Four years ago today was the 2018 NHL trade deadline, one that featured several notable swaps, including Evander Kane to the Sharks, Tomas Tatar to the Golden Knights, and Paul Stastny to the Jets. But the biggest one of all came from the Lightning and Rangers. New York had released their letter committing to rebuilding their franchise earlier in the month and had already made some moves to shore up their future. This was their biggest one with Tampa Bay moving out several future assets in an effort to win now.
The Lightning picked up defenseman Ryan McDonagh along with winger J.T. Miller in exchange for winger Vladislav Namestnikov, center Brett Howden, defenseman Libor Hajek, plus a first-round pick in 2018 and a second-rounder in 2019. It has only been four years but it’s safe to say it worked out a whole lot better for Tampa Bay than it did for New York.
McDonagh immediately became a stabilizing force on the back end for the Lightning. They didn’t need him to play…
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