The Ottawa Senators traded defenceman Dion Phaneuf and forward Nate Thompson to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for winger Marian Gaborik and centre Nick Shore Tuesday night.
The trade was finalized during the Sens’ 6-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Phaneuf headed to the locker room midway through second period after logging 10:50 of ice-time. It initially appeared that it might have been injury-related after he took a puck to the arm early in the first period, however trade reports began surfacing soon after.
Phaneuf has three more full seasons left on his seven-year, $49-million contract and the Senators will retain 25 per cent of his remaining salary as part of the deal.
This deal comes two years and four days after Phaneuf was acquired by Ottawa in a blockbuster trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Phaneuf finishes his tenure with the Senators having played 154 games with the club, registering 13 goals, 41 assists, 157 penalty minutes and a minus-17 rating.
Thompson was in his first season with the Sens after signing a two-year, $3.3-million contract on the first day of free agency in 2017. Thompson, 33, heads back to California after having spent the past previous three seasons with the Anaheim Ducks. He has 11 points in 43 games this season and was scratched for Tuesday’s game.
“Dion brings to our club a great deal of experience and leadership,” Kings general manager Rob Blake said in a press release. “He also plays with a physical edge which complements our line-up well. Nate has a good reputation of being a high-energy player on the ice. Both guys are also high character guys.”
Gaborik, who turns 36 on Tuesday, joins his fifth NHL team. The Trencin, Slovakia native has seven goals and seven assists thgouh 30 games this season as he bounced back from off-season knee surgery. Like Phaneuf, Gaborik also has three full years remaining on his contract, which comes with a $4.875-million cap hit.
Meanwhile, Shore had played every game of his professional career with the Kings organization after being selected in the third round of the 2011 draft.
“We also wish Marian and Nick well,” Blake added. “Marian has enjoyed a tremendous career to date and has played an integral role with our team over the years including a Stanley Cup Championship. Nick is a hard-worker who came up through our system and has developed into a solid NHL player.”
