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Trade Deadline Primer: Seattle Kraken

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With the 4 Nations Face-Off break approaching, the trade deadline looms large and is about a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Seattle Kraken.

The Seattle Kraken season has been far from ideal. They find themselves near the bottom of the division with little time to fix it. With an average age above 28 years old and menial draft capital, Seattle seems perfectly set up for a fire sale of their aging veterans. They offer value from the top to the bottom of the lineup, with a wide variety of roles and price tags attached. A strategic Trade Deadline could help the Kraken lean into their burgeoning top prospects and build a lineup that can be competitive for years to come.

Record

24-29-4, 7th in the Pacific Division

Deadline Status

Sellers

Deadline Cap Space

$4.65MM on deadline day, 0/3 retention spots used, 46/50 contract spots used, per PuckPedia.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2025: SEA 1st, SEA 2nd, SEA 4th, DAL 4th, SEA 5th, SEA 7th
2026: SEA 1st, SEA 2nd, SEA 3rd, ANA 4th, SEA 4th, SEA 5th, SEA 6th, SEA 7th

Trade Chips

They have an absolute wealth of forward talent rumored to be on their chopping block, headlined by leading scorer Jared McCann. McCann has posted 14 goals and 42 points in 57 games this year, putting him on pace for 20 goals and 60 points through a full 82 games. That’d be a small step down from the 29 goals and 62 points he scored last year, but McCann’s role with the Kraken has only increased. His average ice time is up to 17:28 this season, the highest its been in his four years in Seattle. That includes the mere 16:20 he averaged while posting 40 goals and 70 points, both career-highs, in 79 games of the 2022-23 campaign. McCann has come into his own since Seattle selected him in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. He’s averaged 28 goals and 56 points a season in four years with the Kraken – a 17-goal and 30-point improvement over what he averaged in his first six NHL seasons.

Prying that caliber of player away from a low-scoring Kraken offense will take some convincing, especially given McCann’s incredibly affordable $5MM cap hit and 10-team no-trade clause. He could be a high-upside bet for a team with a role in mind, though McCann’s mere three points in eight games of Seattle’s 2023 playoff run might make a high price too rich for playoff hopefuls.

Should that be the case, the Kraken will have plenty of middling forwards to offer instead. Yanni Gourde has been at the top of trade rumors for much of his time in Seattle. He offers diligent, two-way reliability – backed by 16 points and 36 penalty minutes in just 35 games this season. Gourde also won a pair of Stanley Cups with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020 and 21. He contributed 21 points in 48 games from Tampa Bay’s middle-six over the two postseason runs. Gourde was also an expansion draft pick and he stayed consistent through his first two years in Seattle – netting 48 points both seasons. Those numbers have fallen a bit since – with 33 points last year and a 38-point pace this year – but Gourde has nonetheless stayed a popular depth option.

But for all of his hard-nosed drive, Gourde’s five-foot-nine frame may not be as physical as a playoff team would like. Luckily, Seattle parallels their feisty, undersized center with bulky and gritty winger Brandon Tanev. Tanev is one of just three Kraken forwards with over 100 hits this season – with 114 hits in 55 games. He’s added 17 points, a poised eight penalty minutes, and a minus-11 to his stat-line – holding true to his role of third-line bruiser. Tanev is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, carrying a modest $3.5MM cap hit until then. That could make him a cheap rental option for playoff teams looking for more heft, with little detriment to the Seattle lineup.

Seattle’s ability to match the buyer’s need drags on. Fast-paced left-winger Jaden Schwartz and scoring right-winger Oliver Bjorkstrand are both past their prime, and likely wouldn’t carry a tremendous acquisition cost. Among the defense, Josh Mahura seems the most expendable. He’s the cheapest of the bunch with a league-minimum, $775K cap hit – and has just six assists in 45 games this season. But Mahura has added a plus-six and 58 hits – creating a moldable style for teams in need of more depth. For those looking for a more true lineup piece, the Kraken could also expend 32-year-old Jamie Oleksiak, who plays hard minutes on Seattle’s second pair but has 13 points and a minus-seven on the year. Moving either defender would give Seattle more room to lean on promising youngster Ryker Evans on the left-side, or recall hefty, right-shot prospect Ty Nelson from the minor leagues.

