Burnside: From blockbusters to big returns, deadline doesn't disappoint

And so, the dust has cleared and the 2018 National Hockey League trade deadline has passed into history.
Futures have been mortgaged, players' lives have been disrupted, hopes have raised or at least elevated and in some places dashed. Here's a look at some of the highlights.

Big fish, big impact

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Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller from New York Rangers to Tampa Bay Lightning for 2018 first-round pick, conditional second-round pick, Vladislav Namestnikov, Brett Howden and Libor Hajek
Let's start with the biggest (and one of the latest) deal of the day as Tampa Bay kept pace with its big-time competitors from the Atlantic Division in a big way.
Lightning GM Steve Yzerman added a key defensive component in McDonagh, the Ranger captain, who still has another year on his deal, and Miller, who is not yet 25 and has 25-goal potential and can play up and down Jon Cooper's lineup.
It cost -- that's the nature of the business -- but some teams say "Stanley Cup or bust," the Lightning are living it and they did this deal without moving key youngsters Mikhail Sergachev, Brayden Point and prospect Cal Foote.
A big return for New York, which gets the 25-year-old Namestnikov, who has played some with Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov this season, plus the picks and prospects Howden and Hajek.
Rick Nash from New York Rangers to Boston Bruins for 2018 first-round pick, 2018 seventh-round pick, Matt Beleskey, Ryan Spooner and Ryan Lindgren
Let's face it: This is not Rick Nash of old, and in fact, it's more like this is more a case of just an older Rick Nash (he'll be 34 in June) being dealt, but we nonetheless love this fit with a Boston team that was already neck-and-neck with the best in the Eastern Conference.
Nash does a little bit of everything, and even if he doesn't score with nearly the regularity he did in his prime, all he needs to do is pop in the occasional goal in the postseason and maybe it's enough to emerge from the three-dog fight between Tampa Bay and Toronto to emerge from the Atlantic.
The Bruins, who also acquired Tommy Wingels from Chicago for a fifth-round pick in 2019 and signed U.S. Olympic captain Brian Gionta as a depth forward, are definitely trending up.
And, oh yeah, another impressive return for Rangers GM Jeff Gorton for Nash.
Paul Stastny from St. Louis Blues to Winnipeg Jets for conditional 2018 first-round pick, conditional 2020 fourth-round pick and Erik Foley
The Blues are retaining 50 percent of Stastny's $7.5 million in real money salary ($7 million cap hit) for the balance of the season, but this is a very good return for GM Doug Armstrong, who, for the second year in a row, moves a top player with his team still in a playoff hunt (last year, he dealt Kevin Shattenkirk to Washington and still advanced to the second round of the playoffs).
But the Blues are in freefall, and the Jets, who'd been connected to Tomas Plekanec and Derrick Brassard, get a veteran center in Stastny, who has 35 points in 55 career postseason games.
The Jets needed to keep up with Nashville in arms race in ultra-competitive Central Division/Western Conference, and they did so and more with the addition of Stastny.
Tomas Plekanec and Kyle Baun from Montreal Canadiens to Toronto Maple Leafs for Kirby Reichel, Rinat Valiev and 2018 second-round pick
Speaking of the Leafs (and speaking of cats lying down with dogs), the two Original Six rivals consummated a deal that gives Toronto head coach Mike Babcock his long-coveted third-line center in Plekanec. And while it still leaves questions about the Toronto blue line, Plekanec is a pro's pro who can do it all, and he brings a ton of experience to a team looking to take another step forward in its Stanley Cup evolution.
At this stage, not much separates Toronto, Boston and Tampa Bay.
Michael Grabner from New York Rangers to New Jersey Devils for Yegor Rykov and 2018 second-round pick
It's cats lying down with dogs, part two, as the New York-area rivals make their first-ever deal since the Devils came to town.
Credit New Jersey GM Ray Shero for sending a message to his room that he believes the Devils are playoff material. Frankly, thought Grabner would command more on the market given his speed and goal-scoring touch. He can also kill penalties.
Along with the late-day addition of power winger Patrick Maroon from Edmonton for a third-round pick in 2019 and J.D. Dudek, this deal may be enough to push the Devils into an unexpected postseason berth, and then who knows?
Derrick Brassard, Vincent Dunn, Tobias Lindberg and 2018 third-round pick from Ottawa to Pittsburgh for 2018 first-round pick, 2019 third-round pick, Ian Cole and Filip Gustavsson. Vegas acquires Ryan Reaves, 2018 fourth-round pick from Pittsburgh (and picks up 40 percent of Brassard's salary)
A complicated, three-way deal that nets Ottawa some nice futures (it immediately swapped Ian Cole to Columbus). But the real winner is once again Pittsburgh and GM Jim Rutherford, who finds a way to make his two-time defending Stanley Cup champion team even better with a proven playoff performer in Brassard.
Loss of Cole might hurt come playoff time, but they're better than they were a year ago down the middle, and that's pretty scary for the rest of the NHL.
Put the Penguins in the mix as the best team right now in the East.
Evander Kane to San Jose Sharks from Buffalo Sabres for conditional 2019 first-round pick, conditional 2020 fourth-round pick and Dan O'Regan
As a straight rental heading into unrestricted free agency, we think the discussion about Evander Kane's off-ice issues or whether he's a fit in the room is a moot point. What isn't moot is that Kane was arguably the best pure goal-scorer on the market and San Jose GM Doug Wilson fortified his offense as the Sharks hope to hang on to a spot in the Pacific with Joe Thornton out long-term.
Kane is playing for a contract, and our guess is he will light it up for the Sharks and keep them in the postseason bracket.
Buffalo GM Jason Botterill had to get good value after a tire fire of a season in Buffalo, and the jury is still out on whether he did that given that the first-round pick becomes a second-round pick if the Sharks can't sign Kane.

