Livescore
Phones down. The 2023 NHL trade deadline has concluded, with the 3 p.m. ET marking the end of the trading period.
Overall, Friday was an extremely quiet day. There were not a ton of deals made, nor were there any major names moved.
However, the weeks and days leading up to the deadline made for one of the most hectic times the NHL has seen in a while. A plethora of high-end players were shipped to new destinations, as contenders loaded up to make a run in the 2023 playoffs.
NHL TRADE DEADLINE TRACKER 2023: Every player and draft pick moved
With the deadline officially over, The Sporting News hands out grades for the biggest deals made.
- Rangers receive: F Patrick Kane, D Cooper Zech
- Blackhawks receive: D Andy Welinski, D Vili Saarijarvi, 2023 conditional 2nd-round pick, 2025 4th-round pick
- Coyotes receive: 2025 3rd-round pick (Rangers)
Rangers: A-
The packages for Tanner Jeannot and Jake McCabe/Sam Lafferty were both more expensive than the one the Rangers sent the Blackhawks. That’s a pretty good indication of where this trade grades for them.
New York essentially got one of the best passers and stick handlers in the game for peanuts (a conditional 2nd-round pick and a 4th-rounder). Kane’s no-trade clause really complicated things for Chicago and general manager Chris Drury took advantage of that.
Blackhawks: D+
These trades are nearly impossible to grade for the club sending away the player. You can’t assess it by simply looking at it in a black-and-white way.
However, the Blackhawks got no players or prospects back in the deal, and are holding out hope that the second-round pick becomes a first. The condition on it is that if the Rangers win two rounds and make it to the Eastern Conference Final, it becomes a first. However, it won’t be until 2024 or 2025.
That’s not at all the deal that was expected to come to fruition when Kane trade talks began nearly a year ago. Again, it’s hard to fault general manager Kyle Davidson when his hands were tied. But this return is greatly disappointing.
- Rangers receive: F Vladimir Tarasenko, D Niko Mikkola
- Blues receive: F Sammy Blais, D Hunter Skinner, 2023 1st-round pick, 2024 4th-round pick
Rangers: A-
Ultimately, the Rangers got what they needed — a first-line right winger.
It has been a rotating cast that has played alongside No. 1 center Mika Zibanejad and his primary left wing, Chris Kreider. Head coach Gerard Gallant has tried Jimmy Vesey and Kappo Kakko in that spot for a majority of the season, but neither is a proven first-liner.
Tarasenko is a bonafide top winger, when healthy. He has hit at least 30 goals every season in which he has played at least 75 games. His shooting percentage this year is under 10%, which marks the second-lowest rate in his career but could bounce back with a more talented cast around him.
Blues: B
Finally, Tarasenko is out of St. Louis. It’s been brewing for a couple of seasons now, but it felt like a Tarasenko move was inevitable at this deadline given his free agency status and where the Blues are positioned in the standings.
Already owning their own selection, the Blues will have a chance at drafting two players in the first round this summer after acquiring another first-rounder from the Rangers.
Considering they are eating half of Tarasenko’s remaining salary this year, they could have done a bit more. Tarasenko having a no-trade clause likely impacted the return for St. Louis, but I would have liked to have seen them get a better prospect, especially with the Rangers having other young defensemen in their system like Zac Jones or Matthew Robertson.
Like any deal done with a pending UFA, the Blues got something for a player that had the potential to walk for nothing. That’s a win.
- Maple Leafs receive: F Ryan O’Reilly, F Noel Acciari
- Blues receive: F Mikhail Abramov, F Adam Gaudette, 2023 1st-round pick, 2023 3rd-round pick, 2024 2nd-round pick
- Wild receive: 2025 4th-round pick (Maple Leafs)
Maple Leafs: A-
The Maple Leafs already had a talented top-six, and adding a proven winner in O’Reilly only bolsters that. He is one of the best two-way centers in the game, excellent in the faceoff and immediately gives the Maple Leafs a boost.
In addition, Acciari adds sandpaper to the bottom six for Toronto. There has been a lot of tinkering throughout the season with the Maple Leafs’ third and fourth lines, and Acciari should provide some consistent defensive play and penalty-killing.
Toronto was forced to use a first-round pick but did not give up any of their top prospects in the deal.
Blues: A
It was clear after the Tarasenko trade that the Blues are selling at the deadline, and O’Reilly follows. GM Doug Armstrong recognized he was not going to work out an extension with his captain and instead of holding onto him, he dealt the center to a contender for a chance to win a Cup.
