Rising Value: The Top Four Trade Deadline Acquisitions in the West

For the sake of information saturation, let's break it down again. There were 20 trades involving 38 players last week. Most notably we saw Roberto Luongo finally leave the West Coast for Miami Beach while unhappy captains Martin St. Louis and Ryan Callahan switched locations. The final outcome of Mike Gillis' managerial vision now has Eddie Lack as a top 20 option in goal, especially after his great performance against Calgary on Saturday night. From a fantasy perspective there were a number of winners and losers last week in the Western Conference. Now that our NHL trade deadline hangovers have fully run their course and the endless discussions are winding down, let's take a look at the top four trade deadline acquisitions in the West. Here are four players who have improved their respective situations at least for the short term.

#4 – Marian Gaborik (Los Angeles Kings)

It may be a bit of a reach to have Gaborik on the list but if his first game in Hollywood is any sign of what lies ahead we should see a strong finish. In Gaborik's first game as King he played on the first power play unit with Jeff Carter and Anze Kopitar and saw 16 minutes of overall ice time including over four minutes with the man advantage. In all fairness to the often injured winger he is only five games into his return from injury last December and we should see a steady increase in production as he gets his legs and adjusts to his new team. Here is a quick look at his line combinations in his first game with the Kings.

Call it a gut feeling or wishful thinking from an author who happens to own Gaborik in a number of leagues, but we should expect 14 points in his final 18 games down the stretch along with some healthy shots on goal totals.

#3 – Matt Moulson (Minnesota Wild)

From the offensive abyss of Buffalo to a top six that includes Mikko Koivu, Jason Pominville, Zach Parise, and Mikael Granlund – no offence Ted Nolan, but it's elementary to suggest that Moulson has improved his situation. As Moulson wraps up a three year deal that with a bargain cap hit of 3.1 million per year, he is not only trying to help the Wild make the playoffs, he is playing for his next contract and we should expect a strong finish. Regardless of how this season ends Moulson is likely going to get a raise to the 4.5m/year range and will have a number of teams chasing him.

If Moulson's first game is any indication of what to expect for the rest of the year his owners will not be disappointed. In his first game with his new team on Saturday night Moulson saw just over 17 minutes of ice time, four and a half minutes of PP TOI (3^rd most on the team), notched an assist, and took five shots on goal. Also of note, Moulson is currently riding a nice streak with six points in his past five games. Here is a look at his most frequent line combinations last night in his first game with the Wild.

#2 – Tim Thomas (Dallas Stars)

Is Tim Thomas a curse or have the "Stars" aligned in Dallas? With the news last night that Kari Lehtonen suffered a concussion and could miss some time, Tim Thomas not only jumped onto this list, but vaulted into the top two. The Stars are playing some great hockey and are currently in a playoff push. This is the perfect situation for Thomas and the two time Vezina winner should rise to the occasion and lead the Stars into the post season. In relief of Lehtonen after Saturday night's unfortunate injury, Thomas faced six shots and made six saves while picking up the late win thanks to third period goals by Tyler Seguin and Erik Cole.

Thomas' situation improves from a Panther squad that was 3^rd worst in the East in goals against (201) to a slightly better situation in the West where the Stars are 9^th best out of 14 teams with 179 goals against this season. Here is a look at Timmy T's numbers so far this year and we should expect to see an improvement in all categories with the exception of saves.

2013-2014 Regular Season

Expect Thomas to post 11 wins in Dallas' last 18 games with a save percentage in the .920 range, followed by an announcement that he is the Republican candidate running for Governor of Texas.

#1 – Ryan Miller (St. Louis Blues)

Was there any doubt that Miller would top this list? Both he and the Blues are the big winners of this trade deadline. We should see a nice bump in all categories for Miller with the exception of saves as he will clearly face less rubber on his new team. Quite amazing really – that Miller transitions from a team that is likely to get the first overall pick this June to a team that is leading the race for the President's Trophy by four points.

Miller has lived up to expectations in his with this new team, posting a perfect four wins in four games.

Last Four Games

In his first four games, Miller has allowed only six goals and has saved 84 of the 90 shots – good for a save percentage of .933 and a GAA of 1.50. Expect Miller to post 13 wins in his team's final 19 games down the stretch as back up Brian Elliott should get a bit more work so the team can rest Miller.

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