Devils land Meier in a blockbuster deal with Sharks
The New Jersey Devils acquired Timo Meier from the San Jose Sharks in a blockbuster trade Sunday in advance of the NHL trade deadline.
New Jersey sent a 2023 first-round pick, a conditional 2024 first-rounder, forward Andreas Johnsson and prospects Shakir Mukhamadullin, Fabian Zetterlund and Nikita Okhotiuk. In return, the Devils get Meier, defenseman Scott Harrington and prospects Timur Ibragimov, Santeri Hatakka and Zach Emond to finish a complicated deal.
Meier is under team control for at least the next year. He's a pending restricted free agent with a $10 million qualifying offer for the 2023-24 season, and Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald expects to be able to sign Meier long term.
The 26-year-old Swiss winger has 31 goals and 21 assists in 57 games this season.
Meier joins a playoff race with the Devils after the rival Rangers and Islanders each made moves to improve their stock.
Fitzgerald said he was not worried about the arms race among rivals and was focused on doing what he could to improve his team.
San Jose GM Mike Grier was similarly not worried about that, realizing the price of keeping Meier did not fit with the Sharks' rebuilding plan moving forward.
Stars get offensive
The Dallas Stars acquired Evgenii Dadonov from the Montreal Canadiens for Denis Gurianov in a swap of Russian forwards designed to give the Central Division leaders an offensive boost.
Montreal is retaining half of Dadonov's $5 million salary cap hit for the rest of the season as part of the trade. That saves Dallas some money while it sheds Gurianov's $2.9 million.
Dadonov, 33, has 18 points in 50 games this season for Montreal, which is in the middle of a rebuild. He does have a track record of producing offense in the NHL.
“Evgenii is a skilled forward that can play anywhere in our lineup,” general manager Jim Nill said. “Recording 20 or more goals in four of his previous five seasons, he is a proven goal-scorer at the NHL level and will bolster our offensive attack.”
Gurianov, 25, had been relegated to a limited role with Dallas after putting up just nine points in 43 games this season. He was part of the team that reached the Stanley Cup Final in the pandemic “bubble” environment in 2020, putting up 17 points in 27 playoff games.
Vegas gets Barbashev
The St. Louis Blues traded winger Ivan Barbashev to the Vegas Golden Knights in a move featuring two teams going in different directions.
In return, the Blues pick up prospect Zach Dean, a first-round pick of the Golden Knights in 2021
Potentially finding a two-way, top-nine forward became a priority when the Golden Knights announced on Feb. 1 that captain and left winger Mark Stone underwent a second surgery on his back in less than a year. Stone, who was injured Jan. 12, was initially ruled out indefinitely, with the team later moving him to long-term injured reserve.
Sending Stone and his $9.5 million cap hit to LTIR in addition to trading Shea Weber's contract last week gave the Golden Knights the cap space to make a move. Vegas has gone 7-5-4 since Stone has been out of the lineup, but they've won six of their past eight games.
Enter Barbashev. The 27-year-old has 10 goals and 29 points in 59 games this season. He's projected to finish this season with 14 goals and 40 points after scoring a career-high 26 goals and 60 points in 2021-22.
Johnson rejoins Avs
The Colorado Avalanche acquired defenseman Jack Johnson from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for fellow defenseman Andreas Englund.
This is Johnson's second stint with Colorado. He played with the Avalanche in 74 games last season en route to winning the Stanley Cup.
The Indianapolis, Indiana, native has appeared in 1,082 career NHL games, tallying 316 points. He ranks 15th all-time among American-born defensemen in games played.
Earlier in the week, Colorado acquired goaltender Keith Kinkaid from the Boston Bruins in exchange for forward Shane Bowers.
Kinkaid, 33, gives the Avalanche some depth at the position as they look forward to another deep playoff run.
Kinkaid is 8-7-4, with a 3.10 goals-against average and .909 save percentage in the AHL this season. He has also played in one game for the Boston Bruins, earning a win on Nov. 12 against Buffalo.
Changes in Nashville
Barry Trotz is rejoining the Nashville Predators in their front office, succeeding David Poile, the only general manager in the NHL franchise's history.
The change is effective the end of June.
Poile will retire from the role he has been in for more than 25 years and step into a position as an adviser to ownership, business and hockey operations.
“This is a decision that is best for me personally and best for the Nashville Predators,” Poile said in a statement. “For the Predators, I believe it is time for a new voice and a new direction. I am proud of the foundation we have put in place in our hockey operations, investing in and improving every area of the department. This is the right time for someone else to move our franchise forward.”
Trotz coached the Predators from before the team's inception in 1998 through 2014 and owns the record for the most victories in team history. He coached the Washington Capitals to the Stanley Cup in 2018 and was behind the bench for the New York Islanders from 2018-22.
“My heart has been in Nashville since that first season,” Trotz said. “I believe I am prepared to succeed as an NHL general manager, and I have David to thank for that. I will work hard as a member of David's team for the next four months, and when I become GM on July 1, I pledge to do everything I can in leading our franchise to its first ever Stanley Cup.”