Preds make 2 trades to add Boyle, bring back McLeod
NASHVILLE, TENN. >> The Nashville Predators made a pair of trades, adding size and toughness trying in an attempt to fill the void created by the absence of a trio of players.
That doesn’t mean general manager David Poile is necessarily finished trying to improve the defending Presidents’ Trophy winners. There is still three weeks before the NHL trade deadline. And no matter how happy Poile is with his roster after trading for veteran forwards in Brian Boyle from New Jersey and Cody McLeod from the Rangers on Wednesday, things can always be better.
The Predators lost defenseman Anthony Bitetto to a waiver claim to Minnesota and forward Austin Watson was suspended indefinitely Jan. 29 under the NHL’s substance abuse program. Poile announced Wednesday that forward Zac Rinaldo will have season-ending surgery for an injured shoulder.
Poile swapped the Predators’ second-round pick in June’s NHL draft for Boyle and will send the Rangers a seventh-round pick in the 2020 NHL draft for McLeod. That was prompted by a worst case scenario of Watson possibly not returning this season.
Boyle, 34, has 13 goals and 19 points in his 12th NHL season, and he also has 88 hits in 47 games with New Jersey this season. Boyle won the 2017 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy after battling chronic myeloid leukemia.
Poile has regretted losing McLeod since Nashville waived him in January 2018. McLeod, 34, has a goal and 60 penalty minutes in 31 games this season with the Rangers.
Wild’s Koivu out
ST. PAUL, MINN. >> Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu will miss the rest of the season after tearing a ligament and cartilage in his right knee in an on-ice collision, a major setback for a team with a tenuous hold on a playoff spot.
Koivu, 35, tore his ACL and meniscus and will have surgery on Friday, the Wild announced on Wednesday. He was hurt Tuesday night at Buffalo when he collided with Sabres forward Tage Thompson in the first period of Minnesota’s 5-4 shootout loss.
Boudrias, former Canucks captain, dies at 75
WHISTLER, BRITISH COLUMBIA >> Andre Boudrias, the former Vancouver Canucks captain and Montreal Canadiens assistant general manager, has died. He was 75.
From Montreal, Boudrias spent most of his early professional career in the Canadiens’ farm system before being dealt to the Minnesota North Stars on the day of the 1967 expansion draft. He had 151 goals and 340 assists in 662 regular-season games with Montreal, Minnesota, Chicago, St. Louis and Vancouver, scoring a career-high 30 goals for the Canucks in 1972-73.
MAPLE LEAFS 5, SENATORS 4 >> Morgan Rielly broke a tie midway through the third period and Toronto beat Ottawa.
RANGERS 4, BRUINS 3 >> Tony DeAngelo scored the decisive goal in the seventh round of the shootout and New York rallied from two goals down in the third period to beat Boston.
Mika Zibanejad, Kevin Hayes and Filip Chytil scored for New York and Alexandar Georgiev finished with 27 saves.