The Daily: NHL Trade Day Comes Early; Alex Lyon Rusty?

The NHL trade deadline isn’t until March 7, but some of the league’s GMs decided Christmas should come early this season.

Three interesting trades unfolded Wednesday,  including the New York Rangers GM Chris Drury moved Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken for Will Borgen, plus two draft picks (a third and a sixth). The Rangers are 3-11 in their last 14 games.  Kakko was the No. 2 NHL draft pick in 2019.

Usually, we see trades around this time because teams want to beat the holiday trade freeze.

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Penguins reacquired P.O. Joseph from the St. Louis Blues and the Montreal Canadiens acquired defenseman Alexandre Carrier from Nashville. Links to these NHL stories can be found below.

Red Wings in Case You Missed It

Coach Derek Lalonde and his players pause to watch a memorable fight in the stands in Wednesday’s game.

Defenseman Simon Edvinsson injured in Detroit’s 6-4 win against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Paywall story: What Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman should like about the Grand Rapids Griffins’ strong start. If you want to subscribe, click here:

Red Wings Extra

Alex Lyon showed rust on his game after returning to Detroit’s lineup Wednesday for the first time since suffering an injury on Nov. 25.  Out of action for three weeks, Lyon had his lowest save percentage game (.789) of the season. He stopped 15 of 19 shots in the 6-4 win against Philadelphia. But the triumph did put Lyon’s won-loss record (5-4-0) above .500. Detroit’s next games are home-and-home against Montreal on Friday in Detroit and Saturday in Montreal.

Hockey Now Network

Montreal: Marc Dumont of MHN explains the Habs acquisition of defenseman Alexandre Carrier from the Nashville Predators. Montreal Canadiens.

Pittsburgh: GM Kyle Dubas explains the NHL trade that brings P.O. Joseph back to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

San Jose: The Sharks recalled Yaroslav Askarov because Vitek Vanecek is out week-to-week after being injured in a scary bench mishap. San Jose Sharks.