Trade Deadline Candidates Who Could Potentially Move
Rory Boylen of Sportsnet: There exist plenty of players who could potentially move before the March 3rd NHL Trade Deadline. The question is who? Quite a few names will be monitored over the next six or seven weeks.
John Klingberg expects to be a defenseman on the move. The Anaheim Ducks play him just enough to showcase the blueliner. Jakob Chychrun offers the most potential but Shayne Gostisbehere may help a contending team the most. Gostisbehere has thrived in Arizona and surprisingly has 15 even-strength points too.
The dilemma of Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews continues for different reasons. Both carry the same cap-hit allocation problems ($10.5 million AAV). However, Toews is a face-off winning demon and power-play specialist. Kane has struggled and likely needs to clean up some sort of injury. Teams will tread carefully with these two.
NHL Rumors: What’s up with Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks?
Joel Edmundson is one of those Montreal defenseman that is sought after this trade deadline. He blocks shots, provides veteran presence, and can fill a bottom-pairing role.
Lastly, there are Timo Meier and Erik Karlsson. The two pieces from San Jose could well be key parts in a deep playoff run. Karlsson found the fountain of youth as he has surged to numbers that are ridiculous (a 105-point pace). No one knows when the point brigade will stop, but the price keeps going up.
Meier suffered from some bad luck and still has 23 goals and 41 points on the season. He expects to be traded and will not extend with San Jose. It comes down to who offers the most for the hard-shooting right-winger.
More On Potential Montreal Targets
Marc Dumont from Montreal Hockey NOW: Besides Joel Edmundson, is there a market for Josh Anderson and some other Montreal Canadiens? One thing players like Anderson and even Joel Armia are beginning to do is generate high-danger chances.
Some suggest these chances mean the potential for an uptick in offensive production. Armia and Anderson are the type of players that can find playoff offense as the pace slows and the ice gets smaller. Maybe Montreal can get a return for one or both.