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Less than a week after sending Ilya Kovalchuk and Anssi Salmela to New Jersey, the Atlanta Thrashers completed another deal on Tuesday night by trading former first-round pick Kari Lehtonen to the Dallas Stars. In return for the 26-year-old netminder, Atlanta receives 2006 first-round pick, defenseman Ivan Vishnevskiy, and a fourth-round pick. Lehtonen has played just one game in the NHL since last March, and has missed the first four months of this season after offseason back surgery.
It's a nice gamble for Dallas to take, even if it does come at a very steep price. When Lehtonen has been healthy and in the lineup he's played well, posting a career save percentage of .912. He hasn't had a mark lower than .910 since 2005-06, which is no small feat playing on a team that, quite honestly, hasn't been very good during his tenure. His arrival in Dallas has already sparked rumors that veteran Marty Turco is on his way out the door.
As for Atlanta, when Lehtonen was called up after his conditioning stint in the AHL, it created a log-jam in the crease with Lehtonen, 22-year-old Ondrej Pavelec and veteran Johan Hedberg. Obviously, Lehtonen is the odd man out.
Vishnevskiy, 21, was rated by Hockey's Future as the No. 1 prospect in the Dallas farm system and has played in just five NHL games over the last two years, recording two assists. In 51 games in the AHL this season he has eight goals and 16 assists.
We're quick to pile on Thrashers general manager Don Waddell when he makes a bad trade (and there's been a few), but let's give credit where it's due, and some credit is due here. Getting a top prospect -- a recent first-rounder -- for a goalie that's had issues staying healthy, has hardly played over the past year and is eligible for restricted free agency after the season is a very solid move.
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