Stock Up, Stock Down for NHL Teams After 1st Week of Free Agency

There are a lot of things beyond simple on-ice performance that a general manager must consider.

He has to consider the salary cap; moves that make no sense on the ice can make a lot of sense looking at a team's financial situation. He has to consider the long-term picture, which often means that moving a good player in the here-and-now makes sense if he can land a good draft pick. He has to look at years of team control, sometimes trading a player one or two years away from free agency for one still on his entry-level deal.

The following "Stock Up, Stock Down" slides ignore all those considerations. They ignore where a team is, whether a trade was good or not, and everything else in favour of a single focus: Did a team's on-ice personnel improve over the first week of free agency?

A good example would be the Phil Kessel trade. For our purposes here, we don't care about the picks and prospects that complicate the deal. We look at the NHL players involved, conclude that Kessel is better than Nick Spaling and decide that Pittsburgh improved in the deal and Toronto got worse. It's as simple as that. 

Mileage will vary, of course; these are just our opinions, and if the entire world agreed, it would be a right-thinking world but also rather boring. With that in mind, here's how we think this summer's moves have impacted each team's roster as of the end of Week 1 of free agency. 

Stock Up: Detroit Red Wings

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Key Arrivals: Mike Green, Brad Richards

Key Departures: Stephen Weiss

Detroit's summer got off to a rocky start when head coach Mike Babcock opted to leave the team and join the Toronto Maple Leafs. Even with Jeff Blashill waiting in the wings (pun!), the loss of a coach of Babcock's caliber was disappointing. That he jumped ship for a rebuilding Toronto team could easily be seen as a lack of faith in Detroit's ability to win with an aging core. 

General manager Ken Holland clearly feels differently.

Green was a pricey addition, but term was kept to a minimum. On the ice, he adds an element the Wings have been looking for seemingly forever: a right-shooting defenceman who can log big minutes at even-strength and on the power play. 

Richards, meanwhile, will do what Weiss was supposed to do: provide Detroit with a veteran supporting centre who can provide secondary offence and occasionally allow the coach the flexibility to stick Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg on the same line. 

Stock Down: Chicago Blackhawks

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Key Arrivals: Artem Anisimov, Marko Dano, Viktor Tikhonov, Jeremy Morin, Corey Tropp

Key Departures: Brandon Saad, Johnny Oduya, Antti Raanta, Michal Rozsival, Kyle Cumiskey, Michael Paliotta, Dan Carcillo

Everybody knew this was going to be a rough offseason for the cap-strapped Blackhawks, but very few people expected the team to trade away Saad, a 22-year-old power forward coming off a 52-point season. The loss of Saad hurts the Hawks both in the short and long term, as he was one of the few members of the core still just entering his prime seasons of production.

In all likelihood, the cuts aren't finished. Oduya and Rozsival have yet to sign elsewhere, but Chicago needs to get its financial situation stabilized if it hopes to re-sign them or other veteran defencemen. 

According to salary-cap monitoring website GeneralFanager.com, the Blackhawks are over the salary cap at the present time and still have to sign two more defencemen and come to some sort of arrangement with restricted free agent Marcus Kruger. The roster is likely to deteriorate further, with winger Patrick Sharp the most obvious candidate to move. 

Stock Up: Edmonton Oilers

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Key Arrivals: Connor McDavid, Cam Talbot, Andrej Sekera, Mark Letestu, Griffin Reinhart, Lauri Korpikoski, Anders Nilsson, Eric Gryba

Key Departures: Boyd Gordon, Martin Marincin, Viktor Fasth, Derek Roy, Jesse Joensuu, Keith Aulie

McDavid, the NHL's best prospect since Sidney Crosby in 2005, will make the Oilers better. In a lot of ways, he's already started; the halo effect from his arrival couldn't have hurt when it came to attracting a new talent in the front office and behind the bench. Long term, he's the most important addition this summer.

In the short term, that title may go to Sekera, who is now the best defenceman on a team starving for blue-line help. Of course, the title may also go to Talbot, who inherits the starting goalie job in Edmonton after a lovely run in New York behind Henrik Lundqvist.

In a very short period of time, Edmonton has added a new No. 1 goalie, a new No. 1 defenceman and a new No. 1 centre. The team has also made a host of changes to the supporting cast and has come out ahead. 

Then again, the Oilers really had nowhere to go but up. 

Stock Down: Vancouver Canucks

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Key Arrivals: Matt Bartkowksi, Brandon Prust

Key Departures: Eddie Lack, Zack Kassian, Kevin Bieksa, Ryan Stanton, Brandon McMillan

Canucks fans were by-and-large disappointed at the draft, as popular goaltender Eddie Lack was shipped to Carolina for a scant return, and that disappointment continued into the league's free-agent period. 

