The goaltender trade market is formally established. Two deals that sent two goalies to different coasts were agreed upon in the course of one afternoon on Wednesday.
Travis Yost of TSN was the first to report that the New Jersey Devils acquired goalie Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames in exchange for defenseman Kevin Bahl, 23, and New Jersey’s first-round, top-10 protected choice in the upcoming draft. Additionally, Calgary will keep 31.25% of Markstrom’s remaining pay for the next two seasons under contract.
The Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings reached an agreement to trade goalie Darcy Kuemper to Los Angeles for center Pierre-Luc Dubois, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportnet, who broke the news of the Marsktrom transaction a few hours later. The Boston Bruins, who are still considering Linus Ullmark, will come into focus now that two goalies have exited the NHL trade market.
Months have passed as the Bruins have attempted to reach an agreement with Ullmark. There isn’t much time left for Bruins general manager Don Sweeney to move the former Vezina Trophy winner, though, as the 2024 NHL Entry Draft in Las Vegas is in just over two weeks. With three picks left in the 2019 draft, none of which are in the first three rounds, the Bruins are currently short of fifteen. Trading Ullmark before the draft is the ideal method for the Bruins to replenish their selection supply, which they sorely need, as he has one year left on his current contract.
As the draft approaches and Markstrom is no longer on the team, talk about Ullmark should only pick up momentum. But, now that the cost of a goalie has been determined, it will be intriguing to see what Boston might receive in return in a possible Ullmark trade. Nevertheless, it will be far more difficult than before to find another team prepared to pay the high price the Bruins are demanding the Devils and Kings, two of the clubs that might need goalkeepers the most this summer, having lost interest.
The teams that are reportedly still searching for a better goalie are the Ottawa Senators and the Carolina Hurricanes. Martin Necas is looking for a new home, and Ottawa has stated that it is willing to part with both defenseman Jakob Chychrun and its first-round pick in this year’s draft. Even yet, it is challenging to execute a deal due to Ullmark’s contractual condition. Ullmark’s current contract expires in just one year, and he will be free to sign with no restrictions the following summer.
Without an assurance that Ullmark would remain with them beyond this current season, it is unlikely that any prospective buyer will be prepared to part with expensive assets. Ullmark’s contract contains a 15-team no-movement provision, so before that can even be addressed, there’s the question of whether or not he will consent to be traded in the first place. It seemed inevitable that the Bruins would struggle with the trade of Ullmark. However, in a matter of hours, it has become even more so.
