Down the Frozen River

Tag: NHL

  • TRADE: Toronto flips Fehr to San Jose for a draft pick

    A minor move could pay off for the San Jose Sharks after they acquired F Eric Fehr from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2020 7th round pick on Tuesday.

    San Jose has been looking for a fourth line center all season and they just might have gotten their man.

    UnknownFehr, 32, has 17-11–28 totals in 34 games with the San Diego Gulls (AHL) this season. He has two penalty minutes in four NHL games with Toronto in 2017-18.

    A native of Winkler, Manitoba, the 6’4″, 208-pound center has 103 goals and 99 assists (202 points) in 566 career NHL games with the Maple Leafs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Winnipeg Jets and Washington Capitals.

    He won a Stanley Cup championship with Pittsburgh in 2016 and has eight goals and two assists (ten points) in 60 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. Fehr was originally drafted by Washington in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

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    Toronto now has eight picks in the 2020 draft as a result of this trade.

    That might seem irrelevant now, but rest assured, someone’s going to have to remember the number of draft picks each team has for something in 2020.

  • TRADE: Bruins acquire Holden from Rangers

    It’s not the left-shot defenseman many Bruins fans had been hoping to acquire by the NHL’s Trade Deadline on February 26th, but it’s a defenseman nonetheless.

    The Boston Bruins traded D Rob O’Gara and a 2018 3rd round pick to the New York Rangers in exchange for D Nick Holden on Tuesday.

    Unknown-7Holden, 30, recorded three goals and nine assists (12 points) in 55 games with the Rangers this season. He established career highs in goals (11), assists (23) and points (34) in his first season with New York (last season) in 80 games played. As well, Holden had two goals and two assists in 11 postseason games.

    The St. Albert, Alberta native was previously acquired by the Rangers in exchange for a 4th round pick (Petr Kvaca) in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft in a deal with the Colorado Avalanche on June 26, 2016. He was originally signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 28, 2008 and has appeared in 356 career NHL games– amassing 35-72–107 totals with the Rangers, Avalanche and Blue Jackets.

    At 6’4″, 214-pounds, Holden will more than likely slide into a bottom-pair defensive role for Boston as they continue their march down the stretch towards the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

    Holden will be a healthy scratch until Saturday as Boston is in Edmonton for a Tuesday night tilt.

    downloadO’Gara, 24, has yet to record his first career NHL goal in 11 career NHL games (all with Boston). In 43 games with the Providence Bruins (AHL) this season, O’Gara had two goals and six assists (eight points) and a plus-five rating.

    A native of Massapequa, N.Y., the 6’4″, 207-pound blue liner was selected by the Bruins in the 5th round (151st overall) of the 2011 NHL Entry Draft and completed a four-year collegiate career at Yale University from 2012-16. He is the only defenseman in Yale history to be a three-time winner of the John Poinier Award as the team’s Best Defenseman.

    O’Gara made his NHL debut with the Bruins on October 13, 2016 at Columbus.

    As a result of the trade, the Rangers now have seven picks in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

  • TRADE: Blackhawks unload Kempny to Washington for a conditional pick

    The Chicago Blackhawks have begun to unload some salary as they contemplate a looming rebuild. What’s that? It was only $900,000 and they’re still tight against the salary cap? Oh. Carry on then.

    On Monday, the Blackhawks sent 27-year-old defenseman, Michal Kempny, to the Washington Capitals in exchange for a conditional 3rd round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

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    A native of Hodnin, Czech Republic, Kempny notched 1-6–7 totlas in 31 games with Chicago this season and has three goals and 12 assists (15 points) in 81 career NHL games (all with the Blackhawks). A pending-UFA this July, he signed with Chicago as a free agent on May 23, 2016 and carries a cap hit of $900,000.

    imgresThe conditional pick the Capitals are sending in return will be the higher of Washinton’s own 3rd round pick or Toronto’s 3rd round pick (previously acquired from the New Jersey Devils in the offseason Marcus Johansson trade).

    With the acquisition of this conditional 3rd round pick, the Blackhawks will have seven picks in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

  • TRADE: Sens send DiDomenico to Chicago for Pokka

    The Ottawa Senators are doing the Pokka. No, not the polka, the Pokka. You heard that right.

