Despite being a team on the fringe of the NHL Playoffs, the Tampa Bay Lightning still see themselves as a true threat to win the Stanley Cup, so it should come as no surprise that they bolstered their roster at the 2024 Trade Deadline. Instead of going all in with a blockbuster move, however, this season general manager Julien BriseBois took a simpler approach by acquiring Anthony Duclair and a 2025 7th-round pick from the San Jose Sharks for a 2024 third-round pick and defensive prospect Jack Thompson.
For Duclair, this change of scenery back to the state of Florida could be a welcome one. In his first two seasons with the Florida Panthers, he blossomed into a top-line scoring threat capable of posting 30-plus goals. However, injuries slowed his game, and he was eventually dealt to the Sharks in a cap-relief move this offseason
While in San Jose, Duclair still managed to score 16 goals and 27 points for a team that has been, at best, offensively anemic. The Sharks aren’t a great team this season, so you have to judge his output on a bit of a curve.
Lightning Add a Solid Scoring Forward in Duclair
In a vacuum, this trade makes sense for Tampa Bay. Despite featuring one of the top offensive players this season in Nikita Kucherov, the franchise has lacked scoring punch throughout their line-up. This has made the Lightning very dependent on their powerplay to win games, which is great when you have the best one of those in the NHL, but you simply can’t expect to score three goals with the man advantage each night, especially in the postseason.
By adding Duclair, the Lightning bring in a bit of solid scoring depth, especially if he can find his place in their lineup. For example, if he slots into the second line, plays 16 minutes each night, and takes some time on their second power-play unit, he could easily post 10 goals before the end of the regular season. Worst-case scenario, he’s a third-line threat who can take some heat off his teammates during a postseason push.
Now, it does feel like Tampa Bay gave up a bit more than you would hope for an unrestricted free agent this offseason. A third-round pick alone could be argued as enough, especially with how depressed the market is right now. Adding in a solid defensive prospect in Thompson, who has the ceiling of a top-four defenseman for San Jose, feels like a bit much for Duclair. However, if he finds his scoring touch again and re-signs this offseason, it will make this trade piece together.
Grade: C+
Sharks Add Value From Offseason Acquisition
Once again, the Sharks find themselves making smart moves to acquire future assets from their limited pool of tradeable players. When they acquired Duclair this offseason, it felt like a very clear example of a player you flip at the deadline. So, for all intents and purposes, they turned a fifth-round pick into 56 games played, a third-round pick, and a solid prospect.
Related: NHL Trade Bait List for 2024 Trade Deadline
That’s not a bad return in any way, even if it’s not going to blow anyone’s mind. However, if in three years Thompson is taking on 20-plus minutes each night on their second defensive pairing, then everyone will see this move as a true homerun. Time will tell, but for now, I think San Jose understood the assignment and did their best to make a good trade for the asset they had.
Grade: B