The Minnesota Wild management team has completed the heavy lifting.
Speaking on a conference call shortly after trading a collection of draft picks to the Arizona Coyotes for talented pivot Martin Hanzal (and sandpapered winger Ryan White), Wild GM Chuck Fletcher indicated that he likely won't be making any further tweaks after acquiring the player he called the "top rental forward on the market."
"I would assume we're done, but we'll regroup tomorrow and continue to look at everything on a day-by-day basis."
Among other nuggets, Fletcher admitted that keeping Hanzal away from other Western Conference hopefuls played into the decision to acquire him, and he did not provide immediate indication that he intends to work hard to re-sign the incoming third-line center.
Fletcher also mentioned that he was happy to have completed a deal without giving up one of the Wild's top prospects.
With Hanzal re-distributing talent on the depth chart, as well as White offering a physical element that may have lacked, the first-place Wild look as complete as any team in the Western Conference.
"We're putting our chips in the middle of the table for this year," Fletcher said, according to Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. "We may as well take a swing and see how far we can go."
An incredulous Shane Doan didn't mince words when asked about the Arizona Coyotes trading Martin Hanzal in an interview conducted during an intermission in Sunday's game versus the Buffalo Sabres.
Ben Bishop and Martin Hanzal are off the board, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of players for GMs to get their hands on prior to the trade deadline.
Here are five of the best rental players likely to move before March 1:
Kevin Shattenkirk
The secret is out. The St. Louis Blues are sure to deal the puck-moving defenseman before the deadline, particularly as a pure rental, after previous attempts to move him in a sign-and-trade deal were rebuffed.
A year ago, the Blues carried a pair of pending unrestricted free agents into the playoffs in forwards David Backes and Troy Brouwer, only to lose both in free agency. General manager Doug Armstrong doesn't want to see the same happen with Shattenkirk. The blue-liner carries an affordable $4.25-million cap hit, making it easier for the Blues to find a trade match.
Thomas Vanek
The Detroit Red Wings winger is a prime trade chip ahead of the deadline. After his contract was bought out by the Minnesota Wild a year ago, Vanek has has experienced a resurgence with the Red Wings. With 38 points in 47 games, only Detroit captain Henrik Zetterberg has outpaced the veteran.
Vanek is considered a pure rental, as the Red Wings have expressed an interest in re-signing the winger, particularly if he's willing to return on a similar cap hit to the $2.6 million he earned this season.
Radim Vrbata
Hanzal is en route to St. Paul, while his former teammate is also a good bet to be on the move.
The veteran winger made his third tour of duty in the desert after agreeing to a bonus-laden contract with the Arizona Coyotes in the offseason. Vrbata has already eclipsed his extra money for games played and points scored, and the next round of bonus cash comes in the playoffs. He'll earn $250,000 if the team qualifies for the playoffs, and another quarter-million for each round they win.
The veteran winger leads the Coyotes with 44 points.
Patrick Sharp
It doesn't hurt to add a winner when bulking up for the postseason, and the Dallas Stars winger offers that in spades. Sharp won three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks, most recently in 2015.
The question is whether Sharp is the same player who had his best campaign with the Blackhawks in 2013-14, recording 78 points. He's now in his second season in Dallas, where he has battled concussion concerns, tallying 15 points in 36 games this season.
Brian Boyle
He's not Hanzal on the scoresheet, but the two aren't all that different up the middle. The hulking pivot is a valuable option at center ice, one the Tampa Bay Lightning would like to cash in on before the deadline. Boyle can chip in offensively, too, with 13 goals to his credit this season.
Boyle could become the go-to target for general managers who lost out on the Hanzal sweepstakes. That's good news for Lightning GM Steve Yzerman, who kicked off the trade cycle Sunday, dealing Bishop to the Los Angeles Kings.
Erie Community College (NJCAA) player storms out of penalty box to level referee late in 3rd period, ending national title game pic.twitter.com/UuJYjSER3K
There was a gross conclusion to an NJCAA title game Sunday between Erie and Dakota College when a freshman player charged out of the penalty box to attack a referee.
