The NHL holiday transaction freeze starts in just a few days, and already we’ve heard rumblings from several teams around the league that are in dire need of shake up. The St. Louis Blues seem to be on the minds of nearly every broadcaster in North America, with markets wondering how Alex Pietrangelo, Vladimir Tarasenko or Colton Parayko would look in some new colors.
While none of those three may eventually get moved, the Blues are one of the teams worth monitoring as we move through the holiday season and approach the 2019 trade deadline. Very little has gone right this season for St. Louis, and even after their recent two-game winning streak the team still sits in sixth place in the Central Division. The only team behind them, the Chicago Blackhawks, are another team looking to change their fortunes at some point. On a 1-8-1 streak, the Blackhawks now sit last in the entire NHL with a -32 goal differential and are right in the thick of the draft lottery race for star prospect Jack Hughes. Chicago doesn’t have a lot of assets that aren’t locked into seemingly unmovable contracts, but could try to really change their culture by moving out one of their core Cup-winning faces.
The Los Angeles Kings, another team soaring towards the first-overall pick, have been in the news lately because of Jeff Carter. Their second-line center doesn’t hold any trade protection in his contract, but has another type of armor to help decide where he could be traded to. Carter could potentially use retirement as a weapon against both the acquiring team and the Kings, given that it would cause a cap recapture penalty against Los Angeles. There’s little chance that the team wouldn’t work with him to find a soft landing spot, but even then there may be several complications in a trade.
That takes us to the Eastern Conference, where the Ottawa Senators are starting to slide closer to where many believed they would finish the season. After a stronger than expected start, the Senators now carry a -20 goal differential and sit just two points ahead of the Florida Panthers for last place in the Atlantic Division, despite having played three additional games. Ottawa is perhaps the most interesting team to watch in the entire league as the deadline approaches, given the pending unrestricted free agent status of both Matt Duchene and Mark Stone. The Senators, who owe their top pick to the Colorado Avalanche this June, would love to get back into the first round somehow to help their rebuild continue.
Then there is Philadelphia, who is considering a coaching change after bringing in a new GM and could make several moves to alter the direction of the organization. Chuck Fletcher has been rumored interested in making trades before the freeze kicks in on Wednesday, but with just a few days left that could have to wait. The Flyers too have an unrestricted free agent in Wayne Simmonds, and a potential glut of young offensive-minded defensemen who could help many teams around the league.
So who will put up the “For Sale” sign first and start uprooting their foundation? Who will be first on the phone when the trade freeze lifts? Where will playoff-hungry executives show up to try and make a deal?
Cast your vote below for who you think will be the biggest seller of the season, and leave a comment to explain your choice.
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