    On Thursday, Ottawa sent F Christopher DiDomenico to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for D Ville Pokka.

    imgresDiDomenico, 28, broke into the NHL last season appearing in three games with the Senators before playing in 24 more this season. He has six goals and four assists (10 points) in 27 career NHL games and recorded a career-long three game point streak (2-3–5 totals) in late October.

    The Woodbridge, Ontario native has split time with the Belleville Senators and Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL) this season, notching six goals and nine assists (15 points) in 28 AHL games.

    He was a 6th round pick (164th overall) of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2007 and will report to the Rockford IceHogs where he will have a homecoming of sorts, having played in 74 games with Rockford from 2010-12.

    In fact, DiDomenico was previously acquired by the Blackhawks (along with Viktor Stalberg and Philippe Paradis) in a trade with the Maple Leafs on June 30, 2010. Chicago sent Kris Versteeg and Bill Sweatt in return.

    Unknown-6Pokka, 23, has yet to appear in an NHL game and had 28-99–127 totals in 266 games with the IceHogs from 2014-18.

    A native of Tornio, Finland, Pokka was drafted by the New York Islanders in the 2nd round (34th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. He was originally traded to Chicago as part of the Nick Leddy trade on October 4, 2014, in which the Blackhawks acquired Pokka, T.J. Brennan and the rights to Anders Nilsson in exchange for Leddy.

    In 46 games with Rockford this season, Pokka had four goals and 18 assists (22 points). He will be assigned to the Belleville Senators.

  • TRADE: Leafs send Soshnikov to St. Louis

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    It’s a deal that will either become a footnote in hockey history or pay off well for the St. Louis Blues– taking a gamble, tight against the salary cap and looking to cash in on a Stanley Cup championship one of these days– but the Toronto Maple Leafs traded 24-year-old forward, Nikita Soshnikov on Thursday.

    St. Louis received a 4th round pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft in return.

    imgres-1Soshnikov played in three games with Toronto this season and was placed on the injured reserve on December 12 with a lower body injury. The Nizhny Tagil, Russia native has 7-7–14 totals in 70 career games with the Maple Leafs since signing as a free agent in 2015.

    Undrafted by any NHL team, Soshnikov played two seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League. In his last season with Moscow (KHL), he had 14-18–52 totals in 57 games played.

    He will report to St. Louis after he has obtained a U.S. visa.

    In related news, the Blues are taking a stab on another forward with something to prove, but without many results in the NHL thus far (a la Nail Yakupov, 2016-17, and Magnus Paajarvi, 2013-18). Time will tell.

  • 2018 Trade Deadline Preview: Central Division

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    1. Nashville Predators– 34-12-9 (77 points, 55 GP)

    The Nashville Predators are amazing. They’re pulling off their spectacular season on the heels of last year’s Stanley Cup Final run with almost $3.000 million in salary tied up in buyouts.

    Oh, and they somehow added to their depth down the middle in the whole Matt Duchene, three-team trade saga that saw Kyle Turris swap out Ottawa Senators gear for a Preds sweater.

    They don’t need to add, but general manager David Poile still might work a little magic by adding without subtracting if he can. Mike Fisher, 37, is trying to come back from retirement because he believes Nashville’s time is now. Only time will tell if he can go from his current PTO to a one-year deal that just might get him his first taste from the Stanley Cup.

    If Poile wants to add anything, he’s going to have to do so with about $3.200 million in cap space currently.

    Potential assets to trade: Honestly, don’t.

    Potential assets to acquire: F Derek Ryan (CAR), D Cody Franson (CHI), F Boone Jenner (CBJ), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Michael Grabner (NYR), F Thomas Vanek (VAN)

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    2. Winnipeg Jets– 33-15-9 (75 points, 57 GP)

    Injuries are beginning to mount for the Winnipeg Jets and it’ll be interesting to see what the GM Kevin Cheveldayoff does by February 26th considering his team’s current backup goaltender is 22-year-old, Eric Comrie. Their starter is 24-year-old, Connor Hellebuyck, who’s emerged as clear-cut starting goaltender this season (aside from his All-Star appearance back in January).

    But what considerations has Cheveldayoff made with Jacob Trouba out for a signifcant portion of “the stretch”? What’s the game plan if a guy like Kyle Connor or Patrik Laine goes down?

    Winnipeg has about $5.400 million in cap space to play with as of this writing.