Team Needs

1) Young Defensemen – The Kraken have build a prospect pool worth admiring on offense. They’re led by Shane Wright, Jagger Firkus, Jani Nyman, and Logan Morrison – who all look capable of contributing to the top flight for years to come. But their defensive depth isn’t nearly as fleshed out. Nelson leads the bunch, and has managed an encouraging 21 points in 50 AHL games. But the trio of Caden Price, Lukas Dragicevic, and Ville Ottovainen haven’t inspired much behind Nelson – leaving questions as to how Seattle can build around Evans. Bringing in another top, young, left-handed defender would be a great start. The Kraken certainly have the assets to shoot for the moon by acquiring top Buffalo Sabres defender Bowen Byram, who’s managed 29 points and a plus-nine in 54 games next to Sabres star Rasmus Dahlin. Byram has had his lulls, but he’s also 23-years-old with five years of partial NHL experience and one Stanley Cup to his name – rare esteem to find on the open market.

Should a proven NHLer be too rich of a price to pay, Seattle could try to convince a fringe playoff team to part with a top defense prospect in exchange for their solidifying lineup piece. The Columbus Blue Jackets are well within grasp of the second Eastern Conference wild card, and could part with the well-rounded Stanislav Svozil without jeporadizing the future of their blue-line. Svozil has 24 points in 43 AHL games this season – his second pro season.

2) Young, Middle-Six Forwards – The Kraken are in a great Deadline position because of their overabundance of forward talent – but many of their options are in or past their prime. With a dismal record on the year, it’s clear Seattle’s positives lie in the future. Top prospects will soon be coming up, and finding the right role players to support them could go far in returning the Kraken to the postseason sooner rather than later. They may be able to sway the New York Rangers to part with an effective youngster like William Cuylle in the name of a playoff upgrade. Or perhaps expendable Toronto Maple Leafs winger Nicholas Robertson could find his scoring groove in the same slow, shoot-first style that’s supported Bjorkstrand. Both options likely wouldn’t come at a major price, especially for a Kraken team with the roster spots and draft picks to make an addition.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Igor Shesterkin Expected To Return, Rangers Assign Two To AHL

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The New York Rangers will be returning from the 4-Nations Face-Off break with good news. Starter Igor Shesterkin has shared he expects to be healthy before Saturday’s game against Buffalo per Peter Baugh of The Athletic. The Rangers made the move to back his claim by reassigning temporary backup goaltender Dylan Garand. New York has also assigned defenseman Zachary Jones to the minors on a conditioning loan. Matthew Robertson has been recalled in his place.

Shesterkin will return from an upper-body injury sustained in New York’s February 7th loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He played through the entirety of that matchup but received a designation of out one-to-two weeks before the Rangers visited Columbus the next day – in what was their last game before the break. Shesterkin was in the midst of a cold spell leading up to his injury, posting a 1-4 record and .835 save percentage in his last five games. The performance spurred what was otherwise a great January for the 2022 Vezina Trophy winner. He recorded a 6-0-1 record and .948 save percentage in his first seven games of the month, helping the Rangers find solid footing in the Eastern Conference Wild Card race. The Rangers are still three points outside of playoff standing, putting the pressure on Shesterkin to bounce back to form after an extended break.

Garand filled in as the backup in Shesterkin’s lone absence. The 22-year-old has been one of the AHL’s best young netminders this year – ranked second in save percentage (.914) and third in wins (13) among U23 goalies with at least 20 games. It’s been a big step up for Garand – who claimed the AHL starting role two seasons ago but hasn’t yet posted a year-long save percentage above .900.

