Trade deadline quandaries
TORONTO — Ottawa picked up a pest and Toronto acquired a babysitter. Calgary got someone who blocks more shots than he takes, while Montreal traded a depth defenceman for a slightly better depth defenceman.
Please, hold your applause until the end.
And who knows, maybe by 3 p.m. on March 1, there will be plenty more to cheer about. But even if this is it — if Alex Burrows, Viktor Stalberg, Brian Boyle, Michael Stone and Jordie Benn are the biggest names headed to Canada before the trade deadline — it beats the alternative.
Canadian teams might not be going all-in (yet), like the Washington Capitals did by acquiring Kevin Shattenkirk on Monday. They might not even be upping the ante. But at least they are not folding.
At this time a year ago, the Maple Leafs were in the midst of a massive fire sale that saw Dion Phaneuf, James Reimer, Daniel Winnik, Shawn Matthias, Nick Spaling and Roman Polak moved for picks, prospects or the equivalent of a bucket of pucks.
They were far from the only team that cleaned out the cellar and put its junk on the lawn.
From Montreal trading Tomas Fleischmann and Dale Weise to Calgary trading Kris Russell and Jiri Hudler, all seven teams were sellers. Edmonton traded Justin Schultz and Teddy Purcell and Anders Nilsson, while Winnipeg traded captain Andrew Ladd. Even Ottawa, which was three points above .500 at last year’s deadline, traded away Shane Prince for a third-round pick.
They were dark days for Canadian franchises, which all missed the playoffs. But one year later, even with Vancouver and Winnipeg likely back in sell mode, it’s a much brighter view from the north.
Heading into the trade deadline, five of the seven teams are in a playoff spot. It’s difficult to say whether anyone is a serious Stanley Cup contender, but no one is out of the game just yet. Far from it, actually.
Montreal, which fired its head coach and replaced him with Claude Julien, is leading the Atlantic Division. Benn, who had two goals and 15 points with the Stars this season, might not help spark the Canadiens’ offence, but he should bolster a blueline that was in the middle of the pack in terms of shots allowed.
The same is true of Stone, who gives the red-hot Flames — six games without a regulation loss — depth on defence for the stretch run.
Ottawa, which is four points back of Montreal with two games in hand, paid a steep price in moving forward prospect Jonathan Dahlen to the Canucks in exchange for Burrows. But with so many players banged up, the Senators need all the help they can get right now.
Toronto, which is sitting on the bubble, increased the average age of its roster with the acquisition of Boyle. The 32-year-old is on pace for 20 goals this season, but it’s his experience — he has played in more post-season games (100) than Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner or William Nylander has played in the regular season — that the Leafs coveted.
And we haven’t even heard from Edmonton yet. With the deadline finally approaching, here are some questions on everyone’s mind:
Will a Canadian team get into a bidding war?
When Washington picked up Kevin Shattenkirk, it was a message to the rest of the NHL that the first-place Capitals were the team to beat for the Stanley Cup. The question now is whether Montreal, Ottawa or Edmonton tries to keep up with the Ovechkins. The Canadiens could use a goal-scorer such as Colorado’s Matt Duchene, the Oilers could use depth on defence and up front, while the Senators need all the offensive help they can get after losing Bobby Ryan to injury.
Will Matt Duchene get traded?
The trade deadline is for rental players. It’s rare to see a player with remaining years on his contract moved at the deadline, because those kind of trades typically happen in the off-season, when playoff-bound teams are more willing to add salary or give up a roster player in return. So chances are the Avalanche will wait until the summer to move Duchene, who has two more years remaining on a contract with a $6-million cap hit. Then again, with so many teams — New York Islanders, Blue Jackets, Canadiens — coveting the 30-goal scorer, don’t be surprised if Duchene gets moved.
Will llamas and dead air rule the day?
If the NHL wanted to make trade deadline more frenzied, it would ban trades for the month leading up to the actual 3 p.m. deadline. After all, that’s when the biggest names tend to get moved. Last year, there were 19 trades made on the actual deadline day. But there were also 20 deals made in the 20 days leading up to the deadline, which saw Phaneuf, Eric Staal and Ladd traded. This year is no exception, with Shattenkirk, Ben Bishop, Martin Hanzal and others already off the board. In other words, TSN and Sportsnet might want to rent another llama to keep viewers interested.
Will someone over-pay for a third-line forward?
This is the silly season, when teams empty the cupboards for a chance at the Cup — or in some cases a playoff berth. When the Capitals gave up a first-round pick and more to the Blues for defenceman Kevin Shattenkirk, it was a steep price to pay for a rental who might not re-sign. But at least the Capitals were receiving a power play specialist who ranks in the top-5 amongst defencemen in scoring this season. The same cannot be said of the Wild, who spent a first-round pick on face-off specialist Hanzal. Even more head scratching was Anaheim sending a potential first-round pick to Dallas for 32-year-old Patrick Eaves, who prior to this year had never scored more than 20 goals.