Hello everyone and welcome in for another quick read. This will be a one-off article in which I’m going to go over all the NHL Trade Deadline deals that have fantasy significance for us. Before we jump in, be sure to check out the Apples & Ginos community on Discord and the Apples & Ginos Patreon for even more content including a weekly waiver wire article detailing all the best streamers and pickups for the upcoming week. I’m in the Discord every day and would be more than happy to answer any questions you have about Rickard Rakell, Andrew Copp, or any other guys I’ve liked in the past who got moved at the deadline. Let’s get it!
Most Interesting Trades:
Rickard Rakell to PIT for 2022 2nd, Zach Aston-Reese, Dominik Simon, & Calle Clang
This is clear ups for Rakell, as he’s almost certain to slot in on the second line alongside Evgeni Malkin. With all due respect to Trevor Zegras, Malkin is an established superstar and Rakell should still see about 16 minutes a night which is more than enough time for him to ply his high-volume shooting game with the Pens. If Rakell can find chemistry with Malkin immediately he should be able to get back to a 25-goal pace over the last portion of the season here. This is also a downgrade for Trevor Zegras and Sonny Milano in Anaheim and puts even Zegras on the rosterable bubble in most formats.
Kaapo Kahkonen & 2022 5th to SJS for Jacob Middleton
This looks like a killer for James Reimer’s fantasy value, as the Sharks will undoubtedly want to see what they have in Kahkonen over the last portion of the season. I’d expect to see a 50/50 split here and in San Jose, that means neither goalie is likely to be terribly useful for fantasy.
Marc-Andre Fleury to MIN for 2022 conditional 2nd (becomes 1st if MIN makes Conf. Finals)
Make no mistake: Fleury was not acquired to be the 1A or 1B in Minnesota. He will get the majority of the starts and be the guy in the playoffs for the Wild. Cam Talbot is probably droppable after this week (he should get one more start in the Saturday/Sunday back to back). Unless Fleury falters immediately, I would expect him to get 60%+ of the starts remaining. Over in Chicago, Kevin Lankinen is left alone as the top guy. If you need a ton of saves and have a forgiving points setup I could potentially stomach it, but Lankinen is not a good goaltender and Chicago is not a good team. This could get ugly in a hurry.
Scott Wedgewood to DAL for 2023 4th
On the surface this doesn’t look like much, as Wedgewood is simply going to provide depth to the Dallas net situation. But back in Arizona, Karel Vejmelka suddenly looks like a volume starter for a team that has been surging of late. Whether he can handle a starter’s workload is in question, but he will certainly get that opportunity now. For what it’s worth Vejmelka had recorded a .923 save percentage or higher in four straight starts before an .893 showing against San Jose yesterday.
Mark Giordano & Colin Blackwell to TOR for 2022 2nd, 2023 2nd, & 2024 3rd
I think this move will get blown out of proportion in a lot of places. Giordano will get PP2 work and 20 minutes a game, but I can’t project him to suddenly be far more viable as an offensive threat getting less work. Toronto is obviously a much more talented team offensively, but Gio is a near lock to see his minutes decrease and it will likely end up being a complete wash for fantasy. Blackwell is a depth and PK piece and I would be shocked to see him sniff the top six in Toronto barring injury.
Claude Giroux, Connor Bunnaman, German Rubtsov, & 2025 5th for Owen Tippett, 2024 1st, & 2023 3rd
This is a big one and you have to think Florida didn’t zero in on Giroux as their target of choice this trade deadline without penciling him in for a top line spot alongside Aleksander Barkov. Whether he’s just very good for fantasy or terrific will likely depend on whether he’s able to also snag a spot on the Panther PP1 unit, booting either Anthony Duclair or Sam Reinhart. My bet would be yes which makes holding Giroux a very exciting prospect moving forward. In Philadelphia this is a claer downgrade for everyone you might consider rostering including Cam Atkinson and Travis Konecny. Owen Tippett immediately got some work on the top power play unit in Philly but really the only reason to think about him is in terms of a dynasty outlook long-term.
