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Surprise! Nathan Horton Traded To Toronto For David Clarkson

By Patrick Comia

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The Toronto Maple Leafs surprised us all by moving David Clarkson to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Nathan Horton

As reported by TSN.com, the Columbus Blue Jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs made a trade this afternoon:

A surprising move by both teams, which many did not see coming.

For Clarkson, he will be able to start again. After voicing his discontent lately with his role on the team and being a healthy scratch for a couple of games this season, he may have a chance to be an immediate impact for the Blue Jackets. Playoff talk may not be within reach for the team, but he could provide leadership and guidance for a team that will definitely be regrouping for next season. In 58 games played this season, Clarkson has 15 points (10 goals, five assists) and has a -5, averaging 13:52 minutes of ice time per game.

However, Clarkson will be carrying more than his luggage to Columbus. And that’s a bloated contract. He has four years left on his contract that will increase over the next three years (5.5 million in 2015, 7.00 million in 2016 and 2017).

But the Blue Jackets are getting an active player, who has the potential to be make a impact, as he was with the New Jersey Devils.

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In exchange, the Maple Leafs get an injured player in Horton. The worst of it, he may not play again. As you remember, he is suffering from a back injury that has caused him to shut down hockey for this season; and, possibly for the rest of his career. He was not even listed on NHL.com’s team roster for the Blue Jackets. The last time he touched the ice was back in April of last season. He was plagued with an injury to his shoulder that required surgery.

If Horton is able to continue his career, his cap hit is nothing short of eye-popping. Much like the Clarkson contract, his cap hit is a consistent 6.0 million over the next three seasons.

It appears the Blue Jackets have the better end of the deal. They get a veteran, who has the potential to be more than what he has shown in Toronto. But, the Maple Leafs could have benefited from the trade also. They were able to rid themselves of a disgruntled player in the organization and may have been a bad influence to the culture in the locker room.

(Writer’s note: In addition to trading David Clarkson, general manager Dave Nonis helped the Maple Leafs organization gain much needed cap space for future transactions. Not only did he gain Clarkson’s annual cap hit of $5.25 million, but he gained another $6 million per year towards the cap from Horton’s status on the long-term injured reserve list. Nonis and the Maple Leafs had taken the first steps towards rebuilding the brand and setting themselves up for success.)

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