We’ve hit the halfway mark in the second round of the Pierre Dorion’s Best Trade Tournament. In the last battle, Derick Brassard’s departure to Pittsburgh and the big return it brought back to Ottawa won out over Matt Duchene’s shipment to Columbus. Today, a slightly less high-profile matchup is on the docket:
Trade: 6th, Condon --> TB
Out: 2020 6th Round Pick, Mike Condon
In: 2020 5th Round Pick, Ryan Callahan
Ryan Callahan’s injury situation is expected to prevent him from being able to take to the ice again in his NHL career. The Tampa Bay Lightning, who found themselves tight against the cap, realized that LTIR relief wasn’t going to be enough, and needed to shed his contract. The Senators, with no cap space problems of their own, were a perfect trade partner. The Senators were able to shed Condon’s excessively expensive contract, while upgrading a pick in this year’s draft. The price was taking on Callahan’s cap number, with the bonus fact that the actual salary cost to Ottawa was much less.
This year, the Senators found themselves in a spot where they felt they needed NHL bodies on the roster so that they could keep developing prospects in Belleville for a competitive run. Dorion acquired Namestnikov for pennies on the dollar, and the player immediately came in and provided a spark. He was really quite good for his first handful of games with Ottawa, more than justifying the acquisition price. While his production and performance fell off a cliff as the season moved along, it’s hard to argue with the rationale or cost involved in this trade. It was a no-risk move that provided a small bit of benefit earlier in the season.
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