Jones will join Garand in the move to the AHL looking to get back to match shape. He spent 18 games out of the lineup through December and January, with a pair of scoreless spot starts in February marking his first games since the holiday break. Jones has served as New York’s seventh defenseman for the entire season – a role that’s led him to eight points, 10 penalty minutes, and a plus-two in 28 games. New York will turn towards Robertson to fill that during Jones’ temporary assignment. Robertson has 18 points and 47 penalty minutes in 47 AHL games this season and would make his NHL debut should he find a way into the Rangers lineup.

Blue Jackets Recall Joseph LaBate

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The Blue Jackets announced they’d recalled forward Joseph LaBate from AHL Cleveland. Considering they have no forwards at the 4 Nations Face-Off, his recall will likely last through their return to action against the Blackhawks on Saturday as compared to bringing him up for practice purposes.

LaBate, 31, inked a two-way deal with Columbus in late November after starting the campaign on a minor-league deal with Cleveland. He subsequently cleared waivers and returned to the AHL, where the hard-nosed center/left-winger has 6-7–13 with 49 PIMs and a minus-two rating through 33 games.

Standing at 6’5″ and 209 lbs, LaBate has 13 games of NHL experience to his name. Those all came in the 2016-17 campaign with the Canucks, who selected him in the fourth round of the 2011 draft. He didn’t record a point in that trial and has bounced around leagues since, suiting up for AHL clubs in Belleville, Milwaukee, and Chicago before landing in Kazakhstan with Barys Astana of the Kontinental Hockey League last season. It was his first and, for now, only campaign spent overseas, and his 8-10–18 scoring line with 53 PIMs in 49 games is close to his average per-season performance in the minors over his 11-year professional career.

It’s notable that the veteran LaBate gets the call over prospects like Luca Del Bel Belluz and Mikael Pyyhtia, both of whom were playing regular minutes for the CBJ leading into the 4 Nations break but were sent down to Cleveland when their scheduled pause to continue receiving playing time. Their playing time was going to be diminished amid looming returns to the lineup for captain Boone Jenner and emerging star winger Kirill Marchenko, though, so they’ll opt to keep them stashed in the AHL for now while presumably giving LaBate a shot in a fourth-line role if one of Jenner and Marchenko can’t go against Chicago.

List Of NHL-Affiliated Prospects In The Western Hockey League

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The Canadian Hockey League trade deadlines are in the rearview mirror. That makes it a good time to take stock of where NHL teams have their prospect pool skating ahead of the big league deadline. We’re taking a look at how many prospects each team has in the world’s top junior association, moving onto the Western Hockey League. You can find the list of Ontario Hockey League players and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League players here.

Anaheim Ducks

D Vojtech Port (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
D Tarin Smith (Everett Silvertips)

Buffalo Sabres

G Scott Ratzlaff (Seattle Thunderbirds)

Calgary Flames

F Andrew Basha (Medicine Hat Tigers)
D Axel Hurtig (Calgary Hitmen)
D Eric Jamieson (Everett Silvertips)
F Hunter Laing (Saskatoon Blades)
F Jaden Lipinski (Vancouver Giants)

Colorado Avalanche

F Maxmilian Curran (Tri-City Americans)
D Saige Weinstein (Spokane Chiefs)

Columbus Blue Jackets

D Charlie Elick (Tri-City Americans)
G Evan Gardner (Saskatoon Blades)
F Cayden Lindstrom (Medicine Hat Tigers)

Dallas Stars

D Niilopekka Muhonen (Medicine Hat Tigers)

Detroit Red Wings

F Emmett Finnie (Kamloops Blazers)

Florida Panthers

F Gracyn Sawchyn (Edmonton Oil Kings)
F Hunter St. Martin (Medicine Hat Tigers)

Los Angeles Kings

F Koehn Ziemmer (Prince George Cougars)

Minnesota Wild

F Riley Heidt (Prince George Cougars)
D Kalem Parker (Calgary Hitmen)
F Ryder Ritchie (Medicine Hat Tigers)
G Chase Wutzke (Red Deer Rebels)

Montreal Canadiens

F Tyler Thorpe (Vancouver Giants)

Nashville Predators

F Hiroki Gojsic (Kelowna Rockets)
F Kalan Lind (Red Deer Rebels)
F Miguel Marques (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
D Tanner Molendyk (Medicine Hat Tigers)

