The 2024 NHL commerce deadline has come and gone, and it is time to analyze the strikes groups did and did not make. Some groups made a splash — or a number of splashes — whereas others failed to deal with some evident wants with the playoffs looming.

The Vegas Golden Knights have been among the many most energetic groups within the league, they usually made a trio of huge strikes over the past week. Vegas revamped its roster, and assuming it stays wholesome sufficient to succeed in the postseason, can have the deepest roster of any membership within the West. Within the East, the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes additionally improved upon already spectacular rosters.

Some groups, nonetheless, missed a chance over the previous couple of days. The Los Angeles Kings and Boston Bruins would possibly’ve fallen behind their essential competitors, and the Tampa Bay Lightning may need whiffed on a pair swings at upgrading their protection.

After per week of wheeling and dealing, listed here are the largest winners and losers from the 2024 NHL commerce deadline.

Winner | Vegas Golden Knights

If a big-name participant was accessible forward of the commerce deadline, there is a good likelihood the Golden Knights tried to accumulate them. Really, even when a participant wasn’t broadly believed to be accessible, Vegas tried to accumulate them. That is precisely what Golden Knights basic supervisor Kelly McCrimmon did to be able to land Tomas Hertl from the San Jose Sharks proper below the wire on the deadline.

The Golden Knights missed out on Jake Guentzel, so that they received artistic and turned to an off-the-board choice. That was additionally after the Golden Knights already added winger Anthony Mantha and defenseman Noah Hanifin earlier within the week. Vegas was decided to go huge recreation looking, and it succeeded in that mission. The Golden Knights added three reliable influence gamers to their roster, they usually now have the deepest roster within the NHL.

Now, they only have to ensure they get wholesome and attain the playoffs.

Loser | Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa Bay got here into the week with a transparent want on the blue line. Mikhail Sergachev is on LTIR, and the workforce has struggled with giving up scoring possibilities all season. The Bolts simply missed out on the highest accessible defensemen at this deadline.

Within the weeks main as much as March 8, Tampa had been linked to Philadelphia’s Sean Walker and Calgary’s Noah Hanifin. The previous wound up with the Colorado Avalanche, and the latter is now a member of the Golden Knights. That meant the Lightning needed to accept former Arizona Coyotes defenseman Matt Dumba, who has actually struggled in 2023-24. Tampa did not hand over a lot to accumulate Dumba, however I am unsure he does a lot to repair the Lightning’s evident defensive points.

If the Lightning are going to go on one other deep playoff roster with this present core, it seems like Andrei Vasiliveskiy should choose up many of the slack on the subject of holding the puck out of the online.

Winner | Colorado Avalanche

Avalanche basic supervisor Joe Sakic is aware of his workforce’s Stanley Cup window remains to be extensive open, and he operated aggressively this week. Though the Avs’ did not do something on the precise commerce deadline day, they have been extraordinarily busy all through the week.

In one of many extra enjoyable strikes of the week, Colorado flipped younger defenseman Bowen Byram for Casey Mittelstadt of the Buffalo Sabres. Mittelstadt might be a reliable long-term answer for the Avs on the second line, which has been a difficulty for some time. It in all probability harm to lose a participant as expert as Byram, however Colorado made up for it by transport out Ryan Johansen’s contract and including Sean Walker in a take care of the Philadelphia Flyers. That strengthened the blue line with a veteran who’s having an amazing 2023-24 season.

Exterior of these two vital strikes, the Avalanche additionally improved their ahead depth with the acquisitions of Yakov Trenin and Brandon Duhaime. These two will present some tenacity down the lineup, and the Avalanche in some way look much more imposing than they did earlier than this week began.

Loser | New York Rangers

A few Stanley Cup contenders within the East, the Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes, made vital strikes forward of the commerce deadline. A couple of extra of them, together with the Rangers, did not make any sort of splash.

Though the Rangers are main the Metro Division, they did have room for upgrades on their roster. Actually, there was rampant hypothesis that they have been on the lookout for a middle and a winger forward of the deadline. In a method, they achieved that, however they did so with Seattle’s Alexander Wennberg and Columbus’ Jack Roslovic. Whereas these two will add depth in New York, they do not transfer the needle as a lot as different choices.

