Dan Carrozzi
I think Gorton’s trades of pending unrestricted free agents Michael Grabner and Rick Nash were well executed. There was some disappointment when Grabner failed to yield a first-round draft pick however, the New Jersey Devils were late to the table. If another team offered up a first-round pick, I believe Gorton would have jumped at that offer instead.
As for the Nash trade to the Boston Bruins, it was about what was expected. However, I think Gorton did well here by taking some of Matt Belesky’s contract in exchange for the Bruins including pending restricted free agent Ryan Spooner. Smart GMs make the most of these kinds of salary maneuvers and I think Gorton acquitted himself well here.
If Gorton had stopped there, I would have given him an A- or even an A. However, he dropped one final bombshell by trading Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Now, the trade wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either, it was OK. The problem is when you’re making this move, trading your number one defenseman to facilitate a rebuild, you have to hit it out of the park. Instead, it appears that Gorton hit just a double.
Trading your number one defenseman and young second-leading scoring should return one ‘A’ prospect in addition to draft picks and other pieces. It is too early to make a final judgment but this feels like the Derek Stepan trade all over again.
It feels like Gorton felt like he needed to make a move now. However, he could have waited until the NHL draft to make his move if he felt the return wasn’t ideal for McDonagh and Miller.