Winnipeg among winners with addition of Stastny

Meanwhile, Senators seemed to miss boat on deadline day, Michael Traikos writes.

Tampa Bay Lightning

They didn’t land Erik Karlsson, but defenceman Ryan McDonagh is a pretty good consolation prize for a team that now has a top-four defence that includes Victor Hedman, Anton Stralman and Mikhail Sergachev. Swapping Vladislav Namestnikov for J.T. Miller gives Tampa Bay a two-way forward who might be a better fit come playoff time.

New York Rangers

Pay attention, Ottawa: this is how you strip things down for the rebuild. The Rangers picked up two first-round picks in the Rick Nash and Ryan McDonagh deals, a second-round pick and a prospect for Michael Grabner, and a third-round pick and prospect for Nick Holden. Now all they have to do is not screw it up at the draft.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Picking up Derick Brassard from Ottawa might have been the trade of the season. Certainly, it made the Penguins a legitimate threat to win a third straight Stanley Cup. Pittsburgh now has a No. 3 centre in Brassard who on most other teams would be centring one of the top two lines.

Boston Bruins

The Bruins picked up the No. 1 rental on the market in Rick Nash. It was a necessary trade for a team that has relied on one line for the bulk of the offence this season. While the 33-year-old is far from the Rocket Richard Trophy winner he once was, he still provides Boston with muchneeded secondary scoring.

Winnipeg Jets

After years of standing pat, GM Kevin Cheveldayoff finally went all-in and traded a first-round pick to St. Louis for Paul Stastny. It was a big gamble. But it sent a clear message to the league that Winnipeg is in it to win. Stastny, who had to waive his no-trade clause, gives this Jets team some much-needed experience.

Nashville Predators

If only all GMs were as carefree as David Poile. The Predators boss, who traded for Ottawa’s Kyle Turris earlier this season, made another splash Monday when he signed Mike Fisher out of retirement and acquired pending restricted free agent Ryan Hartman from Chicago for a package that included a firstround pick. Buffalo Sabres

No one was willing to meet the Sabres’ demands of a first-round pick, prospect and a roster player in exchange for Evander Kane. The best GM Jason Botterill could manage from San Jose was a second-rounder in 2019 (which could turn into a first-rounder if Kane re-signs), a fourth-rounder in 2020 and a middling prospect drafted in the fifth round six years ago. Ouch. That’s not how you speed up a rebuild.

Erik Karlsson and Max Pacioretty

Despite all the talk, it was a long shot that Ottawa or Montreal were going to pull off a trade for their captain at the deadline. Those deals are usually done at the entry draft. For Karlsson and Pacioretty, it means six more weeks of answering the same questions while playing for a team going nowhere.

New Jersey Devils

Days after picking up Michael Grabner, the Devils added Patrick Maroon from Edmonton. They were the kind of moves you expect from a Stanley Cup contender, not a wild card team. On the plus side, neither deal cost that much. But for a team still in the early stages of a rebuild, the second- and third-round picks they gave up could have been better used on future prospects.

St. Louis Blues

Most expected the Blues to be buyers. Instead, after losing six straight, GM Doug Armstrong pulled the chute and traded Paul Stastny to Winnipeg for an impressive package that included the Jets’ first-round pick. Yet the team that benefits the most is Calgary, who has one less team to worry about in the wild card race.

Ottawa Senators

The Senators were really only able to ship out Derick Brassard. Maybe most of the heavy lifting will occur in the summer. But considering the prices teams were willing to pay, the Senators might have missed an opportunity in not dealing Erik Karlsson, Mike Hoffman or Zack Smith.

Mike Green

It was strange to see rental defenceman Mike Green not moved by the Detroit Red Wings. Maybe the price was too high or contending teams were leery about adding a one-dimensional offensive defenceman.