Anaheim Ducks acquire J. Caulfeld via trade
With College players seeing their NCAA seasons come to an end, we see the beginning of the College Free Agent season. Unlike regular drafted prospects, College players hold a unique power, which allows them to become unrestricted free agents if they don't sign with the team that drafted them. Failure to sign means teams have the ability to lose a prospect, simply by them aging out.
Judd Caufield was drafted in the 5th round by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2019 and he just saw his season at the University of North Dakota come to an end. Caufield however made it clear that he had no intention to sign with the Penguins and he intended on returning to the University for another year.
Returning to school however would have made him eligible to become an unrestricted free agent, something the Penguins weren't willing to risk. Today the Penguins announced they had traded Caulfield to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Thimo Nickl.
Nickl was drafted in the 4th round of the 2020 draft, but hasn't made the move to North America at this time.
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