CarterHud

 

       The Florida Panthers have acquired defenseman Brandon Montour from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a 2021 3rd round pick.

       The Panthers have been in the market for a defenseman since Aaron Ekblad went down with a season ending injury. Montour is also a right-handed defender, but is not close to being on the same level as Ekblad. He was a good puck moving player for the Ducks, but really fell of when acquired by the Sabres a bit over two years ago. He has a -4.9 GAR and a 44.67 xGF% right now, which is not NHL caliber. He can move the puck and contribute offensively, and is an upgrade over Brady Keeper and Matt Kiersted, the latter of which just debuted after four seasons at the University of North Dakota. Montour may not even be better than Gustav Forsling, who has been a solid depth option for Florida this year. He looks to be a pure rental, with an expiring contract on a $3.85 million cap hit. Florida uses the cap space that they cleared when they traded Brett Connolly to Chicago. 

Montour, who will turn 27 tomorrow, has scored five goals with nine assists for 14 points in 38 games for the Sabres in 2020-21. In his NHL career for Buffalo and the Anaheim Ducks, Montour has scored 29 goals with 76 assists for 105 points in 281 games. 

No Sabre has played more minutes than Montour this year, and Buffalo will thank him for that. But it also is not a great look when you are playing the most minutes on the league\’s worst team. Montour has struggled with the Sabres, so a third round pick is a nice return. It gets better when you consider that Eric Staal barely netted that, and Taylor Hall may not get much more. 

 

        The Colorado Avalanche have acquired defenseman Patrik Nemeth from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for a 2022 4th round draft pick. 

The Avalanche have a solid defensive group, but could use depth, especially with Erik Johnson on LTIR. Plus, Jacob MacDonald is currently suspended. Nemeth was going to be out of Detroit\’s lineup, although that could have been due to an injury or because this trade was expected. A 4th round pick is not a high price for a solid defensive third pairing player. Plus, the Avalanche have familiarity with Nemeth, who played for the team in 2017-18 and 2018-19 before leaving to the Red Wings for the past two seasons.

Nemeth, 29, has scored two goals with six assists for eight points in 39 games for the Red Wings this year. In his NHL career for Detroit, the Avalanche and Dallas Stars, Nemeth has scored seven goals with 49 assists for 56 points in 353 games. 

The Red Wings are full on sellers once again this year, as any pick will help the cause. Nemeth was productive defensively for the last two seasons, and they will thank him for that while moving on with their fresh new draft pick. 

 

       The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired forward Riley Nash from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a conditional 2022 7th round pick. If Nash plays in 25% of Toronto\’s playoff games, then the pick upgrades to a 6th rounder. 

The Maple Leafs could use some bottom-six help, especially defensively.  Nash brings exactly that. He can play center and right wing, and can be a shutdown defender while killing penalties. He does not bring in any offense, but the Leafs will be fine in that area, especially if they bring in a top-six winger to play with John Tavares and William Nylander. Nash is in the final year of a three year, $8.25 million contract, with a $2.75 million AAV. His responsible defensive play will help Toronto come playoff time. Not only does he kill penalties, he can stay out of the box, with just two minor penalties all season. Unfortunately, Maple Leafs fans may not see Nash in action until playoff time; he will be sidelined for the next 4-6 weeks with a knee injury.

Nash, 31, has scored two goals with five assists for seven points in 37 games for the Blue Jackets in 2020-21. In his NHL career for the Blue Jackets, Boston Bruins and Carolina Hurricanes Nash has scored 63 goals with 109 assists for 172 points in 578 games. 

The Blue Jackets are in sell mode, sitting seven points back of a playoff spot, while playing one more game than the 4th place Predators. Now with Boone Jenner, Zach Werenski and Gustav Nyquist out, they have and even better reason to sell. Nash\’s injury prevented them from getting a good return, as they undoubtedly would have received a better pick for a healthy Riley Nash. They still do get a late round draft pick, and it probably will be a sixth rounder, unless Nash\’s injury nags on. 

 

       The Chicago Blackhawks have acquired forward Brett Connolly, defenseman Riley Stillman, forward Henrik Borgstrom and a 2021 7th round pick from the Florida Panthers in exchange for forward Lucas Wallmark and defenseman Lucas Carlsson. 

The main takeaway for this trade is that the Panthers are clearing up cap space for a bigger move, either this year or in the future. Connolly is in the second year of a four year contract with a $3.5 million cap hit. He earned that deal by being a consistent third line scoring option, with 41 combined goals in the previous two seasons. However, he has not produced for Florida this year. In 21 games, Connolly has just 16 shots, after he had 193 in 69 games in 2019-20. As the Panthers look for a better scoring option and an Aaron Ekblad replacement, this trade helps them, as they did not retain any money. The two sweetener players who they give up are interesting, and both have NHL experience. In return, they get some depth both on offense and on the blue line. Wallmark should be a familiar name for Panthers fans, as he played in seven games (plus two in the playoffs) down the stretch last year after being acquired for Vincent Trocheck. He gives them an extra center, and had double digit goals in the previous two years. Carlsson is a young Swede who was drafted in the 4th round in 2016 by Chicago. He has split time between the AHL and NHL this year. 

Wallmark, 25, has scored no goals with three assists in 16 games for the Blackhawks this year. In his NHL career with the Blackhawks, Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes Wallmark has scored 23 goals with 36 assists for 59 points in 183 games. 

