Yeah but they are going for 3 peat. If they win they 9th team out of the 4 major sports in North America to pull it off. First hockey team since 1983 when the Islanders pulled off 4 in a row. The 2 other teams to pull it off were Toronto and Montreal. Plus in the salary cap era makes it that much more impressive. The reason both Sakic and Yzerman wore 19 was on that Islanders team.

They will either be a dynasty and win more cups or their window will continue to get smaller and small until they miss the playoffs and have no picks

How kind of you to remember!!

My asking price on Nick Paul was a 2nd round pick.

I would say Mathieu Joseph and the 4th round pick combined are worth about the same, if not more so.

We look forward to having Joseph on our team.



For those who are wondering who Nick Paul is ...

he's the very definition of a working-class hockey player.

He'll become a fan favourite overnight.



Good trade all 'round

I would have done Paul for Joseph straight up as Ottawa is done for this year and Joseph gives them a player for next year and maybe beyond. Paul is the slightly better player however the 4th makes Ottawa the clear winner on this one.

Tampa fans, you're getting an insane player.

They are really close and Paul has no playoff experience and Joseph has only one season and that was last year. It's probably something fairly small my guess they feel he will fit in better with Colton and Hagel. I looked at the players on both the 3rd and 4th and I don't see any connections maybe Joseph and Hagel didn't get along.

This is like the first truly 'fair' deal all week. Nice trade for both sides IMO.

I don’t really know about this one. IMO Joseph is just as if not more valuable to the Lightning’s bottom 6 than Paul ever could be, but it’s possible I’m misjudging what each brings to the table. In my mind it’s more of a one-for-one kind of thing value wise between these two players (considering retention), so I don’t really understand the 4th rounder going back.
Ottawa wins this one for me. Nick Paul may be more viable as an option to replace a center, but I don’t think Tampa needs that kind of player when they already have 5 capable centermen on the team. I’m definitely interested in seeing how each player does with their new teams.

2 cups in a row. Whatever they have "overpaid" has been worth it.

Who’s next?

Ok but back to back or 2 cups in 3yrs your a Dynasty and its a big deal in the hockey world. You win 3 in row and its a big deal in the sports world.

NHL has 3 teams, MLB has 2 teams, NBA has 3 teams and the NFL has 1 team but it was before the NFL had playoffs.

A 3 peat puts in company with The New York Yankees, The LA Lakers, and The Boston Celtics. People who know nothing about sports will recognize those teams.

Now if you don't think it's a big deal then you don't and it's not a big deal.

3 Peat

Sad day for Ottawa.

The final piece they got in return for Jason Spezza has left the town.

Bryan Trottier was the favorite player of a couple of my favorite players Yzerman and Sakic. In Gretzky's auto biography he said that he didn't know what it took to win The Stanley Cup until they lost to the finals to the Islanders in 1982-83. Walked by the Islanders dressing room and they were al beat up most of them were ice something down and limping around. That's when he realized how much effort it takes to win the cup.

Is it sad or does it finally end that chapter so they can move forward to success?

We shall see

Fun fact: Nick Paul was the longest tenured Ottawa Senator at the time of the trade having been a part of the organization since 2014

There is nothing Joseph did that Gabriel Fortier can't do an equal job of.

Don't worry bro.

Bettman will change the format when it no longer hinders the Leafs.

I'm kinda dissapointed.

EJ Hradek just said the reason for the trade. Tampa felt the 3rd line need a change because the 4th line was out performing the 3rd line.

This dude is so good holy ****. Absolute workhorse, and he's picked up 7 points in this home and home vs Detroit.

Nick Paul just Sens'd the Leafs lmao

This trade was the tipping point that won them the series.

It was a brilliant trade. The actual cost to Tampa was a 4th round pick in 2024. They weren't going to be able to qualify Joseph because he is arbitration eligible, and there is a good chance he'd be awarded something significant enough to upset their cap, but not something high enough that they could walk away from it. They also weren't going to trade Joseph for picks/prospects without a replacement.

Sunk cost isn't technically the right term, but you know what I mean. Instead of keeping Joseph as a self-rental, they paid a 4th to rent Paul.

Paul is going to get a nice contract this summer, good for him. He has grinded away through his development and become a very valuable top 9 forward.