By Chris Shea, staff writer
Monday March 2, 2015 set the final day that teams in the National Hockey League can trade for players to help them reach the goal of winning the Stanley Cup come June. It is usually a time of emotion, high prices, and high stakes.
Teams are paying high prices this deadline, hoping to bolster their rosters for what could be a wide-open playoffs.
Several players have seen their jerseys change by the March 2 deadline:
Center Antoinne Vermette from the Arizona Coyotes to the Chicago Blackhawks for a first- round draft pick and prospect Klas Dahlbeck.
Defenseman Kimmo Timonen from the Philadelphia Flyers to the Chicago Blackhawks for a second- rounder and conditional fourth- round pick.
Right Winger Jaromir Jagr (a 43-year-old future Hall of Famer) from the New Jersey Devils to the Florida Panthers for a second-round pick and a third-round pick in the 2016 draft.
Defenseman Andrej Sekera from the Carolina Hurricanes to the Los Angeles Kings for Defenseman Roland McKeown and a conditional first-round pick.
Defenseman Cody Franson and Center Mike Santorelli from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Nashville Predators for Center *Olli Jokinen, Prospect Defenseman Brendan Leipsic, and a first-round pick.
*Toronto traded Jokinen to the St. Louis Blues for a conditional sixth-round pick in 2016. Right Winger David Clarkson from Toronto to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Right Winger Nathan Horton (who may never play in the NHL again). A trade mainly forcap relief.
Winger Evander Kane, Defenseman Zach Bogosian, and Goaltender Jason Kasdorf from the Winnipeg Jets to the Buffalo Sabres for Defenseman Tyler Myers, Forward Drew Stafford, prospects Joel Armenia and Brendan Lemieux, and a first-round pick.
Rookie Winger Jiri Secak from the Montreal Canadiens to the Anaheim Ducks for Depth Forward Devante Smith-Pelly.
Defenseman Keith Y andle, Defenseman Chris Summers, and a fourth-round pick from Arizona to the New York Rangers for Defenseman John Moore, Prospect Forward Anthony Duclair, a first-round pick in 2016, and a conditional second-round pick.
Defenseman Tim Gleason from Carolina to the Washington Capitals for Defenseman Jack Hillen and a fourth-round pick.
Forward James Sheppard from the San Jose Sharks to the Rangers for a fourth-round pick in 2016.
Forward Carl Klingberg from Winnipeg to the Rangers for Forward Lee Stempniak.
Right Winger Brett Connolly from the Tampa Bay Lightning to the Boston Bruins for a sec- ond-round pick in 2015 and 2016.
Forward Erik Cole and a conditional third-round pick from the Dallas Stars to the Detroit Red Wings for Prospects Mattias Backman and Mattias Janmark, as well as a second- round pick.
Winger Dany Heatley and a third-round pick from Anaheim to Florida for Defenseman Tomas Fleischmann.
Defenseman Jeff Petry from the Edmonton Oilers to Montreal for a second-round pick and a conditional fifth- round pick.
Defenseman Zbynek Michalek and a conditional draft pick from Arizona to the St. Louis Blues for Prospect Center Maxim Letunov.
Forward Ben Smith from Chicago to San Jose for Forward Andrew Dejardins.
Goaltender Chad Johnson from the New York Islanders to the Buffalo Sabres for Goalie Michal Neuvirth and a condi- tional third-round pick in 2016.
Defenseman Jordan Leopold from Columbus to the Minnesota Wild for Defenseman Justin Falk and a fifth-round pick.
Forward Chris Stewart from Buffalo to Minnesota for a sec- ond-round pick in 2017.
Center/Winger Max Talbot and Forward Paul Carey from the Colorado Avalanche to Boston for Forward Jordan Caron and a sixth-round pick in 2016.
Defenseman Bradon Coburn from Philadelphia to Tampa Bay for Defenseman Radko Gudas, a first-round pick, and a third-round pick.
Teams have definitely gone all out this season as many teams fight for home-ice advantages and wildcard spots in their respective conferences. Some trades were for the sake of trades, while others done by the bottom teams allow them to rebuild their franchises properly with the acquisitions of young players and draft picks.