The Washington Capitals landed perhaps the best rental defenseman on the market in Nick Jensen, but Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland looks good after this one too, landing a young blueliner in return as well as a second-round pick in 2020.
Capitals get: D Nick Jensen, 2019 fifth-round pick (BUF)
Red Wings get: D Madison Bowey, 2020 second-round pick
Capitals: A-
The Capitals knew they needed to bolster their defense, and in the 28-year-old Jensen they get a late-blooming NHLer who's right-handed, can move the puck and is an absolute bargain for now at an $812,500 cap hit. The Caps signed him to an extension shortly after the trade, which keeps him a Capital for the next four seasons at a $2.5 million annual cap hit starting in 2019-20.
The best rental defenseman available, Jensen has handled an increase in ice time this season (20:48) well, with two goals and 13 assists in 60 games, and a positive possession percentage relative to his teammates. He's an analytics darling for his ability to exit the defensive zone and help the transition offense, which is something that'll play well with the Capitals. If nothing else, he provides a little insurance for Matt Niskanen, another right-handed defenseman who has had a down year.
It was only a year ago that the Capitals were getting praise for acquiring depth defenseman Michal Kempny from the Blackhawks in a move that proved to be a critical one for their ride to the Stanley Cup. Has GM Brian MacLellan found another such piece in Jensen? Potentially. Will Jensen benefit from having Todd Reirden behind the bench, as so many other Capitals defensemen have? Absolutely.
The only caveat here: Even Kempny, with one playoff game to his credit before the trade, had more postseason experience than does Jensen. But that doesn't change the fact that the Capitals made a heck of a trade here, while keeping Jensen away from other contenders in the East.
Red Wings: A-
Detroit wanted to re-sign Jensen, but instead shipped him out.
For now, we focus on the return, and it's not bad. Getting a second-rounder for Jensen was always the goal, so mission accomplished. The Red Wings now have four second-rounders over the next two seasons.
Bowey, 23, is signed through 2020 at $1 million against the cap, meaning the Red Wings turned an expiring contract into a player with term. He played 84 games with the Capitals, with one goal and 17 assists. His underlying numbers aren't great -- for his career, he's a minus-3.5 percent in relative Corsi at 5-on-5 -- and he couldn't find a regular spot in the lineup this season. But the right-handed defenseman still has some upside, and it'll be interesting to see what opportunities the Red Wings provide him -- provided he isn't turned around for something else, that is.
We'll give Holland an A-minus here. Jensen's solid, but so is getting a second-rounder and a player off an NHL roster for him.