On March 21, Artturi Lehkonen was traded to the Avalanche in exchange for young defenseman Justin Barron and a second round pick.
More than two months later, we can say that it was a successful trade.
Why? Because both organizations are happy and content. A true win-win transaction. It's a great success when it happens.
As Grant McCagg (former scout) mentions, on one hand, Barron has shown great things, despite his young age, and could become a special defenseman for Montreal very soon and for a very long time.
On the other hand, Lehkonen (Colorado) is one win away from the Western finals and you can definitely say that the Finn has contributed a lot and is still contributing.
He's been really solid for the Avalanche in the playoffs and he's raised his game.
On top of that, Lehkonen has really helped Nathan MacKinnon's team turn around their power play. They were 27th in the NHL in that category when they acquired #62 from the Montreal Canadiens. Now, in the playoffs, it's much better and makes a huge difference for them. (thanks to Lehkonen for that too)
McCagg adds that, for Montreal, we probably got a solid top-4 defenseman, with offensive character, which fills an important need and on top of that, we have Rafael Harvey-Pinard, who can possibly replace Lehkonen and have the opportunity to blossom.
A win-win deal, we like it! Do you agree?
POLL | ||
Was the Avs/Habs Lehkonen trade a win-win situation for both teams? | ||
Yes | 325 | 65.1 % |
No | 39 | 7.8 % |
Avs won | 62 | 12.4 % |
Habs won | 73 | 14.6 % |
List of polls |