What Are The Best NHL Trade Deadline Moves One Month Later?

We've now had a full month since the NHL's March 6 trade deadline, and some deals have already panned out well.

Making this list of the best trades one month later doesn't necessarily have to be a team that traded for help for their Stanley Cup playoff aspirations this season. There are teams out there that are building for the long haul, so a win for them looks very different than a win for a team making a trade for a short-term upgrade.

With that noted, here are four trades that have worked out well as we approach the last full week of the regular season.

Mammoth acquired defenseman MacKenzie Weegar from Calgary Flames for defenseman Olli Maatta, prospect center Jonathan Castagna, and three second-round picks

The price the Mammoth paid to pick up Weegar – a right-shot defenseman signed to a very affordable $6.25-million salary through 2030-31 – was certainly a lot for Utah.

But Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong spent previous seasons building up a stockpile of draft picks and prospects, and the Weegar deal is the type of move Armstrong needed to make in order for Utah to be a competitive playoff team in the highly competitive Central Division.

Weegar, 32, hasn't produced a lot of offense, with only three assists and four points in 13 games with the Mammoth. His season point total of 21 assists and 25 points is down considerably from the 47 points he had last season.

But Utah didn't acquire Weegar just to fill up the scoresheet. They got him to be a top-four blueliner who makes the Mammoth's defense corps sneaky-good at both ends of the ice. When he returns to the lineup from a day-to-day injury, he'll continue to bring stability and depth to the blueline.

The Calgary Flames were clearly happy to get the slew of assets they did in this trade, but for Utah, this was about solidifying a need with a proven veteran. And that's who Weegar is for them. He's giving them nearly 21 minutes a night and killing penalties, and you have to pay a high price for that type of improvement to your blueline.

New York Islanders acquired center Brayden Schenn from St. Louis Blues for left winger Jonathan Drouin, prospect goalie Marcus Gidlof, a first-round pick and a third-round pick

Give Islanders GM Mathieu Darche credit – he knows he needs to transition this Isles team toward being a long-term force, but he sure is giving his veterans every reason to believe this season's results matter to him.

Acquiring Schenn from the Blues showed the rest of the lineup that Darche believes in them.

St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong drove a hard bargain for Schenn's services, and he got a solid haul from the Isles, including a potential goalie-of-the-future in Gidlof and two high draft picks. For a 34-year-old Schenn – who is under contract for another two seasons after this one – that's a pretty great package Armstrong was able to get. 

And in Darche's defense, Schenn gives the Isles the second-line center it was clear they needed. Schenn no longer is in his prime, but top six centers are at a premium these days, and in 15 games with the Islanders, Schenn has five goals and 10 points.

This trade has worked out pretty well for the Isles and Blues. 

Anaheim Ducks acquired defenseman John Carlson from Washington Capitals for a conditional first-round pick and a third-round pick

The Carlson trade came out of nowhere.

But you can see why Ducks GM Pat Verbeek was interested in picking up a skilled D-man to help his team get into the playoffs and maybe win a round or two.

Prior to the trade, Carlson had 46 points in 55 games – and in 11 games with Anaheim, Carlson has eight assists and nine points.

It's true Verbeek sent a lot to the Capitals for a player who will be a UFA this summer, but the way things are working out for him, Carlson has every reason to stay in Anaheim beyond this season. The Ducks have the cap space to sign Carlson, and he gets to be part of the next step in Anaheim's youth movement.

Washington clearly wasn't prepared to give Carlson the contract extension he's looking for, so they did well to get a couple of high-end picks. This is another trade that worked out well for both sides.

Colorado Avalanche acquired center Nazem Kadri and a fourth round pick from Calgary Flames for left winger Victor Olofsson, prospect center Max Curran, a conditional first-round pick and a conditional second-round pick

The Avalanche have been the NHL's best team this season, and they got even better at the trade deadline with four moves – the biggest being the re-acquisition of Kadri.

The trade gave Colorado the type of depth down the middle virtually every other team can only dream of. (It also helped that the Avs acquired center Nicolas Roy from the Toronto Maple Leafs at the deadline.)

Kadri still has another three seasons left on his contract, but one of the reasons this was a home-run trade for the Avalanche was the fact they got Calgary to retain $1.4 million of Kadri's $7-million cap hit.

Considering Kadri has four goals, including a game-winner, and five assists for nine points in 15 games while averaging 18:34 of ice time, he's fit into Colorado's lineup like a glove.

Colorado did have to surrender high-end draft picks and a prospect to the Flames – and again, Flames GM Craig Conroy made the most of his veteran assets in trades as he rebuilds Calgary's core. But the Avs came away with the best player in the deal in Kadri.

So you can't say one team has won this trade and the other has lost it. The Avalanche and Flames are at two different places in their competitive cycle, and they were looking for different things in this deal. Both sides got what they were looking for.

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