Zizing 'Em Up: Seeking difference-makers ahead of NHL Trade Deadline

NHL.com staff writer Mike Zeisberger has been covering the NHL regularly since 1999. Each Sunday during the season, he will use his extensive network of hockey contacts to write his weekly notes column, "Zizing 'Em Up."

TORONTO --The 2023 NHL Trade Deadline is in 12 days, and the teams who are committed buyers are out there scrambling to find the next Artturi Lehkonen.
Yes, that's right. The next Artturi Lehkonen.
The forward was known as a solid player when he was acquired by the Colorado Avalanche from the Montreal Canadiens on trade deadline day (March 21) last season, but he was hardly a star. Besides, a look back at trade deadline deals made by each season's eventual Stanley Cup champions over the past decade shows very few such acquisitions end up being true difference-makers.
But Lehkonen, who had 149 points (74 goals, 75 assists) in 396 regular-season games with the Canadiens before going to the Avalanche, proved to be exactly that.
After having nine points (six goals, three assists) in 16 regular-season games with the Avalanche, Lehkonen forged his championship legacy with 14 points (eight goals, six assists) in 20 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Included in those eight goals was the overtime series winner in Game 4 of the Western Conference Final against the Edmonton Oilers, then the Stanley Cup winner in Game 6 of the Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The previous season, Lehkonen's overtime goal in Game 6 of the 2021 Stanley Cup Semifinals against the Vegas Golden Knights propelled the Canadiens to their first Cup Final since 1993.
That is a real difference-maker, as Avalanche forward Nathan McKinnon was quick to point out after Lehkonen's series-winner against Edmonton.
"That's why you trade for a guy like that at the deadline," MacKinnon said at the time. "I'd trade 10 first-rounders for him right now. We'll all be gone when those guys come into the League anyways."
For the record, the price for Lehkonen wasn't anywhere near as steep as what MacKinnon joked that he'd cough up. Colorado sent defenseman prospect Justin Barron and a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft to the Canadiens.
Adding pieces like forwards Andrew Cogliano, Nico Sturm and defenseman Josh Manson leading up the deadline also helped complete the championship puzzle, Avalanche president of hockey operations Joe Sakic said.
"We felt that we addressed the needs that needed to be addressed," said Sakic, who was then the general manager. "You can never have enough depth."
Sometimes acquisitions like Lehkonen prove to be influential on the road to winning the Stanley Cup, like forward Marian Gaborik was for the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. More often than not, it's about depth players who contribute in their own way during the two-month journey to the title.
In order to get a better idea of what to expect before the deadline, which is March 3 at 3 p.m. ET, here is a look back at the key deals made before the deadline by the past 10 Cup winners, and what influence, if any, those players had on the way to a championship.
2022: Colorado Avalanche
Key deals: In addition to the Lehkonen trade, acquired Manson from the Anaheim Ducks for D Drew Helleson and a second-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft; acquired Cogliano from the San Jose Sharks for a fifth-round pick in the 2024 draft; acquired Sturm from the Minnesota Wild for F Tyson Jost.
Upon further review: Lehkonen's clutch goals will go down in playoff lore. Manson, who had eight points (three goals, five assists) in 20 playoff games with the Avalanche, scored in overtime in Game 1 of the Western Conference Second Round against the St. Louis Blues and saw his role increase when defenseman Samuel Girard broke his sternum in Game 3 of that series. Cogliano had six points (three goals, three assists) in 16 postseason games with Colorado. Sturm had two assists in 13 playoff games and played an effective defensive role when needed.
2021: Tampa Bay Lightning
Key deals: Acquired D David Savard in trades involving the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings. Columbus traded the defenseman and received a first-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and a third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Detroit received a fourth-round pick in the 2021 draft. The Lightning also received Red Wings D Brian Lashoff.