    They are what should be a destination for rental players looking to take a team that’s on the verge of breaking out in the postseason deeper than they could ever imagine.

    And the Jets have just enough to offer other teams to bring in the right pieces to the puzzle.

    Potential assets to trade: D Ben Chiarot, F Matt Hendricks, F Nic Petan

    Potential assets to acquire: F Boone Jenner (CBJ), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Alex Galchenyuk (MTL), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Nick Holden (NYR), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), F David Perron (VGK)

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    3. St. Louis Blues– 34-21-4 (72 points, 59 GP)

    There’s almost $125,000 in cap space for the St. Louis Blues right now. While it’d be great for the Blues to add one or two of their missing pieces that’d send them right over the edge of victory (once-and-for-all), the better time to readjust appears to be this summer.

    Besides, Joel Edmundson, Robby Fabbri and Carter Hutton will all need new contracts. Not that they’re going to cost St. Louis tens of millions of dollars, but it’ll likely mean that someone will have to get traded either at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft or later this summer.

    Jay Bouwmeester is 34-years-old and has a $5.400 million cap hit through next season. He also has a no-trade-clause that could make things difficult for the foreseeable future, given that when the Blues are on their “A” game they can really make a claim for Cup contender status this season.

    It’d be unwise to part with Bouwmeester now, but it only makes sense to do it later.

    Just don’t get behind the eight ball is the best advice for St. Louis looking past the end of this month. Otherwise, salary cap hell isn’t all that fun.

    Potential assets to trade: D Jay Bouwmeester

    Potential assets to acquire: F Derek Ryan (CAR), F Blake Comeau (COL), F Matt Cullen (MIN), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Nikita Soshnikov (TOR), F David Perron (VGK)

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    4. Dallas Stars– 33-20-4 (70 points, 57 GP)

    The Dallas Stars currently cling to the first wild card spot in the Western Conference, though they trail the St. Louis Blues by two points for 3rd in the Central Division in what’s shaping up to be the tighter points battle in the West compared to the lackluster Pacific Division.

    Yes, I’m fully aware Los Angeles did something to their defense Tuesday night, why do you ask?

    The Central is all about racking up points while the Pacific bangs bodies off of each other in hopes of amounting to something more than your standard pylon.

    So where do the Stars fit into the playoff picture? They should be in the running for at least a wild card spot coming down the stretch– and with almost $889,000 in cap space right now it’s going to be hard to add what they really need to push them over the hill.

    Backup goaltender, Kari Lehtonen, is a pending-UFA at season’s end, so it’s not like Dallas needs to make a move there, but they could help their starter, Ben Bishop, a little more.

    While other teams in the league are searching for the right rental forward, the Stars should be looking for the right rental defenseman. Whether that’s a Mike Green or a Cody Franson, well, only Stars GM Jim Nill will know, based on what he must give up.

    Potential assets to trade: F Martin Hanzal, D Greg Pateryn

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), D Mike Green (DET), D Nick Holden (NYR), D Ian Cole (PIT), D Ben Hutton (VAN)

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    5. Minnesota Wild– 31-19-6 (68 points, 56 GP)

    There’s good news and bad news for the Minnesota Wild as the trade deadline nears. The good news is that the Chicago Blackhawks are more than likely taking a pass on this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs. The bad news is the Wild might do that too (oh, and Minnesota only has about $129,000 in cap room– with Jason Zucker and Matt Dumba as pending-RFAs this July).

    For all of the talk regarding trading Jonas Brodin, there sure hasn’t been any radio chatter this time around as the deadline nears this month.

    Though the Wild hold on to the second wild card spot in the Western Conference, there’s at least two California based teams (Los Angeles and Anaheim) that should be in the playoff picture coming down the wire.

    If it’s make or break, then Minnesota has all the time in the world to wait and see what’s to come this summer.

    But if they’re on the fence about determining whether to buy or sell, well, they could do a bit of both. If they’re looking for a quick retool, it’s within their means, but if they’re content with sinking before they swim, there’s always the reset (rebuild) button.

    Still, it’d be a shame to rebuild with Devan Dubnyk in net. Alas, this is the world of the salary cap and bad contracts *ahem, Ryan Suter and Zach Parise*.

