CarterHud

     

The Arizona Coyotes have acquired forward Teemu Pulkkinen from the Minnesota Wild for future considerations. Let\’s get into details.
       This trade comes a day after these two teams pulled off a blockbuster trade, sending center Martin Hanzal and right winger Ryan White to the Wild. Since then, Wild GM Chuck Fletcher has cleared up roster space for Hanzal and White. He placed C Zac Dalpe on waivers (he was then claimed by the Columbus Blue Jackets). Pulkkinen, another depth guy, wasn\’t needed on the roster. He recently cleared waivers, but the Wild wanted to get some value out of him, because there was no use of him in the NHL. The future considerations is probably going to be a late draft pick.
        The Coyotes are in a rebuild. They traded defenseman Michael Stone. Like I mentioned before, they also traded Hanzal and White. This is the third straight day GM John Chayka has traded for an AHL player. He traded for winger Jeremy Morin, and winger Grayson Downing (he was the only player they got in the Hanzal trade). He\’s obviously trying to beef up both the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL) and the Coyotes depth. Pulkkinen, 25, has 1 point (a goal) in 9 games for the Wild this season. He has 36 points (18 goals and 18 assists) in 47 games for the Iowa Wild (AHL). He has 21 points (12 goals, 9 assists) in 79 career NHL games with the Wild and the Detroit Red Wings.    

  

The Minnesota Wild have acquired center Martin Hanzal, right winger Ryan White, and a 4th round draft pick in the 2017 NHL draft from the Arizona Coyotes for a first round draft pick in 2017, a second rounder in 2018, a conditional 4th rounder in 2019, and F Grayson Downing. Let\’s get into details.
      The Wild are Cup contenders. They are first in the Western conference (second in the NHL) with 84 points (a record of 39-14-6). A guy like Hanzal could help them hopefully make the first Stanley Cup final appearance in franchise history. But they gave up WAY too much for him. He\’s a rental player, and an upcoming UFA, and it\’s not like he\’s a superstar. But GM Chuck Fletcher knows what he\’s doing. Hanzal is a solid top 6 center, and White can be a 4th line grinder. Hanzal, 30, has 26 points (16 goals and 10 assists) in 51 games this season. He isn\’t afraid to take penalties, with 43 PIM this year. White, 28, has 13 points (7 goals and 6 assists) in 46 games this season, his first in the desert.
         The Coyotes are obviously rebuilders. GM John Chayka has already traded defenseman Michael Stone this season, and it\’s not a surprise Hanzal is gone too. The Coyotes will also retain 50% of Hanzal\’s contract, but he\’s a rental player so it doesn\’t hurt their future. They received a bundle of picks, including top ones, for a player who they probably wouldn\’t have next year. The lone player they received, Downing, is more of an AHL player than a NHL one. Downing, 24, has never played in the NHL before. He has 21 points (7 goals and 14 assists) in 46 games for Iowa (AHL) this season. He will join Jeremy Morin as new acquisitions for Tucson (AHL).  

    

The Los Angeles Kings have acquired goalie Ben Bishop and a 5th round draft pick in the 2017 NHL draft from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for goalie Peter Budaj, defenseman Erik Cernak, a 7th round draft pick in the 2017 NHL draft, and a conditional pick in the same draft, but the round hasn\’t been announced. The Lightning will also retain 20% of Bishop\’s contract. Let\’s get into details.
       The Kings\’ starting goalie for the past couple of years, Jonathan Quick, was injured on opening night, and just returned yesterday. They have a tough schedule ahead, with many back-to-back games. With 2 reliable starters with great playoff experience (Quick won 2 Cups with LA, and Bishop has played in the finals before), the Kings can now make a serious run for the playoffs. They sit fifth in the Pacific division with 64 points (a record 30-27-4), and 3 points out of the 2nd wild card spot in the Western conference. Budaj has played great this season, but with both Quick and Bishop, he wasn\’t needed. Cernak isn\’t close to the NHL, and a 7th round pick isn\’t much. Bishop, 30, has a GAA of 2.55 and a SV% of .911 in 31 starts this season.
        The Lightning reached the Stanley Cup finals in 2015, but lost to the Chicago Blackhawks. In 2017, they were missing star Steven Stamkos, but still made it to game 7 of the Eastern conference finals, before losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins. They\’ve dropped off a lot this season, though. Stamkos was injured again, and the club sits 7 points out of a playoff spot (they have 62 points, with a record of 27-25-8). Bishop has been the Bolts\’ number 1 goalie for years now, but he\’s an upcoming UFA, and Andrei Vasilevskiy seems to be the goalie of the future for them at 22 years of age. Bishop was major trade bait. Budaj can be Vasilevskiy\’s backup for the next couple of months. Cernak was drafted in the second round just 2 years ago, so he can be a solid prospect for Tampa Bay. Budaj, 34, has a GAA of 2.12 and a SV% of .917 in 51 starts this season in Quick\’s absence. Cernak, 19, has never played professional yet. He\’ll probably play for the Syracuse Crunch (the Lightning\’s AHL affiliate) next season, when he\’s 20.