Brandon Hagel, 2022 4th, & 2024 4th to TBL for 2023 1st, 2024 1st, Boris Katchouk, & Taylor Raddysh
Normally I would see a player acquired for two first round picks and immediately be excited, assuming that they would be slotted for a top-line, top-PP type of deployment. Not so in Tampa Bay, where the Lightning are more than happy to spend their draft capital acquiring pieces like Hagel who fit comfortably in their top-nine and play their brand of hockey. The Lightning did this a few years back with Blake Coleman and I don’t expect greater returns from Hagel unless he is called upon to play in the top six and on the power play (neither of which happened in his first game in Tampa). On the flip side, Taylor Raddysh was instantly debuted in the ‘Hawks top six and top PP, and immediately cashed in with a goal and an assist. Raddysh has shown up on my radar a couple of times this year with solid iSCF numbers, so I’ll be watching to see if this is a stepping stone to a new level of play for him. I’m not betting on it, but it’s within the realm of possibility.
Frank Vatrano to NYR for 2022 4th
Andrew Copp & 2023 6th to NYR for Morgan Barron, 2022 2nd, 2023 2nd, & 2023 5th
I’m lumping these two trades together because I’m solely interested in who ends up in the top six between Copp and Vatrano. Vatrano has already had two games on the Panarin line in New York but both he and Copp show up well in the stats I watch as volume shooters with the ability to get to the high-probability scoring areas of the ice. I’d be most excited about Copp if he were to get that deployment as he’s shown us that ability in spurts in Winnipeg. Copp’s departure doesn’t mean much for the rest of the Jets as he was playing down on the third line mostly.
Less Interesting but Possibly Relevant if You Squint Really Hard:
Max Domi to Carolina in a three-way trade with Florida
Wait to see deployment. Only interested if he’s playing with Aho or Svechnikov.
Marcus Johansson to WSH for Daniel Sprong, 2022 4th, & 2023 6th
Odd one as I think Sprong is a better offensive player. Johansson has history in Washington and gives them middle-six depth. Unlikely to be useful for fantasy.
Hampus Lindholm & Kodie Curran to BOS for 2022 1st, 2023 2nd, 2024 2nd, Urho Vaakanainen, & John Moore
Lindholm signed a long-term deal shortly after the trade. Don’t see offensive upside here – the Bruins are no longer an offensive wagon and Lindholm is unlikely to get any PP time.
Calle Jarnkrok to CGY for 2022 2nd, 2023 3rd, & 2024 7th
A very capable player but unlikely to be anything more than a deep league stream in CGY where the top line and top PP have been cemented all season long.
Ben Chiarot to FLA for 2023 1st, 2022 4th, & Tyler Smilanic
Probably a 2nd or 3rd pair guy in FLA now, unlikely to see the minutes necessary to be fantasy relevant even for bangers cats.
Evgenii Dadonov & 2023 2nd for John Moore & Ryan Kesler
Dadonov could get some run with Zegras and on the top PP unit and could be worth a stream.
Other Trades That Allegedly Happened:
Zach Sanford to WPG for 2022 5th
Artturi Lehkonen to COL for 2024 2nd & Justin Barron
Justin Braun to NYR for 2023 3rd
Mason Appleton to WPG for 2023 4th
Jeremy Lauzon to NSH for 2022 2nd
Nick Paul to TBL for Mathieu Joseph & 2024 4th
Travis Hamonic to OTT for 2022 3rd
Nicolas Deslauriers to MIN for 2023 3rd
Tyson Jost to MIN for Nico Sturm
Josh Manson to COL for Drew Helleson & 2023 2nd
Before you go, I want to make sure you’re aware of the Apples and Ginos Fantasy Hockey Podcast and I would be much obliged if you were to give it a listen. There are two weekly shows focused on the strategy elements of fantasy hockey and I’m very excited about providing more value to the fantasy hockey community in this way. I’ve already had terrific guests like Ian Gooding from Dobber Hockey and Nick Alberga from NHL Fantasy on Ice on the show, and I’ve added a midweek podcast with my friends Josh Hutchinson and John Binkle who are a ton of fun on the mic.
That’s all for this one folks, I hope you had as much fun reading it as I had writing it! Make sure you follow Apples & Ginos on Twitter and join the free Apples & Ginos Discord server for more content and to ask any fantasy hockey questions you may have. If you want to learn more about any of the advanced stats I mentioned in this article, be sure to check out my article on applying advanced stats to fantasy hockey, or Natural Stat Trick’s advanced stats glossary.
Thanks for reading, you are appreciated!
Nate
Soundtrack to my writing: & by Reagan Beem
Advanced stats credit: Natural Stat Trick
Apples and Ginos 