The game was called with 39 seconds left as a result of the violent tackle, and Dakota College was awarded the 7-4 win.
As it turns out, this was the last game in NJCAA history, as the association has plans to dissolve.
Two of the biggest names available on the trade market were dealt in the space of no more than an hour Sunday, with Ben Bishop heading to Los Angeles to form an intriguing tandem with Jonathan Quick, and the Minnesota Wild stating their intent with the acquisition of hulking center Martin Hanzal.
Here are a few thoughts on the deals involving potential first-round combatants:
Kings crown Bishop on the cheap
It's remarkable how things turned out.
Though Bishop finished behind Braden Holtby on the Vezina Trophy ballot, the Lightning had a netminder who was, in many respects, the top performer at his position as a trade chip for summer dealings.
With the Flames, Leafs, and Stars in the market for help in net, it seemed certain Steve Yzerman would whip up the sort of return that would put his ultra-talented team over the top.
Fast-forward a few months, and after his trade value dipped due to diminished performance and his looming unrestricted free agency, and Bishop is headed to the Kings for a relatively modest return in a deal that when analyzed with cursory review, doesn't make immediate sense for either team involved.
Bishop's acquisition comes a little over 24 hours after Jonathan Quick returned from a four-month stint on the shelf with a groin injury. The Kings had their two-time Stanley Cup champion back in net for the stretch run, substituting for the replacement-level starter summoned from the minor leagues.
But the question of timing goes beyond the outward redundancy of having two No. 1 netminders. If the Kings coveted Bishop all along, why didn't they trade for him months ago?
Well, there are few reasons.
As mentioned, Bishop's market value has continued to drop, reaching a point the Kings felt comfortable matching. And second, with appropriate time to appraise his team, Dean Lombardi was evidently confident enough to make the determination that the Kings can make a run, and jumped at a move that should benefit them down the stretch.
With 21 games remaining, including four sets of back-to-backs, the Kings will average a game every other night until the end of the season. It's a workload that would have to be considered a sizable burden for a goaltender on the mend from a serious groin injury.
With Bishop, Los Angeles will have fresh, and potentially dominant goaltending throughout its drive to the postseason.
It's a worthwhile gamble, even if the Lombardi's intentions are ultimately a little misguided. Because the trade makes you wonder about what the Bolts could have had, not what the Kings gave up.
Wild stomach hefty price tag on Hanzal
Yes, it's a weak draft. Yes, the Western Conference is there for the taking. And sure, we suppose he could sign an extension. But despite whatever spin is put on the Martin Hanzal deal, the Minnesota Wild did give up an awful lot for a center who has never scored 20 goals, and who tops out at 41 points.
Case in point:
John Chayka got the same return for Martin Hanzal and Ryan White that Don Sweeney got for Dougie Hamilton.
Hanzal will slot behind Mikko Koivu and Eric Staal (acquired by the Rangers at the deadline last season for considerably less, by the way) to form a forbidding pivot trio, and round out and properly disperse one of the NHL's most efficient top-nine forward groupings. There's not much debate: Hanzal improves the Wild's chances of making right by what has been a dominant season to date.
Invariably, the cost will intensify the sting if the Wild crash out prematurely once again, but you can't fault a first-place team for acquiring the piece it believes completes a title winner.
To boot, the Kings acquired Bishop at a relatively low price, sending veteran netminder Peter Budaj, prospect Erik Cernak, and two draft choices to Tampa Bay.
Sitting 12th in the West, the Stars are nine points outside of the playoff picture, due in large part to holes in the crease. The duo of Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi owns the NHL's second-worst shared save rate, coming in at .895. On Sunday, Lehtonen allowed six goals on 28 shots in a loss to the Boston Bruins.
It's been a disappointing season in Dallas after the Stars won the Central Division a year ago en route to a 109-point finish. The team advanced to the second round of the postseason, its best playoff finish since 2008, before the goaltending went south in the decisive Game 7 versus the St. Louis Blues. In that match, the Stars' netminders allowed five goals on only 18 shots.