What in all probability stings essentially the most for the blueshirts is the truth that they have been reportedly in discussions with the Pittsburgh Penguins about getting Jake Guentzel when the Carolina Hurricanes swooped in and made a deal occur. The Canes are the Rangers’ largest competitors within the division, they usually clearly received higher this week.

Winner | Carolina Hurricanes

We shift from the workforce that missed out on Guentzel to the workforce that wound up buying him in a hefty deal that noticed Michael Bunting going the opposite method. The Hurricanes do not typically pay up for leases on the commerce market, however they made a worthwhile exception for Guentzel.

It looks as if Carolina, pretty much as good because the workforce has been for the previous couple of years, is consistently on the lookout for a bit of bit extra scoring. Nicely, the workforce received it by buying Guentzel. The previous Penguin has hit the 20-goal mark in every of the final seven seasons, and he has scored no less than 30 objectives three totally different occasions. Guentzel is the kind of participant the Canes have wanted.

Carolina basic supervisor Don Waddell additionally swung an fascinating commerce for veteran heart Evgeny Kuznetsov, who has battled well being points and brought a step again in recent times. A 3rd-round choose was a bit of wealthy for my blood in that deal, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a comparatively low-risk, high-reward transfer for the Hurricanes. They’ve made themselves one of many top-two groups within the East.

Loser | Los Angeles Kings

The Kings are in the identical boat because the Rangers, however possibly even to a extra excessive diploma. The groups round them on the high of the convention, together with the Edmonton Oilers, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars, all made upgrades. In the meantime, Los Angeles stood pat.

The Kings had apparent wants on the wing and in aim, they usually failed to deal with both of them in even essentially the most minor of the way. Possibly the scoring subject corrects itself when the workforce’s scoring proportion regresses to the imply, however there is no assure that occurs. Are the Kings snug heading into the playoffs with Cam Talbot and David Rittich as its goaltending tandem? They higher be as a result of that is what they have now.

The trail to the Stanley Cup within the West is a gauntlet, and now the Kings appear to be a notch or two behind their largest competitors.

Winner | Florida Panthers

Florida was already the NHL’s greatest workforce coming into the commerce deadline, and it in all probability would have been nice doing nothing in any respect. Nonetheless, basic supervisor Invoice Zito refused to take a seat on his fingers and made a few low-cost strikes that can enhance his roster.

A few days earlier than the deadline, the Panthers acquired winger Vladimir Tarasenko from the Ottawa Senators for a third-round and a fourth-round choose. That is nothing for a workforce in win-now mode, and Tarasenko might thrive in Dawn. Even when Tarasenko is not the perennial 30-goal scorer he was once, he’s absolutely able to placing up numbers alongside Aleksander Barkov.

On deadline day itself, the Panthers received Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo for virtually nothing. Okposo is not going to maneuver the needle a ton, however he’ll give the workforce a wonderful fourth-line presence. On high of all this, Florida additionally carried out a wonderful piece of enterprise by signing Gustav Forsling to an eight-year contract value simply $5.75 million per season.

Loser | Boston Bruins

There could be some hand-wringing in Boston after this commerce deadline — and for good cause. The Bruins made some fascinating choices with out making their roster noticeably higher whereas, as famous above, the Panthers and Hurricanes made upgrades.

On Friday, the Bruins started their day by buying veteran fourth-liner Pat Maroon from the Minnesota Wild. His effectiveness could be up for debate, however Maroon has gained the Stanley Cup thrice. If Boston had finished one thing else, which may have been an honest transfer, however the workforce’s solely different acquisition was defenseman Andrew Peeke from the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Peeke addition was particularly puzzling as a result of it value the Bruins a third-round choose, and he has had a depressing 2023-24 season.

The Bruins are nonetheless one of many high groups within the East, they usually’re third within the NHL in level proportion, nevertheless it looks like they missed an actual alternative to shore up this roster forward of the postseason.