Grading Every Team's 2024 NHL Trade Deadline

The NHL trade deadline is one of the most exciting times of the year for hockey fans. The potential for a franchise altering move is enthralling and the 2024 deadline did not come up short. With major moves leading up to March 8th as teams try to bolster their team for a deep playoff run or seng out players for picks and hope for the coveted projected 1st overall pick from Boston University, Macklin Celebrini. 

The question is how did all these teams do? In this article I will give each team a letter grade based on their trades starting with Vancouver’s acquisition of Elias Lindholm on January 31st. 

Anaheim Ducks

In: 2025 3rd round pick, 2024 1st round pick, 2025 fifth round pick*, Jan Mysak, Ben Myers

Out: Ilya Lybushkin, Sam Carrick, Adam Henrique, Jacob Perrault, 2024 5th round pick

Grade: A-

Anaheim GM Pat Verbeek made very tidy work at this deadline. Getting a 1st round pick for a 34 year old center Adam Henrique was a great deal and will set Anaheim up well for the 2024 NHL draft where the Ducks will have a top pick. The other trades of depth pieces such as Lybushkin and Carrick were smart moves and took advantage of high deadline prices for role players. The only thing that holds this deadline back from being a perfect grade was holding on to Frank Vatrano who is having a career year and recently made the all star game. Vatrano is scoring at unsustainable levels and capitalizing on his unexpected success would’ve allowed Anaheim to gain a few extra coveted assets. 

Arizona Coyotes

In: 2027 4th round pick, 2024 6th round pick, 2027 5th round pick

Out: Troy Stecher, 2024 7th round pick, Jason Zucker, Matt Dumba, 2025 7th round pick

Grade: D-

The Arizona Coyotes came in with one clear barrier in their deadline: no retaining salary. Although the Coyotes had valuable pieces such as Jason Zucker and Matt Dumba who have both been regarded as serviceable players who would normally draw a lot of interest around the league. However, Arizona’s seeming unwillingness to retain salary has brought them just a few late round picks which have a very low chance of ever becoming meaningful impact players in the NHL.

Boston Bruins

In: Andrew Peeke, Pat Maroon

Out: Jakub Zboril, 2027 3rd round pick, Luke Toporowski, 2026 6th round pick

Grade: C-

Boston looks like a real contender this year after what many thought would be a step back seem to be geared up for another deep playoff run. Having said that Boston’s lack of cap space seems to have handcuffed them from making a move to put them over the edge. Pat Maroon is not a bad depth addition for some physicality, but Peeke has some of the worst defensive metrics in the NHL, but we have seen players turn that around after joining a new team. A rumored Linus Ullmark deal, that did not go through because of his no movement clause (NMC), would’ve allowed for more flexibility and potentially a big piece to add to their roster before this playoff run.

Buffalo Sabers

In: Bowen Byram, Calle Själin, 2024 7th round pick, 2024 4th round pick, 2025 5th round pick

Out: Casey Middlestat, Kyle Okposo, Devin Cooley

Grade: B

This is an extremely interesting deadline. Obviously the move of Kyle Okposo is good as they do right by their captain sending him to a cup contender in the Florida Panthers. The Erik Jonson return is also good for a depth defenseman who has struggled with the Sabers this year. But the real big move here is for Bowen Byram. Byram was doing well in Colorado but was struggling to get ice time over defensemen like Girard, Toews, and Makar. Selling high on Casey Mittelstadt, who is having a career year, is also a move I think will look smart in the end. Having said that, Buffalo might be overcrowding their defense with left-handed shots. Five of Buffalo's six defensemen of the future, as of right now, are all left handed. This does not necessarily mean they cannot play together but it could put them behind other teams that can execute plays more effectively. However, if Byram can reach the potential that was envisioned when he was drafted 4th overall, this trade has the potential to look great for them in the long run.

Calgary Flames

In: Andrei Kuzmenko, Joni Jurmo, Hunter Brzustewicz, 2024 1st round pick, 2024 4th round pick*, Artem Grushnikov, 2024 2nd round pick, 2024 3rd round pick*, Danil Miromonov, 2026 1st round pick*, 2024 3rd round pick*, Riley Damiani, Nikita Okhotiuk

Out: Elias Lindholm, Chris Tanev, Noah Hanifin, Mathias Emilio Pettersen, 2024 5th round pick

Grade: B-

The Calgary Flames had quite possibly the hardest job coming into the NHL trade deadline. With three of their biggest names on expiring deals it was clear they needed to make substantial moves that could shift the middling flames into a retool. The Elias Lindholm move was very promising bringing in an amazing hall of picks, prospects, and an impact player in Andrei Kuzmenko who has played well for the Flames so far. Clagary’s other moves, however, left more to be desired. Tanev and Hanfin are elite defensemen and should’ve commanded a much higher price for their value. Although they acquired some picks and ok prospects it feels like there was potential to get a much bigger haul for both if perhaps they were willing to sell earlier. 

