Less than 24 hours after getting the start for the Nashville Predators against the St.Louis Blues, Spencer Stastney has been traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for a third-round draft pick in 2027, per the Predators official social media account.
The Predators have been expected for weeks now to become a team that sells off a lot of trade assets, but a recent hot stretch of wins in six of their last eight games may have shifted some of the firesale talk. The team is just five points out of the wildcard bubble after their most recent 7-2 drubbing of the Blues on Thursday night.
Stastney was stuck among a crowded bench on defense, Nashville Predators add draft capital
As much as we love having Stastney around and his truly inspiring comeback story after nearly retiring last year, this is a wise trade by GM Barry Trotz. He has a deep pipeline at defenseman and can't hold onto everyone he likes. You have to get what you can when a player's stock is possibly the highest it will ever be.
Stastney is due to be a restricted free agent next offseason while the Predators have prospects coming up the pipeline like Tanner Molendyk, Ryan Ufko and Andrew Gibson with the Milwaukee Admirals, plus looming decisions to make on Nick Blankenburg and currently injured Justin Barron.
Looking at the right side of the defense now that Stastney is gone, it makes me wonder what's next for Blankenburg. He is playing at a very high level for Nashville through this hot stretch with 14 points in 20 games on the season.
Blankenburg is already just two points shy of tying his NHL career high of 16 points in a season, which he did in 60 games last season with Nashville. His points per 60 is what is really sticking out, which is 2.2 per 60 this season, way above his career average of 0.6 per 60.
If Blankenburg isn't suring like this as of late, then it would've been much harder to let go of Stastney and instead it might be Blankenburg who was unloaded through a trade. That could still happen anyway depending on if the Predators stick around in the playoff race or not, or they may look to re-sign Blankenburg before the 2026 offseason gets here.
This also suggests that Trotz is really pleased with what he has in the prospect pool which makes it much easier to part ways with Stastney. To get a third-round pick in the 2027 draft in return for a former fifth-round pick in 2018 is solid work.
Currently the Predators have four picks in the third round of the 2027 NHL Draft. They acquired a conditional third round pick from the Golden Knights involved in the Colton Sissons/Nicolas Hague trade, and another third round pick in the Juuso Parssinen trade involving the Colorado Avalanche.
The trade makes logical sense, and it's a good landing spot for Stastney as well in Edmonton. A team that needs him after including 31-year-old defenseman Brett Kulak in a trade with Pittsburgh that also includes goalie Stuart Skinner, swapping for goalie Tristan Jarry.
Stastney joins former Nashville Predators great Mattias Ekholm among Edmonton's defensive corps, along with Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard.
Stastney finishes his stint for Nashville with 81 NHL games, three goals, 15 assists in 15:47 of average ice time.