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Caps acquire Kevin Shattenkirk for Zach Sanford, first and second round draft picks

By Peter Hassett

 2 Comments

February 27, 2017 10:51 pm

It happened. The Capitals have acquired defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk from the St Louis Blues.

The Blues will get Zach Sanford,, Brad Malone, a first round pick in 2017, and a conditional second round pick in 2019. The Blues will retain 39 percent of Shattenkirk’s salary.

The Capitals also will get goalie Pheonix Copley back.

The Caps are all-in.

The news:

Shattenkirk is good. He’s a 28-year-old puck-moving defenseman. He has 11 goals and 31 assists in 61 games this season for St. Louis. He’s reliably improved the Blues’ shot attempt percentages.

He’s an unrestricted free agent after this season.

On the salary cap front:

Earlier on Monday, we heard that the Caps were in a bidding war with Pittsburgh for Shattenkirk. It seems Washington won.

Shattenkirk may play as early as Tuesday.

Zach Sanford has scored two goals in 26 NHL games. He can play immediately for St. Louis and might have nipple rings.

Copley was originally a Caps goalie prospect. He was traded to St Louis with Troy Brouwer in exchange for TJ Oshie. He will strengthen a Hershey squad that needed reinforcements.

Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post has details on the pick conditions:

Third round of the playoffs!

So what do you think?

This post has been updated.

From the Caps:

ARLINGTON, Va. – The Washington Capitals have acquired defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk and goaltender Pheonix Copley from the St. Louis Blues in exchange for forwards Zach Sanford and Brad Malone, the Capitals’ first-round selection in the 2017 NHL Draft and a conditional draft pick(s), senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan announced today.

“We are excited to welcome Kevin to our organization,” said MacLellan “We felt it was important to acquire another defenseman to strengthen and add depth to our blueline. Kevin is a skilled, puck moving defenseman who we think will help our team at even strength and on the power play. In addition, we are also pleased to welcome Pheonix back to the organization. We feel his addition solidifies our goaltending tandem in Hershey.”

Shattenkirk, 28, has registered 42 points (11g, 31a) in 61 games with St. Louis this season and ranks tied for third among NHL defensemen in goals, tied for fourth in points and tied for seventh in assists. He is one of just four defensemen to rank in the top-10 in goals, assists and points this season, joining Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson and Victor Hedman. In addition, he ranks tied for second among defensemen in the NHL this season in power-play goals (7) and third in power-play points (20). Shattenkirk sits just three points shy of tying his career high in points (2013-14: 45), three goals shy of tying his career high in goals (2015-16: 14) and five assists shy of tying his career high in assists (2014-15: 36).

Last season, Shattenkirk recorded 44 points (14g, 30a) in 72 games with the Blues, setting his career high in goals and reaching the 40-point plateau for the fifth time in his career. He ranked tied for fourth among NHL defensemen with a career-high 26 power-play points and ranked tied for 11th among defensemen in goals (14). During the 2014-15 season, Shattenkirk recorded a career-high 36 assists and registered two points (1g, 1a) at the 2015 NHL All-Star Game in Columbus. He set career highs in points (45), power-play goals (7) and game-winning goals (5) in 2013-14 and became just the fourth defenseman in Blues history to score five game-winning goals in a season (Brian Benning, Al MacInnis, Alex Pietrangelo). During his rookie season in 2010-11, Shattenkirk recorded a nine-game point streak from Nov. 17, 2010 to Dec. 4, 2010 (4g, 9a), marking just the second time in NHL history a rookie defenseman has registered a point streak of nine or more games (Barry Beck, 1977-78). He led all NHL rookies in assists (34) and rookie defensemen in points (43) in 2010-11 and participated in the 2011 SuperSkills Competition during NHL All-Star Weekend in Raleigh.

The 6’0”, 209-pound defenseman has earned 284 points (66g, 218a) in 471 career NHL games with Colorado and St. Louis. Since he entered the NHL in 2010-11, Shattenkirk ranks tied for ninth among NHL defensemen in goals, 10th in assists and tied for 10th in points. In addition, he ranks second among American defensemen in goals, third in points and fourth in assists during that span. Shattenkirk ranks sixth among defensemen in St. Louis history in points (258) and assists (199), seventh in goals (59) and 10th in games played (425). He was drafted by Colorado in the first round, 14th overall, in the 2007 NHL Draft. He ranks second among defensemen drafted in 2007 in goals, assists and points (P.K. Subban).

Shattenkirk has recorded 28 points (4g, 24a) in 47 career NHL playoff games. During the 2016 playoffs, he set career highs in points (11), assists (9) and goals (2) in 20 games with the Blues and ranked fifth in the League among defensemen in assists and sixth in points. Since 2011-12, he ranks tied for sixth among NHL defensemen in assists and tied for eighth in points.

The New Rochelle, N.Y., native has represented the United States at the 2014 Olympics, the 2010 World Championship and the 2009 World Junior Championship. He played three seasons at Boston University from 2007-10 and registered 78 points (18g, 60a) in 121 games. Shattenkirk helped Boston University capture the NCAA national championship in 2008-09 and assisted on the game-winning goal in overtime in the NCAA title game on April 11, 2009 vs. Miami (Ohio) at Verizon Center. During the 2009-10 season, Shattenkirk served as Boston University’s lone captain as a junior, becoming the first junior to serve as lone captain of the Terriers since 1961-62.

Copley, 25, has appeared in two career NHL games with St. Louis, registering a 4.32 goals-against average and a .829 save percentage. The North Pole, Alaska, native made his NHL debut on Feb. 27, 2016 at Nashville and made 24 saves in his first career NHL start on Jan. 21 at Winnipeg. Copley has posted a 15-6-3 record this season with the Chicago Wolves (AHL) with one shutout, a 2.31 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage. He ranks seventh in the AHL in goals-against average, tied for seventh in save percentage and tied for 11th in wins this season (min. 20 GP). The 6’4”, 196-pound goaltender has posted a 47-26-9 record with seven shutouts, a 2.47 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage in 88 career AHL games with Chicago and Hershey.

Sanford, 22, earned three points (2g, 1a) in 26 games with the Capitals this season. The Salem, Mass., native made his NHL debut on Oct. 13 at Pittsburgh and earned his first NHL point with an assist on Oct. 30 at Calgary. Sanford scored the game-winning goal in the third period on Feb. 11 against Anaheim, marking his first NHL goal. Sanford was drafted by the Capitals in the second round, 61st overall, in the 2013 NHL Draft.

Malone, 27, recorded 30 points (13g, 17a) in 176 career NHL games with Colorado and Carolina. The Miramichi, New Brunswick, native registered 20 points (7g, 13a) in 52 games with Hershey (AHL) this season and has recorded 95 points (36g, 59a) in 217 career AHL games with Lake Erie and Hershey.