Marc Andre Fleury has been traded.

There has been a ton of trade speculation surrounding veteran goaltender Marc Andre Fleury this season with the rumors going from hot to cold several times over the course of the last several weeks. Now however it would appear as though a deal has finally been reached, with the Blackhawks finding a suitable destination for the reigning Vezina Trophy winner.

According to multiple reports, the Blackhawks have traded Marc Andre Fleury to the Minnesota Wild. NHL Insider Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sport appears to have had the story first.

Update: According to NHL insider Frank Seravalli, the return here is a 2nd round draft pick that can become a 1st if certain conditions are met. The Blackhawks will need the Wild to advance to the Westerns Conference Final, with Fleury picking up at least 4 wins along the way, to see the 2nd round pick become a 1st.

Update: Chicago Blackhawks insider Scott Powers reports the Blackhawks have retained 50% of Fleury's salary in this deal.

Looking at Fleury's numbers he hasn't had the best season of his career by any stretch of the imagination, recording a 2.90 goals against average and a .909 save percentage over the course of 44 regular season games. It is important however to take into account the fact that Fleury has been playing in front of the Chicago Blackhawks, one of the worst team's in the NHL this season. At the time of this trade the Blackhawks had managed to record just 22 wins in spite of playing in 63 regular season games, and no doubt both the poor play from his team as well as the unfortunate circumstances he found himself in played a role in Fleury's diminished numbers this season.

It's easy to see why such a deal would have been welcomed by Fleury. For starters it will give him another chance to chase the cup with a playoff contender, something that the Blackhawks are simply not, and additionally it brings level of familiarity as well. Fleury is intimately acquainted with current Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin given that the two men won a Stanley Cup together during their time with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Chicago Blackhawks insider Mark Lazerus has also shared some additional details on why Minnesota may have been the ideal destination for Fleury all along. According to Lazerus this will keep him relatively close to his family in Chicago, making it easy for Fleury to be close to them, while also avoiding any potential border crossing issues that may have stemmed from joining a Canadian franchise like say the Toronto Maple Leafs or Edmonton Oilers.

There was reportedly interest from teams like the Las Vegas Golden Knights and the Washington Capitals as well, but it sounds like Fleury himself may have been opposed to those moves on a more personal level. Fleury was part of a bitter rivalry against the Capitals during his time as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and as far as the Golden Knights are concerned, well his issues with that team have been heavily publicized at this point.