NHL Trades 2014: Examining Deadline Day's Biggest Moves

You see, NBA. This is how you do it.

A couple of heavily rumored names may not have been dealt (ahem, Ryan Kesler) before Wednesday's NHL trade deadline came and went, but there were enough moves to make for an exciting 11th hour. 

In fact, there were a total of 20 trades on Wednesday alone. 

You can take a look at every exchange that went down right here, courtesy of NHL.com, but we're going to examine some of the biggest moves that were made just in time. 

New York Islanders Ship Away Thomas Vanek at Last Minute

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Islanders general manager Garth Snow really wanted to move Thomas Vanek. 

You can't really blame him. Vanek turned down a massive contract extension last month, and Snow—whose Islanders are out of the playoff picture—wanted to get something before the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent left for nothing in return. 

Unfortunately, that well-publicized desire to make a trade left the Isles with very little negotiating power, and as a result, they shipped Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens for an underwhelming package at the last minute, per the team's official Twitter feed:

Sebastian Collberg is an intriguing 20-year-old prospect, but considering what the Isles gave up to acquire Vanek in October (Matt Moulson, 2014 first-round pick, 2015 second-round pick), they aren't exactly coming out ahead. 

Isles Nation on Twitter put it simply:

But, hey, Montreal doesn't mind. 

Currently third in the East with Stanley Cup aspirations, the Canadiens, who are just 20th in the league in goals per game, got themselves arguably the best available scorer. Vanek had 17 goals and 27 assists (44 points) in 47 games for the Isles this year, and is capable of doing things like this:

Yes, he's likely nothing more than a rental who will leave via free agency in the summer, but as the National Post's Bruce Arthur pointed out, he's cheap:

Looking to stay competitive in the East, the Canadiens came away as clear winners on the day. 

New York Rangers Acquire Martin St. Louis from Tampa Bay Lightning

The other team in New York did a little better. 

Martin St. Louis had requested a trade, but with the Tampa Bay Lightning in the thick of the playoff race in the East, no one was really confident that the six-time All-Star and defending scoring champion was going anywhere. 

Alas, the Rangers were able to pry him away from Tampa Bay with a hefty offer. Newsday's Steve Zipay gave the details:

With 61 points in 62 games, the 38-year-old veteran easily tops everyone on the current Rangers squad—Brad Richards leads the team with 44 in the same amount of games. 

As such, he should immediately help them climb the standings in the East. 

As for the Lightning, losing St. Louis certainly hurts, but the return haul makes it difficult to complain. 

Ryan Callahan may not be as prolific of a scorer or have the same offensive skill, but he's a hard-working, intangible-filled player who brings great intensity. Lightning GM Steve Yzerman talked about what the 28-year-old will provide in a release, via NHL.com:

"

The Lightning are very excited to have Ryan Callahan join the organization and help us in our quest to make the playoffs. Ryan is an outstanding player and leader who we look forward to seeing on the ice [Thursday] night.

"

Moreover, this will help ease the scoring void:

Steven Stamkos has been one of the most talented, prolific scorers in the league over the past five years. With his impending return, it's likely the Lightning felt they could honor St. Louis' request, add future assets and at the same time not see a drop-off as they fight for the Stanley Cup. 

Los Angeles Kings Add Marian Gaborik

In sixth place and eight points clear of the eighth-place Dallas Stars, the Los Angeles Kings are likely safe for the Stanley Cup playoffs. But boy do they need some offense. 

Entering Wednesday, Darryl Sutter's squad was first in the NHL in goals allowed per game (2.06) but a measly 27th in goals scored per game (2.32). 

In an attempt to quell that problem, the Kings took a chance on 12-year veteran Marian Gaborik from the Columbus Blue Jackets:

The 32-year-old Czech has just six goals this season, but that doesn't tell the entire story. He has dealt with injuries, most recently a broken collarbone, but when he is on the ice, he can be an electric, game-changing offensive presence with the ability to find the back of the net at will. 

On the season, Gaborik has less goals than fellow Kings Jeff Carter, Anze Kopitar, Justin Williams, Dwight King, Dustin Brown and Tyler Toffoli. But as "PumperNicholl" of TheRoyalHalf.com noted, he's ahead of all of those players in a different stat:

If Gaborik can stay healthy, he has the goal-scoring potential to make the defensively stout Kings a force in the West once again.