Stars acquire gritty defenseman from Flames in massive three-team trade

The Dallas Stars have acquired defenseman Chris Tanev from the Calgary Flames, and goaltender Cole Brady from the New Jersey Devils, per a team announcement. The Stars will send defensive prospect Artyom Grushnikov, a 2024 second-round pick and a conditional 2026 third-round pick back to Calgary. Dallas has also sent a 2026 fourth-round pick to the Devils for their part in retaining 50% of Tanev’s salary for the remainder of the 2023-24 season.

With Tanev now in the fold, the Stars have a formidable top-four of their defensive unit with Miro Heiskanen, Thomas Harley and Esa Lindell also in the mix. As Tanev was previously one of the grittier defensemen on this year’s trade market, he will make the Stars much more difficult to play against leading into the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.

In the last season of a four-year, $18M contract signed with the Flames organization, Tanev has averaged more than 20 minutes a night in Calgary during his tenure. In 259 games played with the Flames, Tanev has scored a total of 10 goals and 67 points during his tenure in Alberta.

Nevertheless, the Stars undoubtedly targeted Tanev due to his defensive prowess, as he averaged close to a 90.0 on-ice save percentage in all situations over his career. Aside from carrying solid defensive awareness, Tanev has also averaged more than 100 blocked shots each season, and he will become the new leader in that category in Texas with 171 already this year.

Currently, in a backup role at the University of Massachusetts, Brady was brought to the Devils organization as a fifth-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft. In now his fourth season in the NCAA, Brady has played in a total of 46 games for Massachusetts and Arizona State, earning a 16-18-4 record with a .902 SV%.

In return to Calgary, Grushnikov was originally drafted 48th overall by the Stars in the 2021 NHL Draft. In his first full season in the American Hockey League, he has played in 44 games for Dallas’ AHL affiliate, the Texas Stars, scoring one goal and five points overall. Nevertheless, Grushnikov does have solid defensive awareness like Tanev and can frustrate opposing players in his zone.

By adding the second-round selection and the conditional third-round pick, the Flames now have a total of 24 draft picks available to them in the next three NHL Drafts. Intent on rebuilding the team through the draft to supplement their core, general manager Craig Conroy continues to stockpile picks through his trades this season to do just that.

• Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the deal. 
• The Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli was the first to report the return to Calgary. 
• The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun was the first to report the full return to Calgary. 
• Seravalli was the first to report New Jersey’s involvement in the trade.