NHL trade grade: Golden Knights get Chandler Stephenson from Capitals

 The Vegas Golden Knights needed to address their lack of NHL forward depth. They’ve done that by trading for Washington Capitals forward Chandler Stephenson. Let’s take a look at the trade from both sides.

The Vegas Golden Knights lost quite a bit of depth this offseason. They were hoping they could tread water with their current cast, but no one has really stood out on their fourth line. Meanwhile, the Washington Capitals had a surplus of forward depth and with Carl Hagelin coming off the LTIR, they had to move someone. That someone wound up being Chandler Stephenson.

In a trade late on Monday, Dec. 2, the Knights acquired Stephenson from the Caps for a 2021 fifth-round pick. They also sent center Nicolas Roy, who had three points, including one goal, in seven games, down to the AHL. That move was done to ensure the Knights would be cap compliant.

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This move makes sense for both sides. The Knights had to add a more reliable forward to their bottom-six forward group while the Capitals had to try to get something for someone who they likely would have lost for nothing on waivers. But let’s take a look at the trade from both sides and grade how each team did.

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

The Caps did fairly well in this trade. They got something for someone who lost his spot in the nightly lineup. The Caps had longer than expected to make a decision between keeping Travis Boyd or Stephenson. Initially, it looked like they chose the latter. But the former cleared waivers to start the season and got a second chance. Boyd ran with it.

He showed hints of being something during the 2017-18 season, when he put up 18 points in 64 games. Stephenson played a very important role for the Capitals during their Stanley Cup run, earning some playing time with Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin while Tom Wilson was suspended. He also helped Nicklas Backstrom with faceoffs after he missed time with an upper-body injury.

Unfortunately, Stephenson wasn’t able to build on it. He became a surplus part in Washington. Boyd’s emergence, along with the impressive play from Nic Dowd and Garnett Hathaway, forced the Caps to make a painful, but necessary, decision. Ultimately, I think they made the right one because you can replace guys like Stephenson. The 2021 fifth-round pick likely won’t be much, but at least it’s something.

GRADE: A+. Hats off to general manager Brian MacLellan, who got a lottery ticket for someone he didn’t really need. A fifth-round pick isn’t much, but to be fair, he didn’t have much leverage, especially with Hagelin getting healthy.

VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS

Stephenson is a useful NHL player. He should be a nice addition to the Knights’ fourth line. Stephenson is a quick skater who can kill penalties and is pretty darn reliable defensively. His versatility further increases his value, as he has experience playing at center and both wings.

However, his upside on offense is a bit limited. As I said earlier, Stephenson wasn’t able to build on his promising performance in 2018. That said, he has experience playing with skilled players and did fairly well with them. On the other hand, success should be expected when you play with players like Ovechkin and Kuznetsov.

In 24 games this season, Stephenson has four points, including three goals, in 24 games. He has 14 goals and 33 points during the regular season in 168 career games. Stephenson has added two goals and seven points in 30 career playoff games.

As far as intangibles, Stephenson is definitely a character guy. He is perhaps most famous for bringing the Stanley Cup to Humboldt. Stephenson was well-liked in the Capitals locker room and should fit in well with the Golden Knights.

GRADE: B+. I’m surprised it took the Knights this long to address their obvious forward depth problem. Vegas probably should have gone with someone with a little bit more upside, but Stephenson is a perfectly capable fourth-line guy. The Knights, however, have much bigger fish to fry and this move leaves them with virtually no room below the cap ceiling.