Carolina Hurricanes

In: 2024 6th round pick, 2026 6th round pick, Ty Smith, Jake Guentzel, Evgeny Kuznetsov, 

Out: Kirill Slepets, Cade Webber, Michael Bunting, Vasili Ponomarev, Cruz Lucius, Ville Koivunen, 2024 2nd round pick*, 2024 5th round pick*, 2025 3rd round pick, 

Grade: A

The Carolina Hurricanes have always had a philosophy of not paying for a rental at the NHL trade deadline, they changed that this year. Adding a perennial playoff goal scorer to a team that has consistently struggled to score past the first round. Jake Guentzel is an all in move that they did not pay an in price for; Carolina gave up none of their top 5 prospects and not even a guaranteed 1st overall pick. Carolina followed one shocker up with an even bigger one bringing in Evgeni Kuznetsov. Kuznetsov, who was recently placed on waivers by the Capitals, has struggled incredibly over the past two years before entering the player assistance program earlier this season. Kuznetsov has now left the program in a move that could be a boom or bust for Carolina. If Kuznetsov plays like he has the past two years he will be an anchor on that roster, but if Brindamour and the Carolina Hurricanes can rekindle his play from a few years ago, they have one of the best center cores in the NHL.

Chicago Blackhawks 

In: 2024 5th round pick

Out: Anthony Beauvillier

Grade: C

At the beginning of the season the Chicago Blackhawks seemed like they might be an interesting seller, but instead they opted to re-sign many of their expiring vets to ensure young superstar Connor Bedard has familiar faces around him to help him develop. That left Chicago with very few options to sell. Beauvillier was traded to Chicago for a fifth so trading for him was a wash which is what the week felt like for the Hawks. If there was interest in some of their other expiring contracts like Tyler Johnson and Nikita Zaitsev I think they would’ve sold but in the end they come out looking the same and with the same goal, draft another elite talent for Bedard to play with.

Colorado Avalanche 

In: 2024 7th round pick, Zakhar Bardakov, Sean Walker, 2026 5th round pick, Casey Middlestat, Brandon Duhaime, Yakov Trenin, Graham Sward, 2024 5th round pick

Out: Kurtis MacDermid, Ryan Johansen, 2025 1st round pick*, Bowen Byram, 2026 3rd round pick, Jeremy Hanzel, 2025 3rd round pick, Ben Meyers

Grade: A+

Colorado might have re-entered the conversation as the best team in the NHL after this deadline. Bringing in Casey Mittelstadt who has been an extremely effective scoring forward for the Buffalo Sabers should help Colorado fill the second line center spot that has been an issue since Nazem Kadri left. Although losing former 4th overall pick Bowen Byram leaves a bit of a sour taste, the Avalanche brought in a very good replacement for this year in Sean Walker who has put up excellent defensive analytics in Philadelphia. Byram wasn’t going to develop properly in Colorado and recognizing that before his value dropped was masterful work by Joe Sakic. Offloading Ryan Johansen’s contract was another smart move and will give Sakic the space to keep key players like Mittlestat. Depth additions of Duhaime and Trenin add even more strength and physicality to Colorado while not sacrificing good defensive play. These moves have made Colorado primed for a deep playoff run not just this year but in the next few.

Columbus Blue Jackets 

In: 2026 6th round pick, Alex Nylander, Malcolm Subban, Jakub Zboril, 2027 3rd round pick, 2026 4th round pick*

Out: Emil Bemström, Andrew Peeke, Jack Roslovic

Grade: B+

Columbus started their trading a little early acquiring Alex Nylander for Emil Bemström. Since coming, Nylander has played well and looks like he could be finally reaching even a little of his draft potential. The Roslovic trade was perhaps a little underwhelming but given prices that late in the deadline it was hard to fault them. The real big move that will help this team is trading away Andrew Peeke who was not playing well but still overcrowded the back-end for some of Columbus’ younger prospects. Getting assets in return for that contract is a very good move and will give Columbus some more flexibility in both salary cap and lineup moves. 