Smaller fish, big return

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Dion Phaneuf and Nate Thompson to Los Angeles Kings from Ottawa Senators for Marian Gaborik and Nick Shore, and Tobias Rieder and Scott Wedgewood to L.A. from Arizona Coyotes for Darcy Kuemper
The Kings are like a significant group of Western Conference teams, scrambling to get in and stay in the top eight.
They made several smaller moves to put them in a position to do just that.
Phaneuf has had an immediate impact with three power-play goals in his first four games, and he's already making the Kings harder to play against. Rieder brings speed and a decent scoring touch, and with the return of Jeff Carter to the Kings' lineup, they're a team no one wants to tangle with -- if they make it.
Petr Mrazek to Philadelphia Flyers from Detroit for 2018 conditional fourth-round pick and 2019 conditional third-round pick
The Flyers might be thesurprise team of the Eastern Conference as they've surged to within a handful of points of first place in the Metropolitan Division in spite of losing both Brian Elliott and Michal Neuvirth to injury.
Mrazek has stepped in seamlessly, and while he may not be a long-term answer to the perpetual question of goaltending in Philadelphia, kudos to GM Ron Hextall for plugging this hole quickly and expeditiously without upsetting his team's unexpected charge to a postseason.

Small deals that could grow into big deals

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Ian Cole to Columbus Blue Jackets from Ottawa Senators for Nick Moutrey and 2020 third-round pick; Mark Letestu to Columbus from Nashville Predators for 2018 fourth-round pick (Letestu previously acquired by Nashville from Edmonton for Pontus Aberg); Thomas Vanek from Vancouver Canucks to Columbus for Tyler Motte and Jussi Jokinen
Columbus adds two quality, character guys known to management and the organization as Letestu is a former Blue Jacket and Cole was drafted by Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen when both were in St. Louis.
Cole won two Cups in Pittsburgh, and Letestu was an important part of the Oilers' run to the second round of the playoffs last year, chipping in on the power play, which is a good thing since Columbus has consistently had one of the worst power plays in the league this season (they rank 27th now).
Vanek should also help with the offense, although his track record of not being able to produce in the playoffs at critical times in spite of having been dealt multiple times, to do just that suggests expectations must be muted.

