The trade deadline for the National Hockey League is this Wednesday at 3:00 PM EST, but a number of teams have already made some moves. A few teams shocked the hockey community while others made small, but significant progress for their teams heading towards a postseason push.
On Sunday afternoon, Tampa Bay Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman stunned everyone by trading Ben Bishop, his number one goalie, to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Peter Budaj and a pick. The following day, he sent forward Brian Boyle to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Also, on Sunday, the Arizona Coyotes traded Martin Hanzal to the Minnesota Wild for four picks. More shock came when the Dallas Stars traded forward Jordie Benn to the Montreal Canadiens, leaving brother Jamie all by himself in Texas. The brothers have always played together.
The New York Rangers, now that they are without defensemen Kevin Klein and Dan Girardi for a couple days, have acquired D Brendan Smith from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for two picks.
Viktor Stalberg, the 31-year-old forward for the Carolina Hurricanes, was dealt to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a third round pick.
Perhaps, the biggest move of all thus far, was the Washington Capitals pulling the trigger and acquiring defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk from the St. Louis Blues. The Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins were in a bidding war for him, but with his price being too high, the Penguins backed out, giving Washington full steam ahead to sign Shattenkirk.
We still have less than twenty-four hours before the deadline ends, and with so many big names still being discussed, anything can happen at this point!