    Potential assets to trade: D Jonas Brodin, F Matt Cullen, D Kyle Quincey, F Chris Stewart, F Daniel Winnik

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), F Jordan Kyrou (STL), D Ben Hutton (VAN)

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    6. Colorado Avalanche– 31-21-4 (66 points, 56 GP)

    In theory, the Colorado Avalanche could be buyers at this year’s trade deadline.

    They’re in great shape cap-wise, with about $8.400 million to spend currently, but Avalanche general manager, Joe Sakic, knows it by now– the best thing to do for Colorado is let their youth gain experience, make minor moves until the offseason, then address specific needs.

    Colorado has expendable components, but cannot touch its core.

    With Matt Duchene out of the picture, the focus has turned to making the Avs– in every way– Nathan MacKinnon‘s team. Gabriel Landeskog‘s just along for the ride at this point. If he’s patient, many rewards may find their way to the Mile-High City. If he’s sick of waiting, Sakic might be forced to reap another surplus of players, picks and prospects like he did in the three-way Duchene deal.

    After Francois Beauchemin‘s $4.500 million buyout penalty comes off the books at season’s end, the Avalanche will have at least $13 million to spend on giving backup-turned-potential-starting goaltender, Jonathan Bernier, a fair raise while also making decisions on several pending-RFAs.

    Potential assets to trade: D Tyson Barrie, F Gabriel Bourque, F Blake Comeau, F Rocco Grimaldi, G Semyon Varlamov, F Nail Yakupov

    Potential assets to acquire: Literally anyone, F Jeff Skinner (CAR), F Boone Jenner (CBJ), D Jack Johnson (CBJ), G Petr Mrazek (DET), F Gustav Nyqvist (DET), F Tomas Plekanec (MTL), D Ryan McDonagh (NYR), F Rick Nash (NYR), F Mike Hoffman (OTT), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F Josh Leivo (TOR), F Nikita Soshnikov (TOR), D Ben Hutton (VAN), F James Neal (VGK), F David Perron (VGK), F Nic Petan (WPG)

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    7. Chicago Blackhawks– 24-25-8 (56 points, 57 GP)

    Reward contracts have killed the Chicago Blackhawks dynasty. This is what drives parity in a salary cap league (see “Detroit Red Wings downfall since 1998, thanks to 2004-05”), so once again, welcome to the Salary Cap Era.

    Depending on your methods of calculation, the Blackhawks will either have $0 to spend at the deadline or maybe up to about $3.100 million in wiggle room.

    Regardless, they’re not buying this year. They’re buying for the future– so draft picks and prospects. One thing that might get in their way (other than the salary cap) is what they have to offer.

    Large reward contracts were handed out to Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews while Duncan Keith took a discount. Marian Hossa is on the books at a cap hit of $5.275 million through the end of the 2020-21 season, whether he plays or not.

    If Hossa never plays again, Chicago can always place him on the long-term injured reserve (eh, just paperwork), buyout his contract (yikes) or trade him to a team like the Arizona Coyotes (preferable) who took on the large salary of Pavel Datsyuk in his final NHL-contract year just to meet the cap floor, knowing he had jettisoned for the KHL.

    The bottom line is Chicago’s cash-strapped. Someone important is going to have to be dealt in order to protect the organization’s future endeavors.

    With Toews and Kane at a combined $21.000 million cap hit through the 2022-23 season, unless the cap rises significantly, this just might keep the Blackhawks down in the dumps for a while.

    Potential assets to trade: F Artem Anisimov (before his NMC/modified-NTC kicks in), D Cody Franson, F Marian Hossa (if he’ll waive his NMC), F Brandon Saad, D Brent Seabrook (if he’ll waive his NMC),

    Potential assets to acquire: Draft picks, prospects and cap room

  • TRADE: Sens deal Phaneuf to Kings, add Gaborik

    Welcome to the 2018 NHL Trade Season, folks. We finally have our first “big” deal before the looming 2018 NHL Trade Deadline later this month (February 26th).

    On Tuesday night the Ottawa Senators sent D Dion Phaneuf and F Nate Thompson to the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for F Marian Gaborik and F Nick Shore. Ottawa retained 25% of Phaneuf’s salary as part of the transaction.

    Unknown-3Phaneuf, 32, is in the midst of his 13th NHL season and had 3-13–16 totals in 52 games for Ottawa entering Tuesday night’s matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

    The veteran defenseman was pulled from the action during the game as the final details of the trade were being sorted out– reminiscent of how current Senators forward, Matt Duchene, was pulled out of a game between the Colorado Avalanche and New York Islanders the night Colorado, Ottawa and the Nashville Predators pulled off a three-team trade.

