OTTAWA — Michael Frolik was sent by the Calgary Flames to the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday as the final move in a series of trades that also involved the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators.
Buffalo had traded veteran defenceman Marco Scandella to Montreal earlier in the day and received a 2020 fourth-round pick — originally belonging to San Jose — in return.
The Sabres then flipped that pick to Calgary in exchange for Frolik.
The chain reaction of trades began with Ottawa getting defenceman Mike Reilly from the Canadiens in exchange for forward Andrew Sturtz and the Senators’ fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft.
Trading Scandella allowed Buffalo to free up space under the salary cap while opening room on its crowded blue line. The deal cleared the way for the Sabres to add much-needed forward depth in Frolik, who’s production has dropped this season.
Frolik has just five goals and five assists in 38 games with the Flames this year after scoring 15 or more eight times in 12 NHL seasons.
Scandella, a 29-year-old Montreal native, has three goals and six assists in 31 games with the Sabres this season.
He has 133 points (41 goals, 92 assists) over 549 career games with Minnesota and Buffalo.
The 26-year-old Reilly has four assists over 14 games with the Canadiens this season.
The Chicago native has 41 points (seven goals, 34 assists) in 174 games with Montreal and Minnesota.
Sturtz, a 25-year-old from Buffalo, N.Y., has a goal and an assist through 14 games this season with the American Hockey League’s Belleville Senators.
Trades between Ottawa and Montreal are rare. The last time the two Atlantic Division rivals made a deal was June 24, 2001, when the Senators sent forward Andreas Dackell to the Canadiens in exchange for an eighth-round pick.