Deadline deals

Well folks, the deadline is here and past. Right now it feels the Christmas afternoon for me... all the presents have been opened, breakfast is over, and I'm kinda just sitting here thinking, "Well that was fun. What do I want to do now?"

To be perfectly honest, I was hoping for a little more action this deadline. I admit, I probably fell victim to the hype the hockey media makes about the deadline, what with all their predictions, team needs, and such. I got caught up in it, and my heart got broken. Keith Tkachuk, Jay Bouwmeester, Vinny Lecavalier, etc. all stayed put. Sniff Sniff. Oh well. We've still got draft day.

Below is a complete list of the trade deadline movement, along with some Thack thoughts about each deal. As always, I invite my two compadres to add their comments as well. Who do you think came out winners in these deals? Hint: Colorado did NOT.

Toronto trades Richard Petiot to Tampa Bay for Olaf Kolzig, Jamie Heward, and Andy Rogers
Thack Thoughts: Toronto is goalie hungry right now with Vesa Toskala out for the rest of the season and Curtis Joseph being, well, old. Kolzig, even as a graybeard, is still a capable backup and should be a great mentor for Justin Pogge. But he's also out for the rest of the regular season with injuries. Jamie Heward is also sidelined indefintely. This trade does not make a lot of sense to me, unless Toronto is somehow trying to sneak into the playoffs.

Buffalo trades Ales Kotalik to Carolina for a 2nd round pick. Carolina then traded him to Edmonton for a 2nd round pick
Thack thought: Carolina is still in the playoff hunt, and Kotalik should help offensively. They still did not address their primary issue of picking up a big defenseman.

Anaheim trades Travis Moen and Kent Huskins to San Jose for Nick Bonino, Timo Pielmeier, and a conditional pick
Awesome deal for San Jose, even if it doesn't look that way on paper. Neither Moen or Huskins will dazzle, but they do provide a heavy dose of sandpaper and championship experience for Stanley Cup contender San Jose. Both players were on Anaheim's cup winning team, with Moen in particular being a key component to the checking line that rendered Ottawa's stars completely ineffective. San Jose's already got the scorers, and now they have the grit to hopefully take them far.

Big-time Three Way Trade involving Los Angeles, Edmonton, and Carolina. LA gets Justin Williams from Carolina, Edmonton gets Patrick O'Sullivan from LA, and Carolina gets Erik Cole from Edmonton.
Good trade for everyone. Cole was not a fit in Edmonton and a homecoming shouldn't hurt. The Oilers get a talented young player who could develop into a star. The Kings made the riskiest move with getting Williams. When he's healthy, he's a superstar. But that's an awfully big "when"

San Jose trades Kyle McLaren to Philadelphia for a 6th round draft pick
Good move for Philadelphia acquiring a guy who can fill in as the 6th d-man if the injury bug bites.

Anaheim trades Sami Pahlsson to Chicago for James Wisniewski
This trade looks really good for Chicago. They got an excellent shut down center who is a perfect fit for the 3rd line. If necessary, he could probably do ok on the 2nd line as well, which is what the Hawks really needed.

Florida trades Noah Welch and a 3rd round pick to Tampa Bay for Steve Eminger
Ok...

Toronto trades Dominic Moore to Buffalo for 2nd round pick
Moore's having a great year, which is good to see. Let's see if he can keep it up.

Atlanta trades Erik Christensen to Anaheim for Eric O'Dell
Christensen has the makings to be a star in this league, but completely fell off the map in Atlanta. Let's hope a change of scenery helps.

Phoenix trades Derek Morris to NYR for Dimitri Kalinin, Petr Prucha, and Nigel Dawes

Phoenix trades Daniel Carcillo to Philadelphia for Scottie Upshall

Toronto trades Nik Antropov to NYR for a 2nd round and conditional draft pick

NYI trades Bill Geurin to Pittsburgh for a conditional 2009 draft pick

Mark Recchi and a 2010 2nd round pick to Boston, Tampa Bay gets Matt Lashoff and Martins Karsums

Phoenix trades Olli Jokinen and a 2009 3rd round pick to Calgary for Matthew Lombardi, Brandon Prust, and 2009 or '10 1st round pick

Boston trades Petteri Nokelainen to Anaheim for Steve Montador

Phoenix trades Mikael Tellqvist to Buffalo for a 2010 4th round pick

Pittsburgh trades Danny Richmond to St. Louis for Andy Wozniewski

Colorado trades Jordan Leopold to Calgary for Lawrence Nychocolat and Ryan Wilson

Columbus trades Pascal Leclaire to Ottawa for Antoine Vermette

Waiver Wire
Dallas claims Brendan Morrison
Toronto claims Martin Gerber and Erik Reitz
Pittsburgh claims Craig Adams

MARCH 4, 2009 - OFFICIAL