    Phaneuf has 133 goals and 345 assists (478 points) in 955 career NHL games between the Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames. The Flames’s 9th overall pick in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft is a native of Edmonton, Alberta and will now be playing for his first non-Canadian NHL team.

    He has played in 51 career Stanley Cup playoff games.

    Thompson, 33, was a 6th round pick (183rd overall) of the Boston Bruins in that same 2003 draft. He had four goals and seven assists (11 points) in 43 games for Ottawa this season entering Tuesday night.

    The Anchorage, Alaska native has 52-70–122 totals in 593 career NHL games with the Senators, Anaheim Ducks, Tampa Bay Lightning, New York Islanders and Bruins and has appeared in 58 career playoff games. He carries a $1.650 million cap hit and may become an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season (2018-19).

    He missed Tuesday night’s game in Pittsburgh due to an injury, but is expected to travel there soon and meet up with the Kings as they take on the Penguins on Thursday. Phaneuf is already in Pittsburgh and will await the arrival of his new Los Angeles teammates.

    Unknown-6Gaborik, 36, has recently been plagued by injuries and has been a healthy scratch on many other nights. The 3rd overall pick of the Minnesota Wild at the 2000 NHL Entry Draft had 7-7–14 totals in 30 games played this season with the Los Angeles Kings entering their Tuesday night battle with the Carolina Hurricanes.

    The 17-season NHL veteran has 808 points (403 goals, 405 assists) in 1,019 career games played with the Kings, Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Wild. Gaborik was a key component of Los Angeles’s 2014 Stanley Cup championship amassing 14 goals and eight assists in 26 games.

    A native of Trencin, Slovakia, his current contract expires at the end of the 2020-21 NHL season and carries a $4.875 million cap hit.

    Shore, 25, broke into the league in 2014-15 with Los Angeles after being drafted in the 3rd round (82nd overall) by the Kings in 2011. Through 49 games played this season, Shore has four goals and 11 assists (15 points).

    In 221 career NHL games, he has 14-35–49 totals all with Los Angeles and has a career plus/minus of minus-16. The Denver, Colorado native is currently making $925,000 and is a pending restricted free agent at season’s end.

    With the Senators retaining 25% of Phaneuf’s $7.000 million annual cap hit, the Kings will be charged with a $5.250 million cap hit on Phaneuf for the remainder of his contract that runs through the 2020-21 NHL season.

    This trade comes a little more than two years after the Senators acquired Phaneuf from Toronto. Meanwhile, Thompson is headed back to California after spending the last three seasons with Anaheim before signing with Ottawa on a two-year, $3.300 million contract on July 1, 2017.

  • Down the Frozen River Podcast #92- Our Canada Wins Gold

    Down the Frozen River Podcast #92- Our Canada Wins Gold

    After NHLers were not allowed to participate in the 2018 Winter Games and due to the success of last week’s episode, Nick and Connor decided to create rosters with NHL players anyway for Team Canada. Also discussed, Alexandre Burrows, Max Domi and the New York Rangers plan for the future.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) and/or on Stitcher.

  • 2018 Trade Deadline Preview: Metropolitan Division

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    1. Washington Capitals– 31-17-5 (67 points, 53 GP)

    After spending a couple of months figuring themselves out and weathering the storm that’s been Braden Holtby‘s second-to-last career worst season (his 2.76 goals against average and .915 save percentage in 39 games played are better and the same as his 2013-14 2.85 GAA and .915 SV% in 48 games played respectively).

    It’s a bit of an off year for Washington, but even an off year for the Capitals is still a pretty good season, considering they’re currently first in a division that is more active than a lava lamp in terms of rising and falling.

    Washington has a plus-11 goal differential through 53 games played despite the loss of Marcus Johansson in a trade with the New Jersey Devils this offseason and an injured Andre Burakovsky seeing limited time so far. That doesn’t even mention the loss of depth for the Capitals last July either– remember Justin Williams (signed with Carolina) and Karl Alzner (signed with Montreal)?

    Luckily for the Capitals they only have about $412,000 in cap space as I write, so their trade deadline plans are pretty much already determined for them.