Heading into next season, Lehtonen and Niemi are both under contract, but some shuffling by Nill could fix that problem. The GM could issue a buyout to either goaltender. (Niemi would be the more logical buyout, penalizing the Wild just $1.5 million over the next two seasons.) Another option is to include an asset with either netminder to tempt the Vegas Golden Knights to pluck either Niemi or Lehtonen in the upcoming expansion draft.
As for Bishop, he's a pending unrestricted free agent, and a pure rental for the Kings, as there isn't a long-term space for him in Los Angeles behind starter Jonathan Quick. But a short tour in Texas would have allowed the Stars an opportunity to evaluate him as a full-time option for 2017-18.
That won't stop the Stars from potentially pursuing Bishop in the offseason, should he reach free agency, but there are no guarantees. If Bishop is off the board, the free agency pool offers little depth, headlined by the likes of Ryan Miller, Jonathan Bernier, and Steve Mason.
In the meantime, Dallas is set to miss the playoffs, failing to build on last year's impressive campaign. That may not have been the case had Nill acted early and shored up his team between the pipes.
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Getting a jump on the madness that could possibly occur on Wednesday's trade deadline, Tampa Bay opted to send impending free agent Bishop to Los Angeles on Sunday in exchange for fellow netminder Budaj.
The move crowds the crease in Los Angeles, where franchise goalie Jonathan Quick had only just made a triumphant return following a lower-body injury that had kept him out of action since the opening game of the season. Quick made 32 saves in a 4-1 home win over Anaheim on Saturday.
Bishop has had a poor season by his standards; with 16 wins thus far, 2016-17 will snap a streak of three straight campaigns with at least 35 victories. His goals against average (2.55) and save percentage (.911) are also the worst marks of his four full years in Tampa Bay.
With that said, Bishop has seemingly found his form and is joining the Kings on a roll. The 6-foot-7 netminder has allowed a mere six goals in his last five starts en route to a 5-0-0 record and one shutout. 22-year-old Russian Andrei Vasilevskiy, who has made 29 starts in his third NHL season, should assume the No. 1 role in Tampa Bay.
The Kings, still very much in the playoff mix, likely see Bishop as a high-end insurance policy for Quick. It's not an ideal situation for fantasy owners of either goaltender, but it's somewhat helped by the resolute Los Angeles defense.
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
Los Angeles' puck-possession approach has led to the team allowing the fifth-fewest goals (2.43) and the fewest shots (25.8) per game. Per Corsica.hockey, both the Kings' 5-on-5 Corsi For percentage and expected goals allowed per 60 minutes rank behind only Boston.
Bishop and Quick could very well alternate starts down the stretch, but both should have strong chances at wins and favorable rate stats thanks to Los Angeles' stout defense.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
Winners and losers
In theScore's Top 200 fantasy hockey rankings (which will be updated on Monday), Budaj (position 105), Bishop (152), Vasilevskiy (191) and Quick (198) all make appearances.
Quick's stock was set to rise regardless, thanks to his recent return to health, but his ceiling is now capped thanks to Bishop's arrival. Conversely, Bishop can't enjoy a sustained run of starts with Quick in the picture.
Vasilevskiy hasn't made the most of his chances this season; he's recorded a win in just one of his last 13 appearances, resulting in a tumble to the basement of the fantasy rankings. He's far from a sure thing, but it would appear that Tampa Bay looks set to hand him the reins the rest of the way.
The 34-year-old Budaj, despite arguably saving the Kings' season in Quick's extended absence, looks to be the biggest loser among the four netminders. His starting role is likely gone, and though fantasy owners may wish to wait and see exactly how playing time is divided up in the Tampa Bay crease, he may be nothing more than Vasilevskiy's backup.
Of the four, he looks like he may end up on the waiver wire sooner rather than later, despite his stellar play as a King.
The Arizona Coyotes dealt the veteran forward to the Wild on Sunday in exchange for Minnesota's first-round pick in 2017, second-round selection in 2018, and conditional pick in 2019, reports Craig Custance of ESPN.
According to TSN's Bob McKenzie, the conditional pick in 2019 is a fourth-rounder, and becomes a third-round pick if the Wild win one playoff round. It becomes a second-round pick if the Wild win two rounds.
