Trade Grade: Seattle Kraken Trades Mark Giordano to the Toronto Maple Leafs

The Seattle Kraken have now made another note in history. This is the first time that the Seattle Kraken in their franchise history are trading two players in a deal. Ok I will stop but the time has come as Mark Giordano has finally been traded. The Seattle Kraken have made the move to trade Mark Giordano to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now before we get into the details of the trade I want to give a quick shout out to fellow writer Maeve Hushman who also contributed to the article.

Seattle Kraken Acquire: 2022 2nd Round Pick, 2023 2nd Round Pick, and 2024 3rd Round Pick
Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire: D Mark Giordano and F Colin Blackwell

Seattle Kraken Side

Not even 1 year into the Kraken franchise  and I am starting to wonder what the heck this team is doing. Then again I have been thinking this since the expansion draft. Trading Giordano was not an if but a when at this point. He is 37 years old, has one year left on his contract, and it’s best to get value for him.  It always sucks when a team trades the captain of the team as it can wreck the team on and off the ice but this had to be done. But I have to say this now, I can’t believe that the Kraken could not get a 1st round pick for Giordano. Yet Ben Chiarot went for a first and it is just crazy to me. Especially when the Kraken are also retaining 50% of Giordano’s salary (Kraken saves 3.4 million) is something I don’t understand. Maybe it was because he had a no movement and Giordano is from Toronto but the next part of this deal makes no sense.

I don’t understand why Colin Blackwell is in this deal? Blackwell showed a lot of promise and potential on both the New York Rangers and Seattle Kraken. Yes he is a gritty piece but he is a really solid shooter and is getting better on defense. Yes he has one year left on his deal and it was likely the team did not want to re-sign him. However he only has a cap hit of 700,000 dollars this season. The Kraken could have gotten so much more value in this deal.

Toronto Maple Leafs Side

Kyle Dubas you sneaky, crafty, and magnificent man. Not only did the Leafs GM bolster the blue line and add solid defensive depth he did it without paying the Leafs first round pick or any top prospects. Despite the high price set by Ben Chiarot, the Leafs barely paid anything for former Norris winner Mark Giordano and solid depth piece Colin Blackwell. So, let’s take a look at what the Leafs pulled off and appropriately rate how much they fleeced the Seattle Kraken in this trade. 

The Leafs have a problem with spending too much for veteran leadership and grit at the deadline which doesn’t pan out too much when it counts. However Giordano is a different case. While Giordano is not the same defenseman he was when he won the Norris, his drop off has been found in his offensive numbers not on defense. The Leafs are not in need of offense generators on their blue line as they have at least two offense generating defensemen in Rasmus Sandin and Morgan Rielly. What they need is guys who can play a physical style and shutdown the opposing team. Giordano can do that well. Beyond just the way his play stacks up, Giordano will be reunited with his former D-partner from Calgary TJ Brodie on the Leafs. This acquisition gives the Leafs the defense pairings of Rielly- Ilya Lyubushkin, Giorando-Brodie, and Jake Muzzin-Sandin/ Sandin-Liljegren/Muzzin-Holl/Muzzin-Liljegren. It is a very solid d-core headed into the playoffs. Seattle also agreed to retain 50% of Giordano’s salary (3.4 million dollars). 

Blackwell is a solid defensive forward who can play on the Leafs shutdown third line or anywhere in the top and bottom six. He is a hard working forward who is tenacious on the puck and who works hard and battles. He is the grit piece many think the Leafs need. In reality he just adds to their forward depth charts and their defensive ability on the ice. The Leafs should be sending flowers to Ron Fancis for gifting Colin Blackwell to them as the Kraken should have gotten more value for him in trading him to another team.

The Stats In Question

Grades for  Mark Giordano Trade
Seattle Kraken : C-
Toronto Maple Leafs : A

This was a no brainer who won this trade as the Leafs take the win in this grade no question. The Leafs get another big piece in their defensive core adding Giordano to the deal and getting a good depth piece in Colin Blackwell. The Kraken on the other hand still have no Idea what they are doing as this was a deal they should have made during the expansion draft and could have gotten more value in the deal especially when it comes to Colin Blackwell. Excellent move by Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas and intriguing move by Kraken GM Ron Francis.