New Jersey Devils

F Max Graham (Kelowna Rockets)

Ottawa Senators

D Carter Yakemchuk (Calgary Hitmen)

Philadelphia Flyers

G Carson Bjarnason (Brandon Wheat Kings)
D Carter Sotheran (Portland Winterhawks)

Pittsburgh Penguins

D Harrison Brunicke (Kamloops Blazers)
F Tanner Howe (Calgary Hitmen)

San Jose Sharks

D Nate Misskey (Victoria Royals)
D Colton Roberts (Vancouver Giants)
F Carson Wetsch (Calgary Hitmen)

Seattle Kraken

F Clarke Caswell (Swift Current Broncos)
F Berkly Catton (Spokane Chiefs)
D Lukas Dragicevic (Prince Albert Raiders)
D Kaden Hammell (Everett Silvertips)
F Ollie Josephson (Red Deer Rebels)
D Tyson Jugnauth (Portland Winterhawks)
F Julius Miettinen (Everett Silvertips)
D Caden Price (Lethbridge Hurricanes)

St. Louis Blues

F Adam Jecho (Edmonton Oil Kings)
D William McIsaac (Spokane Chiefs)
F Tomas Mrsic (Prince Albert Raiders)
F Jakub Stancl (Kelowna Rockets)

Tampa Bay Lightning

G Harrison Meneghin (Medicine Hat Tigers)

Toronto Maple Leafs

D Noah Chadwick (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
F Miroslav Holinka (Edmonton Oil Kings)
D Nathan Mayes (Spokane Chiefs)

Utah Hockey Club

D Terrell Goldsmith (Tri-City Americans)
F Tij Iginla (Kelowna Rockets)
D Justin Kipkie (Victoria Royals)
D Veeti Väisänen (Medicine Hat Tigers)

Vancouver Canucks

D Parker Alcos (Edmonton Oil Kings)
D Sawyer Mynio (Calgary Hitmen)

Vegas Golden Knights

F Jordan Gustafson (Lethbridge Hurricanes)
D Viliam Kmec (Prince George Cougars)

Washington Capitals

F Andrew Cristall (Spokane Chiefs)
F Terik Parascak (Prince George Cougars)

Winnipeg Jets

F Connor Levis (Vancouver Giants)
F Markus Loponen (Victoria Royals)
F Brayden Yager (Lethbridge Hurricanes)

Islanders Likely To Activate Ryan Pulock This Weekend

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Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock skated in a regular jersey at Thursday’s practice, Denis Gorman of Newsday reports, indicating he may be ready to return when the Islanders return to action Sunday against the Stars.

Pulock, 30, has not played since sustaining an upper-body injury on his first shift in New York’s game against the Hurricanes on Jan. 25. He missed seven games leading into the 4 Nations break, which was conveniently timed to cover most of his recovery period.

The Isles are still nowhere close to fully healthy on their blue line. No. 1 defender Noah Dobson, who hasn’t skated since being designated week-to-week with a lower-body injury last month, remains on long-term injured reserve alongside Mike Reilly, whose availability down the stretch remains doubtful after undergoing heart surgery in November. Nonetheless, Pulock remains a heavy minute-muncher for the Isles, averaging 21:55 over 48 appearances this season. His return to a top-four role will allow for easier assignments for overseas signing Tony DeAngelo, trade acquisition Scott Perunovich, and waiver claim Adam Boqvist – all of whom were brought in over the weeks leading up to the break to give them much-needed depth in the wake of Dobson’s and Pulock’s absences.

Pulock isn’t the routine 30-point defender he was early in his career, but he remains a serviceable top-four option. He has 3-13–16 with a plus-seven rating and ranks second on the team with 105 blocks. The latter stat indicates Pulock’s continued struggles to control possession over the past few seasons. He’s logged a Corsi share of 47.2% and an expected rating of -5.8 at even strength this year, both of which rank in the bottom half of Islanders skaters. His usual pairing with Adam Pelech has remained stout defensively but struggles to generate scoring chances, leading to a subpar xGF% of 48.2, per MoneyPuck. They’ve been the lowest-event duo of the four Islanders pairings to log at least 150 minutes together in 2024-25.

