The trade deadline has come and gone once again, and once again we saw teams make big moves in order to bolster their roster. Be it for the hope of one good playoff run, or for draft picks they can use to improve their future, teams were making moves right up until the cut off time. Let’s take a look at how each team played this last week, where they ranked, and what fun they had at the deadline.
32. San Jose Sharks (Previous rank: 31)
While I’ve had the Sharks and Blackhawks be interchangeable, it’s hard not to have the Sharks below Chicago this week. Thomas Hertl and Logan Couture, the last two remnants of what was once a great core, were officially shipped out. The Sharks are all in on this rebuild, but given the bareness of their roster, it’s most likely going to take a while. It’s still a head scratcher as to why they thought Vitek Vanacek was a good pickup.
31. Chicago Blackhawks (Previous rank: 32)
The Hawks have had a bit of a boost with Bedard back in the roster, but not much. They didn’t make many moves at the deadline either, but they also didn’t have very many things to sell. The team is in a rough spot where they just didn’t have many assets to offer other teams, which means they couldn’t expect much in return.
30. Anaheim Ducks (Previous rank: Unchanged)
Unlike the previous two teams, the Ducks had a goal and they set out to achieve it. With their future prospects already in place and developing, Anaheim simply had to continue building the future. By selling Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick they were able to acquire high up draft picks in order to do just that.
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29. Ottawa Senators (Previous rank: 26)
Any remaining hope that this season was just a bump in the road for the Sens is quickly fading away. If seven straight losses weren’t bad enough, they didn’t really do much of anything at the deadline. Sure, they got rid of Vladimir Tarasenko, who was woefully underperforming, but they got a mediocre return for him. Not what you were hoping for from this team who desperately needed to make a splash.
28. Montreal Canadiens (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Habs moved Jake Allen as expected, but other than that they didn’t really make any moves. They did send Sean Monahan to the Jets before the deadline which was a huge move for them, but you still expected a bit more from this team that seemed to be on the right track of building their future. With more losses than wins recently, this team’s future is starting to look a bit more gray than before.
27. Columbus Blue Jackets (Previous rank: 29)
With no long term GM and the amount of overinflated contracts that they have, it was going to be hard for Columbus to make any significant moves at the deadline. That being said, they did a decent job with what they had. They somehow managed to get a good return out of Boston when they shipped out Jack Roslovic and Andrew Peeke. Alex Nylander has been a good fit on this team since coming over from Pittsburgh as well. If they can get better seasons out of their top guys and maybe less injuries, it’ll be interesting to see how they do moving forward.
26. Arizona Coyotes (Previous rank: 27)
It was quite surprising to see Arizona be such a massive seller at the deadline. It’s understandable they wanted some change after such a rough February, but to gain that much draft capital despite the fact that they already have more draft picks than any other team in the league right now, was certainly a surprising move. This was a team that for a while was competing for a playoff spot too.
25. Buffalo Sabres (Previous rank: Unchanged)
Buffalo was a team to watch at the deadline. With all the expectations they had coming into the season, only for the season to end up like this, everyone was wondering what they would do in order to fix it. The answer was, surprisingly, a lot. They shipped out expiring contracts in Okposo and Erik Johnson. They took advantage of Casey Mittelstadt having a good year to acquire Bowen Byram, someone who could potentially help bolster this weakened blue line. It was nice to see that they wanted to do something, rather than just sit around and wait.
24. Pittsburgh Penguins (Previous rank: Unchanged)
Jake Guentzel is officially no longer a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The two time Stanley Cup winner made his way over to Carolina for a rather large return. That doesn’t remove the shadow that lingers over this trade however. Guentzel has been a Penguin his entire career, and the legacy he and Crosby carved out together was nothing short of spectacular. Him leaving is the official admission from Pittsburgh that the era is over. Their rebuild has most likely begun.
23. New Jersey Devils (Previous rank: 20)
I don’t think anyone expected the Devils to struggle this way. Losing Tyler Toffoli will certainly hurt, but it’s far from the end of the world. They also had the know how to know that a change in goaltending needed to happen immediately. While Jake Allen and Kaapo Kahkonen may not be the most eye-raising goalie tandem you could have, but at this point anything better is better for New Jersey.
