Well, it certainly wasn’t the big splash a lot of people expected today, but the Blue Jackets will complete at least one trade before the 3pm deadline, sending Jordan Leopold to Minnesota in exchange for Justin Falk and a 5th round pick in this year’s draft.
The Wild get a veteran presence for their playoff push, and Columbus gets a 5th round pick back after using theirs to acquire Leopold from St. Louis in the first place, plus a depth defenseman who can be plugged in with Columbus or Springfield depending on what the rest of the day brings. Falk was a 4th round pick of the Wild back in the 2007 draft (held here in Columbus, fittingly enough), and has played in 142 games at the NHL level, most in the Minnesota organization, though he did briefly end up with the Rangers in the 2013-2014 season before landing back in St. Paul.
Not a bad move at all – it will be interesting to see if this move shakes anything else loose from the Front Office.
Stats for Falk: