Ottawa Senators: More Value In The Brassard Zibanejad Trade

A little more than a year ago the Ottawa Senators acquired Derick Brassard in exchange for Mika Zibanejad. Now with Zibanejad signing a new contract it brings out new benefits of the trade for the Sens.

It would have been difficult for Pierre Dorion to have a more controversial start to his tenure as General Manager for the Ottawa Senators. He started off by failing to sign Bruce Boudreau as a coach and got Guy Boucher instead. Obviously everyone loves Boucher now but at the time it was very upsetting that the Sens couldn’t lock up Boudreau. Dorion then followed it up by making the controversial Zibanejad for Brassard trade. Brassard seemed like a slightly better player now but he was older and Zibanejad had a higher ceiling. However, with Zibanejad signing his new contract the trade begins to benefit the Sens even more.

Money Management

The Sens are in a window to win now and Brassard is the better player today. In three or four years Zibanejad will probably be better, but that might be outside the Sens window. Now with Zibanejad signing five year extension with a 5.35 million average annual value, the Sens will be saving money. Brassard makes just five million for the next two seasons. When his contract is up the Sens will need money to re-sign Karlsson. Even if Brassard gets signed to the same dollar value, it will be a discount compared to Zibanejad. However, there’s a chance he’ll be signed for less. Regardless of what happens, this deal has given the Sens more wiggle room in the re-signing of not just Karlsson, but Stone, Turris, and Ceci as well.

Next: Ottawa Senators Have A Window To Win In The Next Two Years

Wrap Up

The Zibanejad re-signing with the New York Rangers brings out further benefits of dealing him for the Ottawa Senators. With so many high profile players needing contracts in the next few years, having a little extra money will be extremely beneficial.