Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators make nine-player trade

The dismantling of Toronto’s core started last summer, when the team traded Phil Kessel to Pittsburgh for a package of prospects and draft picks.

The Senators hope that adding Phaneuf, who has three goals and 21 assists this season, helps their playoff push.

Aside from the fact that the Maple Leafs were able to shed Phaneuf and not retain salary, the real shocker here is that Toronto and Ottawa were able to play nice. The Senators are four points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. President Brendan Shanahan’s decision to move on from the hapless former regime was an easy one, and the hiring of well-regarded executives Kyle Dubas and Mark Hunter into personnel roles suggested he had a smart long game in mind.

Phaneuf’s departure makes Toronto weaker on defense in the short term, but this was not supposed to be a winning season.

“I said he’s a good guy in the room”.

Phaneuf was in the second year of a seven-season pact worth $49 million, inked by a previous management regime on December 31, 2013. The Senators see Phaneuf as being an essential player on this team throughout the length of his contract. In return, the Maple Leafs acquired National Hockey League players with contracts set to expire in the next two years.

The Leafs have a series of expiring contracts that are likely to be dealt ahead of the February 29 trade deadline, none, however, with the financial weight of Phaneuf. And in unloading captain Dion Phaneuf, who carried a $7 million cap hit the next five seasons, Toronto continues to gain more financial flexibility, with just $25 million committed to five players in 2017-18. Babcock and the coaching staff also did the front office a tremendous help by sheltering Phaneuf this season, keeping him away from opponents’ top lines and reducing his time on the penalty kill. Calgary D Jakub Nakladal made his National Hockey League debut but only played two shifts for a total ice time of 1:45….

“He understands what we’re doing here”, Lamoriello said of the team’s rebuilding plan.

Trying to find a top-four defenceman all season, Senators GM Bryan Murray finally filled the hole Tuesday by acquiring Maple Leafs’ captain Dion Phaneuf from Toronto in exchange for defenceman Jared Cowen, veteran winger Milan Michalek and forward Colin Greening, who has spent this season in Binghamton. Cowen was the ninth overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft by the Senators, and has spent a part of five seasons with the organization.

“I have said from Day One, I want to win in Tampa, ” Stamkos said while in Nashville for the All-Star event.