Late November is usually when teams start to have a better feel for their rosters and what types of moves they need to make. While there isn’t typically a big uptick on the trade front at this time, some of this week’s key stories are about the trade market to come.
Canucks Open To Offers: It hasn’t been a great couple of months for Vancouver. The Canucks are only three points ahead of last place in the league which has led to some wondering about if they’d do a big shakeup. It appears they’re at least willing to listen to offers on their veterans although there is mixed reporting on if they’re just doing so for players on expiring deals or ones with term remaining. In terms of pending free agents, wingers Kiefer Sherwood and Evander Kane along with center Teddy Blueger, come to mind (although making the cap element work with Kane could be trickier). Vancouver has been one of the teams willing to make moves early so whether it’s just expirings or other more core pieces, they’ll be a team to keep an eye on in the coming weeks.
Extensions In Calgary: There were earlier reports that the Flames were nearing an extension with GM Craig Conroy. As it turns out, he had already signed one, a two-year deal. He wasn’t the only one to have a contract announced as President of Hockey Operations Don Maloney and Assistant GMs Dave Nonis and Brad Pascall all received two-year extensions as well. Oddly enough, the deals were done over the summer but the organization didn’t feel a need to announce them. Going into the season, Calgary was coming off a better-than-expected year as they just missed the playoffs. But things haven’t gone anywhere near as well in 2025-26 as they’re second-last in the NHL standings, just one point ahead of Nashville. But their current management group will be the one to continue to try to bring them forward in their rebuild.
Five For Matheson: Earlier this season, the Canadiens took care of their most prominent pending restricted free agent when they signed blueliner Lane Hutson to an eight-year extension. This week, they took care of their most prominent pending unrestricted free agent, inking defenseman Mike Matheson to a five-year, $30MM extension. The 31-year-old has become a top-pairing defender since being acquired from Pittsburgh in 2022 and is only two years removed from a breakout 62-point campaign. A $6MM price tag is a little below market value but the extra year or two on the contract helped keep the AAV down. Montreal now has its top four blueliners (Hutson, Matheson, Noah Dobson, and Kaiden Guhle) all signed through at least the 2030-31 season at a combined price tag of $29.85MM.
Done For The Year: Kyle Palmieri’s 2025-26 regular season has come to an abrupt end. He sustained a torn ACL and will be undergoing surgery that will keep him out of the lineup for six to eight months. The 34-year-old is tied for second in team scoring with 18 points in 25 games and has been one of their more consistently reliable secondary scorers in recent years. It has been a rough stretch lately on the injury front for the Isles as Palmieri joins Alexander Romanov as key veterans whose regular seasons ended much earlier than expected. New York ends the month in a tie for the final playoff spot but their offense has certainly taken a hit with Palmieri’s injury.
Veterans Garnering Interest: As the trade chatter begins to pick up, a pair of veterans appear to be getting some attention, Penguins goaltender Tristan Jarry and Blues defenseman Justin Faulk. Jarry has a 2.74 GAA and a .905 SV% in 10 games this season, numbers that would be his best since 2021-22 if they hold up. However, he has two more years left after this on his contract with a $5.375MM cap charge and the goalie market isn’t particularly robust in terms of teams looking so it would take some work to get a trade in place. Meanwhile, Faulk is off to a decent start to his season with 13 points in 26 games on a St. Louis team that has struggled mightily offensively. He has one more year left after this with a $6.5MM AAV but is a right-shot defender, the side that many teams are often trying to add. It stands to reason that if the Blues decide to take a step back and move him, they should be able to generate a decent market for his services.
Photo courtesy of Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images.