Buyers And Sellers Guide For The NHL Trade Deadline – Central Division – Pt I

The trade that sent winger Tyler Toffoli from Montreal to Calgary last week is the first of what is expected to be many deals in the NHL leading up to the March 21st trade deadline. The race for playoff spots in the Eastern Conference is virtually non-existent with half of the regular season remaining, while only three clubs are realistically out of the race in the West.

The market leading up to the deadline will mostly be made up of rentals; players with expiring contracts that teams not battling for the postseason will want to get something in return for before they become free agents this summer. With most of the contenders right up against the $81.5 million salary cap, teams with available cap space and the ability to retain salary will also be in a position to acquire assets for the future.

Here is a look at teams from the Central Division and how they are situated leading up to the deadline:

Arizona Coyotes

Buyer/Seller – Seller

Cap Space – $22.12 million

Salary retention slots – 1

Rentals available
G Scott Wedgewood
D Anton Stralman
F Phil Kessel
F Loui Eriksson
F Antoine Roussel
F Riley Nash
F Alex Galchenyuk
F Travis Boyd
F Dmitrij Jaskin
F Jay Beagle
F Johan Larsson

Players Available

D Jakob Chychrun
F Clayton Keller

The Coyotes will be the NHL’s version of a flea market before the March 21 trade deadline, with GM Bill Armstrong looking to move many of the 11 unrestricted free agents as rentals for future assets and taking back players with term to fill out his roster and stay over the salary cap floor.

Arizona already made one deal, shipping out pending UFA’s Ilya Lyubushkin and Ryan Dzingel to Toronto for Nick Ritchie and a conditional draft pick, and could go further than dealing expiring contracts if teams pony up enough young assets in exchange for Chychrun or Keller, who have significant term remaining on their deals.

Chicago Blackhawks

Buyer/Seller – Seller

Cap Space – $7.33 million

Salary retention slots – 2

Rentals available

G Marc-Andre Fleury
D Calvin de Haan
D Erik Gustafsson
F Ryan Carpenter

The current management uncertainty in Chicago in the wake of Stan Bowman’s resignation might not be a factor if interim Kyle Davidson is named the permanent GM.
Fleury will be the most sought-after goalie on the market with his championship pedigree, but his modified no-trade clause and $7 million cap hit give the veteran netminder some control over his destination, while de Haan could find some interest from clubs looking for veteran blueline depth.

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Colorado Avalanche

Buyer/Seller – Buyer

Cap Space – $2.46 million

Need – Forward, Defense depth

Assets to trade

D Justin Barron
F Sampo Ranta
F Jean-Luc Fouty
F Martin Kaut
2022 draft choices round 3, 5 – 7
2023 draft choices round 1 – 3, 5 – 7

The Avs are one of the favorites to come of the West with a boatload of top-end talent led by Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Gabriel Landeskog, and Norris Trophy candidate Cale Makar. There were thoughts that Colorado would be in the market for Fleury or an upgrade in goal, but Darcy Kuemper and Pavel Francouz have stepped up in recent weeks.

With Nazem Kadri likely testing the market in the summer and MacKinnon in line for a new deal before his contract expires in 2023, it is expected that GM Joe Sakic will go all-in and add another forward and blueline depth in anticipation of a long Cup run. The Avs have been linked to Claude Giroux.

Dallas Stars

Buyer/Seller – ???????

Cap Space – $1.658 million

Salary retention slots – 3

Rentals available

G Braden Holtby
D John Klingberg
F Joe Pavelski
F Alex Radulov
F Michael Raffl

Players available

G Anton Khudobin

Assets to trade
D Thomas Harley
F Mavrik Bourque
F Ty Dellandrea
2022 draft choices round 1 – 7
2023 draft choices round 1 – 7

The Stars are one of the few teams that are in a state of limbo with a possibility of being a seller if they slump the next few weeks or a buyer if they stay in the Western Conference wildcard race. Dallas GM Jim Nill could hit the jackpot with Pavelski, Klingberg, and Holtby all extremely attractive rental options and the Stars being able to retain salary, but if they stay in the race, Nill may look to add to his veteran core group to take one more kick at the can. It is also possible that Dallas will do a little of both, selling Klingberg (who is looking for more than $8 million on a new contract) and use the return to swap for a blueliner or forward with term remaining.