Vancouver made no significant additions on July 1. Bartkowski, the team's big free-agent signing, is a third-pair defenceman who has history with general manager Jim Benning from their time together in Boston. 

The team did make a trade, getting older and losing some offence in a swap that saw Prust move to Montreal in exchange for Kassian. Kassian was coming off a difficult season, and the Canucks understandably decided to move on, but they moved on in a way that will not significantly improve the club.

The loss of Bieksa the day before free agency opened was a significant blow and not one the team has addressed in any meaningful way.

Stock Up: Calgary Flames

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Key Arrivals: Dougie Hamilton, Michael Frolik

Key Departures: David Schlemko, Raphael Diaz

Hamilton was a magnificent add from the hapless Boston Bruins. It's awfully hard to get top-pairing quality defencemen in their early 20s via trade; it's even harder to get them without sending away a roster player in return. Somehow Calgary managed both feats and today possesses what might be the best defence in the entire league.

Frolik's no slouch, either. He's a skilled winger who can also duck back to a defensive role, a still-young veteran who can chip in on both special teams and a solid forward who can play on any line and on either wing. He's also a good possession player on a team that can use that kind of help.

Calgary landed a good forward and an excellent defenceman without subtracting anything, and that's a clear win.

Stock Down: Boston Bruins

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Key Arrivals: Matt Beleskey, Jimmy Hayes, Colin Miller

Key Departures: Dougie Hamilton, Milan Lucic, Reilly Smith, Matt Bartkowski, Gregory Campbell, Daniel Paille, Justin Florek

In some ways, the Bruins haven't had a bad offseason.

The loss of Lucic really hurt, but Beleskey fills some of the same minutes and came at a reasonable dollar figure, and the Bruins certainly extracted a major return out of the Kings for his rights. The loss of Smith hurts, too, but Hayes brings size and secondary scoring for a lot less money.

If it had been just those deals, it would be easy to dismiss this as just a tough offseason for a cap-strapped team. Even adding in some of the departed depth players doesn't significantly alter that equation. 

But the loss of Hamilton rips a hole in the team's blue line both now and for the next decade. The team has no comparable player ready to step up and fill the void and has not added anyone from free agency to take on some of Hamilton's minutes. 

Boston didn't make the playoffs last year, and in terms of on-ice talent, it will likely be a diminished team this year. 

Stock Up: Buffalo Sabres

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Key Arrivals: Jack Eichel, Ryan O'Reilly, Robin Lehner, David Legwand, Jamie McGinn, Carlo Colaiacovo 

Key Departures: Mikhail Grigorenko, Nikita Zadorov, Andrej Meszaros, Andre Benoit, Cody Hodgson, Anders Lindback

The Sabres made some pretty questionable moves from an asset management/salary-cap perspective. A first-round pick for Lehner is perhaps a stretch. Taking on Legwand's contract uses money that could have been spent elsewhere. O'Reilly's new contract is not only rich, but as Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman noted, it comprised almost entirely of signing bonuses, making it virtually buyout-proof if anything goes wrong. 

So there is plenty of room here to question the wisdom of general manager Tim Murray.

What seems beyond dispute is that the Sabres will be a better team next year.

The centre depth chart in particular has been completely reformed. Eichel is a franchise centre in the making and should have an impact even as a rookie. O'Reilly is a brilliant two-way player who really doesn't get his due in the press as a rule. Legwand may be overpaid, but he's a veteran and still a useful bottom-six player.

This is a much-improved team on the ice.

Stock Down: Ottawa Senators

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Key Arrivals: Eric O'Dell

Key Departures: Erik Condra, Eric Gryba, Robin Lehner, David Legwand

Entering the summer, the Senators were known to be looking for a top-six forward. General manager Bryan Murray made no secret of the team's interest in acquiring such a player, including at a press conference streamed on the team's official site in June. 

"We have to make that determination if we have to sweeten the pot or not, if there's anyone in fact willing to give up a top-six forward," Murray said. "Top-four defencemen, top-six forwards, the commodities are so hard to get. Usually you have to draft them unless it's a cap situation."

Ottawa did not acquire such a player.

Not only did they not acquire such a player, but the Senators didn't really acquire any player. In a summer where the price on free agents was remarkably reasonable, the Sens sat out and watched their competitors get better.

Ottawa also lost pieces. Doubtless, it sees value in dumping Legwand's contract, clearing away a depth defenceman in Gryba and knocking the goalie list down to just two names, but those losses—combined with the departure of Condra—make the club considerably shallower than it was one year ago. 

