Senator Max Martin has acquired blueliner Logan Brown from the Blues for a fifth-round draft pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. Brown has been traded to St. Louis due to an arbitration decision between him and the Blues. The trade is expected to be finalized by the conclusion of today’s game. This article will provide you with all of the details on this blockbuster trade.
The entire situation started when the Blues did not feel comfortable placing their highest ranking player, Logan Couture, on the team’s roster. They instead decided to place him on waivers, and then send him to training camp to evaluate whether or not he was improving enough to earn a roster spot. However, none of the coaches believed that was good enough, and ultimately, placed him on injured reserve. Since then, the Senators have been involved in a number of contract negotiations with other teams, as they try to make some kind of impact with their young talent. This led to talks involving Senator Milan Lucic and Brown, who are both represented by agent Peterreau.
According to ESPN Hockey Writer Mike Messi, there was initial contact between the two parties regarding a contract extension before the arbitration hearing. Brown indicated that he would bring a strong market value to a contract offer, but also admitted that he wasn’t in a position to do so right now due to an injury. After the Sharks beat the Penguins in San Jose, the Sharks forward requested an extension. He was denied, so Messi met with Brown and informed him of the offer that the Senators had extended to him. Brown declined the deal and subsequently went back to Switzerland to recover from his injury. When the deadline arrived to apply for an entry into the NHL Entry Draft, the Sharks matched the offer sheet, sending their top prospect, Zach Sanford, to the Blues.
Prior to the arbitration hearing, Brown indicated that he hadn’t yet decided whether or not he would be able to return to the NHL this season. The Sharks’ depth and offensive line were formidable, and Brown felt that he needed to have a good contract negotiation with the team prior to deciding on a return to San Jose. Despite his intentions, Brown still hasn’t signed an extension. With the Sharks’ playoff run over, there may be some sense that he needs a little more time to ponder if he wants to return to the NHL or not. Whether this is the case remains to be seen.
The Predators were one of the many teams that had been mentioned as a possible landing spot for Brown. He had great chemistry with captain Shea Weber and the club, but he didn’t appear to be ready to move into a new situation in Nashville. Nashville Predators head coach Barry Trodden confirmed that he had been shopping around for a new left-wing after the conclusion of the season. He called Brown “a guy that we had an interest in, but we just weren’t in a place where it was going to work out for us.” Brown has indicated that he would like to stay in San Diego, but the Sharks weren’t willing to budge on their restricted free agency status. Ultimately, the two sides came to an agreement on a two-year deal worth approximately $4 million, which was slightly below the value of Brown’s salary.
The Sharks also dealt with a number of off-season injuries to players such as Boucher, Stapling, Del Zotto, Melkerk, Gudas, Couture, Grigoriades, etc., which all created issues for them in their regular season play. However, they are still very young, so it’s expected that they’ll contend for a playoff spot next season. The Sens gave up an impressive amount of assets in return for Brown, but it appears that they didn’t necessarily get what they were looking for in return. In addition, the Sharks managed to acquire a young stud defender in Zach Sanford, and they should be able to contend in the near future. This acquisition represents a pretty nice piece of “paper” for the Sharks.
After the acquisition of Brown from the Blues, the Sens had to deal with the ramifications of their transaction for one entire season. First, they had to endure the financial loss of Brown, who was their best all-around player. Then, they had to deal with the arbitration hearing involving Brown, who is appealing for a trade. Finally, after the arbitration hearing, the NHL introduced the no-trade clause to the NHL Players’ Union, which will force teams to give a player a trade if they request one. Although the Sharks received a ton of draft picks in exchange for Brown, they got little in return in terms of a player prospect or a roster player.
Although the Sens lost out on a number of high-profile players in this transaction, it was a fairly decent move by Ottawa. While Brown is no longer in their prime time, the Sens still have some very talented players to play within Ottawa. They just may need a few more seasons of development in order to dethrone the Flyers and Jackets as the main Eastern Conference powerhouses. This trade makes sense for all parties involved, and the Sens look to be moving in the right direction.