Upon further review: Savard had five assists in 20 playoff games and provided second-pair depth.
2020: Tampa Bay Lightning
Key deals: Acquired F Blake Coleman from the New Jersey Devils for F Nolan Foote and a first-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft; acquired F Barclay Goodrow and a third-round pick in the 2020 draft from the Sharks for F Anthony Greco and a 2020 first-round pick.
Upon further review: After being upset by the Blue Jackets in a sweep in the Stanley Cup First Round one season earlier, the Lightning knew they needed more sandpaper in their lineup. Enter Coleman and Goodrow. GM Julien BriseBois said giving up a first-round pick for each was a high price but worth it in the end. Coleman had 13 points (five goals, eight assists) and Goodrow six points (one goal, five assists), each playing all 25 postseason games. More importantly, they were keys in grinding down the opposition as part of Tampa Bay's newfound defensive style.
2019: St. Louis Blues
Key deal: Acquired D Michael Del Zotto from the Ducks for a sixth-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft.
Upon further review: Del Zotto played seven regular-season games for St. Louis and none in the playoffs. The Blues made their splash the previous offseason by acquiring center Ryan O'Reilly, who proved to be the heart and soul of the team, from the Buffalo Sabres in a trade that included forward Tage Thompson going to Buffalo.
2018: Washington Capitals
Key deal: Acquired D Michal Kempny from the Chicago Blackhawks for a conditional third-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft.
Upon further review: Though not the biggest of names, Kempny lived up to his role as a depth defenseman and had three points (two goals, one assist) in 22 regular-season games for the Capitals. More importantly, he chewed up valuable minutes while playing in all 24 playoff games for Washington, finishing with five points (two goals, three assists).
2017: Pittsburgh Penguins
Key deals:Acquired D Ron Hainsey from the Carolina Hurricanes for F Danny Kristo and a second-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft; acquired D Mark Streit from the Lightning for a fourth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft.
Upon further review: Hainsey played 16 regular-season games for Pittsburgh and 25 in the playoffs, and was valuable on the second pair for a defenseman group that found success without the injured Kris Letang. Streit was a scratch for all but three games during the Penguins' run to the Cup.
2016: Pittsburgh Penguins
Key deal: Acquired D Justin Schultz from the Edmonton Oilers for a third-round pick in the 2016 NHL Draft.
Upon further review: Schultz played 15 of 24 playoff games and saw his ice time grow when Trevor Daley was injured during the Eastern Conference Final. The acquisition of Schultz was the final tweak of the Penguins' reload; they'd traded for Daley and forwards Nick Bonino, Carl Hagelin and Phil Kessel during the previous eight months.
2015: Chicago Blackhawks
Key deals: Acquired F Antoine Vermette from the Arizona Coyotes for D Klas Dahlbeck and a first-round pick in the 2015 NHL Draft; acquired F Andrew Desjardins from the Sharks for F Ben Smith and a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2017 draft; acquired D Kimmo Timonen from the Philadelphia Flyers for a 2015 second-round pick in the 2015 draft and a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2016 draft.
Upon further review: Vermette scored three game-winning goals in the final two series and helped the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup for the third time in six seasons. Desjardins and Timonen were role players.
2014: Los Angeles Kings
Key deal: Acquired Gaborik from the Blue Jackets for F Matt Frattin, a third-round pick in the 2014 NHL Draft and a second-round pick in the 2015 draft.
Upon further review: Gaborik led the NHL in goals (14) during the playoffs and was fourth in points (22) in 26 games, helping the Kings win the Cup and making GM Dean Lombardi look like a genius.
2013: Chicago Blackhawks
Key deal:Acquired F Michal Handzus from the Sharks for a fourth-round pick in the 2013 NHL Draft.
Upon further review: Handzus had 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 23 playoff games, took key face-offs and killed penalties.