His return comes as the Islanders look to continue the momentum generated by an 8-3-0 run leading into the 4 Nations break, which put them back within shouting distance of a playoff spot. They’re four points back of the Red Wings for the final wild-card position but don’t have any games in hand and need to leapfrog the Rangers, Bruins, and Blue Jackets as well. It won’t be easy, but getting him (and Scott Mayfield, who missed their last four games with a lower-body issue) back in the lineup gives them veteran stability as they look to gain ground down the stretch.

Minor Transactions: 2/20/25

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Minor moves will continue across the league Thursday as teams dial in their rosters coming out of the 4 Nations break. We’ll keep track of those moves here as always:

  • The Blues announced Thursday they’ve called up forward Zachary Bolduc from AHL Springfield. The move was widely expected after they assigned him to the minors for the first time this season at the beginning of the 4 Nations break to get playing time while St. Louis was off. The 2021 first-round pick rejoins the club after posting 6-12–18 with a +10 rating through 46 games to begin the year. Bolduc, 21, posted a pair of assists and a minus-three rating in four games with Springfield over the last two weeks.
  • The Devils announced they’d recalled goaltender Nico Daws from AHL Utica and reassigned forward Chase Stillman to Utica and goalie Tyler Brennan to ECHL Adirondack in corresponding transactions. Brennan and Stillman were recalled Tuesday to practice with the Devils while some of their players were returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off and were expected to return to their respective minor-league clubs in the coming days. Daws comes back up to serve as Jake Allen’s backup coming out of the break until starter Jacob Markström is ready to return from his MCL sprain, which is set to keep him out for another two weeks. The 24-year-old won his only start of the season against the Penguins on Feb. 4, stopping 25 of 27 shots for a .926 SV%. He also saved all seven shots he faced in relief of Allen against the Sabres on Feb. 2.
  • The Lightning announced they’ve reassigned left-winger Gabriel Fortier to AHL Syracuse. Tampa recalled him Tuesday to serve as an extra practice player as their contingent of 4 Nations players works their way back to Florida, but it won’t result in any NHL playing time. The 2018 second-rounder hasn’t suited up for the Bolts since 2022-23 and has 10-7–17 in 37 AHL games this season with a plus-five rating.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Trade Deadline Primer: San Jose Sharks

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With the 4 Nations Face-Off break now almost over, the trade deadline looms large and is less than three weeks away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the San Jose Sharks.

San Jose remains deep in a rebuild and is currently dead last in the NHL in points. As you would expect, they have already begun their trade deadline sell-off by moving out the likes of Mikael Granlund, Cody Ceci, and Mackenzie Blackwood. The Sharks are unlikely to make any big moves heading into the deadline since they’ve moved on from their more notable UFAs, though they do have a few depth pieces remaining on expiring contracts who could be of interest to buyers. One issue that could plague San Jose at the deadline is their inability to retain salary thanks to the trades of Brent Burns, Erik Karlsson and Tomas Hertl. However, Sharks’ general manager Mike Grier has shown an ability to get creative when he needs to and will likely do more of the same as he tries to maximize the assets he does have.

Record

15-35-7, 8th in the Pacific

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$32.86MM on deadline day, 3/3 retention slots used, 46/50 contracts used, per PuckPedia.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2025: SJS 1st, DAL 1st, SJS 2nd, COL 3rd, SJS 4th, WPG 4th, COL 5th, NJ 7th
2026: SJS 1st, SJS 2nd, COL 2nd, SJ 4th, SJS 7th,

Trade Chips

As mentioned, San Jose has been busy this year moving out some of their more desirable assets. However, they do have some remaining veterans on expiring deals who could help teams.

