(Photo via thehockeynews.com)
By Michael Wax
Less than 48 hours after Lightning GM Julien BriseBois said they were done adding to the roster, the Lightning completed another trade to add depth for their 2022 playoff run. Here are the full trade details:
Lightning Receive
F Nick Paul (44.5% retained)
Senators Receive
F Mathieu Joseph
2024 4th round pick
What the Lightning Got
Nick Paul has been in trade rumors for a while, and we happened to target Paul to the Bolts in our latest article. The 27-year-old is having the best offensive season of his career, already at a career-high 11 goals and on pace to beat his career-high in points (20). Paul is extremely versitle, playing on both wings and at center, and has been pretty solid defensively over his career. At 6'3", 224 ibs., Paul also gives the Lightning even more physicality in their forward core.
Paul will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA) at the end of the 2022 season. Unlike recent acquisition Brandon Hagel, Paul will serve as a pure rental for the 2021-22 Lightning as they attempt to hoist their third consecutive Stanley Cup. The Senators are retaining 44.5% of Paul's $1.35M cap hit and salary to match Joseph's lower cap hit.
What they Gave Up
Mathieu Joseph was drafted by the Lightning in the 4th round (120th overall) in the 2015 draft. His first NHL goal, fittingly, came against the Ottawa Senators. He is someone who brought exemplary speed to the table, but who's hands never really caught up to NHL standards. Joseph was a very good penalty killer for Tampa this year, and had moments of brilliance playing next to Ross Colton. Ultimately, the Lightning were most likely going to non-tender Joseph in the offseason, making him an unrestricted free agent anyways.
The 2024 4th round pick is the Lightning's own pick, which could range anywhere from pick 97 to pick 128 in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.
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