SWEDEN HONORS A LEGEND

Nicklas Lidstrom couldn't stop the tears from flowing. He wasn't the only one.
"I think everyone in the building had them," the legendary Red Wings defenseman said in a phone interview from Sweden. "How could they not?"
Lidstrom was referring to the charity game held eight days ago in Gavle, Sweden, where Borje Salming played for Brynäs IF of the Swedish Elite League from 1970-72.
Salming died from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, on Nov. 24 at age 71. Months before his death, the Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman set up the Borje Salming ALS Foundation to raise money to help research into fighting the disease.
Lidstrom, who is on the board of the foundation, said he was blown away by the generosity of the public for the game between Toronto Maple Leaf alumni and Swedish stars of the past.
"I think they were expecting to raise about $200,000, maybe $300,000, and they ended up around $1 million," Lidstrom said. "Just incredible. It shows you what a legend Borje was here in Sweden. Channel 4, a national broadcaster, had their morning show broadcast live from the site the day before through game day. The game was broadcast nationally. That never happens except for the national team."
Lidstrom was joined by Swedish greats like Peter Forsberg, Markus Naslund, Mats Naslund and Henrik Zetterberg on Team Sweden. Sweden-born Mats Sundin, a former Toronto Maple Leafs captain, joined Rick Vaive and Al Iafrate on a Maple Leafs team coached by Darryl Sittler and Dave "Tiger" Williams.
"None of us got paid to be there," Lidstrom said. "We wanted to be there. We wouldn't have had careers if not for Borje. He went to North America to join the NHL and opened the doors for us."
The defenseman played his first 16 NHL seasons with the Maple Leafs (1973-89) before finishing his League career with the Red Wings (1989-90). He had 787 points (150 goals, 637 assists) in 1,148 NHL games and in 1996 became the first Sweden-born player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
"It was amazing to see the love for him over there," Sittler said of the experience last weekend. "We were treated so well. We even had lunch at Karlberg Castle with Micael Byden, the Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces and someone who Borje knew well."
Lidstrom and Sittler said the most emotional moments came when singer Jon Henrik Fjallgren, performing his own Sami native ballad "My Home Is My Heart," was accompanied on keyboard and cello as a banner with the No. 17 Salming wore for Brynas was raised to the rafters.
"Not a dry eye in the house," Lidstrom said. "People cared. And they showed it with their generosity.
"Borje wanted that we help find a cure for ALS, or at least help in the research to find one. And we're going to do what we can to see that it's done."

CAPITAL GAINS … FOR DEVILS AND MAPLE LEAFS

At the conclusion of last season, the Washington Capitals decided to move on from goaltenders Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek.
Vanecek, who was 20-12-6 with a 2.67 goals-against average, .908 save percentage and four shutouts in 42 games (39 starts) last season, was traded to the Devils by the Capitals on July 8 for a second- and third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. The Devils also acquired a second-round pick in the 2022 draft from the Capitals.
Five days later, Samsonov signed a one-year, $1.8 million contract with Toronto. He was 23-12-5 with a 3.02 goals-against average, .896 save percentage and three shutouts in 44 games (39 starts) for Washington last season.
Seven months later, consider this: Entering play Saturday, they'd combined for a 45-11-5 record for their new teams.
My, what a change of scenery can do.
"I think sometimes change is good for players," Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano, the longtime Calgary Flames defenseman who was traded to Toronto by the Seattle Kraken prior to the trade deadline last season, said of Samsonov and Vanecek. "I was in the same spot for a long long time and didn't know anything about it until it happened to me. Both when I went to Seattle, then came here, you get that energy for sure."
Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe agrees.
"Of course it can [help]," he said. "Sometimes you do need a change. Sometimes a new environment can serve you well. And sometimes it can help because maybe you need to look at yourself a little bit deeper and make an adjustment in habits and preparations and things like that."
Whatever Samsonov and Vanecek are doing, it's working.
Because of an injury-plagued season for Toronto goalie Matt Murray, Samsonov, in the words of teammate Michael Bunting, "has taken the No. 1 job and run with it." Entering Saturday, the 25-year-old was 19-6-2 with a 2.31 GAA, .918 save percentage and three shutouts in 27 games (26 starts).
Vanecek is 24-5-3 with a 2.30 GAA, .917 save percentage and two shutouts in 36 games (33 starts). The 27-year-old is a key reason New Jersey is on track to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2018.
This tale of two goalies has been upbeat, indeed. The real litmus test, however, will come at playoff time.
Stay tuned.

QUOTE/UNQUOTE

"Here's proof of 'Gretz's' greatness. If he'd never scored a goal in his Hall of Fame career, he'd still be the leading points-scorer in NHL history."
-- TNT analyst Keith Jones on fellow Brantford, Ontario, native Wayne Gretzky. For the record, Gretzky (2,857 points) has more assists (1,963) than the NHL's No. 2 all-time scorer, Jaromir Jagr, has points (1,921).

THE SUNDAY LIST

With the trade deadline approaching, who are the most traded players of all time? Here's the answer according to Guinness World Records, which lists each player as having been traded nine times. We'd list all the trades, but there are enough of them to make up a hardcover book.
Mike Sillinger, F: Played for 12 NHL teams (also a record) in 17 seasons from 1990 to 2009: Red Wings, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Lightning, Florida Panthers, Ottawa Senators, Blue Jackets, Phoenix Coyotes, Blues, Nashville Predators and New York Islanders.
Brent Ashton, F:Played for eight teams in 14 seasons from 1979-94: the Canucks, Colorado Rockies/Devils, Minnesota North Stars, Quebec Nordiques, Red Wings, Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins and Calgary Flames.