Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Trade deadline wrap-up, Part 1

Here's part 1 of the NHL Trade Deadline wrap-up:

The Calgary Flames have acquired Olli Jokinen and a third-round pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft from the the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for forward Matthew Lombardi, forward Brandon Prust and a conditional first round draft pick. The draft pick heading to the Coyotes will either be in the upcoming NHL entry draft or the 2010 draft, at Calgary's option. Brochu's take: The Flames are really making a run for it, and Jokinen should shore up their centre depth. It's a lot to give up for him, but Jokinen does have one more year on his contract.

The Flames also acquired defenseman Jordan Leopold from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for defenseman Lawrence Nycholat, prospect Ryan Wilson and a 2nd round pick in 2009. Brochu's take: With the injury to Mark Giordano, the Flames needed another defenseman. With Leopold in the fold, he should make a strong defensive core even stronger. Again, it's a big price to pay for a pending UFA.

The Flames also traded goalie Kevin Lalande to the Columbus Blue Jackets for a fourth-round draft pick in 2009.

The Ottawa Senators have traded forward Antoine Vermette to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for goalie Pascal Leclaire and a 2nd-round pick in 2009. Brochu's take: This trade has been rumored for a few days now. If Leclaire can regain his form from a year ago, this could become a steal for the Sens. Vermette should help the centre depth on the BJs, but I really don't see him as a top 6 forward.

The Phoenix Coyotes also traded defenseman Derek Morris to the New York Rangers in exchange for defenseman Dmitri Kalinin and forwards Nigel Dawes and Petr Prucha. Brochu's take: Don Maloney's role as ex-assistant GM of the Rangers comes into play again. I think the Coyotes get the better deal, as Dawes and Prucha are good young players, while Kalinin provides veteran depth. Morris has been rumored to multiple teams, but his price has been driven up by the lack of quality defenseman available.

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