NHL News: DAL-MTL Makes Trade, Ivan Barbashev Goes To Vegas
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Canadiens and Stars Exchange Forwards

The NHL Trade Deadline is heating up. The Montreal Canadiens got into the action trading Evgenii Dadonov to the Dallas Stars in exchange for forward Denis Gurianov.

In addition, the Canadiens will retain 50 percent of Dadonov’s salary. Prior to the start of the 2022-23 season, the Canadiens acquired Dadonov from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Shea Weber. Weber has now been shipped to Arizona by the Golden Knights.

Dadonov was entering the final year of his deal and was thought to play a big role in the top six for the Canadiens. That has not played out as Dadonov has recorded 18 points (four goals and 14 assists) in 50 games with the Canadiens this season.

In 463 career NHL regular season games with the Florida Panthers, Ottawa Senators, Golden Knights and Canadiens, the 33-year-old has recorded 283 points (128 goals and 155 assists).

 

Gurianov, who played a big role for the Stars in their run to the Stanley Cup Final in the 2020 bubble playoff, has tallied just nine points (two goals and seven assists). In 257 games with the Stars, Gurianov has recorded 103 points (46 goals and 57 assists).

Both struggling players are in need of a change of scenery as Dadonov looks to play a role for the Stars in their middle six, while Gurianov looks to fit into what the young Canadiens are building.

Golden Knights Acquire Ivan Barbashev

The other trade of the day saw the Golden Knights acquire Ivan Barbashev from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for 2021 first-round pick Zach Dean.

The Blues are in seller’s mode as they have made several trades over the last couple of weeks including trading Vladimir Tarasenko and Niko Mikkola to the Rangers, and Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari to the Maple Leafs.

As noted, Barbashev is a solid middle-six forward that can add offensive punch to the Golden Knights offense. In 59 games with the Blues this season, Barbashev has recorded 29 points (10 goals and 19 assists) along with 36 penalty minutes.

In 410 career NHL regular season games, Barbashev has recorded 178 points (78 goals and 100 assists) to go along with 128 penalty minutes.
The 2019 Stanley Cup Champion will be reunited with former Blues teammate Alex Pietrangelo in Vegas.
According to Andy Strickland, the Blues tried to negotiate an extension with Barbashev but with no luck. Barbashev wanted another taste of the playoffs and the Blues respected his wishes.
Strickland went on to say that he believes the Golden Knights do not see Barbashev as a rental and will look to extend him. The magic number is around $4 million a season.
The Golden Knights were one of the teams sniffing around Timo Meier. This deal for Barbashev does not take them out of the running according to Darren Dreger of TSN.