After Claude Julien was forced to shuffle his discard pile of fourth-liners for two-thirds of the season, a trade with the Los Angeles Kings finally gave him his ace.
Perhaps not the card most people would put Nate Thompson’s face on, but with the team construction Julien had envisioned, the transaction allowed him to realize his plan of a top nine made up of skill and work ethic — which he’d had since the start of the year with the additions of Max Domi, Tomas Tatar, and Jesperi Kotkaniemi — with the reliable support of a centre who could survive the tough defensive matchups and help out on the penalty kill as well.