Now that the trade deadline has come and gone in the NHL, the teams with new assets are evaluating what exactly they got for all of the prospects, picks and players that were sent the other way. Most meaningful players picked up at the deadline were done so for rental purposes as they always are, as teams just want to have them for a potential playoff run. Of course, a few teams made moves for cap reasons and just to shuffle personnel around — a small token to their fanbase that “shows” that the GM tried to do something.
 

To gauge the impact of some of these players on their respective teams, I figured that a simulation over a season of NHL 13 would tell an interesting tale as to how each player impacts their respective new teams. Oftentimes it seems that rental players get discarded just because a team gets bounced in the first round, so I thought it would be intriguing to see how they would hold up over a full season.

I simulated a full season and playoffs, and I enabled injuries for some reality. I disabled trades, as I wanted to see how these players would hold up over the long haul. It's not a perfect solution, but I figured it might give a good sense of what kind of impact some of these trade deadline players would have. For the purpose of this sim, I surveyed the trade deadline list and picked the ten players that I felt were the biggest acquisitions. This means that I focused on higher-profile trades and avoided teams swapping plugs for seventh rounders and trades of that sort.

Jaromir Jagr

Age: 41
Position: RW
Traded from Dallas to Boston

Simulated Season Stats:

79 games played
23 goals
33 assists
56 points
13 penalty minutes
-7 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: All-Star selection

Summary: Jagr seemed to fit in well with the Boston lineup, defying his age once again and playing most of the season. He was selected as an all-star for the eastern conference, as he put up respectable point totals (good enough to make the fourth line of the all-star squad). He was able to help Boston to a third-pace finish and a division title, but they were bounced by the New York Rangers in six games in round one. Jagr had 3 assists in that series.

Derek Roy

Age: 29
Position: C
Traded from Dallas to Vancouver

Simulated Season Stats:

82 games played
12 goals
22 assists
34 points
27 penalty minutes
+2 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: Roy put up acceptable numbers for a full season with the Canucks, but his stats would probably be considered below expectations, especially when looking at what he's shown in the past. He did manage to play all 82 games for the Canucks, and he helped them to a first-place finish in the west. The Canucks managed to steamroll Phoenix in four games in the first round, but they were outed by Minnesota in seven games in the second round. Roy never saw much playoff action, as he separated his shoulder after one game against Phoenix.

Ryane Clowe

Age: 30
Position: LW/RW
Traded from San Jose to New York Rangers

Simulated Season Stats:

42 games played
13 goals
16 assists
29 points
47 penalty minutes
+8 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: Clowe's injuries continued to dog him in this simulated season, but he still put up good numbers in his limited time. He helped get the Rangers to sixth place in the east, and he also propelled them all the way to the Stanley Cup final, where they were swept by Detroit in four games. He had 8 points in 12 playoff games. Even with limited time, Clowe continued to show why he's a sought-after commodity in the NHL.

Martin Erat

Age: 31
Position: LW/RW
Traded from Nashville to Washington

Simulated Season Stats:

61 games played
16 goals
18 assists
34 points
17 penalty minutes
+7 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: Much like Ryan Clowe, Erat lost some games due to injury, but he put up decent numbers considering his past output. If he hadn't been injured, he'd have been about on pace for what he's traditionally done on other teams. Unfortunately, Washington came up short of the playoffs, finishing at 12th place in the east.

Jason Pominville

Age: 30
Position: RW
Traded from Buffalo to Minnesota

Simulated Season Stats:

82 games played
37 goals
42 assists
79 points
13 penalty minutes
+20 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: All-Star selection

Summary: Pominville had a monster year for Minnesota, pretty much matching his best ever year in Buffalo. He was healthy the whole season, and he was awarded with a trip to the all-star game. Minnesota finished fourth overall in the west. Pominville's five goals and 11 assists in 18 games also helped Minnesota get deep into the playoffs, where they lost in the third round to Detroit.

Steve Mason

Age: 24
Position: G
Traded from Columbus to Philadelphia

Simulated Season Stats:

26 games played
12 wins
9 losses
1 overtime loss
2 shutouts
2.13 goals against average
92.56 save percentage

Accolades: none

Summary: Mason played very well as the backup in Philly, particularly since the position has always eluded the franchise in recent years. His numbers were rock solid for what was asked of him, and he actually played a couple of playoff games, posting two wins, a GAA of 1.0 and a save percentage above 0.97. Philadelphia came fourth in the east, but they were eliminated in the second round by the Rangers.

Marian Gaborik

Age: 31
Position: RW/LW
Traded from New York Rangers to Columbus

Simulated Season Stats:

82 games played
33 goals
35 assists
68 points
12 penalty minutes
-9 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: All-Star selection

Summary: Even with Marian Gaborik, Columbus couldn't make the playoffs in this season. They finished 14th in the west. Gaborik had a decent year, indicative of the relative quality of the team he was playing for. His totals were good enough early in the year to garner an all-star selection, but his lack of a monster year didn't help Columbus get out of the basement in the west.

Raffi Torres

Age: 31
Position: LW
Traded from Phoenix to San Jose

Simulated Season Stats:

39 games played
6 goals
5 assists
11 points
24 penalty minutes
+6 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: While Raffi only got in 39 games during this season, he did pretty well, considering his previous career numbers. He managed to grab six goals and five helpers while doing his business with 24 PIMs (a bit low for him). Raffi actually had even more impact in the playoffs, where he scored three goals in San Jose's 11 playoff games. They finished third in the west, winning their division, but Detroit was able to bounce them in the second round of the playoffs.

Robyn Regehr

Age: 32
Position: D
Traded from Buffalo to Los Angeles

Simulated Season Stats:

78 games played
1 goal
13 assists
14 points
76 penalty minutes
+32 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: Regehr came in and did exactly what LA wanted him to do in this season, especially at age 32. Regehr used his massive frame to amass 76 PIMs and a massive +32, reliably bolstering the back-end for the Kings. He put up 14 points, which is alright, but well shy of his career best. LA was defeated in seven games by San jose in round one the playoffs after they finished sixth in the west. Regehr had two goals and eight PIMs in those seven games.

Jay Bouwmeester

Age: 29
Position: D
Traded from Calgary to St. Louis

Simulated Season Stats:

78 games played
8 goals
18 assists
26 points
82 penalty minutes
-4 for plus/minus

Accolades/Awards: none

Summary: Kind of a weird year for Bouwmeester in this season, and just a bad year for St. Louis overall. While St. Louis floundered outside the playoff picture, Bouwmeester quietly turned himself into Robyn Regehr, playing in lots of games and racking up lots of penalty minutes. Unfortunately, he didn't get the point totals or plus/minus he was looking for, and the back-end on St. Louis suffered because of it. St. Louis missed the playoffs and finished 11th in the west.

Final Thoughts

In the end, Ryane Clowe gave his team the biggest boost, propelling them to the Stanley Cup Final, even though they lost in four games. For sheer production, Jason Pominville's monster all-star season was very impressive, especially since he hasn't done that in several years. Then again, Jaromir Jagr continued to defy all logic, producing impressive totals that show he's still an all-world talent. Steve Mason even had a quietly good year, backing up Philadelphia and putting up good numbers. Still, only one team can win the cup, and none of these teams did that, so it's always funny when you put it in context of the flurry of activity at the trade deadline each year.

Which trade deadline rental is the biggest impact player to you this season?