Grading the rest of the NHL

Dallas Stars: B

The division leaders bulked up with Max Domi on Deadline Eve, plus fourtime 20-goal scorer Evgenii Dadonov.

Minnesota Wild: C

Confusing. So confusing. Minnesota spent weeks brokering other teams’ trades as the (legal) money launderer, then ascended to second place with an eight-game point streak, then aggressively bought. They end up with Gustav Nyquist, Oskar Sundqvist and John Klingberg.

Boston Bruins: A

A historically good team added Tyler Bertuzzi, Garnet Hathaway and Dmitry Orlov, who showed up in Boston and has eight points in the last three games.

Kyle Dubas: A —

Toronto’s general manager is trading to save his job. And the Leafs, with a top-three center lineup of Auston Matthews-john Tavares-ryan O’reilly, might still lose to Tampa in the first round. Truly captivating stuff.

The team surrounding Connor Mcdavid and Leon Draisaitl: B+

Edmonton desperately needed defense and got a good one in Nashville’s Mattias Ekholm. The Oilers might still be the second-most talented team in the West behind Colorado. Nick Bjugstad was a good depth pickup too, for just a thirdrounder.

Jonathan Quick: D+

It’s always going to be below-average when you get shipped across the country by the team that you helped win two Stanley Cups in the last decade. But at least he got shipped back across the country to another playoff contender (Vegas) the next day.

A Georgiev v. Shesterkin Stanley Cup Final: B

Alive and well, now that the Rangers impressively found cap room for both Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane.

The East: A+ Bloodbath. The West: F

It’s Colorado’s to lose.

— BENNETT DURANDO, THE DENVER POST