The smoke from last week’s NHL trade deadline has cleared, and a few winners emerged from the flurry of activity.
— The New York Rangers successfully started their much-publicized rebuild, as general manager Jeff Gorton made several deals to kick-start the process.
— The Tampa Bay Lightning landed an elite defenseman (Ryan McDonagh of the Rangers) to help in their pursuit of the Stanley Cup.
— And Jussi Jokinen’s real estate agent might have picked up another commission since the veteran forward was moved to his fourth team — this season.
In the Western Conference, a handful of general managers were busy making moves to bolster their lineup for the final five weeks of the regular season and beyond.