If the blockbuster trade Sunday involving Brady Tkachuk tells us anything, it’s that there’s going to be plenty of activity this coming draft week and subsequently this summer.
What better time to update the trade board?
Let’s start in Ottawa where the Sens’ roster got substantially worse when they chose not to receive one warm body in exchange for their captain Tkachuk.
If we base 18-year-old prospects on needing three-to-four years to develop, this is a trade that doesn’t make much sense for an Ottawa team on the cusp of truly contending for the Stanley Cup. So, expect GM Steve Staios to leverage his treasure trove of draft capital he received to quickly land an elite replacement or two as early as this week.
Staios needs to pivot quickly to appease a fanbase that may not be too happy losing a star captain who’s just entering the prime of his career.
There is lots of speculation that the Sens could be loading up for an offer sheet to Jason Robertson. First let’s make it clear: Dallas has zero interest in the compensation return of four first-rounders. Second, the Stars would match an offer in the realm of $12-13 million.
For the Sens to think they have any shot at landing Robertson with an offer sheet, they would have to get to a salary that would squeeze Dallas of their cap space. With Tyler Seguin’s salary expected to stay on the books starting the season this fall an offer sheet would put tremendous pressure on GM Jim Nill.
It’s believed the Stars have as much as $12.5-13 million to match an offer, so Ottawa would need to go to $13.5 or $14 million to make Dallas uncomfortable. I certainly don’t think this is the way it will go, but maybe Sens owner Michael Andlauer does. We will see in early July if Robertson becomes an RFA.
And there’s so much more to watch around the league.
Zach Werenski’s name is appearing in speculation, but there is no indication this is a pressing issue for the Blue Jackets yet. For now, Werenski is in the same type of situation as Connor McDavid or Auston Matthews, with two years left on his contract where he’ll want to see the team become more of a contender. Columbus is on high alert here, and no doubt nervous about where this could go. There is smoke but, for now, Werenski is not on my trade board.
All eyes will be on Winnipeg Jets star goalie Connor Helleybuck and whether he could be another American Olympian to ask out of his Canadian NHL team.
There’s no question the goaltending market could get a whole lot stronger as we await a decision by the Florida Panthers on whether or not they can re-sign Sergei Bobrovsky to a team-friendly contract. If they can’t, it would have a domino effect that could reshuffle the market with teams like Detroit and Buffalo looking for a netminder.
There is a lot going on but, to me, the most intriguing storyline is the one involving three wily veteran defencemen: Morgan Reilly, Darnell Nurse and Dougie Hamilton.
Two seasons ago we talked about Seth Jones like his career was done, yet he was traded to Florida and now his name is etched on the Stanley Cup.
Now these three defencemen are all waiting for a team to rejuvenate their careers in a similar fashion.
San Jose, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Edmonton are all eager to find defencemen.
This particular trade market could be one we don’t soon forget, especially because of how the free agent market is shaping up. Since teams have money to spend but can’t find top talent in free agency, the trade market is the only place to re-tool or rebuild in an instant.
Just ask Ottawa and Florida.
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While there’s no indication that Hellebuyck has asked the Jets for a trade yet, there is plenty of speculation around talks that he may be seeking a change of scenery. The 33-year-old netminder did not have his best NHL season in 2025-26, but starred at the Olympics and excelled on the biggest stage. Now he wants to have that same shot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Are the Jets a team he can still do that with? Hellebuyck has a full no-movement clause for one more season on his contract before it turns to partial protection. Winnipeg has a few roster needs – namely a No. 2 centre – that a Hellebuyck trade could address, but that would in turn leave them with far more uncertainty in the crease. Whatever happens here is almost entirely in Hellebuyck’s control.
As Toronto’s new front office puts its mark on this roster, with clear intentions of being a playoff team again in 2027, they are considering almost every option and Knies is caught up in that. A 23-year-old winger with excellent size and upside after a career-best 63-point season, the Maple Leafs are listening to the many calls they’re getting on Knies to weigh the potential returns. While a deadline deal with Montreal nearly came to pass and will be explored again with the Canadiens, there are several other teams with plenty of interest.
Regardless if they trade Knies or not, the Leafs are looking for an overzealous buyer in the event John Chayka can hit a home run. That would need to work around a return of two roster players and a draft pick coming back.
Tippett is in the same category as Knies in that a team is really going to have to blow the socks off GM Daniel Briere to get a deal done. There is value in shopping him right now because there is flexibility on his trade list, which has just 10 “no-trade” teams. Briere is willing to listen, but Tippett is getting healthy again after an internal bleeding issue kept him out of the second round of the playoffs. He’s going to start lifting weights again this week and will be back. The only reason he’s on my trade board is because the Flyers are interested in shaking things up and exploring all their options trying to get the team to the next level.
