Danny Kristo and a 2017 2nd round pick in the transaction.

    Two trades were completed on February 24th, with the first transaction involving the Dallas Stars and the Anaheim Ducks. The Stars swapped F Patrick Eaves with Anaheim for a conditional 2017 2nd round pick.

    In the second trade of the day, the Detroit Red Wings sent F Tomas Jurco to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for a 2017 3rd round pick.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning acquired F Stefan Fournier from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for F Jeremy Morin on February 25th.

    G Ben Bishop and a 2017 5th round pick were traded by the Tampa Bay Lightning to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for G Peter Budaj, D Erik Cernak, a 2017 7th round pick and a conditional 2017 draft pick on February 26th.

    Also on February 26th, F Martin Hanzal, F Ryan White and a 2017 4th round pick, were traded by the Arizona Coyotes to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a 2017 1st round pick, a 2018 2nd round pick, a 2019 conditional 4th round pick and F Grayson Downing.

    On Monday, February 27th, the Arizona Coyotes acquired F Teemu Pulkkinen from the  Minnesota Wild in exchange for future considerations.

    The Tampa Bay Lightning traded F Brian Boyle to the Toronto Maple Leafs and received F Byron Froese and a 2017 2nd round pick in return.

    The Dallas Stars were also active on February 27th, having acquired D Greg Pateryn and a 2017 4th round pick from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for D Jordie Benn.

    Longtime member of the Vancouver Canucks, F Alex Burrows, was traded to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for F Jonathan Dahlen. The Senators, by the way, immediately signed Burrows to a two-year extension.

    Late Monday night the St. Louis Blues traded D Kevin Shattenkirk and G Pheonix Copley to the Washington Capitals in exchange for F Brad Malone, F Zach Sanford, a 2017 1st round pick and a conditional 2019 2nd round pick. St. Louis retained 39% of Shattenkirk’s salary in the deal. Hire a lawyer to walk you through the conditions on the draft pick, if you’re curious.

    The dump-and-rebuild process in Detroit seems to have officially begun, as the Red Wings have traded D Brendan Smith to the New York Rangers Tuesday for two draft picks: New York’s 2017 third round pick and their 2018 second round pick. This season is Smith’s fourth playing full time in the NHL, but he’s only appeared in 33 games so far this year. He’s on the last year of his contract, but he’s indicated to the Red Wings in the past that he’d prefer to avoid free agency. Perchance New York will become a new long-term home.

    Tuesday’s second trade involved the Ottawa Senators and Carolina Hurricanes. Now-former Cane F Viktor Stalberg was sent to the Canadian capital in exchange for Ottawa’s 2017 third round pick. Stalberg signed a one-year deal with Carolina in 2016 and is currently slated to become a free agent in July.

    With approximately 24 hours remaining before the deadline, the Buffalo Sabres and New York Rangers swapped F Daniel Catenacci and D Mat Bodie, respectively. A third-rounder in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, Catenacci joins the Blueshirts with 11 games of NHL experience, though he has not yet received a call up this season. In return, the Sabres received Bodie, the now-former captain of the Rangers’ AHL affiliate. Yet to play an NHL game, he’s registered 30 points this season with the Wolf Pack – the 12th-most by an AHL defenseman.

    It seems the time for big-name defensemen to be traded is during the evening, as the Dallas Stars traded D Johnny Oduya to the Chicago Blackhawks. In return, the Stars received F Mark McNeill and a conditional fourth round pick in 2018. Oduya returns to the Hawks after a two-year stint in Dallas, and he’ll be an unrestricted free agent at the completion of this season. Drafted 18th-overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, McNeill has only one NHL game to show for his short career.

    Tuesday night, the Montréal Canadiens shipped F David Desharnais to the Edmonton Oilers, and received D Brandon Davidson in return. Desharnais provides 38 games of Stanley Cup playoff experience to the young Oilers on the final year of his four-year contract, while Davidson is a blueline presence that is near ready for the big leagues – if he’s not there already – and has one more year on his $2.85 million contract before he becomes a restricted free agent.