Hey folks, welcome back. It has been a wild and crazy two weeks in the world of fantasy hockey. We’ve seen the NHL draft, a plethora of trades—some expected, others out of the blue—and free agency shake things up. Many fantasy hockey teams have experienced significant roster changes. One article can’t cover it all, so we’ll break it down into manageable chunks.
Today, we’ll focus on the trades that hold the most fantasy hockey impact over the last several days.
Fantasy Hockey Trade Impact Analysis
Ottawa Senators receive: Linus Ullmark, G
Boston Bruins receive: Joonas Korpisalo, Mark Kastelic, C, 2024 1st-Round Pick
Boston trading Ullmark wasn’t a surprise, but Korpisalo going back to Boston was unexpected.
Statistically, this is a significant hit for Ullmark. The Senators are not the Bruins. The bonus is that Ullmark is now the undisputed number-one goalie, with no tandem in Ottawa. This means he could push for 60 starts, a big improvement over his 40 starts last year.
Based on the volume of starts, Ullmark should hit 30 wins. However, don’t expect Vezina-caliber numbers to accompany those wins. His goals against average (GAA) and save percentage (SV%) will likely take a hit.
If Ullmark starts the season hot, consider selling high. The Senators have yet to address their defense, meaning they are primed to be one of the worst defensive teams in the league again. Last year, they ranked 28th in goals against, giving up 3.43 goals per game.
Ullmark is an upgrade over Korpisalo, but there is only so much he can do.
For Korpisalo, the opposite is true. He moves from an overwhelmed number-one goalie to being a backup for one of the fastest-rising goalie stars in the league, Jeremy Swayman. Boston will want to limit Swayman’s workload, so Korpisalo should see around 30 starts. However, it is Swayman’s net.
Statistically, Korpisalo will look much better. Boston is routinely one of the best defensive teams in the league. Playing behind that level of structure, the statistical difference will be stark. Korpisalo is now a safe, depth goalie if you need a spot start. Expect his name to appear often as a waiver option throughout the season.
San Jose Sharks receive: Jake Walman, D, 2024 2nd-Round Pick
Detroit Red Wings receive: Future Considerations
This was purely a cap dump by the Red Wings. For the Sharks, Walman may slide into their first power-play unit. Keep an eye on that situation during training camp in September. Walman has scored 21 goals over the last two seasons with limited to no power-play time.
Walman disappeared from stat sheets for long periods last year, so this is far from a guarantee. This situation is one to watch this September.
Capitals receive: Andrew Mangiapane, RW
Calgary Flames receive: 2025 2nd-Round Pick
The Capitals have been one of the busiest teams over the last two weeks. There will be no rebuild in Washington until Alexander Ovechkin retires. They see themselves as a playoff team that was missing a couple of pieces.
Mangiapane should be on the Capitals’ second line and second power-play unit. Mind you, that second unit sees very little ice time. Mangiapane posted a career-high 55 points in 2021-22. We shouldn’t expect anything beyond that in Washington.
He’ll be a nice waiver add throughout the season or an injury fill-in. He should end up right around the 50-point mark. Expectations shouldn’t change here.
Tampa Bay Lightning receive: J.J. Moser, D, Connor Geekie, C, 2025 2nd-Round Pick, 2024 7th-Round Pick
Utah Hockey Club receives: Mikhail Sergachev, D
The week leading up to the draft, rumors were flying that Utah was looking to acquire a top-2 defenseman. Well, they got him, and it shocked almost everyone. This was the blockbuster of the draft weekend that no one saw coming.
Sergachev moves out from under Victor Hedman’s shadow and likely takes first power-play duties away from Sean Durzi. Sergachev has broken 50 points three times and has a career-high of 59. With full reins in Utah, he could surpass 60 points for the first time. Losing Nikita Kucherov will hurt, but not having to share power-play minutes with Hedman should offset that loss somewhat.
Durzi takes a hit here, or at least his ceiling does. He set a career-high in points with 41 last year. Sitting at 212 career games, he should maintain that pace, if not push 50 points. Don’t expect a big jump in points unless he wrestles the first power-play unit job away from Sergachev.
Darren Raddysh seems primed to step into the offensive void created by Sergachev’s departure. He put up 33 points in his first full NHL season. Moser will vie for some of those second power-play minutes as well. Keep an eye on that battle in camp.
Connor Geekie is no slouch of a prospect. At 6’4″, Geekie is a large center coming off a dominant season in the WHL, with 99 points in just 55 games. Due to Tampa Bay’s depth, he will likely spend this season in the AHL. That said, Tampa is always looking for ways to save on the salary cap. He could break camp with the big club. If he does make the team, temper expectations. The first power-play unit is set, and Braydon Point and Anthony Cirelli are locked in as the top two centers.
Bay Lightning acquire: 2024 4th-Round Pick, 2025 2nd-Round Pick
Los Angeles Kings acquire: Tanner Jeannot, LW
This trade came down just minutes after the Sergachev deal. Just like that, the Lightning created $11.165 million in cap space.
Jeannot didn’t come as advertised. The snarl in his game and peripherals have lived up to his rookie season, but the offense has disappeared. He only played 55 games last year for Tampa. In those 55 games, he produced a meager 14 points.
Here’s hoping Jeannot can produce closer to his 24-goal, 41-point rookie season with Los Angeles.
Capitals acquire: Logan Thompson, G
Vegas Golden Knights acquire: 2024 3rd-Round Pick, 2025 3rd-Round Pick
This one was a bit of a head-scratcher. Vegas is always tight up against the salary cap. Thompson is only making $766,667 this season. That is about as cheap as it comes.
Thompson will challenge Charlie Lindgren for the starting job with the Capitals. The 2024-25 season will almost assuredly start as a tandem approach. This is about as close to 50-50 as one could predict. The Capitals will be spending a total of $1.86 million on their goalies to start the season. They were a second wild card team last year. With the upgrades throughout the lineup, Thompson and Lindgren could be a great tandem to target using the ‘zero-goalie’ approach.
Penguins acquire: Kevin Hayes, C, 2025 2nd-Round Pick
St. Louis Blues acquire: Future Considerations
This was a pure salary dump by the Blues. Philadelphia retained 50% of Hayes’ salary when they traded him to St. Louis. Last year didn’t go as hoped. St. Louis sent the second-round pick because Hayes has two years remaining on his contract.
At 32, this could be a savvy move by the Penguins. He could have a strong bounce-back season. A return to 50-plus points is a real possibility. With an aging Evgeni Malkin, Hayes’ acquisition could move him to the wing. He likely lands in the 45-55 point range. However, given the right deployment, his production could bump closer to 60 points.
That’s all for this week. Stay tuned as I’ll be back shortly to cover the free agency frenzy and discuss the NHL draft.
Thanks for reading.
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