The NHL trade deadline may have come a day early after a bevy of goaltender trades, capped off with Roberto Luongo finding a new home in Florida, the Phoenix Coyotes got busy with a pair of trades:
These are good trades for Phoenix for pretty much the same reason.
David Rundblad (D)
Rundblad is a former first round pick (17th overall) from 2009 so he’s not very far removed from being thought of as a solid prospect. Always seen as an offense-first defenseman, Rundblad hasn’t really materialized yet in the NHL with just nine points in 50 games. These have come over parts of three seasons with Ottawa, who then traded him to Phoenix as part of the Kyle Turris trade and now in Chicago. He does have 61 points in his last 86 games in the AHL, for a reference of the talent this 23-year-old has.
This is a bit curious because Rundblad is still young enough to where he can turn into a viable offensive defenseman; Toronto’s Jake Gardiner has certainly had struggles this year and at times in the past, but I don’t think he would be traded as part of a package for a second round pick. Especially where Rundblad has another year on his contract for $785K.
A second round pick is a valuable asset, though. Suppose Phoenix really wants to make a push for the playoffs, that second round pick could be used as a significant sweetener in a deal for any other trade that could be made. It just could very well be that Rundblad ends up being a more impact player in the NHL than whoever is taken with that pick.
Mathieu Brisebois profiles as another puck possession defenseman. His Hockey’s Future profile can be read here.
Martin Erat (F)
The second deal for Phoenix was bigger in number of assets, and saw the return of a long-time Nashville Predator to the Western Conference.
Erat catches a lot of flak in Washington, and for good cause: he was traded for a highly-touted prospect in Filip Forsberg and Erat delivered two goals in 66 games (including playoffs) for the Caps. It should be noted that two distinct things happened for Erat this year: he stopped shooting the puck (his shot rate cut in half from his career rate this season) and he’s averaging about as many assists per game as he ever has. So while he isn’t scoring, he’s still helping elsewhere.
The analytics say Erat is about average and that sounds about right for him; he’s a high-end third liner or low-end second line player whose goal totals in the past were dependent on shooting at a high rate. Now that he’s shooting less and his shooting percentage has crashed, so has his goal totals.
Klesla is an older defenseman going the other way who has split time between the NHL and the AHL so far this year. He fills a desperate need for Washington and that is depth on defense. It was reported earlier that he will first report to the AHL affiliate in Hershey but it probably won’t be long until he makes it to the Big Club.
The two trades for the Coyotes were a dump in what they had excess of: Defensemen. The Coyotes have five defensemen on the roster signed through next year and three through the year after that. They also have Connor Murphy and Brandon Gormley – both former first round picks from the last four years – that are on the cusp of needing every day ice time in the NHL. The Coyotes got a forward for some depth and a second round pick in return for two average (for now) defensemen that they didn’t really need. That’s not a bad day.
If today was any indication, tomorrow will be a wild day for the trade deadline. Or maybe that was today. Either way, XN Sports will have you covered for trade deadline updates and analysis.
