James Neal is bringing his grinding talents to Pittsburgh
DALLAS GETS:
D Alex Goligoski (9 G, 21 A, +20) - The one thing the Dallas stars line-up was lacking was a puck-moving defenseman. This is something GM Joe Nieuwendyk wanted for a long time and finally found the right piece. It cost him a quality LW, but the Stars are deep at forward. Goligoski isn't an instant cure for the Stars woes right now, but he should be able to help them in time from free-falling out of a tight Western Conference race.
PITTSBURGH GETS:
LW James Neal (21 G, 18 A, 8 PPP) - Pittsburgh will be without Evgeni Malkin for the remainder of the season and we still don't have a timetable on Sidney Crosby. Even with Chris Kunitz coming back, the Pens needed some punch up front. Neal was a top-6 forward in Dallas and can make an immediate impact on keeping Pittsburgh competitive.
D Matt Niskanen (6 A, -1) - While times have been tough for Niskanen over the past couple of seasons, a change of scenery might do him some good. His style of play will be a better fit in the Penguins system and that should get him going. Pittsburgh is so deep on the blueline, he won't have the same pressure on him that he did in Dallas.
All in all both parties got what they needed, but had to give something up. That's how a good trade is supposed to work. Pittsburgh GM Ray Shero may add another forward before next Monday, but the big question is whether or not the Stars move C Brad Richards.
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