The Tampa Bay Lightning have made another big NHL trade deadline move to keep their competitive window open. On Wednesday, they traded two first-round picks and more to the Seattle Kraken for Oliver Bjorkstrand and Yanni Gourde. The deal improves their forward depth but significantly hampers their future. Was it worth it for the Lightning? We’ll find out in our trade grades. The full trade has Bjorkstrand and Gourde going to the Lightning and a 2026 fifth-round pick. Seattle and Detroit are retaining 50% of Gourde’s salary as part of a three-way deal. The Kraken are getting Tampa’s 2026 and 2027 first-round picks, a 2025 second-round pick, and forward Mikey Eyssimont. The Red Wings are getting a fourth-rounder for facilitating the deal. Tampa already traded away their 2025 first-rounder for Tanner Jeannot, who is no longer on the team. The Mikko Rantanen trade proved this is a seller’s market, and the Kraken took advantage. How did the Lightning and Kraken make out in this deal? And what does it mean for the Stanley Cup race? Ron Francis and the Kraken pass with flying colors Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images The Kraken have 56 points through 62 games with a roster they were paying over $83 million for before this deal. They did not get elite talent in the expansion draft and their free-agency additions have struggled to mesh. Bjorkstrand was a trade acquisition from the Columbus Blue Jackets in a cap dump and Gourde was picked in the expansion draft from the Lightning. But with the playoffs slipping away, they needed a reset. This should not be the end of the Kraken’s moves at this NHL trade deadline. Brandon Tanev and Josh Mahura are both pending unrestricted free agents and other players with term could be on the move. Jayden Schwartz and Jamie Oleksiak are the biggest targets that buying teams should be looking at. Combining any of these players could net Seattle another first-round pick. For this trade, Francis and the Kraken have knocked it out of the park. They get an A+ for dumping one pending free agent, Gourde, and one player with term, Bjorkstrand. Any way to add elite talent around Matty Beniers and Shane Wright, they have to take that chance. This is the first move of the teardown and more could be on the way. The Lightning are going for it The Lightning have picked in the first round once in the 2020s, using the 31st pick in the 2022 draft on Isaac Howard. Their trades for Brandon Hagel, Jeannot, and now the Kraken forwards have drained their first-rounders. But it has been worth it, with three trips to the Cup Final and two titles in that window. This is not a change in process for Tampa as they look to add another banner to the rafters. Zemgus Girgensons and Nick Paul are nice bottom-six players who are asked to play up the lineup with the Lightning. Their depth has been crushed by salary cap crunches and big-name additions like Jake Guentzel. The Lightning need depth scoring to compete with the great teams in the Atlantic Division. They successfully did that by making this trade with the Kraken. The Lightning get an A- for this deal, as they filled a need with great players. But they paid a lot to get them shortly after a similar trade for Tanner Jeannot failed epically. Considering they know Gourde will be a good fit, this is a solid bet on a core they know can win another Cup. What will the Lightning and Kraken do before Friday’s deadline? This should not be the end of Seattle’s firesale but could be the end of Tampa’s shopping spree because they are lacking assets. If Tampa wins the Cup, they can thank this trade for the title.