Luke Kunin is a depth center who has had poor possession numbers for much of his professional career. He is physical and can score in a fourth-line role, hitting double digits in goals five times in his career. The 27-year-old is overpaid at $2.75MM. However, the acquiring team would only need to fit him under the cap for the remainder of this season. Physical players are always in demand for the playoffs, so Kunin will likely find a new home before the deadline, though it’s unlikely that an acquiring team will give up more than a late-round draft pick. San Jose also can’t retain on any trades, so the team trading for Kunin would need to pick up the full freight of his contract.

Another depth forward the Sharks could dangle is Nico Sturm. The 29-year-old is also in the final year of his deal and is counting $2MM against the salary cap. Sturm is similar to Kunin in a lot of ways but is less physical, although he has a big body and probably has more utility. Sturm’s possession numbers aren’t terrible, and he does offer more of a two-way presence than Kunin. Sturm could thrive in a sheltered fourth-line role on a solid team but won’t break the bank for any team looking to acquire him. Much like Kunin, any team that does trade for Sturm will need to pick up the full tab on the remainder of his contract, which will limit suitors and the cost to acquire.

Jan Rutta was a salary dump by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Erik Karlsson trade and has struggled in San Jose. The 34-year-old is on pace to commit more turnovers this season than the past six years combined. Rutta was never the fleetest of foot, but he can thrive in a sheltered third pairing role with a mobile defensive partner. Rutta is a two-time Stanley Cup Champion with Tampa Bay and was good during those runs, but he did benefit greatly from playing with Victor Hedman. Rutta will have suitors because he is a right shot defenseman, but at $2.75MM for the rest of the season, it is hard to see teams giving up much more than a mid-round pick for him.

The final two trade chips that San Jose could dangle are goaltenders Vítek Vaněček and Alexandar Georgiev, both of whom are UFAs this summer. The difficulty with moving either man is that neither one is a starter at this point in their careers, and without retention, they would make for an expensive and possibly ineffective backup. Vaněček has posted a goals against north of 4.00 this season, and his goals saved above expected is -9.1, which is the seventh worst in the NHL. Georgiev has posted even worse numbers, tallying a goals saved above expected of -12.1, which is the second worst in the entire NHL (as per Money Puck).

Team Needs

1) Young Roster Players: The Sharks have the NHL’s best prospect pool, according to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, and while they have an embarrassment of riches in the pipeline, they are going to need to start getting contributions at the NHL level sooner than later. The Sharks could be in line for another down year next season, and with that being said, the team will likely start to convert notable prospects and draft picks into roster players as they look to surround the young players already in the NHL with better talent. The Sharks can ill afford to leave their young NHL stars in a similar position to the one the Edmonton Oilers did with their top draft picks during the 2010s. Mike Grier has already started this process with the move for goaltender Yaroslav Askarov and could do so again as he pinpoints which part of the roster he is going to need to address.

2) Young Defensemen: The Sharks have some solid defensive prospects such as Luca Cagnoni, as well as highly touted prospect Sam Dickinson. They also have youngster Jack Thompson at the pro level, who looks promising, and Shakir Mukhamadullin, who has played in 13 games this season. Both Thompson and Mukhamadullin look like NHL defensemen, but it remains to be seen what their ceiling will be. The Sharks’ prospect cupboard is forward-heavy, and at some point, they will need to be sure that they have NHL-caliber defensemen to play with their skilled forward group. Finding a right shot defensemen is especially hard in the NHL, and Grier might opt to make his swings at it now rather than later when the cost could be higher. San Jose likely won’t rush to make this move before the deadline, but they will be taking a hard look at what their best course of action is going forward. Given that they have a deep prospect pool and good draft capital, they could jump-start their rebuild with some young defensemen who can elevate their forwards and make life easier for the goaltender of the future, Askarov.

Photo courtesy of Imagn Images.

Legendary Penguins Broadcaster Mike Lange Has Passed Away

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Pittsburgh Penguins Hall of Fame broadcaster Mike Lange has passed away at the age of 76 (Twitter Link). Lange was beloved in Pittsburgh and around the hockey community for his magical calls and inventive catchphrases. He called all five of the Penguins Stanley Cup Championships and brought authenticity and humor to every broadcast he worked on. He was even featured in the 1995 Jean-Claude Van Damme film Sudden Death.

