The busy NHL trade deadline day featured major moves, the league’s top team making important tweaks and an emotional moment.
Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk got choked up when talking about friend Josh Norris being dealt to the Buffalo Sabres for Dylan Cozens in the first significant trade of the day.
The Dallas Stars carried the day by trading for and re-signing Mikko Rantanen, and the Florida Panthers pulled off a late shocker by adding longtime Boston Bruins star Brad Marchand.
The No. 1 overall Winnipeg Jets also helped themselves by addressing specific needs. They added physical defenseman Luke Schenn and acquired forward Brandon Tanev to help their middling penalty kill.
There were 24 trades involving 47 players on Friday. Here are the winners and losers of NHL trade deadline day:
WINNERS
Brad Marchand, Seth Jones, Nico Sturm
Marchand goes from the Bruins, who are likely to miss the playoffs, to the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers. Marchand, currently injured, has a good chance to win a championship for the first time since 2011. New Panthers players Jones (Blackhawks) and Sturm (Sharks) leave bottom-dwelling teams.
Colorado Avalanche
General manager Chris MacFarland has constantly updated his roster this season with two new goalies, the original Rantanen trade and defenseman Ryan Lindgren. He added Brock Nelson at midnight to upgrade the Avalanche’s No. 2 center position and also added big center Charlie Coyle during the day.
Mikko Rantanen
After his trade to the Stars, he gets to join fellow Finnish players from the 4 Nations Face-Off and also gets a bump to a $12 million cap hit next season. And because he’ll be living in Texas, he doesn’t have to pay state income tax.
Homecomings
Vegas brought back Reilly Smith, a 2023 Stanley Cup champion. Tampa Bay reacquired two-time winner Yanni Gourde. Erik Johnson returned to Colorado, Tanev to Winnipeg and Petr Mrazek to Detroit.
Utah Hockey Club
General manager Bill Armstrong spent the lead-up to the deadline getting his key free agents under contract, including goalie Karel Vejmelka. That’s important with the team in a new market this season and pushing for a playoff spot. Utah is a different animal from the former Arizona Coyotes, who had to take on retired players’ contracts to reach the salary cap floor. In fact, Armstrong traded Hall of Famer Shea Weber’s contract to the Blackhawks on Friday.
LOSERS
Bruins general manager Don Sweeney
The usually aggressive buyers were sellers this time. Marchand, Trent Frederic, Brandon Carlo and Charlie Coyle were moved out. Injuries to defenseman Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm led Sweeney to change his plans, but some of the team’s struggles were of his own making. Offseason signings Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov didn’t pan out. Though Sweeney added Casey Mittelstadt and prospect Fraser Minten on Friday, the Bruins lack depth down the middle.
Carolina Hurricanes
They’re in win-now mode, which is why they traded for Rantanen. But after the two-time 100-point scorer wouldn’t commit to re-signing there, general manager Eric Tulsky moved him. Logan Stankoven is a promising player, and the two first-round picks will help down the road. But the Hurricanes aren’t as strong this postseason without Rantanen – and without Martin Necas, who’s excelling in Colorado after being part of the first Rantanen trade.
Edmonton Oilers
General manager Stan Bowman said the Oilers didn’t need an upgrade in net, so he added rugged winger Frederic and defenseman Jake Walman. We’ll see if Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard can get Edmonton back to the Stanley Cup Final.
Detroit Red Wings
The Sharks received a first-round pick for Walman, which brought back memories of how he ended up in San Jose in the first place. Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman gave him away and included a second-round pick to sweeten the deal. The Red Wings’ addition of Craig Smith and Mrazek doesn’t seem enough to end the team’s long playoff drought. Detroit, whose losing streak has hit five games, now has three goalies on the roster, rarely a good thing.
New Jersey Devils
This story has been updated with new information.