Dallas Stars 

In: Chris Tanev, Cole Brady, Mathias Emilio Pettersen

Out: Artem Grushnikov, 2024 2nd round pick, 2024 3rd round pick*, 2026 4th round pick, Riley Damiani

Grade: A-

Dallas didn’t have much room at this deadline and they decided to spend it all on one player, who might end up being the most valuable player traded at the deadline. Chris Tanev is one of the best defensive defenseman in the NHL and acquiring him without giving up a first or top prospect is great work by Dallas, expect them to be a team that others will hate to see coming up in the next round, and a team that could go all the way.

Detroit Red Wings

In: Radim Simek, 2024 7th round pick

Out: Klim Kostin

Grade: D

Detroit has been a great story to watch all year. With them finally taking strides it seemed like this was their year to start making the playoffs, especially with Patrick Kane joining the team. For a team performing as well as Detroit this is a remarkably poor deadline. Making one mostly insignificant move is not what this team needed. Detroit is in a playoff spot but they better look out as other teams like the Islanders are just on their tail. Detroit needed to reward their players and perhaps acquire a player with some term left on their deal that they could not just use this year but also the next. But instead it seems they have stood by, and it might cost them their playoff spot. 

Edmonton Oilers

In: Adam Henrique, Sam Carrick, Ty Taylor, Troy Stecher, 2024 7th round pick

Out: 2025 4th round pick*, 2025 5th round pick*, 2024 1st round pick, 2027 4th round pick

Grade: B

Edmonton’s grade here does not reflect what they did, but rather what they failed to do. Adam Henrique and Troy Stecher are good additions for prices that aren't crazy and will make it so that Edmonton has the forward depth they’ve severely lacked. However, Edmonton still lacks the defensive play to compete with other teams in the west. To improve their chances Edmonton should’ve gone all in on some good defenseman. It’s too late for that now and you never know when you have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisital, but I feel there was a missed opportunity here.

Florida Panthers

In: Vladimir Tarasenko, Kyle Okposo, Magnus Hellberg

Out: 2025 3rd round pick, 2024 4th round pick*, Calle Själin, 2024 7th round pick, Ludovic Waeber, 2025 7th round pick

Grade: A-

Although Florida didn’t make many moves, they made ones that were very smart and capitalized on players' desire to play for them to lower prices. Both Okposo and Tarasenko demanded a trade specifically to Florida and because of that Florida was able to get them for pennies on the dollar. Another addition would’ve been nice but it's easy to see why that didn’t happen due to their lack of cap flexibility. Tarasenko will be an excellent fit for Florida and will make the favorite in the east even stronger.

Los Angeles Kings

In: 

Out: 

Grade: F

It's hard to justify any other grade for a team that did nothing, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t try. If rumors of attempts to acquire Bruins Vezina winning goalie Linus Ullmark came to fruition then this could be looked at as a great day for a team who is struggling to hold on to a playoff spot. But in the end the trade did not go through and it seems the Kings put all their eggs in one basket and were left with nothing in the end.

Minnesota Wild

In: 2026 3rd round pick, Turner Elson, Luke Toporowski, Dmitry Ovchinnikov, 2026 4th round pick

Out: Brandon Duhaime, Nick Petan, 2026 6th round pick*, Connor Dewar

Grade: B

This year and this deadline for the Wild both evoke the same word: unremarkable. This year the wild were expected to make the playoffs and maybe win a round or two. After a terrible start during which the Wild fired their head coach they have been better but still not good enough to re-enter the playoff conversation. Minnesota sold off some players expiring deals and in the end got solid returns. The real test for this team will come in 2 years when their massive buyout penalties come off the books. But until then, expect more moves like this, not necessarily bad but not good enough to enter a contention window.

Montreal Canadiens

In: 2025 3rd round pick, Jacob Perrault, 2024 1st round pick, 2027 3rd round pick*

Out: Jake Allen, Jan Mysak, Sean Monahan

Grade: A

Sell high. That's the best way to explain Montreal’s deadline. After getting both Jake Allen and Sean Monahan at low values Montreal has turned both of them into high draft picks while at the top of their value. Montreal made smart moves and acquired good picks, but one does have to wonder when fans will begin to demand results from this team on the ice. Until then, Montreal is doing a great job turning players into high value futures.

