The Washington Capitals have acquired defenseman Tim Gleason from the Carolina Hurricanes in exachange for defenseman Jack Hillen and a fourth round pick in the 2015 draft.
The Capitals are finalizing a trade sending D Jack Hillen and a draft pick to Carolina for D Tim Gleason, per league sources.
— Alex Prewitt (@alex_prewitt) February 28, 2015
The 32-year-old Gleason has produced just one goal and seven points for the Hurricanes in 55 games this season. The Michigan native and former first round pick way back in 2001 is in his 12th NHL season, and he has scored 17 goals and 123 assists in 710 career games.
Hillen is yet to score a goal this season, and has just five assists in 35 games with the Capitals. In his career, the 29-year-old has played 301 games, scoring 13 goals and 58 assists.
At first blush, this appears to be a depth move for the Capitals, who were seeking help on the blueline with Dimitry Orlov likely on the shelf for a couple more weeks. In addition to that, Gleason is still capable of playing a top-four role, so he provides good insurance should another defenseman go down as the Capitals gear up for what they hope to be a fruitful and long playoff run.
Meanwhile, the purge in Carolina continues, as Gleason follows Jiri Tlusty and Andrej Sekera out the door. Hillen has been largely ineffective this season for the Capitals, recently playing around 12 minutes a night, and will be a UFA at the end of the year, so the real prize here is the draft pick, as Carolina looks to jump-start its rebuild at the draft this summer.
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