10 players who could be deal at the trade deadline
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: Looking at 10 players who could get traded before the February 25th NHL trade deadline.
Artemi Panarin – The Blue Jackets received calls this offseason but have resisted so far. Contenders will be lining up if he’s made available.
Matt Duchene – Hard to see Duchene wanting to stay in Ottawa for the long-term with another rebuild underway.
Sergei Bobrovsky – Doesn’t seem like he’ll be re-signing with the Blue Jackets.
Mark Stone – The Senators have to try to make Stone part of their rebuild, but he could be second best winger available if the Senators go that route. Think the Golden Knights would inquire.
Mats Zuccarello – Pending UFA could be an option for teams who may lose out on Panarin. The Rangers could also move Kevin Hayes and Adam McQuaid.
Gustav Nyquist – Doesn’t make sense for the rebuilding Red Wings to re-sign Nyquist unless it’s a short-term deal. Nyquist does have a no-trade clause. The San Jose Sharks might be a good fit.
Jordan Eberle – The Islanders have eight pending unrestricted free agents and the 28-year old Eberle could potentially be moved.
Alexander Edler – The Canucks are in a rebuild and Edler is a 32-year old pending UFA. Edler carries a full no-trade clause.
Jimmy Howard – There usually isn’t a big market for goaltenders unless there are a bunch of injuries.
Eric Staal – Maybe the least likely of the above nine players to be traded. The Wild and Staal have held contract extension talks. If the Wild are out of it at the deadline and they haven’t reached a deal by then, it could be an option for the Wild. Staal has a 10-team no-trade list.
Dreger updates on free agent Rick Nash
Chris Nichols of Nichols on Hockey: Darren Dreger was on TSN 1040 yesterday and was asked about the status of unrestricted free agent Rick Nash. Dreger says Nash obviously remains undecided, but it may not be because of his health.
“I don’t think that it’s a health issue. I don’t think that he’s got lingering effects or post-concussion or any of that stuff that has encouraged him to just step away from the game.I think that it’s a combination of things.
“I mean, maybe his future health is somewhat in question, or he has some concerns, but I don’t get that sense. I think this is more about his family life and enjoying being around his young kids – and he’s got a few of them, so he’s a busy guy.”
Dreger doesn’t think he’s closed the door on playing, but when checked in last week, there was nothing imminent. There would likely be no shortage of teams interested, and he could decide at anytime in the next couple of months that he wants to play again.