Nashville Predators

In: Jeremy Hanzel, 2025 3rd round pick, Wade Allison

Out: Yakov Trenin, Graham Sward, 2024 5th round pick, 2024 6th round pick, Dennis Gurianov

Grade: A-

The Nashville Predators were looking like a team poised to be big sellers just a few weeks ago. In those weeks the Predators have gone on an amazing eight game win streak to find themselves right back in the playoffs. In this new position Nashville made the exact right moves sending out players that were going to leave in free agency (except defenseman Tyson Barrie who is reportedly frustrated with the lack of a trade) and acquiring good players at cheap costs as they have the cap space to acquire players like Jason Zucker at cheap prices. While the Predators might not make a deep run they certainly have the pieces to be a very tough out in this postseason.

New Jersey Devils

In: Jake Allen, 2026 4th round pick, Kurtis MacDermid, 2025 2nd round pick, 2024 3rd round pick, Kaapo Kähkönen, 2026 4th round pick

Out: Cole Brady, Zakhar Bardakov, 2024 7th round pick, 2025 3rd round pick*, Vitek Vanecek, 2025 7th round pick, Collin Miller

Grade: D+

Too little too late. That's what this deadline has been for the Devils. A need for a Goalie was apparent but Allen and Kähkönen don’t present a substantial upgrade over their current roster. Trading for MadDermid was a clear response to the abuse they suffered at the hands of Rangers Matt Rempe and Jacob Trouba, but also was an overpay and did not help them in the long run at all. To add on to that the disaster of Tyler Toffoli after trading a very good player in Yegor Sharingovich in the deal. Ultimately New Jersey should do their best to forget all about this season and try to come in fresh next year.

New York Rangers

In: Alex Wennberg, Chad Ruhwedel, Nick Petan, Jack Roslovic

Out: 2024 2nd round pick, 2025 4th round pick*, 2027 4th round pick, Turner Elson, 2026 4th round pick*

Grade: B+

Despite striking out on bigger names like Jake Guentzel the New York Rangers ended the deadline making smart moves and filling holes where they needed to be. Alex Wennberg is a much needed replacement for Filip Chytil who was injured at the beginning of the season and has left a big hole on the rangers 3rd line. Wennberg brings the two-way play perfect for coach Peter Laviolette and will fit like a glove on this Rangers team. Jack Roslovic is another very smart add for a very reasonable price. Roslovic is a speedy scoring winger who will be able to add a transition skill that the rangers offense sorely lacks. Ruhwedel and Elson are depth players but good ones and will be able to play well if they are called upon in the postseason.

Ottawa Senators 

In: 2025 3rd round pick, 2024 4th round pick*

Out: Vladimir Tarasenko

Grade: C-

Reset. Since this time last year the Ottawa Senators have a new owner, president, GM, and coach. The no-movement clause that prevented Ottawa from getting value for Tarasenko was signed under a previous regime. The trade is not one to be happy about but the senators have good pieces and under stable leadership next year is one that could be big for the Senators.

Philadelphia Flyers

In: 2025 1st round pick*, Ryan Johansen, 2024 5th round pick, Erik Johnson, Dennis Gurianov

Out: Sean Walker, 2026 5th round pick, 2024 4th round pick, Wade Allison, Mikhail Vorobyov

Grade: B+

The Flyers did exactly what they needed to do. Unexpectedly being in a playoff spot made many question what moves the Flyers might make, but it seems they adapted their plans slightly to still acquire future assets while remaining competitive. Sean Walker and Nick Seeler were two top trade targets on defense and by trading on for a 1st and a cap dump in Ryan Johansen and holding onto the other the Flyers remain in the playoff chase while still accelerating their retool. Adding Erik Johnson could be a good move but is a risky one giving his terrible defensive metrics this year. Having said that, he is an experienced vet who is built perfectly for a John Tortorell team. 

Pittsburgh Penguins

In: Emil Bemström, Michael Bunting, Vasili Ponomarev, Cruz Lucius, Ville Koivunen, 2027 4th round pick, Ludovic Waeber, 2025 7th round pick

Out: Alex Nylander, 2026 6th round pick*, Ty Smith, Jake Guentzel, Chad Ruhwedel, Magnus Hellberg

Grade: C+

This trade deadline marks the end of an NHL era. For the first time in his career Sidney Crosby will miss the playoffs twice and the Penguins sold at the deadline. Guentzel was a key member of the Penguins and the return definitely leaves the average fan wanting more. Kyle Dubas failed to acquire a top prospect or pick from Carolina settling with a quantity over quality approach. It seems that by acquiring forward Michael Bunting Pittsburgh still wants to compete but ultimately it just feels as though there is a half in half out approach. Pittsburgh needed to commit in a big way to compete or to rebuild and to do neither is simply wasting one of the greatest NHL players in his last few years.

