CarterHud

         The St. Louis Blues have acquired defenseman Marco Scandella from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2020 second round pick and a conditional 2021 4th round pick. The Canadiens get the 4th rounder if Scandella re-signs in St. Louis, or if the Blues win two playoff rounds and Scandella plays in at least half of the games. The Canadiens also retain 50% of Scandella\’s $4 million cap hit.

         This is a really good return for the Canadiens. They acquired Scandella for a 4th rounder earlier this year, and exchanged him for a second and potentially another 4th round pick. That is an odd thing considering his scoring and +/- numbers went down post trade. The Blues might have been desperate. A third round pick was a more appropriate price for Scandella. He is a defensive defenseman that will play bottom pair minutes. The Blues could use a left handed defenseman as now Jay Bouwmeester is out indefinitely. Vince Dunn and Carl Gunnarsson are the only other lefty defensemen on the roster.

          The Canadiens are not in a good spot this year, currently sixth in the Atlantic Division with 62 points. It is very unlikely that they make the playoffs. They are looking to trade their rentals. They will profit big on in-season additions Scandella and Ilya Kovalchuk. Moving up two rounds for Scandella is an absolute steal for GM Marc Bergevin.

           Scandella, who will be 30 on Sunday, has scored four goals with eight assists for 12 points in 51 games for the Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres this year. In his NHL career for the Canadiens, Sabres and Minnesota Wild, Scandella has scored 42 goals with 94 assists for 136 points in 569 games.

From NBC Sports

      The Washington Capitals have acquired defenseman Brenden Dillon from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a 2020 second round pick and a conditional 2021 3rd round pick. If the Capitals win the Stanley Cup this year, than the Sharks get Arizona\’s 2020 third round pick. The Sharks also will retain 50% of Dillon\’s salary.

      The Sharks are not normally in the position that they are currently in. The last few years, they have been trade deadline buyers. But, everything has gone wrong for them this year. They are currently 6th in the Pacific Division with 56 points and no hope to make the playoffs. Like all the other bad teams do annually, it\’s time for the Sharks to sell their pending UFAs. Dillon is a defensive defenseman that won\’t have value for the Sharks, but can play on the bottom pair for the Capitals. The team needed a left defenseman to play behind Michal Kempny and Dmitry Orlov. Dillon fits the bill. Paying a second and a third is a rough price, but for a team that will finish top three in the league, draft picks aren\’t a concern right now. Previous deadline deals have found the Caps acquiring really good fits. Kempny and Carl Hagelin were once rentals like Dillon but were extended by the Caps.

        Dillon, 29, has one goal with 13 assists for 14 points in 59 games for the Sharks this season. In his NHL career for the Sharks and Dallas Stars, Dillon has scored 22 goals with 92 assists for 114 points in 588 games.

     

    The Winnipeg Jets have acquired defenseman Dylan DeMelo from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a 2020 3rd round draft pick.

           The Jets badly need a defenseman. Dustin Byfuglien isn\’t coming back this season. Neal Pionk is in the middle of a career season with 38 points, but the depth on the right side is lacking behind him. Tucker Poolman has played in a career high 46 games this year, but he\’s 26 and has not shown signs of being a future piece. 23 year old Samu Niku has played in just 16 games, taking six penalties. He had one penalty in his previous 31 career games. DeMelo comes in at a good cost. He will not score, but he is a good defensive defenseman, and suitable for a bottom four role. Even though he is a rental, a third round pick is not much. He will turn 27 in May, so they could re-sign him. He averaged nearly 20 minutes a night in Ottawa, and while he should probably be averaging around 18 for a playoff team, the Jets might need him to play even more. Playing on a horrible Senators team, DeMelo has been a +2 player in his two year career with the club. Besides Pionk and Josh Morrissey, the defense will be a big issue. DeMelo will help easy the load of starting goalie Connor Hellebuyck, who has faced an NHL high 1520 shots, saving a high of 1397.

              DeMelo, 26, has no goals with 10 assists in 49 games for the Senators this year. In his NHL career for the Senators and San Jose Sharks, DeMelo has seven goals with 57 assists for 64 points in 259 games.

