Adam Henrique Trade Grades
Adam Henrique is finally on the move after endless speculation. The Ontario native is moving north of the border as the Edmonton Oilers are adding both him and forward Sam Carrick. Anaheim is receiving both a first and conditional fifth-round pick on top of retaining 50% of his salary. Even more, the Tampa Bay Lightning threw their hats into the ring. They are retaining 25% of his remaining salary in exchange for a fourth-round pick. They’re pretty darn close to the cap ceiling so there may not be much more they can do between now and Friday. However, it’s a big add for their Top Six and depth. Let’s see how both teams did.
Anaheim Ducks: B-
It’s what you would expect in a return for one of the biggest fish on the trade market. A first-round pick and a mid-round pick is not exciting, but it’s good value for a pending free agent, and one that you got many years of service out of. Carrick is also a bottom-sixer who has gotten some run this season.
There are potentially more pieces to move out for Anaheim so the picks might keep coming. Jakob Silfverberg is a pending free agent and is a swiss army knife forward. There were past rumblings that John Gibson wants out of Anaheim and teams obviously need goaltending.
Edmonton Oilers: B+
This is their swing and it’s honestly not terrible. Another defenseman would be nice but at this point they need to subtract in order to add. Henrique is a playoff warrior and finally completes their top six. The fact that he can play both down the middle and on the wing is a cherry on top. Having Carrick as a fourth-line piece also does not hurt when it comes to giving guys a night off every now and again. Furthermore, getting Henrique means other teams miss out. You sure a team like Vegas or Dallas wasn’t sniffing around?
The Edmonton Oilers are going big with Adam Henrique. Is he the missing piece that finally earns a Stanley Cup in the McDavid era?
