The Dallas Stars traded for center Mikael Granlund and defenseman Cody Ceci from the San Jose Sharks on Saturday, making it the latest in a series of trades across the NHL.
Dallas sent a 2025 first-round pick and a conditional third-round pick to San Jose for Granlund and Ceci, just over a week before the league breaks for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament. The third-round pick becomes a fourth-round pick if the Stars do not make it to the Stanley Cup Final.
“We are excited to welcome both Mikael and Cody to Dallas,” said Dallas general manager Jim Nill. “We see both players as addressing immediate needs for our team. Mikael is a proven scorer who will strengthen our forward group at even strength and on the power play, and Cody will add a solid, physical presence to our defense.
Both players will bring valuable postseason experience to our team, and we are looking forward to seeing their contributions as the season continues.”
This trade came less than 24 hours after Vancouver traded J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers and got Marcus Pettersson and Danton Heinen from Pittsburgh in a pair of connected deals. On Thursday, Calgary acquired forwards Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost from Philadelphia.
Last week, Colorado, Chicago, and Carolina completed a three-team trade that brought Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall to the Hurricanes, with Martin Necas going to the Avalanche.
“You’ve kind of seen all the trades that have happened within the last week,” said Sharks GM Mike Grier in a video call with reporters. “Things have heated up around the league, probably because of the upcoming break. After the break, you’re pretty much at the deadline, so teams are just trying to get ahead of it.”
Granlund, who will turn 33 on February 26, provides the injury-depleted Stars with reliable depth at center with Tyler Seguin out long-term after hip surgery. Winger Mason Marchment also went on injured reserve on Saturday, retroactive to December 31.
Ceci, 31, adds valuable help to the blue line with No. 1 defenseman Miro Heiskanen considered week-to-week due to a lower-body injury. Nill also announced that Nils Lundkvist underwent season-ending shoulder surgery.
“They were aggressive in going after both guys,” Grier said. “Lots of teams showed interest. They’re two good players and good people, but we felt we were able to get what we wanted, so it’s something we had to do.”
Grier mentioned the potential risk of Granlund getting injured while playing for Finland in the 4 Nations tournament, saying it was “kind of maybe in the back of your mind,” but the return for the trade was too good to pass up.
“In a perfect world, I maybe would’ve held on to ‘Granny’ and ‘Ceci’ closer to the deadline so we could have them for a little longer,” Grier said, referring to his December trade of Mackenzie Blackwood to Colorado. “But it doesn’t always work out that way, and the market just heated up over the last week. We took advantage of the opportunity.”
Following the trade, the Sharks now have eight draft picks for later this year, including two in the first round. They would receive Winnipeg’s fourth-round pick if Dallas fails to reach the Stanley Cup Final.
