Ducks Send Smith-Pelly to Montreal

Playoff teams making a hockey deal in the week's lead up to the trade deadline.  Plus, it's pool related, so that's a positive as well!

The Anaheim Ducks sent forward Devante Smith-Pelly to the Montreal Canadiens for rookie forward Jiri Sekac in a straight-up hockey deal.

		2015 Season				Cap Hit
To Montreal	POS	GP	G	A	P	2015	2016
Devante Smith-Pelly	F	54	5	12	17	$800k	1 year, $800k
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To Anaheim	POS	GP	G	A	P	2015	2016
Jiri Sekac	F	50	7	9	16	$925k	1 year, $925k

On the surface, this looks like a pretty simple deal to wrap our heads around.  Montreal was looking for a little more crash and bang, while the Ducks wanted a little bit more suave and skill in their lineup.  Coming across in numbers, there really isn't a big enough difference to say that one team over-matched the other, cap space in either this year or next isn't necessarily going to make a difference.

Smith-Pelly is the only one of the two players that made it into the pool this year, even after a couple of Waiver Drafts, and he belongs to Ryan this year.  Ryan picked up Smith-Pelly in the Preseason Waiver Draft, when one of his draft picks was injured early in the preseason.

I think this could be a good move for the 22-year old, as he has already had a bunch of NHL experience and a lot of teams have scouted him to see what he can do at this level.  Obviously, the Canadiens can use a little bit more size and strength in their lineup and they really are not sacrificing anything in the speed department either.  I think with a clear goal for his game, he could really excel in Montreal.  It's a shame for Ryan, because he's down in 21st spot today.