Carlsson, 23, has one assist in 12 games for Chicago this year, and a goal and two assists for three points in seven games for the AHL\’s Rockford IceHogs. In his short NHL career Carlsson has no goals and two assists in 18 games. 

There were rumors that the rebuilding Blackhawks would be renting out their cap space in exchange for assets, and that is exactly what they did here. Those assets are two players and a 7th round pick. The pick is not a big deal to them, and the other two are not big time prospects. Well, not anymore. Borgstrom was a first round pick in 2016, picked 23rd overall. But he has slumped in limited NHL time and is currently playing in his hometown in Finland. He spent most of last year in the AHL, scoring 23 points in 49 games. He is still an RFA, so Chicago gets his rights. Stillman, like Carlsson, was a 4th round pick in 2016. He is physical, with 78 hits in 43 NHL games, including some this year. He could replace Carlsson in Chicago\’s defensive cycle. Connolly still is just one year removed from a 19 goal season, so there is still hope. But, Chicago does not get enough back for taking on his full salary. 

Connolly, 28, has scored two goals with two assists for four points in 21 games for the Panthers in 2020-21. In his NHL career for Florida, the Washington Capitals, Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning, Connolly has scored 100 goals with 92 assists for 192 points in 517 games. 

Borgstrom, 23, has scored 11 goals with eight assists for 19 points in 27 games for HIFK Helsinki in Finland this season. In his NHL career Borgstrom has scored nine goals with 10 assists for 19 points in 58 games. 

Stillman, 23, has no points in eight NHL games and three assists in five games for the AHL\’s Syracuse Crunch this year. In his NHL career Stillman has no goals and five assists in 43 games. 

 

        The New York Islanders have acquired forwards Kyle Palmieri and Travis Zajac from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for a 2021 1st round pick, a 2022 conditional 4th round pick, and forwards AJ Greer and Mason Jobst. The 4th round pick becomes a 2022 3rd rounder if the Islanders advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. New Jersey also retained 50% of both Palmieri and Zajac\’s salary. 

The Islanders had some forward holes before and after captain Anders Lee\’s season ending injury, but they are all gone now. Palmieri is the big prize here, although he is having a down season. His 9.5 shooting percentage is his lowest since 2013-14. Palmieri scored a minimum of 24 goals and a max of 30 from 2015-16 to 2019-20, and was an elite power play presence for the Devils. He had exactly 11 power play goals in each of the past three seasons, but has netted just one so far this year. He is a right-handed shot, but could still fill in for Lee on the top left wing role. Palmieri could also move down to the second line if the Isles want to keep him on the right wing. He was born in Smithtown, which is on Long Island. Zajac is a veteran who mainly plays center, but could move to the wing, as the Islanders have an open spot on the third line at left wing. He provides center depth in case a center goes down, like Casey Cizikas did on the postseason last year. Zajac actually has more points than Palmieri this year, but that is because of an absurd 20.6 shooting percentage. His 34 shots in 33 games will not be good enough. Zajac also has a 53.7 faceoff percentage in his career. Of course, both players were Devils when Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello was in New Jersey, but only Zajac actually played a game under Lou (he played quite a few games, actually). They will reunite with Andy Greene and Cory Schneider, former longtime Devils who have recently joined New York. A first round pick is steep in a buyers\’ market, but that is a little bit more than what Palmieri would have cost, and then you throw in Zajac. The 4th is an extra pick, while Jobst and Greer are to offset the contracts. Both players will be free agents at the end of the season, and after salary retention, New York has about $3.1 million left in cap space. 

Palmieri, 30, has scored eight goals with nine assists for 17 points in 34 games in 2020-21. In his NHL career for the Devils and Anaheim Ducks Palmieri has scored 183 goals with 172 assists for 355 points in 595 games. 

Zajac, 35, has scored seven goals with 11 assists for 18 points in 33 games for New Jersey this year. In his NHL career, all with the Devils Zajac has scored 202 goals with 348 assists for 550 points in 1024 games. 

This may hurt for Devils fans. Palmieri was one of the team\’s best players, and by far their best winger. And Zajac was the team\’s longest tenured player after they traded Greene at last year\’s deadline, and he played over 1000 games and 15 seasons for the club. But, both were pending UFAs, and they eat some money to potentially get a better return, which could explain the conditional 4th rounder. The first is obviously the key here, as it helps them continue with their long going rebuild, although at this point the pick looks to be late in the first round. The Devils do not get much more than AHL depth with Jobst and Greer, who both are not really prospects. The most notable thing about them is their difference in size; Jobst stands five feet and eight inches tall, seven inches smaller than the six-foot-three Greer. Jobst captained Ohio State University, and had 36 points in 36 games in his final season, before signing with the Islanders. The AHL has not been kind to him, and he is not young. Greer was a 2015 2nd rounder by Colorado, and was acquired in the offseason for Kyle Burroughs, who just debuted for the Avalanche recently. He has played some NHL games over three years for the Avs, but not with great results.

Greer, 24, has scored one goal with one assist for two points in 10 games for the AHL\’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers in 2020-21. In his NHL career in Colorado, he has scored a goal with five assists for six points in 37 games. 

Jobst, 27, has no goals and two assists in six games for the Sound Tigers this year. In his two year pro career, Jobst has scored five goals with 10 assists for 15 points in 50 games.