Well boys and girls, the 2016 NHL Trade Deadline just got a little less exciting with two trades this evening.
Let’s start with the big one, Columbus Blue Jackets forward Ryan Johansen was traded to the Nashville Predators for defenceman Seth Jones. Trade rumors have been going on since the start of the season that Johansen would be traded. Why would the Blue Jackets trade Johansen? Rumors are his poor work ethic and the way the Blue Jackets are playing, they will most likely have a top 3 pick and a great shot at drafting Austin Matthews which would replace Johansen. Jones was expendable for the Predators with the emergence of Roman Josi and Shea Weber’s contract is just too tough to trade. Plus the Predators desperately wanted a #1 center.
The 2nd trade that went down tonight is the Philadelphia Flyers finally shed salary and they traded forward Vincent Lecavalier and defenceman Luke Schenn for centre Jordan Weal and a third-round pick. The Flyers will pay 50 per cent of the salaries for both Lecavalier and Schenn, clearing up their own cap space in the process.
GM Dean Lombardi made the trade for Schenn because veteran defenceman Matt Greene is out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery early last month.