              The Senators are starting their third annual fire sale. While it won\’t be as big as last year\’s or as small as 2018\’s, the team is expected to bring in some high draft picks. Jean-Gabriel Pageau and potentially Anthony Duclair will go. DeMelo is the start. A third rounder is a little light, especially after the Devils got a second round pick and David Quenneville from the Islanders for Andy Greene. However, Greene is better and more experienced and was New Jersey\’s captain. I thought that Ottawa could\’ve gotten an add-on pick, like a sixth or seventh.

            The Vancouver Canucks have acquired forward Tyler Toffoli from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for forwards Tim Schaller and Tyler Madden, plus a 2020 second round pick and a conditional 2022 4th round pick. The Kings only get the last pick if Toffoli, a pending UFA, re-signs with Vancouver.

             The Canucks don\’t necessarily need scoring, they are tied for eighth in the league in goals scored. However, you can always use another goal scorer on your team. Toffoli is a pure rental, which saves them their first round pick. The JT Miller trade cost them their first this year, but they still have one next season. They give up the second rounder which will likely be a late pick. Schaller is a depth forward who is having a bad season, with just one assist in 51 games and a career worst -13 rating. Madden, a 2018 third round pick, is having a great season at Northeastern. He projects as a middle-six forward. He is still 20, though. Toffoli had a down year in 2018-19, but has bounced back, already tying his point total from last season. He is on pace for a 20 goal season. Unless he goes on a tear, he will not reach 30 goals for the first time since 2015-16.

             Toffoli, 27, has scored 18 goals with 16 assists for 34 points in 58 games for the Kings this year. In his NHL career, all in Los Angeles, Toffoli has scored 139 goals with 151 assists for 290 points in 515 games. He carries a $4.6 million cap hit.

             The Kings tried to sell high on Toffoli following his hat-trick in the Stadium Series win vs Colorado. It didn\’t really work, as they failed to receive a first round pick. The market for forwards will be higher with a lower quality of players on the market. Behind Chris Kreider, Toffoli might be the best rental forward available. There is a good chance that if L.A. waited until Monday\’s deadline, they could have gotten a higher price.

             Schaller, 29, is also a pending free agent. He has scored five goals with an assist for six points in 51 games for the Canucks this season. In his NHL career for the Canucks, Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres, Schaller has scored 29 goals with 28 assists for 57 points in 274 games. He carries a $1.9 million cap hit.

             Madden, 20, has scored 19 goals with 18 assists for 37 points in 27 games for Northeastern University. In his two year career at Northeastern Madden has scored 31 goals with 34 assists for 65 points in 63 games.

From NBC

           The Tampa Bay Lightning have acquired forward Blake Coleman from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for forward Nolan Foote and a 2020 1st round pick from Vancouver.

           The price for Coleman may seem high at first, and that\’s because it is. Coleman is a good player, but that\’s essentially two first round picks given up for him. Foote was Tampa Bay\’s first round pick in this past draft. On the bright side for Tampa Bay, Coleman has one more year under contract, and at $1.8 million he has a very low cap hit. Plus, if he is playing with better players like Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov, he could see an increase in scoring. He already is one goal away from tying the career high he set last year. Coleman does not get many assists, though. He has 20 less assists than goals in his career, uncommon for a forward with less than 100 career points. Coleman can play center and wing. He also can kill penalties. For the Devils this year, Coleman has averaged 2:47 minutes a game short handed. He is very underrated and can blossom even more in Tampa Bay, but it still is a really good trade for a Devils team without hope this year. The team is in the hunt for the first overall pick again, and probably next year too. Coleman, at 28, does not have much value for them. Foote will be a key part of the team when they start to be competitive again. It is not good to see the Lightning give up on Foote this early into his Lightning career, nearly eight months after he was drafted. Also, the first round pick is based off of where the Canucks finish, which is not good for the Lightning. It is better to bet on yourself and trade your own pick than trade someone else\’s pick. However, if the pick is high, the team will feel better than if their own pick was a high pick.

              Coleman, 28, has 21 goals with 10 assists for 31 points in 57 games this year. In his NHL career, all for the Devils, Coleman has scored 57 goals with 37 assists for 94 points in 237 games.

              Foote, 19, has scored 15 goals with 18 assists for 33 points in 26 games for the WHL\’s Kelowna Rockets this year. In his four year career for Kelowna, Foote has scored 83 goals with 88 assists for 171 points in 194 games.