One of the biggest trades has gone down a month before the deadline.

The Vancouver Canucks and New York Islanders skipped the queue getting a blockbuster done Monday afternoon that saw Bo Horvat get shipped to Long Island.
The deal saw Lou Lamoriello sent back forwards Anthony Beauvillier and Aatu Raty with a protected 1st round pick this year for Horvat, who had 25% of his salary retained by the Canucks.
It&#8217;s been no surprise that Horvat was set to be moved at some point ahead of the deadline with the Vancouver Canucks bringing their best offer to him and his camp weeks ago. The Canucks get back two players trying to find their way: Beauvillier has struggled to find consistency in his game since being drafted in the first round of the 2015 draft, while the 20-year-old Raty is just getting his feet wet.
Horvat has always been a thorn in the side of the Flames scoring 12 goals and 22 points in 38 games. Those points are the third most he&#8217;s scored against any NHL team.
<h1>Beniers to miss ASG</h1>
Seattle Kraken forward Matty Beniers will miss the NHL All-Star game and has been replaced by Vegas Golden Knights forward Chandler Stephenson.
Beniers, who has scored 17 goals and 36 points in 47 games this year, was injured last Wednesday against the Vancouver Canucks when was hit by Tyler Meyers.
Stephenson, meanwhile, is having his most productive season in the NHL this year scoring at a .86 PPG clip, a career high. He&#8217;s found the back of the net 11 times while scoring 44 points.
<h1>Will Patrick Kane be traded?</h1>
This is one of the biggest storylines heading into the deadline, and nobody quite seems to have an answer. Yet, still, Kane ranks No. 4 on Daily Faceoff&#8217;s trade targets board.
<a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/bye-weeks-how-they-help-and-which-nhl-teams-use-them-best">Here&#8217;s some of what Frank Seravalli wrote about Kane: </a>
<blockquote>
Kane has been a play-driving winger his entire career, capable of powering that line no matter who he is playing with. No matter who Chicago has rolled out with Kane, he has produced in a big way. This season that hasn’t been the case. Linemates Max Domi and Andreas Athanasiou have been having mini-revival seasons in Chicago. And Kane has certainly played with worse players. He has also not been very lucky. With multiple seasons shooting north of 16 percent, the career 11.5 percent shooter is scoring at a rate of half that this year (six percent).
Perhaps the biggest factor is Kane has been dealing with some nagging injuries that caused him to sit out three games this season. Watching his shifts closely, you can see that he isn’t quite 100 percent. He doesn’t have the same ‘pop’ to break away from defenders and create open space.
Next, the mental toll that all athletes go through when change is potentially on the horizon is absolutely real. Kane has been woven into the fabric of Chicago since 2007. There will be statues of Kane and Jonathan Toews outside the United Center one day and his jersey hanging in the rafters. Kane’s family has made the move to Chicago from Buffalo, they’re all rooted there. His dad is frequent visitor at morning skates, practices and even road games. Leaving all of that behind and heading into the unknown of another uniform and another city can weigh any player down, preventing him from being at his absolute best night in and night out. Yes, Kane holds all the cards here with the full ‘no-trade,’ but deep down he likely knows what is best for the team and that has to weigh on him. Those factors are real and cannot be discounted.
All in all, it’s likely a combination of all of the above that has been weighing down Kane’s production this season relative to his career.
</blockquote>
<hr />
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at<a href="http://www.twitter.com/zjlaing"> @zjlaing</a>, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.
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One of the biggest trades has gone down a month before the deadline.



The Vancouver Canucks and New York Islanders skipped the queue getting a blockbuster done Monday afternoon that saw Bo Horvat get shipped to Long Island.

The deal saw Lou Lamoriello sent back forwards Anthony Beauvillier and Aatu Raty with a protected 1st round pick this year for Horvat, who had 25% of his salary retained by the Canucks.

It's been no surprise that Horvat was set to be moved at some point ahead of the deadline with the Vancouver Canucks bringing their best offer to him and his camp weeks ago. The Canucks get back two players trying to find their way: Beauvillier has struggled to find consistency in his game since being drafted in the first round of the 2015 draft, while the 20-year-old Raty is just getting his feet wet.

Horvat has always been a thorn in the side of the Flames scoring 12 goals and 22 points in 38 games. Those points are the third most he's scored against any NHL team.
<h1>Beniers to miss ASG</h1>
Seattle Kraken forward Matty Beniers will miss the NHL All-Star game and has been replaced by Vegas Golden Knights forward Chandler Stephenson.

Beniers, who has scored 17 goals and 36 points in 47 games this year, was injured last Wednesday against the Vancouver Canucks when was hit by Tyler Meyers.

Stephenson, meanwhile, is having his most productive season in the NHL this year scoring at a .86 PPG clip, a career high. He's found the back of the net 11 times while scoring 44 points.
<h1>Will Patrick Kane be traded?</h1>
This is one of the biggest storylines heading into the deadline, and nobody quite seems to have an answer. Yet, still, Kane ranks No. 4 on Daily Faceoff's trade targets board.

<a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/bye-weeks-how-they-help-and-which-nhl-teams-use-them-best">Here's some of what Frank Seravalli wrote about Kane: </a>
<blockquote>
Kane has been a play-driving winger his entire career, capable of powering that line no matter who he is playing with. No matter who Chicago has rolled out with Kane, he has produced in a big way. This season that hasn’t been the case. Linemates Max Domi and Andreas Athanasiou have been having mini-revival seasons in Chicago. And Kane has certainly played with worse players. He has also not been very lucky. With multiple seasons shooting north of 16 percent, the career 11.5 percent shooter is scoring at a rate of half that this year (six percent).
Perhaps the biggest factor is Kane has been dealing with some nagging injuries that caused him to sit out three games this season. Watching his shifts closely, you can see that he isn’t quite 100 percent. He doesn’t have the same ‘pop’ to break away from defenders and create open space.
Next, the mental toll that all athletes go through when change is potentially on the horizon is absolutely real. Kane has been woven into the fabric of Chicago since 2007. There will be statues of Kane and Jonathan Toews outside the United Center one day and his jersey hanging in the rafters. Kane’s family has made the move to Chicago from Buffalo, they’re all rooted there. His dad is frequent visitor at morning skates, practices and even road games. Leaving all of that behind and heading into the unknown of another uniform and another city can weigh any player down, preventing him from being at his absolute best night in and night out. Yes, Kane holds all the cards here with the full ‘no-trade,’ but deep down he likely knows what is best for the team and that has to weigh on him. Those factors are real and cannot be discounted.
All in all, it’s likely a combination of all of the above that has been weighing down Kane’s production this season relative to his career.
</blockquote>

<hr />

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at<a href="http://www.twitter.com/zjlaing"> @zjlaing</a>, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.

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