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Seller's paradise

Ryan Hartman and 2018 fifth-round pick to Nashville Predators from Chicago Blackhawks for 2018 first-round pick, 2018 fourth-round pick and Victor Edjsell
We get that Nashville is all in, and Hartman is a first-round pick who had 19 goals a year ago, who will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, so the Predators have an asset moving forward. But a tip of the cap (once again) to Chicago GM Stan Bowman for restocking the shelves for a player that disappointed this year with just eight goals.
Tomas Tatar from Detroit Red Wings to Vegas Golden Knights for 2018 first-round pick, 2019 second-round pick and 2021 third-round pick
Tatar has a chance to hit the 20-goal mark for the fourth time in his NHL career (he's at 16 now), and he has two years left on his deal at a $5.250 million cap hit after this season. So, the 27-year-old is attractive to Vegas as an ongoing asset, but still, this is a boatload to give up.
True, Vegas has tons of draft picks, and if this deal helps the top team in the Western Conference to a deep run, it's obviously worth it.
Still, kudos to Detroit GM Ken Holland for an impressive haul.

Standing pat

You know the old saying about the best trade you make is the one you don't.
Well, for a number of contending teams, that turned out to be the course of action Monday afternoon, including the Dallas Stars, who were quiet through the deadline.
GM Jim Nill said he wasn't interested in paying the prices being demanded for top players and that he likes his group not just in Dallas, but at the American Hockey League-level in Texas, and he didn't want to risk upsetting what has been assembled.
"I like where our team is at, and unless there was going to be something that was a real type of hockey trade, I knew there probably wasn't going to be a lot going on," Nill said after the deadline passed. "I guess my message to the team is that I like where we're at. I like our chemistry, and now, it's up to the guys in that dressing room to go do the job."
Also not making any adds were Minnesota, which paid a hefty price a year ago, including a first-round pick for Martin Hanzal, and were gone in five games in the first round. In fact, the Wild sent defenseman Mike Reilly to Montreal for a fifth-round pick in 2019.
Washington, another team that paid a heavy price for a rental in Kevin Shattenkirk a year ago, was silent as well.
Other playoff hopeful teams that were very quiet included Calgary (it picked up Chris Stewart on waivers and Nick Shore), and the New York Islanders, who swapped Jason Chimera for Chris Wagner after adding depth defenseman Brandon Davidson from Edmonton a few days ago.
Time will tell whether those lack of moves turned out to be prudent non moves or not.

Staying home

Among the top players whose names figured prominently in pre-deadline discussions but who stayed home was Erik Karlsson, which just means we'll have almost four months of speculation about where Karlsson will go before the draft in Dallas.
It seems clear his days are numbered Ottawa, but in spite of no shortage of interest, the Senators couldn't find a deal that worked.
Ranger forward Mats Zuccarello must feel a bit lonely in the Blueshirt locker room, but he remains on Broadway at least for the moment.
Karlsson's teammates Mike Hoffman and Jean-Gabriel Pageau remained with the Canadian franchise in spite of some interest.
A bit surprised that Jack Johnson remained in Columbus, especially after they acquired Ian Cole. Another defenseman who stayed home was Mike Green, whose injury issues keep him a Red Wing for the balance of the season.
And Max Pacioretty, the beleaguered Montreal captain, remains with the Habs. Although like a number of players thought to be on the move at the deadline who have term left on their contracts, we wouldn't be surprised to see Pacioretty in a different jersey by the end of the draft weekend in June.
This story was not subject to approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Scott Burnside is a senior digital correspondent for DallasStars.com. You can follow him on Twitter @OvertimeScottB, and listen to his podcast.