With perhaps the exception of the third quarterfinal matchup, this week’s installments in the Pierre Dorion’s Best Trade Tournament are going to see contenders take to the playing field. Last time around, it was the J-G Pageau deal with the Islanders that cruised into the semifinals, with sensarmy_11 posting a compelling case in the comments thread as to why it should ultimately take the crown. Let’s get to tonight’s battle:
Trade: Dzingel --> CBJ Out: Ryan Dzingel, 2019 7th Round Pick In: Anthony Duclair, 2020 2nd Round Pick, 2021 2nd Round Pick
A lot of outside observers probably thought the Karlsson deal was a clear frontrunner in the tournament, but this is another subtly fantastic deal that non-Ottawa fans might have forgotten about. Dominant victories in each of the first two rounds of this contest suggest that it’s probably here to stay.
The Columbus Blue Jackets went all in last year, and this was one of the moves they made to do it. Dzingel was one of the most sought-after commodities on the trade market, which resulted in Ottawa being able to charge them a premium to acquire him. The payoff was huge. Anthony Duclair immediately came in and became a first-line offensive threat for the Senators, and the addition of two second round picks provided an immense amount of draft capital for Dorion’s rebuild. While Duclair’s emergence makes this trade look even better now than it did when it was made, the fact remains that this return looked good from the start.
Trade: Brassard --> PIT Out: Derick Brassard, Vincent Dunn, 2018 3rd Round Pick In: 2018 1st Round Pick, 2019 3rd Round Pick, Ian Cole, Filip Gustavsson
It’s probably fair to say that the trade that brought Derick Brassard to Ottawa won’t be considered a favorite in this tournament. Nevertheless, the one that sent him to Pittsburgh worked out a lot better. The Senators got full value from this deal, acquiring a first-round pick and a promising young goaltender as the main pieces involved. While it wasn’t actually this Pittsburgh pick that the Senators used to snag Jacob Bernard-Docker in the 2018 draft, a pick swap with the Pittsburgh pick made that happen. It’s hard to complain with the return, given how vital JBD is considered to be for the future of the franchise.