In a move aimed at bolstering the Kraken roster this season, the team acquired veteran wing Tomas Tatar in a trade with Colorado Friday, sending a future fifth-round draft pick back to the Avalanche.
The transaction’s dateline of mid-December is far ahead of the NHL’s early March trade deadline when teams decide to be “buyers” or “sellers” based on the league standings and playoff races. Tatar is a proven goal scorer and fits into the Kraken’s ongoing need for depth scoring.
The Slovakia-born Tatar, 33, signed with Colorado this summer after considering several NHL suitors. He has a goal and eight assists on the season but has been getting less time on ice of late. He has notched seven 20-plus goal seasons in 11 full NHL seasons, including three straight years with his first NHL team, Detroit. His Red Wings years included a 19-goal season as well and a career-high for 29 goals (and seven game-winning goals) in 2014-15.
His production has been impressive over the last five seasons, with two banner years with Montreal in 2108-19 (25 goals, 33 assists, 58 points) and 2019-20 (22 goals, 39 assists for 61 points in just 68 games). Last season, he was a vital part of the surprising season of the New Jersey Devils, bagging 20 goals and 28 assists with a plus-minus of a whopping plus-41.
Related to the move, forward Jaden Schwartz, with eight goals on the season to date and among Kraken scoring leaders before his latest injury, has been moved to the long-term injured reserve list. The Schwartz transaction is retroactive to Nov. 28, after he was injured in Chicago that night. There is no set date for Schwartz’s return to the lineup.
