Winners and losers from NHL trade deadline

Pencils down.

The 2024 NHL trade deadline is now behind us, so it's time to decide who won and who lost. We're factoring in moves made in the weeks leading up to Friday's 3 p.m. deadline.

Winners

Vegas Golden Knights

The Golden Knights don't appear at all satisfied with one Stanley Cup. Vegas went all-in once again this deadline season, hauling in Anthony Mantha, Noah Hanifin, and Tomas Hertl over the past three days. General manager Kelly McCrimmon pulled off his coup without surrendering this year's first-round pick and remained comfortably cap compliant. Although many fans are sour about another year of LTIR gymnastics from the defending champions, they're not breaking any rules. And the buzz Vegas generated from its three blockbusters should be celebrated, not criticized.

Mantha fits the Golden Knights' mantra of two-way responsibility from their forwards, and he can provide some scoring pop for a middle-of-the-pack offensive team. Getting him for two picks and having 50% of his salary retained would have been enough on its own to classify Vegas as winners. But of course, the team located in the entertainment capital of the world proceeded to go above and beyond. The Golden Knights, sorely lacking center depth, landed a star pivot from a division rival. Hertl has posted impressive metrics and traditional stats for a truly awful team in San Jose and should have no problem fitting in once he's healthy. McCrimmon also swindled two third-round picks from the Sharks in the biggest move of deadline day.

Lastly, Hanifin gives Vegas a third star defenseman mixed in with Alex Pietrangelo and Shea Theodore. Vegas' blue line is its biggest strength, and it added another responsible, mobile, puck-mover in his prime. The new-look Golden Knights may be in a wild-card spot for now, but you can bet no one wants to pull them in the playoffs after their latest reinforcements.

Colorado Avalanche and Buffalo Sabres

The Avalanche and Sabres pulled off by far the funnest deal of the deadline by swapping defenseman Bowen Byram for center Casey Mittelstadt. Pure hockey trades like this are a lost art in today's NHL, so executives Chris MacFarland and Kevyn Adams both deserve a stick tap for pulling it off. We love the trade for both sides, too: Colorado had a surplus of defensemen and needed a center, while Buffalo had a surplus of centers and needed to shake up its core. Mittelstadt might be the safer addition, but Byram, the 2019 No. 4 pick, comes with more upside.

The Avalanche did more to further cement themselves as winners, though. They sent a first-round pick and Ryan Johansen (more on him later) to the Philadelphia Flyers for defenseman Sean Walker. Getting Johansen's contract off the books was key, but Walker - an exceptionally smooth skater playing the best hockey of his career - should fit like a glove in Colorado's up-tempo system.

The Avalanche also added depth up front with Brandon Duhaime and Yakov Trenin, a pair of north-south wingers for the bottom six who will wreak havoc on the forecheck come playoff time.

Winnipeg Jets

The Jets didn't spend lavishly this year but made some sensible acquisitions Friday in Tyler Toffoli and Colin Miller to supplement February's addition of Sean Monahan, who's managed eight goals in 13 games with Winnipeg so far. His production has made surrendering a first-round pick much more palatable, and the fact Kevin Cheveldayoff kept shopping despite already hitting a home run cemented the Jets' status as winners.

Toffoli, who cost Winnipeg a third-round pick in 2024 and a second-rounder in 2025, is a shot-first winger that deepens the Jets' top six and should complement either Monahan or Mark Scheifele nicely on the right side. The arrival of the eight-time 20-goal-scorer pushes some less productive names down the lineup and gives Winnipeg another legitimate scoring option on the power play.

Miller has posted sneakily effective underlying metrics this season in sheltered minutes and would be a strong depth option for a lot of teams. Cheveldayoff did a great job identifying Miller's availability, and paying a fourth-rounder for a puck-moving right-handed shot is virtually unheard of this time of year.

Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina landed arguably the best player available in Jake Guentzel from the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Hurricanes only surrendered a trio of B-level prospects from their deep farm system, a second-round pick that becomes a first-rounder if the Canes make the Cup Final, and a fifth-round selection that Pittsburgh receives if Carolina wins the Cup. That's some tidy business by GM Don Waddell.

Going after high-profile rentals isn't typically Carolina's M.O., but Waddell knew this was the time to strike. A lack of scoring punch has led to the Hurricanes' demise in each of their last few playoff exits, but Guentzel should help big time. He's a two-time 40-goal-scorer with 34 tallies in 58 career playoff games. His 22 goals in 50 contests this season are nothing to scoff at, either.

The Hurricanes also made the bold move of bringing in Evgeny Kuznetsov from the Washington Capitals. We're much less optimistic about this deal considering Kuznetsov's steep decline and abysmal on-ice results in the last couple of years. It's also a questionable fit with head coach Rod Brind'Amour. But if there's a way to insulate Kuznetsov in a depth, offensive role, perhaps it could work.