San Jose Sharks

In: Jack Thompson, 2024 3rd round pick, Klim Kostin, 2024 5th round pick, Devin Cooley, Vitek Vanecek, 2025 7th round pick, David Edstrom, 2025 1st round pick

Out: Anthony Duclair, 2025 7th round pick, Radim Simek, 2024 7th round pick, Nikita Okhotiuk, 2025 7th round pick, Kaapo Kähkönen, Tomas Hertl, 2025 3rd round pick, 2027 3rd round pick

Grade: B-

Perhaps one of the busiest teams at the deadline, the Sharks stuck to their goal, tearing it all down. San Jose made a few small moves including one sending Anthony Duclair to Tampa Bay for a very good return, but the big move that no one saw coming was Tomas Hertl. Extended just two years ago Hertl was one of the Sharks last remaining players from their former era and they ended up trading him to a divisional rival in the Vegas Golden Knights. While the return of two first round picks is very good the implications don’t shine favorably on the Sharks. We have seen in places like Buffalo that complete teardown rebuilds are hard and to do so you need good players still on your roster to mentor and protect the younger players. Trading Hertl with salary retention also will make it harder for San Jose to make deals at the deadline in upcoming years as they have used up all 3 of their retention slots. The returns San Jose got are very promising and they accruing much needed prospects and picks but one must ask if these moves are a little short sighted and could come around to be one's San Jose regret.

Seattle Kraken

In: 2024 2nd round pick, 2025 4th round pick*

Out: Alex Wennberg

Grade: B

The Seattle Kraken had to make a big decision at this deadline as they had to figure out if they were more like they’re first year in the league, missing the playoffs and drafting 4th overall, or like last year, defeating the reigning stanley cup champions in round one: it seems they went with year two. Wennberg was most likely going to leave in the offseason and Seattle got good assets for him before prices dropped just before the deadline. After that move though, Seattle stopped, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, just a choice to keep certain players who might’ve fetched big returns if sold. For now it seems Seattle will run with the team they have now, and next year will be a very good test as to just how close the Kraken are to contention.

St. Louis Blues

In: 

Out: Malcolm Subban

Grade: F

A missed opportunity. It has become abundantly clear that St. Louis needs a rebuild or retool of some sort. Ever since losing captain Alex Pietrangelo St. Louis has struggled. Names like Pavel Buchnevich and Colton Parayko were on the market but ultimately nothing got done. St. Louis needed to make a decisive move, and the fence sitting they are currently doing will just cost them in the future.

Tampa Bay Lightning

In: 2025 4th round pick*, Anthony Duclair, 2025 7th round pick, 2025 7th round pick, Matt Dumba

Out: Ty Taylor, Jack Thompson, 2024 3rd round pick, 2027 5th round pick

Grade: B-

While none of the trades Tampa Bay made at this year's deadline were bad, they did not do nearly enough to make up for the loss of Mikhail Sergachev. Individually trades for Duclair and Dumba could turn out to be good deals but in order for Tampa to truly be in Stanley Cup contention, I think they needed one or two more pieces. 

Toronto Maple Leafs

In: Kirill Slepets, Ilya Lyubushkin, Joel Edmundson, Cade Webber, Connor Dewar

Out: 2024 6th round pick, 2025 3rd round pick, 2024 3rd round pick, 2025 5th round pick, 2026 6th round pick, Dmitry Ovchinnikov, 2026 4th round pick

Grade: B-

Toronto came into this deadline with a glaring need for depth on the right side on defense, specifically with a defensive physical presence. Although Toronto acquired some defensive depth they failed to add the high end player that was badly needed. None of the moves in a vacuum are bad but all together they gave up a significant amount of assets for depth players who likely won’t get Toronto over the hump.

