The Toronto Maple Leafs have dealt star defenseman and captain Dion Phaneuf to the Ottawa Senators in a massive deal.
All and all, nine players will be changing teams.
Heading to Ottawa along with Phaneuf are forwards Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey, Ryan Rupert and prospect Cody Donaghey.
In exchange, Toronto receives defenseman Jared Cowen, forwards Colin Greening, Milan Michalek and Tobias Lindberg as well as Ottawa’s second-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft.
Leafs general manager Lou Lamoriello says this clearly isn’t a win-now move for the team:
“This was a transaction that certainly wasn’t for today.”
The 30-year-old Phaneuf is obviously the biggest piece in this deal. He has 3 goals and 24 assists in 51 games with Toronto this season. He also has 5 years left on a 7-year contract that has an average salary of $7 million.
Senators general manager Bryan Murray talked about his newest player:
“We don’t expect him to come in here to be a saviour. We expect him to come here and just be the hockey player he is. He’s a real good person. (He) competes, he wants to win. He’s been in a tough environment. He’s been judged very tough in the environment he’s in.”
Phaneuf has scored 120 goals and 424 points in 801 career games with the Flames and Maple Leafs.
Let’s look at the other players involved in the trade…
First, those heading to Ottawa:
- Matt Frattin is a 28-year-old right wing who is playing with the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. In 47 games this year, he has 9 goals and 13 assists.
- Casey Bailey is a 24-year-old highly regarded prospect who’s currently playing with the Marlies, he has 4 goals and 14 assists in 38 games.
- Ryan Rupert is a 21-year-old center who split time this year between the Marlies and the Orlando Solar Bears of the ECHL.
- Cody Donaghey is a 19-year-old defenseman who’s played in the QMJHL for the Halifax Mooseheads and the Moncton Wildcats.
Now the players headed to Toronto:
- Jared Cowen is a 25-year-old defenseman who had 4 assists for the Senators in 37 games this season.
- Colin Greening is a 29-year-old left wing with 38 goals and 49 assists in 256 career NHL games.
- Milan Michalek is a 31-year-old left wing with 6 goals and 4 assists in 32 games with Ottawa this year.
- Tobias Lindberg is a 20-year-old winger with 5 goals and 17 assists for the Binghamton Senators of the AHL.