Stock Up: San Jose Sharks

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Key Arrivals: Paul Martin, Joel Ward, Martin Jones

Key Departures: Antti Niemi

The Sharks' decision to expend a first-round draft pick on Jones is highly questionable. It was a ridiculous overpayment for a 25-year-old goalie with all of 34 NHL games to his credit, and especially so given that his save percentage last season was a mediocre .906.

But we aren't worried about asset management here.

Jones is likely to provide San Jose with competent goaltending, which is all that the team got from his predecessor in 2014-15. And the team's other adds should help significantly.

Martin is a legitimate top-pairing defenceman and will immediately improve the team's blue line. Ward is a quality middle-six forward who plays a complete game. The addition of two quality veterans should help the Sharks improve. 

Stock Down: Dallas Stars

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Key Arrivals: Antti Niemi

Key Departures: Shawn Horcoff, Jhonas Enroth

The Stars had some pretty small subtractions, but the losses of Horcoff and Enroth are not the reasons the team makes this section of the list.

Dallas spent a bunch of money on a low-end NHL starting goalie who will complement the team's current mid-to-low-end NHL starting goalie. That was excessive, likely ill-advised and not a good move, but even that isn't why the team is on this list.

The Stars have serious problems on a blue line that relies too heavily on youth and lacks sufficient talent. This year, free agency was loaded with defencemen, with some significant names (Cody Franson, Christian Ehrhoff, etc.) still out there looking for work. Dallas could have probably addressed a real problem for reasonable money without losing any assets.

Instead, crickets. A team with forwards who are good enough to make noise now appears set to wait for its defencemen to grow up. It's a baffling choice. 

Everybody Else

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Anaheim Ducks: Kevin Bieksa is a downgrade from Francois Beauchemin, but Carl Hagelin was a sneaky-good steal from the Rangers. STOCK: HOLD

Arizona Coyotes: Lots of prodigal sons returned home via free agency or trade, but the team had been gutted at the trade deadline, and the goaltending remains a question. STOCK: HOLD

Carolina Hurricanes: James Wisniewski will do a lot to stabilize a defence that lost Andrej Sekera at the trade deadline, and he didn't cost all that much. Eddie Lack was a nice add, too. STOCK: UP

Colorado Avalanche: A flurry of moves left the Avs mildly improved at their position of greatest weakness, the blue line. STOCK: UP

Columbus Blue Jackets: The Brandon Saad trade was a massive move, and while the Jackets paid a heavy price asset-wise, it makes them a better team. STOCK: UP

Florida Panthers: A quiet offseason saw the Panthers make a somewhat lateral move and add the Marc Savard contract to their books just to ensure compliance with the salary-cap floor. STOCK: HOLD

Los Angeles Kings: Milan Lucic is a flashy addition, but does he make up for the holes punched in the team this summer? Does he even really offset the loss of Justin Williams? STOCK: DOWN

Minnesota Wild: The Wild lost some useful depth players and added only at the AHL level. STOCK: DOWN

Montreal Canadiens: The Zack Kassian gamble was a good one, but the buyout of P.A. Parenteau undoes some of that good work. STOCK: HOLD

Nashville Predators: The Predators generally made good bets in free agency, but they lost some pretty nice depth players in the process. STOCK: HOLD

New Jersey Devils: John Moore does nothing to help the rapidly deteriorating situation up front. STOCK: DOWN

New York Islanders: The Isles didn't do much, but they really didn't need to, either. Thomas Greiss is a nice backup option. STOCK: HOLD

New York Rangers: A couple of smart bets help, notably the decision to add Viktor Stalberg. The loss of Carl Hagelin hurts. STOCK: HOLD

Philadelphia Flyers: A cap-strapped team, the Flyers made a clever buy with Michal Neuvirth, who should stabilize the netminding situation. STOCK: UP

Pittsburgh Penguins: Phil Kessel was a genius add at a shockingly modest price, but the loss of multiple competent veteran defencemen will sting almost as much. STOCK: HOLD

St. Louis Blues: Troy Brouwer for T.J. Oshie makes St. Louis bigger, not better, right now. STOCK: DOWN

Tampa Bay Lightning: Erik Condra isn't a massive addition, but he's an upgrade on Brenden Morrow. STOCK: UP

Toronto Maple Leafs: Toronto made a pile of smart bets, but the loss of Phil Kessel hurts a lot. The rebuild is clearly still in the scorched earth phase. STOCK: DOWN 

Washington Capitals: Justin Williams and T.J. Oshie are really strong additions, but the Capitals lost Mike Green and a pile of good secondary forwards in the process. STOCK: HOLD

Winnipeg Jets: The Jets re-signed many, but not all, of their significant free agents. STOCK: DOWN