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Trade: Sens send Hoffman to Sharks for underwhelming return (Update)

Ottawa Senators v Washington Capitals

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 27: Mike Hoffman #68 of the Ottawa Senators looks on against the Washington Capitals during the third period at Capital One Arena on February 27, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

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(UPDATE: The Sharks have now flipped Hoffman to the Florida Panthers for draft picks.)

The Mike Hoffman era in Ottawa is officially over.

On Tuesday morning, the Senators shipped Hoffman, defenseman Cody Donaghey and a fifth-round pick in 2020 to the San Jose Sharks for forward Mikkel Boedker, defenseman Julius Bergman and a sixth-round pick in 2020.

“Today’s trade showcases our determination to strengthen the future of the team by improving chemistry, leadership and character in the locker room and on the ice. We are confident it is a step in the right direction for the long-term success of this organization,” Senators general manager Pierre Dorion in a release.

That certainly seems like an underwhelming return for an established top-six forward like Hoffman, but it’s not surprising given what we found out last week.

It was reported by the Ottawa Citizen that Sens defenseman Erik Karlsson’s wife, Melinda, filed an order of protection against Hoffman’s fiancee, Monika Caryk, for “a campaign of harassment that has plagued the Karlssons after the death of their son and through much of the last NHL season.”

The Hoffmans have since denied those allegations, but the damage had clearly been done.

So, with everything that we know, it’s easy to see why the Sens weren’t able to get much for a forward that has scored between 22 and 29 goals in each of his last four seasons. In 2017-18, Hoffman finished with 56 points in 82 games.

The 28-year-old has two years remaining on his contract that comes with a cap hit of $5.187,500.

Donaghey made his professional debut last season, as he accumulated nine goals and seven assists in 54 games with the ECHL’s Brampton Beast.

As for what the Sharks gave up, it really doesn’t seem like much if we strictly look at this from a talent-for-talent point of view.

Since signing with San Jose as a free agent two years ago, Boedker has put together back-to-back average seasons. The 28-year-old had just 10 goals and 26 points in 81 games in 2016-17, but he managed to increase those totals to 15 goals and 37 points in 74 games last season.

Boedker will make $4 million per season for the next two years.

“Mikkel Boedker is a competitive, versatile, two-way forward who can play both wings,” added Dorion. “He has a track record of playing his best hockey in the most important games, including the playoffs and internationally. His skill set - in particular his speed - along with his veteran leadership fits with our vision for the team.”

Bergman was San Jose’s second-round pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old had 10 goals and 10 assists 65 games with the San Jose Barracuda in the AHL.

From a Sharks perspective, it’s the second time in a few months that they pull off a trade for a talented winger (they landed Evander Kane from Buffalo at the trade deadline). In both cases, they seemed to pay a remarkably cheap price for a good amount of skill. Both players seemed to come with their share of (very different) concerns, but that doesn’t seem to bother GM Doug Wilson.

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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.