The Oilers would like to find a trade partner for Nurse and Nurse, whose contract has a no-movement clause, has told the organization he’d like to be traded. Now, can the right return be found? Though Nurse’s $9.25 million AAV is staggering, don’t underestimate how many teams are exploring the possibility of trading for him. With a no-move clause, Nurse is in control of his destiny for one more year before his contract goes to a 10-team list. I’m hearing his preference right now is Philadelphia where he has family ties to his quarterback uncle Donovan McNabb. However, the rival Pittsburgh Penguins may also be a factor here. Kyle Dubas has his eye on Nurse and wants to add muscle to the back end.
With one defenceman already traded – Michael Kesselring, who was on my last trade board – the Sabres aren’t necessarily done tinkering with their blue line. Byram is being shopped by the Sabres going into the draft as he’s made it clear to them he’s not prepared to make a long-term commitment at this point. With the recent signing of Darren Raddysh in Toronto, look for Byram to sit tight and wait on new contracts for Quinn Hughes and Cale Maker before setting his price point on an extension that could start as high $12 million AAV.
Frustration and lack of playoff games finally got Larkin to a point where he requested a trade from Detroit with multiple years left on his contract and a full no-trade clause. While Larkin will have some control over his next destination because of that clause, GM Steve Yzerman also has control on if Larkin gets traded at all. There is a strong push for Larkin to expand his list of teams he’s willing to go to. Yzerman will not move him if he feels he’s getting squeezed. Look for Yzerman’s former assistant GM, Pat Verbeek, to try and get in on this. However, it appears Larkin’s destination of choice is Dallas.
It’s a big week and a half for Robertson and the Stars, as we creep towards July 1 when the 45-goal scorer could be a target for an offer sheet. It would no doubt take an exceedingly high number for the Stars to not match, however. Instead, it’s an important few days to see if these two sides can come together on a multi-year extension of at least a $12 million AAV (possibly more) to lock in Robertson, or if they instead trade him for a large package. Whatever happens with Robertson will have a ripple effect through the rest of Dallas’ off-season decisions.
As has been the case since the middle of the season, New York is searching for the return it wants on Trocheck as they try to get younger this summer. Teams around the league are starved for centres and Trocheck, at 32 years old, is one of the more experienced ones still capable of providing key minutes in big games as evidenced by his play at the Olympics.
A major drop-off in point production this past season didn’t help Kyrou’s trade market, but at just 28 years old and with three 70-plus point seasons in his history the upside is obvious.
With Robert Thomas’ name completely cooled off, Kyrou is now at the forefront. Look for the Montreal Canadiens, who have shown interest in the past, to revisit Kyrou again. The Penguins also have plenty of interest in this player.
Binnington was great for Canada at the Olympics but his NHL season was a lot rockier with an .873 save percentage. It’s time for Joel Hofer to take over the crease in St. Louis, so rather than have Binnington walk to free agency in 2027, the better course of action for St. Louis is to trade him this summer. Turning 33 in July, there is plenty of reasons to believe Binnington could have a bounce back season in an environment that provides a defensive style in front of him that protects his weaknesses a little better than the Blues were capable of. What happens with Binnington could play off the domino effect of what happens to Bobrovsky in Florida.
Toronto’s sign and trade for Darren Raddysh brings them in a new PP1 quarterback with a booming shot. That doesn’t necessarily mean Rielly has to be traded, but it certainly opens the possibility even more now that Toronto knows it has a capable, right shot, replacement. It’s believed that Rielly’s no-movement clause will not be an issue if it comes time to ask him to waive. The Leafs are set to be aggressive in their approach to this off-season and moving Rielly is among the many things GM John Chayka could do.
Vegas has just $4.625 million in cap space, and all indications are that pending UFA Rasmus Andersson will re-sign so the Golden Knights have to unload money. They’re going to try with Adin Hill (more on him below), but they also want to take a run at re-signing RFA Pavel Dorofeyev, which might cost them Hertl. He could draw interest from Minnesota, who we know needs another centre and wanted to take a run at Evgeni Malkin before he re-signed in Pittsburgh.
The Canucks, under new leadership from GM Ryan Johnson, are one of the few teams that could tear it down this summer and into next season. For a winger with 25-goal upside – and even the potential to reach 30 on the right line – DeBrusk’s cap hit is very manageable and he’s signed for several more seasons. He will turn 30 in October and, like Rielly, is not likely to use his no-movement clause to get in the way of moving on from the Canucks.
Two years removed from an 89-point season, and three years past a 101-point season, Pettersson is still in his prime age range at 27 years old and could really use a change of scenery. The Canucks won’t be eager to so easily cut ties for just the salary dump, but would want to get prospects or draft picks to help them rebuild. Despite two soft seasons of offensive production, the upside of Pettersson is still tantalizing. It’s not often centres with point-per-game potential come available in trade, but the key question becomes: is there a team that believes he can get back to that level on their roster?
With a new managment structure in Vancouver led by the Sedins, there is a sense the club could be more flexible in retaining salary if the right trade came along.
A trade to Buffalo during the season was scuttled by Parayko, but it’s believed the Blues are still looking for other suitors to move him to. The 33-year-old is a huge right shot defenceman who scored 16 goals the season before this one. There is always a market for a player like that, but what does Parayko want to do?
