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Bargain shoppers dominate quiet NHL trade deadline day – Metro US

Bargain shoppers dominate quiet NHL trade deadline day

TORONTO (Reuters) – The National Hockey League’s trade deadline day failed to produce any blockbusters as bargain shoppers rummaged through rosters on Wednesday tweaking lineups for a Stanley Cup run or getting an early jump on a rebuild.

A total of 18 mostly minor deals involving 33 players were consummated before the 3 p.m. ET trade window closed with the Florida Panthers, Montreal Canadiens and Los Angeles Kings among the most active teams on a slow day.

It marked the fewest deals since 2013 when 17 deals trades were made involving 30 players.

The Canadiens, trying to get back on track after midseason swoon, added size and grit by acquiring rugged forwards Steve Ott, Andreas Martinsen and Dwight King.

Ott obtained from the Detroit Red Wings for a sixth round draft pick in 2018 has six points this season but has 109 goals and 1,538 penalty minutes over 14 bruising NHL seasons.

Martinsen, a hard-hitting Norwegian, comes to Montreal from the Colorado Avalanche for Sven Andrighetto while Los Angeles received a 2018 fourth round pick from the Canadiens for King.

“He (Montreal general manager Marc Bergevin) expects me to come in and be the player I have been and that’s hard to play against. He knows how I’ve been throughout my whole career,” Ott told the Canadiens website. “He expressed to me that was his interest and what he wanted me to do as a Montreal Canadien.”

The Pittsburgh Penguins added some depth to an injury-hit blueline getting Mark Streit from the Tampa Bay Lightning while the Kings, sitting a point outside of a playoff spot, acquired former 50-goal scorer Jarome Iginla from the Colorado Avalanche.

It was a winding road to Pittsburgh for Streit who began the day as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers, who traded the Swiss to Tampa Bay for forward Valtteri Filppula and two draft picks and then an hour later was flipped to the Stanley Cup champions.

An offensive-minded blueliner, Streit had five goals and 21 points this season for the Flyers and has 95 goals and 428 over an 11-year career.

The Panthers also added a veteran scorer sending defenceman Dylan McIlrath and a third round draft pick to the Detroit Red Wings for Thomas Vanek.

Vanek has twice scored 40 goals and continues to display a good nose for the net potting 15 goals and 38 points in 48 games for the floundering Red Wings who sit second from the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

“Thomas is a proven scorer in this league who will add some offensive savvy and experience to our young group of forwards,” said Panthers president of hockey operations Dale Tallon. “We believe strongly in our group and we’re confident that he will help our power play and supplement our core effectively.”

(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto; Editing by Frank Pingue)