We had a significant trade made after the third overall selection, and both involved the Draft host team of Montreal. They went out and got a young centre they had been looking for while sending out Alexander Romanov. The two trades look as such:

The Canadiens have traded Alexander Romanov and the 98th overall pick at 2022 #NHLDraft to NYI for the 13th overall pick.

The 13th and 66th overall picks have been traded to CHI for Kirby Dach.#GoHabsGo

— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) July 7, 2022

That effectively works out to being Romanov (to NYI) and picks 66 and 98 being sent out by Montreal for Kirby Dach, a pending RFA. Let's break down the players.

To New York

Alexander Romanov has had an uneven start to his career, which doesn't feel unusual for a young defenceman. He had some good offensive metrics, according to Evolving Hockey, in his rookie season. As a Habs fan, watching Romanov exposed us to his ability to be solid in transition while jumping into the play offensively, looking for dangerous shots. He wasn't always successful, as his production was very muted, but he didn't have a big role either. At 21 years old, there was still more to learn.

A lot of that disappeared in his second season, at least until Martin St. Louis took over. His production rose a bit, on a per-game basis, but he also added over three minutes per game in TOI. The defence steadied as the slot was kept relatively clean – relative on a very bad team, that is – but the offence disappeared, notably his work in transition. It is easy to chalk that up to a difficult system, which has been talked about by media and players alike. Romanov looked more like himself down the stretch under MSL.

The Islanders have Adam Pelech locked into the top-pair role but Romanov can easily slide in on the second pair, playing 20-21 minutes a night. He is a pending RFA but his age, combined with a lack of raw production, should keep his cap hit cheap moving forward. For those in cap leagues, expect the same monster peripherals that he's always had. If he can be a 15-20 point blue liner with 375 hits+blocks, a couple million a season will work just fine in cap formats.

Should the Islanders re-sign The Other Sebastian Aho, it keeps him on the third pair, in all likelihood. It also means Samuel Bolduc, if he makes the roster over Aho, will likewise be stuck on the third pair.

To Montreal

It is tough to take a lot of Dach's play at face value. He had a strong rookie season with 23 points in 64 games, skating 14:16 a night. He then had a phenomenal performance in Chicago's two rounds of the 2020 Bubble Playoffs, skating over 19 minutes a night and posting 6 points in 9 games. He was leaned on heavily on a very thin roster and turned in a great playoffs. Then the injuries came.

Dach broke his arm in a pre-tournament World Junior game before the COVID 2021 season, and that kept him out until late March, returning in three months, ahead of schedule. He didn't seem himself when he returned but still had 10 points in 18 games.

He did not have a good 2021-22 season, though he finished the season with problems in his surgically-repaired wrist. He was shutdown over the team's final few games because of his wrist issue. It seems logical that it was something he was struggling with all year if it was the same problem, so it's a wonder if he's ever been close to healthy the last two seasons.

That is why it's tough to make a determination on Dach. In the 2019-20 season, according to CJ Turtoro's viz, Dach wasn't a great playmaker but was near-elite in transition:

Remember, that was his age-19 rookie season, the one year he seemed completely healthy. That, combined with his great playoff performance in 2020, had Chicago fans and fantasy owners alike waiting for the breakout from the third overall pick in 2019.

The question is whether Dach builds on the player he was two years ago, or if his last two seasons are more indicative of his future. With a young player, who had a solid rookie campaign and has a great pedigree, I'm more inclined to believe that injuries really hampered him. Assuming that will no longer be a problem in 2022-23, Montreal could have just found their number-2 centre for the next 10 years.

It's hard to see his fantasy value diminish because of that, too. He may be going to a rebuilding team, but he had just 36 points in his last 88 games. Even with Montreal looking to the future, he absolutely has 40-point upside, if healthy, in Montreal's top-6. If he's great in transition and can return to solid defensive work that he showed early in his career, it's a great deal for the Habs.

Dach doesn't have a ton of fantasy upside, though. He hasn't shown a penchant for shooting whether healthy or not, and he doesn't hit much either. Even playing 18 minutes a night can't save a player's fantasy value if they're posting 130 shots and 60 hits. Maybe he's an option in deeper formats, but the Canadian pivot should be disregarded in most leagues.

With health, this pushes Christian Dvorak to the third line eventually. It may not happen right away as they lean on the veteran to get Dach more acclimated to the team and system on the third line, but he should be able to overtake the role by the 2023-24 season.

Assuming Dylan Strome is also traded by Chicago eventually, Jonathan Toews will be relied upon very heavily in all areas. If he's not traded, he could push 20 minutes a night. It could also mean bigger roles for someone like Ryan Carpenter? The 'Hawks don't have a lot left after Toews/Kane now.

Who This Helps

Jordan Harris

Kaiden Guhle

Jonathan Toews

Who This Hurts

Jake Evans

Christian Dvorak

Sebastian Aho

Samuel Bolduc