The Blues gain back a first-round pick, a second and a third, in addition to the players coming back in the deal. It’s a great trade for St. Louis who is looking to retool on the fly and can use the picks potentially in another deal to avoid a complete rebuild.
- Senators receive: D Jakob Chychrun
- Coyotes receive: 2023 conditional 1st-round pick, 2024 conditional 2nd-round pick, 2026 2nd-round pick
Senators: A+
Dating back to this summer, the discourse surrounding the Senators is that they needed to add a top-four defenseman. They found one in Chychrun.
Ottawa gets a 24-year-old with two more years on his deal. That fits the mold of the team perfectly, with a young core of Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Josh Norris. Chychrun can help Ottawa make a push for the playoffs this year while adding an essential piece to the young core.
GM Pierre Dorion was set on not giving up prospects like Ridly Greig and Tyler Kleven in a deal for the Coyotes defenseman, and the tactic worked. The cost ended up being so much less than expected, making it a great deal for Ottawa.
Coyotes: D
After all the rumblings and reported interest from multiple suitors, the offer the Coyotes accepted for Chychrun was a conditional first-round pick and two seconds from the Senators. Arizona received no prospects in the deal, despite the Senators having a number of enticing candidates.
There is some merit to the thought process that the Senators’ first-round pick is more valuable than if the Coyotes received two firsts from a contender. But it’s still such an underwhelming return for their most valuable asset.
- Devils receive: F Timo Meier, F Timur Ibragimov, D Scott Harrington, D Santeri Hatakka, G Zachary Emond, 2024 5th-round pick
- Sharks receive: F Fabian Zetterlund, F Andreas Johnsson, D Shakir Muhkamadullin, D Nikita Ohkotyuk, 2023 1st-round pick, 2024 conditional 2nd-round pick, 2024 7th-round pick
Devils: A+
It seemed like a deal between the Sharks and Devils for Meier was inevitable. With the Swiss influence taking over Newark, Meier is a perfect fit with the Devils. Adding him to a forward group that has Jack Hughes, Jesper Bratt, Ondrej Palat and Nico Hischier makes the Devils a legit threat in the Eastern Conference.
GM Tom Fitzgerald was forced to give up defensive prospect Shakir Muhkamadullin and a first-round pick, but the cost was not nearly as much as expected. With Meier being an RFA this summer, the Devils have him under team control for one more year and can work out an extension to make him a part of their bright future.
Sharks: C
Meier was the addition for a team at the deadline. A 26-year-old elite scorer who is a pending RFA, there’s a reason why so many teams were in on the Swiss forward. Yet, the package that the Sharks ultimately accepted was extremely underwhelming, with the highlights being a first-round pick and Mukhamadullin.
Mukhamadullin is a high-end prospect, but the fact that he’s one of the biggest pieces of the deal speaks volumes to the deal. Fabian Zetterlund is a solid young roster player who won’t flourish into anything. The fact that GM Mike Grier couldn’t get two first-rounders is disappointing for a team looking to rebuild through the draft.
- Bruins receive: D Dmitry Orlov, F Garnet Hathaway, F Andrei Svetlakov
- Capitals receive: F Craig Smith, 2023 first-round pick, 2024 third-round pick, 2025 second-round pick
- Wild receive: 2025 fifth-round pick (Bruins)
Bruins: A+
There were reports that Boston was looking at sending a first- and third-round pick the Blue Jackets’ way for defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov. If that deal was made, it surely would not have resulted in the same grade. (The Bruins would have been lucky to receive a D+).
Instead, with the pivot to Orlov, the Bruins get a much better player than Gavrikov for roughly the same price. Orlov has a much higher offensive ceiling than the Blue Jackets’ defender, as he can move the puck up well in the transition game. He can eat up minutes and strengthens the Bruins’ top two defensive pairings.
In addition, the Bruins get one of the best fourth-liners in the game and someone that is sure to make an impact come playoff time in Hathaway.
Capitals: B-
I mentioned how things progressed quite quickly on the Orlov deal. While that worked in favor of Boston, it may have prohibited Washington from getting a better return. Considering the reported price for Gavrikov, it’s a bit disappointing to see the combination of Orlov and Hathaway not go for much more.
Stocking up on draft picks, especially another first-rounder in 2023, is a big get for the Caps. But when looking at other recent deadline moves for defensemen, almost all involved a prospect going back the other way.
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