The Minnesota Wild traded forward Brian Rolston's rights to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for a conditional draft pick in either the 2009 or 2010 NHL Entry Draft.
The Wild will get a selection in either the 2009 or 2010 draft. The pick will depend on whether Tampa Bay re-signs Rolston before they know what pick Minnesota will get in the deal.
The 35-year-old Flint, Michigan native has 12 NHL seasons under his belt with stints in New Jersey, Colorado, Boston and Minnesota.
The acquisition to the rights of Rolston is the latest move by new Lightning ownership since taking over the team. After drafting Steve Stamkos first overall, Tampa Bay bolstered their lineup by adding Ryan Malone on Saturday as they continue to try to improve on last season's disappointing campaign.
"As we said earlier this week and we are trying to prove after making our deal with Pittsburgh (Saturday), we will work feverishly to improve the Lightning team for the 2008-09 season," owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie said in a joint statement.
"We believe getting the Lightning a head start in the negotiating and signing process can help us secure the players we are targeting. Nothing is guaranteed here, but we hope to have a chance to get another quality player in a Lightning uniform sooner rather than later."
A 1st round, 11th overall draft selection by the Devils in 1991, Rolston's put up 286 goals and 348 assists in 977 NHL games played.
Last season, he tallied 31 goals and 28 assists in 81 games.