    If they’re able to dump a guy like Brooks Orpik— and his $5.500 million cap hit that runs through next season– that would provide the organization with some much needed relief.

    Potential assets to trade: F Jay Beagle, D Brooks Orpik

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), D Mike Green (DET), F Mark Letestu (EDM), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), D Nick Holden (NYR), D Ian Cole (PIT), F Thomas Vanek (VAN)

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    2. Pittsburgh Penguins– 30-22-3 (63 points, 55 GP)

    After bouncing around the Metropolitan Division standings, the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins are currently four points behind first place in the division.

    Much like his rival in Washington, Matthew Murray is having a season to forget. Injuries and the death of his father have taken a toll on the two-time Cup winning goaltender, limiting Murray to just 34 games thus far with a 2.97 GAA and .903 SV% (again, both career worsts– though he is in just his second full season since his 13 GP in 2015-16).

    Despite their plus-three goal differential and gifted scorer (turned 2018 All-Star snub), Phil Kessel (24-41–65 totals in 55 games), the Penguins have been porous on defense. Pittsburgh’s best defenseman, Kris Letang, is a minus-15 through 52 games played.

    Only Justin Schultz (plus-5, 38 GP) and Jamie Oleksiak (plus-6, 20 GP– split between Dallas and Pittsburgh) are positive plus/minus blue liners.

    Since November, Pittsburgh has been trying to move defenseman, Ian Cole– though head coach, Mike Sullivan, has been forced to play him (thereby keeping him on the Penguins roster) due to injuries affecting Schultz and friends.

    Antti Niemi didn’t pan out and bring stable backup goaltending to the Steel City (he’s since departed via waivers to Florida, then Montreal). Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith have been left to pick up the tab with some impressive performances at times.

    Midseason acquisitions F Riley Sheahan, as well as Oleksiak, have not been enough to fill holes left by Nick Bonino (the forward signed with Nashville in July) and Trevor Daley (left via free agency, landed in Detroit) respectively.

    But with roughly $425,000 in cap space to work with currently, the Penguins can’t afford to make much noise on February 26th– but they should definitely snag a defenseman and rental backup goaltender.

    Potential assets to trade: D Ian Cole, D Brian Dumoulin, F Tom Kuhnhackl, F Carl Hagelin, D Matt Hunwick, F Riley Sheahan

    Potential assets to acquire: F Sam Reinhart (BUF), D Cody Franson (CHI), D Mike Green (DET), F Mark Letestu (EDM), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Nick Holden (NYR), F Derick Brassard (OTT), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), G Aaron Dell (SJ), D Erik Gudbranson (VAN), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), D Jason Garrison (VGK), G Michael Hutchinson (WPG)

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    3. New Jersey Devils– 27-17-8 (62 points, 52 GP)

    New Jersey has almost $8.000 million to work with currently as things approach the trade deadline at the end of the month.

    The Devils are one of the biggest surprises this season east of the Mississippi River.

    First overall pick in the 2017 draft, Nico Hischier, has been quietly setting the tone with forwards, Miles Wood, Jesper Bratt and Pavel Zacha in the resurgence of youth. Travis Zajac is back in his dominant, physical, ways and the Sami Vatanen–Adam Henrique trade has worked out quite well for both teams.

    And that’s not even mentioning Taylor Hall and Kyle Palmieri.

    Will Butcher is quite the offensive threat on the blue line and John Moore is firing on all cylinders. Despite Marcus Johansson’s concussion, New Jersey hasn’t faced much adversity in overcoming injuries this year.

    There’s a lot of cap room to work with, but not a whole lot that this team can really give up to bring in the best guys on the trade market, like Evander Kane, unless the Devils are comfortable parting ways with prospects and draft picks (spoiler alert, they might be).

    New Jersey really should be in the hunt for Kane, Rick Nash, Max Pacioretty, David Perron and other great offensive assets– either as the front-runner or the stealthy dark-horse that’ll make one or two big moves to carry them to glory.

    The Devils have the time and space to add a veteran forward or defenseman that might eat some salary, but put them lightyears beyond their Metropolitan counterparts.

    It’s a buyers market.

