Marek Zidlicky traded to Red Wings after Dion Phaneuf falls through

The Detroit Red Wings had designs on Toronto Maple Leafs star defenseman Dion Phaneuf at the NHL trade deadline, but only if the Leafs were to assume at least $2 million annually for the next six years on his $49-million contract.

Thankfully for the Red Wings, because they seriously don’t need $5 million of Dion Phaneuf on their cap for six years, the teams couldn’t make the numbers work.

So the Red Wings turned to the New Jersey Devils and traded a conditional 2016 third-round pick for defenseman Marek Zidlicky, who had to waive his no-move for the trade. The Devils retain $1 million of his salary.

Zidlicky is a pending UFA with a $4 million cap hit. He’s a right-handed shot, which coach Mike Babcock coveted. He’s a veteran puck-mover who could find himself on the second pairing, supplanting either Kyle Quincey or Brendan Smith. His best asset might be as a power-play quarterback; his worst asset would be that he can make head-on-desk turnovers at times.

The third rounder becomes a second rounder for the Devils if Detroit makes the Stanley Cup Final.

So, checking the Milbury Scale:

TWO MILBURYS. It could have been a clear win for the Devils had this been a second rounder that became a first, but this was a nice fallback for the Red Wings after Phaneuf fell through. We Zid-like it. OK that was terrible.

Our Puck Daddy mini-pod on the Marek Zidlicky trade!

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