The only thing more interesting than the three transactions that rocked the NHL within a 15-minute span Wednesday were some of the comments made by the players involved.
It's not every day you see a first overall draft pick get traded. But given how loaded the Edmonton Oilers were up front, something had to give. With all the talk focused on players like Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov, Taylor Hall probably felt safe in Edmonton.
Turns out, he wasn't. He found that out Wednesday, and he wasn't happy about it.
"I certainly do feel slighted about the whole thing," Hall said. "I feel like I've been a good soldier for six years and I felt like I prepared the best I could. I did as much as I felt I could on the ice and at the end of the day, I guess they felt they wanted to go in a different direction, which is fine."
Sometimes the measure of a player's worth is what he fetches in return for his services. The Oilers swapped Hall for New Jersey Devils defenseman Adam Larsson. That's it. One for one. No salary retained. No draft picks. No prospects or minor leaguers.
"It's tough, I felt like I had a pretty deep connection with the city of Edmonton" Hall added. "I'm going to do everything I can do to make the Devils proud that they made this deal."
The Oilers lack depth on defense and while acquiring someone like Larsson makes sense, the return for Hall - one of hockey's premier five-on-five players and left wingers - was shocking. Edmonton, which hosted Milan Lucic earlier in the week during the free-agent negotiating period, must have some assurance that it will be able to fill the hole Hall leaves up front on July 1.
But feelings were definitely hurt, and not only in Edmonton.
Au revoir, P.K.
Minutes after the Hall-Larsson deal, P.K. Subban, the defenseman with the highest salary cap hit ($9 million) in the league, was traded to the Nashville Predators for the guy who carries the second-largest cap hit, Shea Weber.
Subban was measured in his comments about the trade, acknowledging he wasn't blind to how the situation developed.
"Not really surprised. I think with a lot of the chatter that kind of happened over the little while, I'm a firm believer that when there's smoke there's fire," he said. "At no point did I ever want to leave Montreal or (was) given a notion from anybody that I would be traded. But the way the business works, as hockey players, we don't often believe the stuff that we want to see or read things in the media. But when stuff is buzzing around that long, you have to think that there's some stuff going on."
More hurt feelings. For Hall, his frustration seems to begin and end with his trade. For Subban, the deal ends an eventful, polarizing tenure in Montreal. He endured an acrimonious contract negotiation that went through the early stages of arbitration before a deal was struck, and his salary made him a lightning rod for any and all criticism aimed the Habs' way.
Financially, the Canadiens save approximately $1.15 million annually on Weber's contract. There are 10 years remaining on his deal, though, and if Weber retires before the end of the contract, it will be Nashville, not Montreal, in charge of cap recapture penalties.
The new normal
So why are these trades happening?
Since June 25, teams have been able to negotiate with prospective free agents. Since it's been a few days, each team has a clear idea ahead of who it can or can't acquire on July 1.
In Edmonton's case, it's quite clear Peter Chiarelli feels he has an edge on potential free agents who can fill Hall's spot in the top six. In Montreal's case, the window to move Subban before his no-movement clause kicked in on July 1 was integral to the trade being made. Montreal gets an All-Star defenseman it hopes will perform even better in the Eastern Conference.
Another factor is a trend we saw in February. Teams don't want to be pressured into making a trade at the final hour, as the clock runs out. The Toronto Maple Leafs traded Dion Phaneuf weeks before the deadline. Andrew Ladd was dealt four days before Feb. 29, while James Reimer was moved on the 27th. Eric Staal left Carolina on the 28th.
Stanley over money
Topping off a crazy Wednesday in late June was Steven Stamkos, who ultimately decided he wouldn't test the market. He's staying in Tampa Bay, re-upping with the Lightning on an eight-year, $68-million deal.
There's little doubt Stamkos could have left for more money, but given how far Tampa went in the playoffs while he was injured, it's easy to wonder what might have happened had No. 91 been healthy. You can bet that was on his mind during the negotiating window, when he surely talked with the many teams in hot pursuit.
There will be more fireworks on July 1 at noon ET, when the free-agent market officially opens. It's usually a day when most general managers are judged for overspending. But the tide's turning. The trends appear to tell us the fireworks won't be as extravagant as they were before.
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