The Tampa Bay Lightning swing for the fences when they make trades. Earlier today, they announced they had linked up with the Seattle Kraken to acquire Oliver Bjorkstrand and former Lightning Yanni Gourde in exchange for some draft picks and Mikey Eyssimont. Here are the full details:
The Kraken are retaining 50 percent on Gourde’s cap hit, while the Detroit Red Wings are retaining another 25 percent. The Lightning have quietly emerged as a legitimate Stanley Cup contender over the last month or two. Forward depth was their biggest question mark, and they addressed it today. As for the Kraken, they finally made the right decision to start rebuilding.
Lightning Go Big Again
The Lightning were a top-heavy team heading into this season’s trade deadline, but that shouldn’t be a concern after acquiring Gourde and Bjorkstrand. Gourde won a Stanley Cup with the Lightning, so there’s familiarity with him, while Bjorkstrand is an underrated upgrade for their top six.
Gourde is not the player he was with the Lightning in his first go-around, but he’s still a very useful player. His counting totals may not suggest that — he has 17 points in 36 games — But his two-way impacts have been excellent on a Kraken team that has struggled to do anything right at five-on-five. The Lightning should be the perfect fit for him, as he’ll likely slot in as their third-line center behind Brayden Point and Anthony Cirelli.
Meanwhile, Bjorkstrand should bring some more scoring pop to the middle of the Lightning’s lineup. His counting totals are also not that impressive — 16 goals and 37 points in 61 games — but he was the Kraken’s most efficient five-on-five scorer this season. He’s a good playmaker with an underrated shot and some play-driving ability, even though he’s not the best skater.
The Lightning did give quite a bit to acquire both players, but who cares for where they are at this point as a franchise? First-round picks don’t matter to them as long as they’re in win-now mode, especially with their core players not getting any younger. Unlike the Tanner Jeannot trade, this was a very wise use of the assets available to them. Don’t sleep on them to make noise in the Eastern Conference playoffs this season.
Lightning Grade: A
Kraken Needed to Get a Rebuild Started
It seems like some were waiting to see what Kraken general manager Ron Francis would do at this trade deadline. Would he sell some rentals, or would he begin stripping it down and moving players with term, along with rentals? The answer seems to be the latter, as Bjorkstrand is under contract through the end of next season at a cap hit of $5.4 million. To me, that signifies it’s time to rebuild.
We’ll see what Francis has planned next (perhaps Jared McCann?), but this was a good start for Francis and the Kraken. The Lightning’s first-round pick in 2026 isn’t likely to be a high one, but it’s a deeper draft than 2025. Getting an extra first in what’s supposed to be a good draft doesn’t hurt. Eyssimont is a solid bottom-six, shoot-first forward. And when I mean shoot-first, he literally does not pass the puck.
Related: NHL Trade Bait List for the 2025 Trade Deadline
Even though Eyssimont is a bit one-dimensional offensively, he’s a solid defender and will cause some havoc on the forecheck. He won’t move the needle much for the Kraken, if at all, but he’s a solid addition in a trade like this.
Overall, there’s not much to hate about either side of this deal. The Lightning got clear upgrades to the middle of their lineup, with Bjorkstrand having some team control, too. Meanwhile, the Kraken get two first-round picks to get a much-needed rebuild started. It’s a rare trade where both sides look pretty good off the bat.
Kraken Grade: A
