On Wednesday, the Stars’ acquisition of Chris Tanev from the Flames marked the first major pre-deadline deal involving a defenseman. As such, the past 36 hours have allowed for reporting to uncover more information about the days preceding the trade and what impacts it could have on the defense market in the week leading up to the trade deadline.
Among the finalists for Tanev were the Avalanche, Canucks, Maple Leafs, and Oilers, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun said on Thursday’s episode of “Insider Trading.” Toronto was in conversations later than other teams, as LeBrun reports Leafs GM Brad Treliving had discussions with the Flames’ front office as late as hours before Tanev was dealt to Dallas.
LeBrun confirmed that Treliving’s lack of willingness to part with a first-round pick caused Calgary to ultimately decline their offer. However, the Flames’ interest in Stars defense prospect Artyom Grushnikov is quickly looking like what turned the tides in Dallas’ favor. That’s because the Flames had a first-round pick on the table in an offer from another team, but it was contingent on Calgary taking an NHL roster player with term back in the deal – something Calgary GM Craig Conroy wasn’t willing to do, LeBrun said.
Other reporting indicates Edmonton was most likely the team that packaged a first-round pick in their offer for Tanev. They’re continuing to shop this year’s first-rounder, along with a roster player, likely defensemen Cody Ceci or Brett Kulak, for an upgrade on defense, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports.
Calgary’s decision to forego a first-round pick may have a domino effect on other sellers, too, TSN’s Chris Johnston added on “Insider Trading.” The Flyers are looking for one in return for shutdown blue-liners Nick Seeler and Sean Walker, while the Coyotes are hoping for one in exchange for Matt Dumba. Johnston added that the Flyers may be inclined to hold onto Seeler and Walker past the deadline and continue holding extension talks if they don’t get an offer they like. Meanwhile, the Coyotes are more likely to ship out Dumba for the best available offer regardless of whether a first-rounder is included.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet also reported on Friday’s “32 Thoughts” episode that Conroy took one last pass at signing Tanev to an extension shortly before the trade to Dallas went through. However, Tanev felt too much time had passed and that the team was too deep in trade talks, and preferred a move to a contender before testing the market again next summer.
In response, Friedman wondered if the Flames may now add a cheap NHL-ready blue-liner to help mitigate the loss of Tanev down the stretch. The team is in no condition to spend significant assets in a trade after selling off Tanev, Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov earlier in the season. Still, a mid- or late-round pick may be in play to avoid overplaying depth defenders like Dennis Gilbert, Jordan Oesterle and Brayden Pachal.
They’re not out of the playoff picture yet, as a 7-3-0 run in their last 10 games has them in ninth place in the Western Conference. However, there’s a seven-point gap between them and the similarly streaking Predators for the second wild-card spot, a tricky measure to close with less than two months left in the year if Nashville keeps up their pace.