CarterHud

The Tampa Bay Rays have acquired DH Nelson Cruz and RHP Calvin Faucher from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for RHPs Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman.

The Rays AL East title push starts now. The thing the team really lacked was a truly elite hitter. Even at his age, Cruz is still that. He has the power, discipline, and the ability to hit absolute rockets. In 2021, Cruz has a 93.2 mph average exit velocity with a .387 xwOBA. His K-rate is down to 18.2 percent while his walk rate is still over ten percent. While he may be limited to the dugout for half of the game — Cruz hasn’t played the outfield since 2018 — his offense makes the trade worth it. This could be his last season, as Cruz’s contract will expire at the end of the season. Faucher was a 10th round pick in 2017 but has rough minor-league numbers. He does rack up strikeouts despite a high walk count.

Cruz, 41, has hit 19 home runs with a .370 OBP and a .907 OPS in 346 Plate Appearances for the Twins in 2021. In his MLB career for the Twins, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, and Milwaukee Brewers, Cruz has hit 436 homers with a .348 OBP and an OPS of .878 in 7499 Plate Appearances.

Faucher, 25, has a 7.04 ERA with 42 strikeouts and a 2.054 WHIP in 30.2 innings for AA Wichita in 2021. In his minor league career, Faucher has a 4.64 ERA with 178 strikeouts and a 1.604 WHIP in 159 innings pitched.

The unexpected collapse of the Twins has made them sellers at this year’s trade deadline. While Cruz is a guy who is hard not to like, this is the right move. In return, Minnesota picks up two solid arms. Both Ryan and Strotman throw hard and could be in the majors as soon as this year. A 2018 7th rounder, MLB Pipeline had Ryan as Tampa Bay’s 10th best prospect, while Strotman, a 2017 4th, is 17th. Both have been starters in the minors. Ryan has a ton of strikeouts with great control and Strotman has struggled with walks this season. Neither team got shafted in this deal at all.

Ryan, 25, has a 3.63 ERA with 75 strikeouts, 10 walks, and a 0.789 WHIP in 57 innings for AAA Durham this year. In his minor league career, Ryan has a 2.70 ERA with 309 strikeouts and 51 walks in 217 innings.

Strotman, 24, has a 3.39 ERA with 62 strikeouts and 33 walks in 58.1 innings for Durham in 2021. In his minor league career, Strotman has a 3.12 ERA with 171 strikeouts and 72 walks in 179 innings pitched.

The Calgary Flames have acquired forward Tyler Pitlick from the Seattle Kraken in exchange for a 2022 4th round draft pick.

The first trade in Kraken history is not really an interesting one. They are able to recoup a draft pick in exchange for their expansion selection from the Coyotes, a team that was not stacked with options for the draft. They then flipped him for market value. For them, there is not much to make out of it.

There is not much to be mad about here for Flames fans. Pitlick is not a star and the team didn’t give up much to get him. He is a solid bottom-six defensive winger who can kill penalties. He averaged north of 16 minutes a game for Arizona, which is about a second-line rate. He is not that player, which hurt his game. He’s a fine addition to the team. Pitlick has a $1.75 million cap hit and will be a UFA after this upcoming season.

Pitlick, 29, scored six goals with five assists for 11 points in 38 games for the Coyotes in 2020-21. In his NHL career for Arizona, the Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars, and Philadelphia Flyers, Pitlick has scored 47 goals with 37 assists for 84 points in 286 games.

The Arizona Coyotes have acquired defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, a 2022 second and 2022 seventh-round draft pick from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for future considerations.

First off, future considerations is code for “nothing”. The Flyers get nothing here. Well, they get cap space. They need to extend Travis Sanheim and Carter Hart, while also potentially adding a winger like Vladimir Tarasenko or Patrik Laine. This trade gives them the cap space to attempt this. Gostisbehere counts for $4.5 million against the cap for two more seasons. He does provide production, but that is way too much for him.

However, this bet has a very good chance of paying off for the Coyotes. Gostisbehere’s cap hit is not crippling and he still is a good offensive defenseman. While defense can be a struggle at times for him, Gostisbehere will benefit the Coyotes’ power-play. Roughly half of his career points have come on the man advantage. A good portion of those points came in 2017-18, when he had 65. It has been a quick fall since then, unfortunately. Even if he does not pan out in Arizona, the Coyotes still win. They get two draft picks, including a high-valued one. It is worth noting that they now have seven second-rounders in the next two seasons. Two of their own, one from this trade, two for taking on Andrew Ladd, one for Derek Stepan, and another for Adin Hill. It is also worthy to note that the 7th is originally from St. Louis, acquired by Philly from the Habs for Erik Gustafsson. Montreal got it from the source along with Jake Allen.

