The NHL trade deadline has passed and similar to the NBA, the blockbuster move just wasn’t in the cards this year. That doesn’t mean that teams weren’t making moves though. Unlike the NBA, the final hour was rife with teams wheeling and dealing. Rather than doing winners and losers, I’ll be doing some of my biggest takeaways from the NHL trade deadline.

Washington and Montreal Go All-In

The leaders in the Metropolitan and Atlantic divisions pushed their chips into the middle of the table for a better shot at hoisting the Stanley Cup later this year. Montreal, realizing that there is a small window with aging stars like Carey Price and Shea Weber, made a few moves to acquire multiple players at the deadline. The Canadiens were easily the busiest team in the NHL over the past 48 hours. These moves signal a defensive philosophy under new head coach Claude Julien. Montreal loaded up on big-bodied defensemen and is banking on the blue-liners to bring them deep into the postseason. It cost them picks, but the Habs were able to keep its best prospects in the process.

Meanwhile, Washington made the biggest deal at the deadline, acquiring the top name on the market in defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. It wasn’t cheap, but most experts were surprised that the Capitals didn’t give up more to get Shattenkirk. Washington gave up a first round pick in 2017, a conditional second round pick (likely in 2019), plus prospects Zach Sanford and Brad Malone. TSN’s Bob McKenzie also reported that the Blues retained nearly 40 percent of Shattenkirk’s salary in the deal. Now, this is a “mercenary deal” because Shattenkirk will become a free agent after the season and will likely test the market rather than resign with Washington.

It is a bold move for the Capitals, who haven’t gotten past the second round during the Alexander Ovechkin era. This is a case of the rich getting richer though, and Washington telling the rest of the league that it is Stanley Cup or bust this year.

Radim Vrbata’s Bonuses Keep Him in Arizona

As the clock ticked away to 3 p.m. today, many of the analysts on NHL Network believed Coyotes forward Radim Vrbata would be the big name on the move today. That would not come to be, and then reports trickled in regarded a factor that likely warded off potential suitors. Vrbata, who is in the top-30 in assists this season, had massive postseason performance bonuses in his contract. Those bonuses could have paid him up to $250,000 per round, and was likely the biggest factor in Vrbata staying put this year.

The NHL salary cap is one of the toughest, and these types of financial factors always come into play this time of year. Take a look at some of the moves that Tampa Bay made over the past week and you have a good idea of just how much money talks in the NHL.

Jarome Iginla and Thomas Vanek Deals Highlight the Final Hours of the Deadline

While the big blockbuster deal didn’t happen today, two teams did make moves to bolster its roster for the playoff push. Los Angeles acquired veteran winger Jarome Iginla from Colorado. Iginla may be one the last legs of a great career, but he will get one final chance to win a Stanley Cup with the Kings, who are also making a push to win a third Stanley Cup with its aging core of players.

Over in the Eastern Conference, the Florida Panthers added some firepower by trading for winger Thomas Vanek from Detroit. Vanek has been on the decline in recent years since leaving Buffalo, but he will be a solid veteran presence for a young Panthers team looking to make another step forward. It’s also a good faith move for its aging stars Jaromir Jagr and Roberto Luongo, who have a limited amount of time left before hanging up their skates for good.

Mark Streit’s Interesting Day

Mark Streit had a very weird hour or so as the trade deadline approached. The Philadelphia Flyers came into the trade deadline with some uncertainty. They have been struggling since the ten-game winning streak earlier in the year, but are still theoretically in playoff contention. Many people around the league weren’t sure if the Flyers would be buying or selling today. We got our answer right around 2:30 p.m. as Philadelphia shipped Streit, one of the team’s assistant captains, to Tampa Bay for center Valtteri Filppula, a 2017 fourth round pick, and a conditional seventh round pick.

This is where part of the fun of the trade deadline in the NHL came into play. Unlike the NBA, teams are able to trade recently acquired players right away. Tampa Bay, literally, wasted no time moving its newest player. In the waning moments before the trade deadline, the Lightning traded Streit to Pittsburgh for a 2017 fourth round pick. It’s a good thing Streit didn’t have time to make travel arrangements to the Sunshine State.

The Las Vegas Golden Knights Officially Join the NHL 

Amidst all of the wheeling and dealing, the league office made a move of its own today. The NHL announced today that the Las Vegas Golden Knights have officially been added as the 31^st team in the league. In addition, the league also outlined the regulations for Las Vegas to conduct business in regards to roster moves ahead of the Expansion Draft on June 21. This means the Golden Knights can now submit waiver claims and make trades. Obviously, they won’t make any trades until the offseason now. The official addition of Las Vegas to the NHL and the impending Expansion Draft will be an intriguing subplot for the rest of the league heading into the 2017-18 season.

 

That’s it for me today. I’ll be covering St. Augustine vs. Red Bank Catholic for SNJ Today tomorrow. You can watch the game on Facebook or on SNJToday.com. Follow me on Twitter @thereal_jmooney and go like the Shooting the Moon page on Facebook.