22. St Louis Blues (Previous rank: 19)
The Blues seemed to be on a blazing trail to the playoffs. That dream is quickly fading away as they continue to struggle. The worry was always going to be if St Louis had a deep enough roster to win, and that worry is still very much proving true. Their limited deadline moves won’t do much to help that fear either. St Louis needed to make a splash and they didn’t even make a ripple.
21. Washington Capitals (Previous rank: Unchanged)
Despite a rough road, somehow Washington has managed to stay in the playoff picture. Moving on from Evgeny Kuznetsov was bittersweet, but it was necessary and they got a decent return for him. It’s still hard to believe that Washington will find their way into the playoffs, but the fact that they refuse to go down is admirable to say the least.
20. Detroit Red Wings (Previous rank: 14)
Quite the drop for the Red Wings. Confidence in their roster meant they didn’t really make any big moves at the deadline, but their tendency to allow an ungodly amount of shots on goal per game has seemingly caught up to them. Mainly because they’re still giving up the shots without getting as many shots of their own. Unless they can tighten up defensively and soon, things could be rough for Detroit moving forward.
19. Minnesota Wild (Previous rank: 23)
It’s hard to get any sort of bearing on the Wild. All signs point to them needing to rebuild yet they refuse to do so and continue to be more competitive than they have any business being. You also have to give respect where it’s due in the fact that they very confidently pulled their goalie in overtime and managed to get the win. High risk does sometimes mean high reward.
18. Seattle Kraken (Previous rank: 22)
The Kraken have been playing a lot better, but seemingly still can’t make up any ground in the playoff race. Despite a much needed boost in goaltending, Seattle still can’t seem to keep up. The scoring they had last season is nonexistent this season and it’s been their biggest hindrance. If they can find a way to get their scorers from last season scoring again, then they would probably find themselves in a much better position.
17. Calgary Flames (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Flames began their moves before the deadline, and made even more at the deadline. Lindholm, Hanifin, Tanev, and Zadorov have all been moved as Calgary prepares to rebuild. The fact that they have remained somewhat competitive despite starting a rebuild is good news for the Flames, but they’ll want to improve their draft capital even more if they really want to do this rebuild right.
16. Tampa Bay Lightning (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Lightning didn’t have the cap space to acquire much at the deadline, but they still managed to gather up Anthony Duclair and Matt Dumba. Whether or not this will be enough to spark them and give them more consistent play down the stretch is yet to be seen, but we’ve seen some great things from this Bolts team on more than one occasion.
15. Philadelphia Flyers (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Flyers moved Sean Walker for a decent return, while also adding some veteran depth in Ryan Johansen and Erik Johnson. Despite Johnson not playing super well in Buffalo, one can hope that his veteran savvy will help a very young defensive core. The Flyers have done nothing but exceed expectations and surprise us this entire season, why should they stop now?
14. New York Islanders (Previous rank: 18)
Once again the Islanders rattle off wins to make us all eat crow. They’ve wrenched the last wild card spot away from the struggling Red Wings. And they once again did it without making a deal on deadline day, the fourth straight year they’ve done that. At some point you gotta think that Lou Lamoriello is doing it on purpose.
13. Vegas Golden Knights (Previous rank: Unchanged)
Vegas was slipping and slipping fast. Having dropped out of the top three of their division and finding themselves behind Nashville in the last wild card spot, Vegas needed to do something. What they did was take advantage of their contracts that were suspended due to injury and acquire Thomas Hertl, Anthony Mantha, and Noah Hanifin. That’s just an unfair roster, especially when playoffs roll around.
12. Los Angeles Kings (Previous rank: 11)
The Kings find themselves back in the top three of their division, right on the heels of the Oilers. With Talbot and Rittich both playing well in net, and the depth that was for so long bragged about finally starting to show itself again, it seems like the Kings may be able to salvage this season after all. They didn’t make any deals at the deadline, but they weren’t really expected to given their cap space and their roster.