Gostisbehere, 28, scored nine goals with 11 assists for 20 points in 41 games for the Flyers in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all for Philadelphia, Gostisbehere has scored 60 goals with 159 assists for 219 points in 381 games.

The Detroit Red Wings have acquired goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for the rights to goalie Jonathan Bernier and a 2021 3rd round draft pick.

Per his agent, Nedeljkovic has signed a two-year deal with Detroit immediately following the trade. For Red Wings General Manager Steve Yzerman, this is a heist. Nedeljkovic is not a star goaltender, but he showed flashes of potential this past season. And by flashes of potential, I mean leading the league in goals against and save percentage. He went from perennial third-goalie to starter in 23 games, fixing Carolina’s goalie problem. He was also just a rookie! Nedeljkovic ended up finished third in Calder voting. Now, he is a Red Wing. The price is still very, very low. He is not being paid as a starter and the real cost is the 94th overall pick in the upcoming draft, via Vegas (Tomas Tatar trade). Bernier is a veteran who will become a UFA in less than a week.

Nedeljkovic, 25, had a .932 save percentage with a 1.90 GAA in 23 games for the Hurricanes this past season. In his NHL career, all in Carolina, Nedeljkovic has a .928 save percentage with a 2.01 GAA in 29 games.

The Hurricanes made a really odd move. Nedeljkovic was an RFA and in 2020-21, he fixed their long withstanding goaltending problem. Now it is right back. While his short, three-month reign of terror could be seen as a fluke, the Canes still could have gotten more. They acquire Bernier, who is not a lock to stay with the team. Assuming he does sign, he is a downgrade from what Nedeljkovic did last year and potentially could command more money. The third-round pick is not enough to cover for the skill and age gap here.

Bernier, who will be 33 on August 7, had a .914 save percentage with a 2.99 GAA in 24 games for the Red Wings in 2020-21. In his NHL career for the Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs, Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks, and Colorado Avalanche, Bernier has a .913 save percentage with a 2.77 GAA in 394 games.

The Philadelphia Flyers have acquired defenseman Ryan Ellis from the Nashville Predators in exchange for defenseman Philippe Myers and forward Nolan Patrick. The Predators then flipped Patrick to the Vegas Golden Knights for forward Cody Glass.

There is a ton to break down here. The Flyers far-and-away get the best player in this trade and it looks like they win it outright. Ellis is an elite two-way defenseman who can be a top-pairing guy for Philadelphia. Myers was not that. He was just a second-pairing defenseman. Ellis still has six years left on his contract that carries a $6.25 million cap hit. For now, that is very good value. There is a good chance that it could go sour by the end. But the Flyers really improve here. Patrick was drafted 2nd overall in 2017, but concussions derailed that. Patrick was not a good player when healthy this year. This a big win for the Flyers. Ellis did have a down season, but injuries likely played a part in that.

Ellis, 30, scored five goals with 13 assists for 18 points in 35 games for the Predators in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all in Nashville, Ellis has scored 75 goals with 195 assists for 270 points in 562 games.

The Predators may be starting out as sellers. They already traded away Viktor Arvidsson, and now Ellis goes. The return isn’t stellar, either. They are able to abandon an Ellis contract that could soon turn ugly. But, that would not be for a couple of seasons. Myers is decent and big, but is a significant step down from Ellis. He will be an RFA after 2022-23. For the next two seasons, Myers has a $2.55 million cap hit. The main reason to flip Patrick for Glass is that he is exempt for the expansion draft while Patrick is eligible. Glass, drafted 6th overall in 2017, has shown early signs of being a bust so far. Maybe Nashville can turn him around. Glass is a pending RFA.

Myers, 24, scored one goal with 10 assists for 11 points in 44 games for the Flyers in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all for the Flyers, Myers has scored six goals with 23 assists for 29 points in 115 games.

Glass, 22, scored four goals with six assists for 10 points in 27 games for the Knights in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all in Vegas, Glass has scored nine goals with 13 assists for 22 points in 66 games.

The Golden Knights get the player with more NHL experience who was drafted higher. Patrick has a much better chance of being a legitimate bottom-six center for the Golden Knights, or even better. He is also an RFA this year. It is just high-stakes gambling for Kelly McCrimmon, who also gets a former member of the Brandon Wheat Kings, the WHL team he used to be a part of.

Patrick, 22, scored four goals with five assists for nine points in 52 games for the Flyers in 2020-21. In his NHL career, all for the Flyers, Patrick has scored 30 goals with 40 assists for 70 points in 197 games.