    Potential assets to trade: F Ben Coleman, F Jimmy Hayes, D Ben Lovejoy, F Drew Stafford

    Potential assets to acquire: F Evander Kane (BUF), D Tyson Barrie (COL), D Mike Green (DET), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Alex Galchenyuk (MTL), F Max Pacioretty (MTL), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Ryan McDonagh (NYR), F Rick Nash (NYR), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Tyler Bozak (TOR), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), F James Neal (VGK), F David Perron (VGK), G Michael Hutchinson (WPG)

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    4. Philadelphia Flyers– 25-19-9 (59 points, 53 GP)

    Aside from the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning and Vegas Golden Knights, the Philadelphia Flyers are one of the hottest teams in the league right now.

    Goaltender, Brian Elliott, has found his top-notch form once again while Travis Konecny and Claude Giroux are rolling along. With almost $3.000 million to spend at the deadline, the Flyers could make some improvements to their team.

    Trading away Brayden Schenn was costly for Philadelphia this offseason, but thankfully Jakub Voracek and the rest of the roster decided to pick up some of the points left behind by Schenn’s departure.

    Adding Jori Lehtera, on the other hand, was a big mistake– both in production value and in cap management.

    The Flyers could really solidify their offense with one or two moves and probably should anchor their defense with at least a depth blue liner or two coming down the stretch. Someone like David Perron, Patrick Maroon or Nic Petan could flourish in the Philly system. Meanwhile, a defenseman like Cody Franson would help put them over the edge if someone’s injured.

    Potential assets to trade: D Radko Gudas, F Jori Lehtera, F Matt Read, F Dale Weise

    Potential assets to acquire: D Cody Franson (CHI), D Jack Johnson (CBJ), F Mark Letestu (EDM), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), D Nick Holden (NYR), F David Perron (VGK), F Nic Petan (WPG)

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    5. Columbus Blue Jackets– 27-22-4 (58 points, 53 GP)

    After getting a fast start out of the gate the Columbus Blue Jackets have really cooled off. It’s not that they’re a bad team, but rather, they’re just average.

    Sergei Bobrovsky can’t stop the puck and play every other position too. Otherwise, the Blue Jackets would probably be first in the division. But good news, Columbus, you’ve got some cap space to work with at the end of the month.

    As I write, the Blue Jackets have about $5.000 million to work with in cap room.

    That’s good enough to bring in just about any player without considering what the future impact on the team his cap hit might have (unless Jarmo Kekalainen brings in a clear-cut rental player that won’t be re-signed in July). The point is this, Columbus has enough room to mess around with something valuable at the deadline, but they’re going to have to re-sign a plethora of core/future core pieces of the franchise this offseason.

    The Blue Jackets aren’t doomed– they know their future plans more than anyone else.

    But what could they bring in to make this team better? Someone. Is there anyone they could snag now and really shake things up as a contender moving forward? Short answer, yes.

    For all of the return of Rick Nash to Columbus talk, well, that’s not ideal. Kekalainen should consider someone like Ryan McDonagh from the New York Rangers before taking back a guy like Nash– who will only break the franchise’s heart again in July when he goes back to the Rangers *bold prediction alert*.

    Potential assets to trade: D Andre Benoit, D Jack Johnson

    Potential assets to acquire: F Evander Kane (BUF), F Sam Reinhart (BUF)F Blake Comeau (COL), D Mike Green (DET), F Max Pacioretty (MTL), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Ryan McDonagh (NYR), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Mike Hoffman (OTT), F Thomas Vanek (VAN)

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    6. New York Islanders– 26-22-6 (58 points, 54 GP)

    The biggest question heading into the 2018 trade deadline for the New York Islanders is the same one that’s been asked since Steven Stamkos signed his extension with the Tampa Bay Lightning– will John Tavares re-sign with the Islanders?

    New York has expressed that they are not looking to trade Tavares should things go detrimentally south between now and February 26th, but if things do…

    The Islanders have almost $1.500 million in cap space to play around with before the deadline. They also have 13 pending free agents at season’s end, meaning there’s plenty of options the franchise could pursue.

    Should Tavares get a raise and a long-term deal? Absolutely.

    The  Islanders could pack it up and go home on this season given their injuries, lack of defense and well, let’s just say, things aren’t going so great for the team that ranks 31st (out of 31 NHL teams) in average attendance this season.

    Or they could be active in trying to scrap together a good team centered around their current stars (Tavares, Mathew Barzal, Joshua Ho-Sang and others).