11. Nashville Predators (Previous rank: 12)
The Predators have completely flipped a switch, but that wasn’t enough for them. They want everyone to know they’re a team to be worried about and they did this by adding depth players in Jason Zucker and Anthony Beauvillier, and giving up very little in the process. They currently still hold the first wild card spot, but they are very quickly gaining on Colorado.
10. Colorado Avalanche (Previous rank: Unchanged)
It’s been a weird year for Colorado. They’re safely in playoff position and that’s not likely to change anytime soon. However, a lot of the depth they had when they won the Cup seems to be missing. They moved Ryan Johansen and Bo Byram in order to gain a few more pieces to hopefully help that issue. This is still a very good team, just one that has some figuring out to do.
9. Edmonton Oilers (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Oilers have gotten more depth scoring this year than they have in years. That’s been a big reason for their season turnaround. However, they were still strangely quiet at the deadline which was a little disappointing, especially given their recent struggles to win consistently. They still hold second place in the division, but they are a decent ways away from Vancouver and LA is right on their heels.
8. Winnipeg Jets (Previous rank: Unchanged)
When Connor Hellebuyck plays like this it is such a treat to watch. On top of that, Winnipeg made all the best moves at the deadline. The Tyler Toffoli trade was perfect for them, and it’s hard to imagine that Toffoli doesn’t find a good home here. They’ll have to re-sign him at the end of the season, but they can worry about that after the postseason. A good playoff run could do much to convince Tyler to want to stay here.
7. Toronto Maple Leafs (Previous rank: 6)
The Leafs are obviously playing great hockey, but it’s still the same problem as before. It’s all offense based. Defense is this team’s biggest problem and has remained that way all year. That is most likely what will hinder them come playoff time. But for now let’s just enjoy Auston Matthews scoring goals like it’s the easiest thing in the world to do.
6. Carolina Hurricanes (Previous rank: 7)
The Hurricanes are all in this season, and they’ve made that very clear. They’ve given up prospects and draft capital galore to acquire pieces in order to make this their cup run. Evgeny Kuznetsov and Jake Guentzel are both among the names that Carolina has brought to their team. If Pyotr Kochetkov can continue playing at a high level, then this team could very well finally make the Cup run they’ve wanted for years. If they don’t, well there’s going to be a lot of questions needing answering in the offseason.
5. Boston Bruins (Previous rank: 4)
This is definitely not the end to the season Boston has most likely wanted. While their playoff positioning is far from in danger, their hopes of another Atlantic title are quickly fading away as Florida pulls away. Linus Ullmark exercising his no trade clause might’ve been a blessing in disguise for them as well, given that they are going to need both their goalies at their best to compete in the post season this year.
4. Vancouver Canucks (Previous rank: 3)
The Canucks were relatively quiet at the deadline, but then again they didn’t really need to make much noise. They’re confident where their roster is, and weren’t really eager to give up much of anything. Besides, they already added Elias Lindholm to their roster and are pretty primed to make a decent playoff run.
3. Dallas Stars (Previous rank: 5)
The Stars are in their best form right now and it’s coming at the best time. This is a scary team for anyone to play and as they prepare to not only win the Central division, but make another deep playoff run as well. I don’t think a conference final exit will satisfy Dallas this year though, they want the Cup and they’re willing to fight to get it.
2. New York Rangers (Previous rank: Unchanged)
With Igor Shesterkin’s trouble with consistency this year it was a big question whether or not New York would be able to get their feet back under them. They’ve certainly gotten their feet back under them, there’s no doubt about that. Resigning Jonathan Quick was the right move too, as his resurgence has been spectacular. He brings veteran savvy and Cup experience to the team as well.
1. Florida Panthers (Previous rank: Unchanged)
The Panthers didn’t make many moves at the deadline, but then again they didn’t really need to. They have everything they need to make another run. This team is the hardest to play in the league right now and I truly believe that. With their physicality on the forecheck and their crushing defense, as well as Bobvrosky putting up Vezina numbers and the fact that you rarely see a player out of position, they’re a tough outing for anyone at any day.