Lange was a native of Sacramento, California, which was not exactly a hotbed for hockey during his childhood. He went to school at Sacramento State University before getting his first job as a hockey broadcaster doing radio for the Phoenix Roadrunners of the Western Hockey League back in 1970. He made a stop in San Diego, doing play-by-play for the Gulls of the AHL before being hired by the Penguins as their radio play-by-play man in 1974. Lange was with the Penguins for all but one season (1976) up until 2021.

During his 46 years with the Penguins, Lange worked in both television and radio and made the most iconic calls in franchise history. He, along with Mario Lemieux, also inspired a generation of young kids in Pittsburgh to get into hockey, including Jesse Marshall of The Athletic, who tweeted about his admiration of Lange.

Lange became known for his one-liners, such as “He’s smiling like a butcher’s dog,” but his ability to anticipate what was going to happen in a game was truly unique. Marshall notes one such occurrence where Lange warned the audience to keep their eyes on Lemieux in a game and to “be careful” with him. Lemieux went on to score eight points in the game.

Lange was the recipient of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Foster Hewitt Award in 2001 and was inducted into the broadcasters’ wing of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Lange called his final Pittsburgh game in 2021 before his retirement due to health issues.

We at Pro Hockey Rumors send our condolences to Lange’s family, friends, and peers.

Snapshots: Moser, Chychrun, Wennberg, Kraken

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The Lightning will welcome back an important part of their defense corps on Sunday.  Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times relays that J.J. Moser will be back in the lineup against Seattle after missing two-and-a-half months with a lower-body injury.  The 24-year-old was an important part of the return for Tampa Bay in the Mikhail Sergachev trade from the draft and had 10 points in 27 games before the injury while averaging nearly 20 minutes per night of playing time.  Moser was technically activated off IR before the break but the team elected to scratch him for their last game instead to give him more time to recover.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

  • While Capitals defenseman Jakob Chychrun made it known last month that he’s open to signing a contract extension with Washington, he told reporters including Sammi Silber of The Hockey News (Twitter link) that there haven’t been any extension discussions since before the break. The 26-year-old has been a great addition for Washington, already notching 14 goals and 21 assists through 50 games while logging 21 minutes a night.  He’s well on his way to earning a sizable raise on his current $4.6MM price tag but it doesn’t appear a new deal is coming in the near future.
  • San Jose will get a key veteran center back for their upcoming seven-game road trip as Alexander Wennberg told reporters including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link) that he’ll be ready to return on Sunday. The 30-year-old has 23 points in 52 games for the Sharks this season and suffered an upper-body injury late last month.
  • The Kraken have changed up their backup goalie. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled Ales Stezka from AHL Coachella Valley and reassigned Victor Ostman to ECHL Kansas City, reversing the move made before the 4 Nations break.  Stezka has been Seattle’s backup as of late after Philipp Grubauer was assigned to the Firebirds but has yet to make his NHL debut.  He has a 2.99 GAA with a .902 SV% in 25 games this season.  Ostman, meanwhile, is in his first full professional season after signing with Seattle as a college free agent last spring.  He has played exclusively with the Mavericks, putting up a 2.44 GAA and a .905 SV% in 29 appearances.

Trade Deadline Primer: Pittsburgh Penguins

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With the 4 Nations Face-Off break now almost over, the trade deadline looms large and is less than three weeks away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Things haven’t gone exactly as planned for the Penguins this season.  After tweaking their roster, GM Kyle Dubas hoped that this group would be able to hang around the playoff picture.  While they’re still within striking distance of a playoff spot, they’ve already dealt away their top rental, signaling that they will likely be subtracting from their roster once again at the deadline.

