FanNation - The Republic of Sport

With the NHL trade deadline now in the books, everything is pretty much set and it is not hard to see which teams were buying and which were selling before the playoff push. Some big deals took place on Tuesday... some were to be expected, where as others were a bit surprising. Let's take a look at the Top 5 trades as far as impact goes from both fantasy and NHL viewpoints.

RW Marian Hossa to Pittsburgh
In a huge and risky deal that no one was expecting, the Pittsburgh Penguins made a deadline deal with the Thrashers that will send star sniper RW Marian Hossa and veteran C Pascal Dupuis to the Pens, while the Thrash get C Erik Christensen, RW Colby Armstrong, C Angelo Esposito and a 1st Round draft pick. With this move, the Penguins become the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. Once C Sidney Crosby returns from injury, he will be skating alongside one of the league's most feared snipers, and no one can set the plate for a guy with Hossa's abilities quite like Crosby. Also, imagine a power play line that involves Crosby, Hossa, and LW Evgeni Malkin... that is just not something the opposition would like to imagine. The Thrashers gained tons of youth and good depth in this deal, but neither Armstrong nor Christensen will be real difference makers, and we do not know what exactly to expect from Esposito at such a young age. The one downside for Pittsburgh is that the loss of Armstrong may not be taken well in the locker room, as he is a fan favorite, as well as a team favorite - but if the Cup comes to Pittsburgh, his loss will all be quickly forgotten.

Views: This deal truly does make Pittsburgh the beast in the East, and they will be very tough to stop, but I do think that Atlanta got their money's worth for Hossa, as they will now go into a rebuilding process with one of the league's best goal scorers to center it around in LW Ilya Kovalchuk.

Fantasy Spin: Whether playing with Malkin for the time being or Crosby when he returns, Hossa's fantasy value definitely goes up by leaving Atlanta and getting the opportunity to skate with less selfish players. Crosby's value also goes up once he gets to take the ice with a premier sniper. None of the players going to Atlanta should be worth a look unless you are in a very deep league or somehow factor shootouts into your fantasy game.

C Brad Richards to Dallas
This trade was one that could have been seen coming, as there were reports out of Dallas earlier in the week that the Stars were eyeing Richards, and they are also one of the only teams in the NHL with goalie help to spare. For Richards and G Johan Holmqvist, the Bolts received young G Mike Smith, LW Jussi Jokinen, and veteran C Jeff Halpern. The Lightning were the biggest sellers of the deadline this season, due in part to a very disappointing year and the overwhelming salaries of their "Big Three". With Richards gone and a much-needed solid goal tender in Smith, the Bolts can now focus on a crucial rebuild to add some depth and youth to stars C Vincent Lecavalier and RW Martin St. Louis. Richards gives the Stars some much-needed size up front to tangle with all of the big-bodied centers in the West, as well as another two-way forward to help them continue to excel at both ends of the ice. Getting rid of Richards' salary is a huge load off of the Lightning, a team that can now look at signing some players this offseason instead of just playing the same three guys for 20 minutes a game.

Views: This trade also benefits both teams, where the Stars get a playmaker and former All-Star to help them tangle for the prize in the West, while the Lightning get some youth, clear much needed cap space, and get their goalie of the future.

Fantasy Spin: The biggest increase in fantasy value belongs to Mike Smith, who will now hold the reigns to a team that knows how to put the puck in the net. Smith never got his due chance in Dallas with an institution like G Marty Turco in front of him, but when he did play over the last two seasons, he shined. Richards joins a Stars team that is more known for their defense, and though he is a good fit and his +/- will definitely see an increase, his point total will still not take a huge jump, since Dallas does not have any real snipers for Richards to set up.

LW Vaclav Prospal to Philadelphia
In another sell-off for Tampa Bay, the Lightning sent veteran scorer Vaclav Prospal to Philly in exchange for minor league defensive prospect Alexandre Picard and a conditional 2nd or 3rd Round draft pick. Prospal is in the midst of a very good season with 57 points in 62 games for the struggling Bolts, and adds some much-needed scoring help to the very injury-depleted Flyers attack. Philadelphia acquired Prospal almost immediately learning of the severity of star forward C Mike Richards' injury, as he joins sniper LW Simon Gagne on the shelf for an extended period of time. The Lightning pick up a very young defender in Picard... (Read the full article here: Top Fantasy Hockey Trade Deadline Deals)