    Potential assets to trade: F Josh Bailey, F Jason Chimera, F Casey Cizikas, D Thomas Hickey, D Dennis Seidenberg

    Potential assets to acquire: F Sam Reinhart (BUF), D Tyson Barrie (COL), D Mike Green (DET), F Mark Letestu (EDM), F Patrick Maroon (EDM), F Alex Galchenyuk (MTL), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Zack Smith (OTT), F Tyler Bozak (TOR), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), D Erik Gudbranson (VAN), F David Perron (VGK)

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    7. Carolina Hurricanes– 24-21-9 (57 points, 54 GP)

    New Carolina Hurricanes owner, Tom Dundon, might call an audible heading into this year’s trade deadline and decide to spend money on the roster. With almost $15.500 million in cap space, the Hurricanes are in the best possible position to land not just one or two of the big names floating around the rumor mill, but rather three or four quality pieces.

    The trouble is, who would they get rid of, since their prospects and youth are worth keeping for further development and overall organizational growth?

    Jeff Skinner is someone to build around. So are Teuvo Teravainen, Sebastian Aho, Elias Lindholm and Victor Rask.

    Lee Stempniak might make his annual trip around the league, but other than that, who are the Hurricanes actually going to offer up from their forwards? If anything, Carolina would move a guy like Noah Hanifin given the contract extensions (and pay raises) that kick in next season for Brett Pesce and Jaccob Slavin.

    Regardless, though they’re not out of contention, the Hurricanes could really use a goaltender to pull them through the stretch. This whole Cam Ward/Scott Darling thing isn’t working out.

    Potential assets to trade: G Scott Darling, D Noah Hanifin, F Lee Stempniak, F Derek Ryan, draft picks

    Potential assets to acquire: F Evander Kane (BUF), G Robin Lehner (BUF), D Cody Franson (CHI), D Tyson Barrie (COL), D Jack Johnson (CBJ),  D Mike Green (DET), G Petr Mrazek (DET), F Max Pacioretty (MTL), F Tomas Plekanec (MTL), F David Desharnais (NYR), F Michael Grabner (NYR), D Ryan McDonagh (NYR), F Rick Nash (NYR), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F Thomas Vanek (VAN), F James Neal (VGK), F David Perron (VGK)

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    8. New York Rangers– 25-24-5 (55 points, 54 GP)

    Look, the New York Rangers are still (technically speaking) in contention– but they absolutely shouldn’t waste another year of Henrik Lundqvist‘s career in the National Hockey League without a Stanley Cup.

    The team they have right now? Yeah, they aren’t winning.

    They’ve aged out. The core’s been decimated by the Vegas expansion draft and some offseason moves (namely trading Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta to Arizona after losing Oscar Lindberg to Vegas in June).

    Not every player is washed up.

    Some will find better homes and rejuvenate their careers before potentially signing with the Rangers in free agency and going back “home” *ahem, Rick Nash*.

    Others will simply be a superb rental/long term participant in a franchise, like Michael Grabner.

    Basically I’m saying that all the guys New York’s been rumored to trade should get traded and the team can pull off a quick turnaround with their up-and-coming youth, plus whatever they get in return for Nash, Grabner and Co.

    And with only about $1.400 million in cap space, the Rangers could have some fun blowing things up (partially).

    Build around Mika Zibanejad and friends. Do it, New York. Do it now.

    Potential assets to trade: F David Desharnais, F Michael Grabner, D Nick Holden, D Ryan McDonagh, F Rick Nash, G Ondrej Pavelec, D Marc Staal, F Jimmy Vesey, F Mats Zuccarello

    Potential assets to acquire: D Tyson Barrie (COL), D Jack Johnson (CBJ), F Alex Galchenyuk (MTL), F Mike Hoffman (OTT), F Jean-Gabriel Pageau (OTT), F Zack Smith (OTT), G Aaron Dell (SJ), F James Neal (VGK), F David Perron (VGK)

  • Down the Frozen River Podcast #91- Our USA Wins Gold

    Down the Frozen River Podcast #91- Our USA Wins Gold

    After NHLers were not allowed to participate in the 2018 Winter Games, Nick and Connor decided to create USA rosters with NHL players anyway. Also discussed, All-Star weekend, Jaromir Jagr and the Winnipeg Jets.

    Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) and/or on Stitcher.