The San Jose Sharks loaded up for what they hope will be a deep run into the 2016 NHL playoffs, acquiring Roman Polak and Nick Spaling from the rebuilding Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for second-round picks in the 2017 and 2018 NHL Draft and Raffi Torres.
Polak, 29, is a steady defenseman expected to slot in immediately on the Sharks blueline. Spaling, 27, has just 1 goals and 6 assists this season. Both players are pending unrestricted free agents unlikely to stick in San Jose long-term.
Torres has not played in an NHL game this season after being suspended 41-games for a malicious hit on Anaheim Ducks defenseman Jakob Silfverberg in the preseason. This follows a year in which he missed every game due to a knee injury.
Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello said that he doesn't believes any AHL veteran coming to the organization is likely to be a good fit with the Toronto Marlies so it sounds like Torres will remain with the Sharks' AHL affiliate.
For the Leafs, only a few short hours after shipping forward Shawn Matthias to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2016, made another move that adds ammo for the future.
As James Mirtle of The Globe and Mail points out, that should give them about $10 million in cap space by the time the trade deadline rolls around. That space though will be eaten up as bad contracts like Torres' come rolling in in exchange for picks and/or prospects.
