Sharks trade Granlund, Ceci to Stars for pair of picks

The San Jose Sharks traded veteran forward Mikael Granlund and defenseman Cody Ceci to the Dallas Stars in exchange for a 2025 first-round pick and a 2025 conditional third-rounder, the teams announced Saturday.

The Sharks will receive a third-rounder if the Stars make it to the Stanley Cup Final and the Winnipeg Jets' 2025 fourth-round pick if Dallas falls short.

Granlund and Ceci are pending unrestricted free agents. The former carries a $5-million cap hit, while the latter has an average annual value of $3.25 million.

Granlund leads the Sharks with 45 points (15 goals, 30 assists) in 52 outings this season. He's on pace to match his career high of 69 points, set in 2016-17 as a member of the Minnesota Wild.

The 32-year-old has hit the 60-point mark four times in his 13-year NHL career. He was used in all situations during his two-year stint with the Sharks.

Ceci, meanwhile, has scored four goals and 15 points in 54 games with the Sharks while averaging 21:46 minutes of ice time per contest.

The 31-year-old spent the previous three campaigns with the Edmonton Oilers, though he struggled with tough matchups. Ceci was traded to San Jose this past offseason in exchange for Ty Emberson.

A right-handed shot, Ceci has also led his team in shorthanded ice time in each of the past three campaigns.

"We are excited to welcome both Mikael and Cody to Dallas," Stars general manager Jim Nill said in a statement. "We see both players as addressing immediate needs for our team - Mikael is a proven scorer who will bolster our forward group at both even strength and on the power play, and Cody will add a stabilizing and physical presence to our blue line.

"Both players will bring valuable postseason experience to our group, and we are looking forward to seeing their contributions to the Stars as the season continues."

Ceci has 88 postseason games under his belt, making the Eastern Conference Final with the Ottawa Senators in 2017 and the Stanley Cup Final with the Oilers last season. Granlund has racked up 32 points in 59 playoff contests and made the postseason for nine straight years from 2014 to 2022.

Dallas opened up cap space for the deal by placing forward Tyler Seguin ($9.85-million AAV) and defenseman Nils Lundkvist ($1.25-million AAV) on long-term injured reserve earlier Saturday.

Seguin has been out since early December after undergoing hip surgery and was given a recovery timeline of four-to-six months, while Lundkvist underwent season-ending shoulder surgery Saturday.

Dallas is also missing superstar Miro Heiskanen on the blue line. He is considered week-to-week with a lower-body injury and will not be participating at the 4 Nations Face-Off later this month.