Vancouver Canucks

In: Elias Lindholm

Out: Andrei Kuzmenko, Joni Jurmo, Hunter Brzustewicz, 2024 1st round pick, 2024 4th round pick

Grade: C+

Vancouver’s unexpected success this season needed to be rewarded, and the Canucks’ front office paid up. Elias Lindholm was the jewel of the NHL trade deadline and the earliest piece moved. Because of this Vancouver paid a premium for the center, giving up top draft picks and star OHL defenseman Hunter Brzustewicz. This trade has not turned out well for Vancouver so far. In his 19 games in Vancuver Lindholm has just 4 goals, 7 points, and is a -5. It’s possible we see him turn it around but right now it seems Vancouver may have selected the wrong player to target. Going into the deadline there was talk that Vancouver might even flip him for a package to go out and get Jake Guentzel, but with that not coming to fruition it’s hard to feel good about this deadline for Vancouver.

Vegas Golden Knights

In: Anthony Mantha, Noah Hanafin, Mikhail Vorobyov, Tomas Hertl, 2025 3rd round pick, 2027 3rd round pick

Out: 2024 2nd round pick, 2026 4th round pick, Daniil Miromanov, 2024 3rd round pick, 2026 1st round pick, 2024 5th round pick, 2024 3rd round pick*, 2026 1st round pick, David Edstrom, 2025 1st round pick

Grade: A

Vegas has made their mark on the league ever since entering as being a team willing to do anything to win right now, this deadline was the perfect encapsulation of that strategy. Coming off a Stanley Cup win the Vegas Golden Knights were expected to make some moves but I don’t think anyone saw moves of this magnitude coming. Anthony Mantha was a move that I would expect from Vegas. A good player with very good analytics and a bit of a mean streak in him, an underrated deadline addition at a good price. Noah Hanafin was the first big shock. Hanafin was the best defenseman on the market and in adding him Vegas took their defense, which was already arguably the best in the league, and added another top pairing defenseman to it. After that Vegas still didn’t seem done with many wondering if Guentzel was a potential fit. That was when Vegas completely shocked the hockey world by trading for Tomas Hertl. Hertl has been an extremely effective two-way center in San Jose for years and Vegas now has him at a reduced salary for years to come. Vegas is the prime model to look at of a team that is willing to do anything to win. And although I have concerns about so many big shakeups harming locker room chemistry, it's hard to deny just how terrifying that Vegas lineup looks when healthy. Vegas is the team to beat this year, and should be the favorites going in.

Washington Capitals

In: 2024 2nd round pick, 2026 4th round pick, 2024 3rd round pick, 2025 5th round pick, 2025 3rd round pick

Out: Anthony Mantha, Joel Edmundson, Evgeny Kuznetsov

Grade: A-

This was the Washington Capitals second year selling and once again it seems they are doing a good job of gathering assets for the future while remaining competitive for the remainder of Alexander Ovechkin’s career. Selling off Joel Edmundson was a very good move ang a great price for a depth defenseman. Anthony Mantha may have been nice to keep but if they had reason to believe he wouldn’t resign moving him now was the right call. Trading Kuznetsov was a very hard move but the right one. He has not been good in the slightest for the Capitals in the last two seasons and it was time for a change of scenery for both player and team. Washington came out of this deadline mostly the same but with some extra draft picks for the future and some more cap space to surround Ovechkin this summer. 

Winnipeg Jets

In: Sean Monahan, Tyler Toffoli, Colin Miller

Out: 2024 1st round pick, 2027 3rd round pick*, 2025 2nd round pick, 2024 3rd round pick, 2026 4th round pick

Grade: A+

Winnipeg made some really smart acquisitions at this deadline adding to an unexpected contender this season. Winnipeg came into this deadline in a year where they were expected to take a step back and maybe even be sellers at the deadline. The complete opposite has happened: Winnipeg has been on fire. This run was properly rewarded by the Jets’ front office first making a key acquisition of Sean Monahan. Although the price seemed high at first Monahan has fit perfectly in Winnipeg and has been scoring 8 goals and 11 points in 18 games. At the deadline it was unclear whether Winnipeg would be adding more but they might’ve had the most underrated deadline week. Acquiring Tyler Toffoli without giving up a prospect or a 1st round pick. Acquiring Colin Miller is also a nice addition to the depth of the roster. Winnipeg is set up perfectly for this playoff run and they should be a team anyone should be afraid of.

This NHL trade deadline came and went and a lot changed all around the league. It must be mentioned that it is often not the winners of the trade deadline who end up winning the cup but it is hard to deny that some teams that made big moves might be the ones who end up going deep. Until the playoffs start however, we will see how the rest of the season plays out and which teams are revealed to have found good fits for their team, and who swung and missed. 

Written by Hudson Athas ILR ‘27