New management in New Jersey isn’t going to be shy about finding trades and it’s possible they get into the goalie market with 36-year-old Jacob Markstrom, who has two years left on his contract with partial trade protection. However, at his age and coming off a down season, it’s not clear what the market is for Markstrom at this stage, but the Devils are in the process of figuring that out.
A mainstay on my trade board for some time, Hamilton remains going into draft week and beyond, but the sticking point here is still his contract. A Hamilton trade might help the Devils shave off more money from their salary cap, but they may have to retain a portion of that and it’s not clear if that’s a road they want to go down right now.
If the Devils cannot find the right trade partner for Hamilton, Nemec remains a possibility to be traded. New Jersey is one of the few teams that is wrestling with the upper limit of the salary cap this summer and Nemec is due a new contract as an RFA. He doesn’t have arbitration rights, but Nemec is eligible for an offer sheet that might make the Devils uncomfortable. A young, right shot defenceman with three years of NHL experience, who was the second overall pick in 2022, should be a valued commodity.
After Carter Hart took over Vegas’ crease in the playoffs, Hill did not find his way into any action even after Hart started to struggle a bit more in the final. The Golden Knights are another team close to the salary cap, with UFA Rasmus Andersson and RFA Pavel Dorofeyev their most important expiring contracts to figure out. Ideally, Vegas wants to keep both. Given that Vegas was reluctant to use Hill in the playoffs, you have to think it’s a top priority to lose his $6.5 million AAV as soon as possible.
We continue to watch the market on Wright, the fourth overall pick from 2022 who had a 17-point dip in production this season. As I wrote last week, the Kraken are under more pressure than ever from ownership to show progress on the ice and it’s clear their top desire is to add more scoring this summer. Wright might be able to help them attain that player. As disappointing as his 27-point season was, he’s still a 22-year-old centre another team might want to try and get more out of.
While Zacha isn’t making too much money for next season, the Bruins may look to trade him this summer because they don’t like his price point in regards to what his next contract would be when the current one expires in 2027. Another centre to add to the market, a position teams covet greatly.
There’s a very good chance Ristolainen is finally traded this summer before he heads into the final year of his contract. He’ll turn 32 in October, shoots right, and is a huge blueliner who was a positive in helping get the Flyers to the playoffs when he was available, and contributed five points in 10 post-season games. Look for the Oilers to be a team with lots of interest here.
The Ducks are not going to struggle with the cap ceiling this summer, but still have to think about how new contracts to Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson will frame what comes next. Anaheim took a big step forward this past season not only getting to the playoffs, but knocking off Edmonton in Round 1. Their Round 2 loss to Vegas showed there’s still some work to do before they are a true Cup contender and they will not return as the same team next fall. If McTavish is part of those changes, he’s a highly intriguing young centre who is drawing considerable attention around the league and would bring cost certainty with him.
There is legitimate noise connecting McTavish to Ottawa, but it will be interesting how many picks Anaheim would want in return, because they are looking to win too.
As noted on the last trade board, the Flames are open to just about everything as they continue tearing down the present to rebuild the future. Coleman stands as their team representative here and is the one who would most likely bring back the best return.
As we’ve mentioned at spots throughout this piece, the Penguins have interest in several players as they look to move forward after a good season. But I’m hearing Rakell’s name come up as a possible trade candidate as they look to make those changes and maybe shed some salary cap to do it. The same goes for Tommy Novak, who makes $3.5 million against the cap for one more season.
Buffalo needs to free up money this summer and there are two players beyond Byram to watch because of this. One is Zucker, who will make $4.75 million against the cap for one more season, and the other is Jordan Greenway, who has $4 million and one more year left on his deal.
The Rangers had interest in Brady Tkachuk before he was moved to Florida, but it doesn’t sound like that went anywhere. Chris Drury wants to make his team tougher and nastier and is considering many ways to achieve that. Lafreniere’s name as a trade candidate has popped up, but he makes a lot of money and has a lot of term left on his contract, so it’s unclear if they could move him for the type of return they’d find acceptable. We should consider that Lafreniere has one more season without any trade protection in his contract before he gets a modified no-trade list. Give the Rangers your best offer they can’t turn down and Lafreniere could be had, but is that offer out there?
The Panthers have just over $7 million in cap space with 13 forwards, six defencemen and zero goalies signed. They are going to need to free up a little bit more room to get everything done and that’s where Rodrigues comes in. A great teammate and member of both Stanley Cup teams, Rodrigues’ cap hit is a bit rich for a player who now fits on the fourth line, so moving his contract is one way Florida could create enough wiggle room to finish the rest of their summer business.
Teams have been kicking tires on the defenceman for the last year and a half and will continue to do so this summer. However, New York’s problem is that if they move Schneider they would want a comparable player in return. I’m not sure how probable this is to happen anymore, but he remains on my list because there is certainly league-wide interest.
As the Kraken look to make changes, Kakko is another young asset they’ll try and turn over in some way. It’s unclear if the market is strong enough for Seattle to make the move. He’ll turn 26 midway through next season and has a career-high of 44 points.