The Toronto Maple Leafs traded Dion Phaneuf, their captain and highest-paid defenseman, to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday in a nine-player trade that will clear plenty of salary-cap space in the years to come.
The Senators sent defenseman Jared Cowen; forwards Milan Michalek, Colin Greening and Tobias Lindberg; and a second-round pick in the 2017 draft to Toronto for Phaneuf; forwards Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey and Ryan Rupert; and the prospect Cody Donaghey.
No salary was retained by either team. Phaneuf and the remaining five years of his contract, which carries a $7 million cap hit each season, now belong to the playoff-minded Senators, and the Leafs get to press on with their rebuilding project.