The Washington Capitals addressed a position of need ahead of the Feb. 24 trade deadline by acquiring defenseman Brenden Dillon from the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
The Sharks received a 2020 second-round draft pick (originally from Colorado) and a conditional 2021 third-round pick. San Jose retained half of Dillon's $3.27 million cap hit. Which GM came out ahead?
Capitals get: D Brenden Dillon
Sharks get: 2020 second-round pick, 2021 third-round pick (conditional)
Washington Capitals: A
This feels almost exactly like 2017-18, when the Capitals traded for Chicago's Michal Kempny, which turned out to be an important missing piece to lead Washington to its first championship. Dillon is more seasoned than Kempny was, hence the higher price (the lesser known Kempny, who seemed likely to be heading home to Europe after the season, went for only a third-rounder). The Sharks even agreed to pay for half of Dillon's contract, making this a win for Caps GM Brian MacLellan, who found a way to improve his defensive group with just under $3 million in cap space.
MacLellan needed to do something, as his team has been slipping a bit lately; the Caps are 4-6 in their past 10, and losing grip on their Metropolitan Division lead. The GM identified the blue line as an area of need. Dillon isn't going to be a game-changer, but he is a dependable, stay-at-home guy who can play big minutes and man the penalty kill. He also has a ton of NHL experience, including 62 playoff games, with trips to the Stanley Cup Final and multiple Western Conference finals. He's also physical; his 178 hits this season rank second among all defensemen.
The addition of Dillon means the Caps don't have to rely heavily on Nick Jensen down the stretch, and can lessen his role. Dillon isn't going to produce much offensively for the Caps, but they don't need that (well, as long as John Carlson keeps producing at his Norris Trophy-leading pace, and Alex Ovechkin's goalless streak doesn't last forever).
San Jose Sharks: B
Hey, we all knew this was coming. Even Dillon knew. When the 29-year-old was asked this week about potentially leaving the Sharks, his voice began to crack.
"I don't know. Kind of [have to] see what happens. ... I like being here," he told reporters. "I try to play hard every night. It's out of my control."
This Sharks season has been nothing short of a disaster. A team with legitimate Stanley Cup aspirations has been a bottom-feeder for nearly the entire season. Once it was announced last week that Erik Karlsson would miss the rest of the season (broken thumb), it was the final signal that San Jose should go into sell mode. So it's no surprise the Sharks unloaded Dillon, a popular and dependable defenseman, whose contract expires at the end of the season.
Given the prices that were going around for defensemen -- in a comparatively weak deadline for available defensemen -- it feels as if the Sharks should have received more. Heck, if 37-year-old Andy Greene went for a second-rounder and a prospect -- even though the Devils had limited leverage with Greene's no-trade clause -- the price for the 29-year-old Dillon seems too low, especially since San Jose agreed to pay for half of his contract.
Nonetheless, what's important now is that the Sharks restock their prospect pool because, like it or not, they might have to enter a full rebuild soon.