   

The Tampa Bay Lightning have acquired F Stefan Fournier from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for F Jeremy Morin. Let\’s get into details.
     The Lightning\’s AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch, have a problem. There\’s an AHL rule that states that at least 13 of the 18 skaters in a game need to be development players. To be a development player, you need to have less than 260 professional games played. There can be just 5 skaters (goalies don\’t matter) with more. If a player has from 261 to 320 professional games played, he is qualified as an intermediate player. One of the 13 development players can be an intermediate player. Morin has 349 professional games played, so he counts as a veteran. The Crunch have a lot of veterans on their team, so they needed to get rid of one. Fournier is classified as a development player, so the Lightning made the swap. (for more info on this rule, click on this). Fournier earns over $100,000 less than Morin. Fournier, 24, has 4 points (2 goals and 2 assists) in 29 games for Tucson (AHL) this season he\’s never played in the NHL in his career. Fournier is a big time scrapper. He has 95 PIM in just 29 games this year. He might not start in Syracuse, but will be protecting prospects when he does play.
       Coyotes\’ GM John Chayka is probably happy after completing this deal. Morin is probably a better player, and has NHL experience, unlike Fournier. He can be an AHL call up if needed. Morin, 25, has 21 points (9 goals and 12 assists) in 43 games for Syracuse this season. He hasn\’t played in the NHL at all this year, but has 22 points (10 goals and 12 assists) in 82 career NHL games for the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Chicago Blackhawks. The Lightning signed him to a one year deal this offseason, and will be a RFA at the end of the season. Fournier will be a UFA.

      

The Vancouver Canucks are in a very questionable situation. Their two best players- Daniel and Henrik Sedin, are both 36 years old, and could decline soon. If you look at the rest of their team, you\’d probably say they need a rebuild to help the franchise. But GM Jim Benning refuses to do that method, thinking his team is good enough. The Canucks currently sit 6th in the Pacific division with 58 points (a record of 26-28-6). They\’re also 9 points out of the second wild card spot in the Western conference. Signs show that they\’ll be sellers at the trade deadline, but an upcoming issue could stop that.
         Recently, defenseman Troy Stecher was diagnosed with the mumps, a virus that causes swollen and tender glands, as well as flu-like symptoms. Four other players have also presented symptoms. \”We\’re taking this very seriously given how easily mumps can spread,\” Benning said. \”At this point Troy Stecher is the only player with a confirmed test result. Chris Tanev, Nikita Tryamkin, Mike Chaput and Markus Granlund have each presented symptoms. We\’ll continue to follow all protocols in accordance with Vancouver Coastal Health guidelines in order to prevent further infection.\”
          All five players (Stecher, Tanev, Tryamkin, Chaput and Granlund) will not play in Saturday\’s matchup vs the San Jose Sharks. The Canucks have recalled defensemen Jordan Subban, Joe Labate and Evan McEneny from Utica (AHL). Forward Alex Grenier was also recalled.
          Stecher, 22, is in his first NHL season. He has 18 points (2 goals and 16 assists) in 51 games.
           Tanev, 27, has 6 points, (a goal and 5 assists) in 36 games this season.
           Tryamkin, 22, has 7 points (a goal and 6 assists) in 50 games this season.
            Chaput, 24, has 6 points (3 goals and 3 assists) in 48 games this year.
            Granlund, 23, has 26 points (15 goals and 11 assists) in 60 games this season.
            Subban, 21, has 29 points (13 goals and 16 assists) in 46 games for Utica. He\’s been called up before, but hasn\’t played for Vancouver.
            Labate, 23, has 9 points (2 goals and 7 assists) in 25 games in the AHL. He has 3 points less games for Vancouver this year.
             McEneny, 22, has 17 points (6 goals and 11 assists) in 43 NHL games this season.
             Grenier, 25, has 38 points (15 goals and 23 assists) in 51 games for Utica this season.