NHL Trade News: Cody Franson, Mike Santorelli Acquired By Nashville Predators

The Nashville Predators have traded for Cody Franson, Mike Santorelli from the Toronto Maple Leafs hoping to add more weapons even if they have the best record in the National Hockey League, or NHL, regular season so far and The Predators, which has a record of 38-12-6 for 82 points, the most in the league, announced the deal on social media Twitter:

In the deal, Nashville sent veteran Olli Jokinen and prospect Brendan Leipsic to the Maple Leafs, which will also get a 2015 first round pick. Predators general manager David Poile admitted that they made the deal to get stronger in time for the postseason.

"In preparation for the 2015 playoff run, our goal was to add a veteran defenseman who could play in all situations and a proven forward who could move up and down lineup based on the situation,” Poile said in an official statement in the team's official website. "We were fortunate to do this in the same transaction with players who are in the prime of their careers more than two weeks before the trade deadline in order to give them more time to contribute and gel with their teammates. "

Both 27 year old Franson and 29 year old Santorelli are making a comeback to Nashville. Franson was the 79th overall pick in the 2005 NHL Draft and and Santorelli was the 178th overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft by the Predators. Franson played in Nashville from 2009 to 2010 while Santorelli suited up for the team from 2008 to 2010. Defenseman Franson has 6 goals and 26 assists for 32 points in 55 games this season while Santorelli has 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points in 57 games in the 2014-2015 NHL regular season.

For the Maple Leafs, the move is seen to speed up their rebuilding mode. Toronto has a record of 23-29 -5 for 51 points, one of the worst records in the Eastern Conference and the entire league.

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