Record

23-25-9, 7th in the Metropolitan

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$9.88MM on deadline day, 2/3 retention slots used, 49/50 contracts used, per PuckPedia.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2025: NYR 1st*, PIT 1st, MIN 3rd, OTT 3rd, PIT 3rd, PIT 4th, CHI 5th, NYR 5th, PIT 5th, PIT 6th, PIT 7th
2026: PIT 1st, PIT 2nd, STL 2nd, PIT 3rd, SJ 3rd, PIT 4th, NSH 6th, CHI 7th, PIT 7th

*-Top-13 protected; if it doesn’t convey this year, it becomes New York’s unprotected 2026 first-round selection.

Trade Chips

With Marcus Pettersson now in Vancouver from the trade at the beginning of the month, Pittsburgh’s top rental blueliner is long gone but Matt Grzelcyk is another who could draw interest.  He struggled to start the season as he adjusted to his new team but he has played better in recent weeks leading up to the break.  The 31-year-old has set a new career-high in points with 28 in 57 games, putting him second on the Penguins in points by a defenseman (behind Erik Karlsson but ahead of Kris Letang) while he’s logging over 20 minutes a night for the first time in his career.  While Grzelcyk would likely be more of a third-pairing option on a contending team, his $2.75MM AAV is one that is reasonably affordable which should give Dubas some options if he wants to move out another rearguard.

Their other rental options are more of the depth variety.  Anthony Beauvillier has a dozen goals in 56 games despite not even averaging 13 minutes a night and isn’t too pricey at $1.25MM.  For a team looking for some low-cost scoring depth, he could be a viable option.  When healthy, Matthew Nieto has been a capable checking winger.  Staying healthy has been a challenge lately and he has struggled this year but at just $900K, it’s possible a team could flip a late-round pick to bring in some extra depth.

While Pittsburgh would undoubtedly want to get out of Tristan Jarry and Ryan Graves’s contracts, that’s probably not happening.  Nor is it likely that they’d move their older core group that they’re trying to build around.  But even with that in mind, there are a few other possible trade options.

Rickard Rakell’s tenure with Pittsburgh has been a bit uneven but this has been one of the good years.  He already has 25 goals this season, giving him a chance to surpass 30 for the first time since the 2017-18 campaign and sits second in team scoring behind Sidney Crosby while often playing with the captain on the top line.  As far as trade value goes, it’s reasonably high, especially since he’s signed for three more years at $5MM.  It doesn’t seem likely that the Penguins would embark on a larger-scale rebuild so he’s someone they’d probably prefer not to move so it will take a big offer to get him.  That same sentence applies to winger Bryan Rust who is also in that price range.

Pittsburgh has a pair of bottom-six forwards who could attract some interest as well.  Noel Acciari is a physical fourth-line center who has seven different seasons of playoff experience and had some success as a deadline pickup two years ago.  He has one year left on his deal after this one at $2MM which is a salary that looks a bit more affordable with the big jump coming in the salary cap.  The other is Blake Lizotte.  He provides a bit more offense than Acciari and is capable of playing both center and the wing although he’s also undersized.  He’s in Acciari’s price range with one year left on his deal as well at a $1.85MM price tag.  Neither player would command a significant return but moving one of them would open up a roster spot to give one of their prospects in AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton an extended look.

Team Needs

1) Young Pros: Last year, we saw Dubas prioritize a nearer-future return in the Jake Guentzel trade, adding Vasiliy Ponomarev and Ville Koivunen as part of the package instead of picking up more draft picks.  We also saw them add Rutger McGroarty, the more pro-ready piece, in a swap of first-round prospects with Winnipeg over the offseason.  The emphasis is getting players who are closer to being NHL-ready who could still fit with the current veteran core.  There’s no reason to think they won’t take a similar approach this time around.

2) Contract Flexibility: With only one open contract slot at the moment, that doesn’t give the Penguins much flexibility on that front, either in terms of adding more minor-pro players in a trade or even for the college free agent market if they need to burn a year now to entice a signing.  Freeing up two or three slots would certainly help them on that front, especially when you keep in mind that contracts don’t expire until July 1st so having that extra wiggle room could also help them at draft time in trade discussions.  It’s not a must-do but it would certainly be beneficial for them.

Photo courtesy of Imagn Images.

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