Desperate -- and sometimes admittedly so -- for defensive reinforcements, general manager Jim Rutherford and the Pittsburgh Penguins finally landed some late-season help Thursday with the acquisition of Ron Hainsey from the Carolina Hurricanes.

And much like the Michael Stone deal from earlier this week, when the Calgary Flames took a flyer on their own new defenseman, the Pens’ swap with Carolina is, at least at first glance, a win for both sides.

Here are the terms of the trade: Hainsey to Pittsburgh in exchange for a 2017 second-round draft pick and minor-league forward and four-year American Hockey League veteran Danny Kristo.

And here is why both the Pens and the Hurricanes should be able to walk away from their agreement with a smile:

The Pens needed defensive depth, and they didn’t get robbed

What better fit for Hainsey than Pittsburgh? This is one of those trades that just makes sense on a bunch of levels, but let’s start with the fact that, down Trevor Daley and a plethora of other contributors including Olli Maatta and Justin Schultz, the Pens were almost certain to pursue a fill-in defenseman. In fact, even before the barrage of health concerns, the club could have made a case to bring in more bodies on “D,” where the Pens have surrendered the fifth most shots per game in the league.

Offering up Kristo and a second-rounder, meanwhile, isn’t a back-breaking deal for a Pens team that’s got its eyes on a Stanley Cup Finals repeat. It’s clear Pittsburgh is among the Eastern Conference’s elite and is headed squarely for a playoff run, and considering just about every team in the NHL probably knew the Pens were in dire need of some injury relief, they were hardly purged of notable pieces. (Including ones that maybe, just maybe, could still be in play for a bigger deadline deal.)

It helps, by the way, that the Pens are on the hook for only 50 percent of Hainsey’s cap hit.

Carolina keeps its eyes on an infusion of young talent

Hainsey was a generally respected blue liner in Carolina at age 35, but auctioning him off before he hits free agency just flows with what the Hurricanes are doing. Now owning 10 different picks in the 2017 draft, including six in just the first three rounds, they have positioned themselves to stock up on long-term pieces. Dealing an older defenseman to a team clearly in need of his services just ensures Carolina is sticking to its organizational outlook for the future.

Plus, even with his uptick in production as of late, Hainsey was never exactly heralded for his offensive skill set, and there was a faction of Canes supporters who probably weren’t too fond of some Hainsey slip-ups near the net prior to this season. Either way, he was far from guaranteed to be a part of the club’s plans beyond 2017, and reeling in one early-round pick alone should allow Carolina to rest easy regarding the swap.