Florida Panthers and Kyle Okposo

The Panthers didn't have much to spend this deadline, but they made the most of it. They reeled in Vladimir Tarasenko from the Ottawa Senators for a pair of mid-round picks and Kyle Okposo from the Sabres for a conditional seventh-rounder and minor-leaguer. But their best - and most important - move wasn't a trade, but an eight-year, $46-million extension for core defenseman Gustav Forsling.

Forsling, one of the league's most underrated players, is a stud on the back end. This deal is more than fair and should age quite nicely. Extending him was pivotal for Florida's long-term outlook.

Tarasenko may be a liability defensively, but he still has some juice offensively with 17 goals on the season. He should be able to help the Cats in a depth role.

While Okposo is a respected leader who should be able to chip in on the fourth line (he's reliable defensively and can still get in on the forecheck), this deal was a bigger win for the player himself. Even without factoring in hockey, going from Buffalo to Sunrise is a major lifestyle victory.

But more importantly, the 17-year NHL veteran gets a chance to chase his first Stanley Cup ring with the league-leading Panthers after failing to qualify for the postseason during his entire eight-year tenure with the Sabres. His last playoff game was in 2016 with the New York Islanders.

Losers

Boston Bruins

The Bruins not adding a center was a curious decision. It's been Boston's most glaring need since Patrice Bergeron retired, but the club didn't pull the trigger on acquiring a pivot and instead brought in winger Patrick Maroon and defenseman Andrew Peeke to round out an underwhelming deadline.

It's difficult to be too harsh on the Bruins considering last year's spending spree paid little dividends, and this season's group is currently second in the league standings. Still, why not at least try to add to a roster in a campaign that's exceeded expectations? Boston, like most teams, is up against the cap, but a handful of quality centers were available this winter. Monahan, Elias Lindholm, or Adam Henrique would've been nice fits in the middle six, but Don Sweeney missed out and failed to secure any backup plans. The Bruins' defense and star goaltending tandem could be strong enough to carry them deep into the playoffs, but Boston's center core is weak relative to its toughest Eastern Conference competition, even with Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle having productive years.

Los Angeles Kings

The Western Conference playoffs are set to be an absolute gauntlet. All of the other contenders (Avalanche, Canucks, Golden Knights, Oilers, Jets, Stars) made notable acquisitions, but the Kings didn't make a single trade.

Los Angeles' biggest need was in goal. GM Rob Blake reportedly almost landed reigning Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins but couldn't get the deal over the finish line. Ullmark's contract includes a 16-team no-trade list, so it's possible he nixed the deal.

The Kings have one of the deepest groups of skaters in the NHL with four solid forward lines and three stellar defense pairs. But while Cam Talbot and David Rittich have played well enough between the pipes this season, it's a stretch to think that tandem can take the Kings to a Stanley Cup. With Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty still effective in their twilight years, Blake should've been more aggressive in addressing his goaltending.

Toronto Maple Leafs

If you're a fan of giant, tough defensemen, this section isn't for you. The Maple Leafs have been chasing a right-handed blue-liner all season and wound up with Ilya Lyubushkin and Joel Edmundson (who shoots left). Toronto gave up two third-rounders, a fifth, and a sixth to bring in a pair of hard-nosed rentals who the club hopes can provide some toughness in a daunting playoff bracket that's likely to include Boston and/or Florida. Adding experience and some level of reliability was necessary for Toronto amid an injury crisis on the back end, but the Leafs have been done in by a failure to move the puck against aggressive forechecks in past playoffs, and neither Edmundson nor Lyubushkin excels in this regard.

The low acquisition prices of Hanifin, Miller, and Chris Tanev make the Leafs’ additions extra baffling. Toronto, while low in draft capital, had the assets to land more effective defensemen based on the market. If physicality has been the missing ingredient for Toronto's playoff success all along, we'll take the heat for our take on the Leafs' deadline. But until proven otherwise, the club failed to adequately address its biggest need after months of waiting.

Ryan Johansen

To be clear, we're not calling Johansen himself a "loser." A 13-year NHL veteran with an estimated $62 million in career earnings has clearly accomplished more than most people ever will. But his current situation in pro hockey, relatively speaking, can be classified as a loss.

Johansen went from serving as a middle-six center on a Stanley Cup-contending Colorado Avalanche team to being traded as a cap dump to a Philadelphia Flyers club that, frankly, doesn't even want him. Philadelphia GM Daniel Briere said Johansen - who has a turbulent history with Flyers coach John Tortorella - isn't part of the team's plans. Johansen was placed on waivers and will be assigned to the AHL after Philly failed to flip him prior to the deadline.

It's been a rapid fall from grace for the 31-year-old Johansen, who put up 63 points as recently as 2021-22.

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