It's one of my favorite posts of the year! Sure, a lot of trades have been done in advance of the deadline, but there's sure to be more action today. Starting around noon eastern, I'll be updating this post with instant analysis on every trade that takes place. All of the moves from Wednesday and Thursday are below as well, with all previous moves in other posts.
Last season couldn't have been more of a disaster for Patrik Laine. Is he as good as people expected when he .came out of the draft in regards to being an overall player? Probably not. As an offensive player? He's still incredible. Laine had two goals and an assist with five shots on Tuesday, and that doesn't even count his empty net attempt in the last five seconds that somehow hit both posts and went out. Laine now has 12+12 in 25 games this season. Does 40+40 seem good to you because it does to me? Laine is an incredibly gifted offensive player who has the upside to determine fantasy leagues. Let's take a look at what else happened over the last two nights:
Rick Nash, the vice president of The Round Face Hockey Club, was traded to the Bruins as they look to make a deep run this postseason. I'm going to have a live trade deadline post again this year updating all of the trades throughout tomorrow. I'm also going to be recording a podcast with Reid right around 3 pm tomorrow to give our thoughts on everything that happens. I have the feeling it's going to be crazy. For Nash, I think he's a solid speculative add if you need the shots. He played on Sunday against Buffalo on the second line, recording five shots on goal in 17:27. He's over three shots per game on the season, the plus-minus should improve on Boston, and everyone can use goals on their team. I don't think he'll be a world beater, but with only 20 games left, it's certainly possible that Nash gets hot with his shot volume. Let's take a look at what else happened over the weekend:
Calgary has been quite a mess over the past two weeks since Mike Smith went down with a groin injury. The 7-3 loss to Vegas on Wednesday was close to rock bottom, even though they played a solid game through 45 minutes before falling apart. Please, blog, may I have some more?