Did someone say something about a three-peat? Four months after acquiring Riley Sheahan from the Detroit Red Wings, the Pittsburgh Penguins have added a big-name reinforcement to their center position ahead of a run toward a hopeful third straight Stanley Cup title, and they've done it as part of a three-way blockbuster.
As TSN's Darren Dreger and Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman first reported Friday, the repeat champs are getting 11th-year veteran Derick Brassard as part of a package deal with the Ottawa Senators and Vegas Golden Knights.
Three-way deal between the @Senators, @penguins and @GoldenKnights. It's a big one.#NHLTradeDeadline pic.twitter.com/3afVrOwx8z
— NHL (@NHL) February 24, 2018
Here are the details:
Penguins get: C Derick Brassard, F Vincent Dunn, F Tobias Lindberg, third-round draft pick (from Senators)
Senators get: D Ian Cole, G Filip Gustavsson, first-round pick, 2019 third-round pick (from Penguins)
Golden Knights get: F Ryan Reaves, fourth-round pick (from Penguins)
Vegas will also, per reports, retain 40 percent of Brassard's salary-cap hit as part of the deal, which comes just three days before the NHL's in-season trade deadline.
Brassard may have been the top option for the Penguins on the trade market entering the latter stages of the 2017-18 campaign, and that's because, at age 30, he offers a wealth of scoring experience. In 78 career playoff games, per NHL.com's Dan Rosen, the former Columbus Blue Jacket and New York Ranger has racked up 55 points, not to mention three conference finals appearances. Over the course of his NHL career, Brassard has also had five different 15-goal seasons, with three of his last four -- including his current run -- containing at least 18 scores.
The veteran figures to slot in as the Pens' No. 3 center on a Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin-led offense that's already begun to find its championship-caliber stride in February.
Cole, the biggest part of the trade back to Ottawa outside of the 2018 first-rounder, was originally acquired in 2015 through a trade with the St. Louis Blues. During Pittsburgh's second straight title run in 2016-17, the blue-liner appeared in 25 games, totaling nine assists in the lead-up to the Finals against the Nashville Predators.
And Reaves, a late addition to a trade that initially included just Brassard, Cole and Gustavsson, is a notable addition to the Golden Knights offense after landing in Pittsburgh as part of another big trade prior to the season. Originally acquired from the Blues along with a second-rounder in exchange for center Oskar Sundqvist and a first-round pick, the veteran enforcer was always a puzzling, albeit physical presence next to the Pens' star power, logging just eight points in 58 games this year.