Ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft, the New York Islanders completed a blockbuster trade with the Montreal Canadiens. 

Defenseman Noah Dobson was dealt for the No. 16 and No. 17 picks, along with pending restricted free agent Emil Heineman.

On Sunday, we saw our first blockbuster trade of this draft season. 

The Florida Panthers acquired Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for No. 9 and No. 25 in this year's draft, a 2029 first-round pick (top-10 protected), and a 2027 second-round pick.

The two deals aren't comparable, in the slightest, but it is interesting to look at value.

Dobson, despite being overrated by many within the Islanders' fan base, is an offensive defenseman who recorded a 70-point season at age 24 before a down season. 

He was also a pending restricted free agent who forced general manager Mathieu Darche to trade him after the two sides couldn't agree on a contract extension, before he inked an eight-year deal worth $9.5 million annually. 

Tkachuk, who won gold with his brother Matthew representing Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics, is a three-time 30-goal scorer, a now former captain, and some teams hate to play against him given his grit. 

In terms of the returns, there's no question Darche got back a lot for Dobson, especially given the little leverage he did have.

Victor Eklund, who they took at No. 16, and Kashawn Aitcheson, who they took at No. 17, are likely big pieces of their future alongside Calder winner Matthew Schaefer. 

Tkachuk's package is significantly stronger, even if Senators fans don't see it that way right now.

While general manager Steve Staois didn't have leverage and Florida was really the only team he was going to go to, despite having the Vegas Golden Knights and the Carolina Hurricanes as options, he also didn't have to trade Tkachuk at this moment. 

He had two seasons left at $8.205 million annually, and Staios could have forced his star to add more teams to his willing-to-be-traded-to list like Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman did with Dylan Larkin. 

Obviously, Brady's dream was to play with Matthew, and with NTC handed out like candy, he made that a reality. 

Honestly, is it fair to say that Ottawa got back what Tkachuk is worth if not more?

We are talking about three first-round picks and a second-round pick, with a few of them likely on the move to add a top-six scorer like Dallas Stars forward Jason Robertson or St. Louis Blues forward Jordan Kyrou. 

The real question is, how many more blockbuster trades are coming before Friday's NHL Draft?