The NHL’s trade deadline for the 2024-25 season is set for Friday, March 7th at 3 pm ET and it’s set to be quite a busy week leading up to then with some big names expected to be available.
It’s been a while on my site since I’ve taken a look at potential trade candidates, but today I’m going to share 25 players to keep an eye on this week ahead of the trade deadline and which teams might be the best fit for each.
Since the end of January, we’ve seen plenty of recognizable names dealt including J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers, Marcus Pettersson to the Vancouver Canucks, Mikael Granlund to the Dallas Stars, Morgan Frost & Joel Farabee to the Calgary Flames, and most recently, former fourth overall pick Seth Jones was dealt to the Florida Panthers.
25 Names to Watch at NHL Trade Deadline
Given the returns on deals made since the calendar flipped to 2025, it’s certainly a sellers market and it should make for some interesting deals as we lead up to the NHL’s trade deadline on Friday afternoon.
For the first time in quite a while, there’s a logjam in the NHL standings this close to the trade deadline, especially in the Eastern Conference where eight teams are within seven points of each other for the first Wild Card spot.
Because of this, teams around the league are still trying to evaluate their options heading into the NHL’s trade deadline, which could lead to more trades on deadline day this year than we’ve seen in a number of years.
Let’s take a look at the 25 names I think you should keep your eyes on this week, along with two teams I think would be the best fit for each player.
- Brock Nelson (New York Islanders) Potential fits: Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild.
- Brock Boeser (Vancouver Canucks) Potential fits: Minnesota Wild, Tampa Bay Lightning.
- Jake Evans (Montreal Canadiens) Potential fits: Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets.
- Brayden Schenn (St. Louis Blues) Potential fits: Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Jordan Binnington (St. Louis Blues) Potential fits: Columbus Blue Jackets, Edmonton Oilers.
- Carson Soucy (Vancouver Canucks) Potential fits: Calgary Flames, Winnipeg Jets.
- Joel Armia (Montreal Canadiens) Potential fits: Vegas Golden Knights, Washington Capitals.
- Scott Laughton (Philadelphia Flyers) Potential fits: Los Angeles Kings, Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Trevor Zegras (Anaheim Ducks) Potential fits: Chicago Blackhawks, Montreal Canadiens.
- Reilly Smith (New York Rangers) Potential fits: Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators.
- Mikko Rantanen (Carolina Hurricanes) Potential fits: Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets.
- David Savard (Montreal Canadiens) Potential fits: Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers.
- Kyle Palmieri (New York Islanders) Potential fits: Colorado Avalanche, Vancouver Canucks.
- Ryan Donato (Chicago Blackhawks) Potential fits: Los Angeles Kings, New Jersey Devils.
- Brandon Tanev (Seattle Kraken) Potential fits: Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals.
- Yanni Gourde (Seattle Kraken) Potential fits: Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Mario Ferraro (San Jose Sharks) Potential fits: Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Brian Dumoulin (Anaheim Ducks) Potential fits: Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning.
- Jamie Oleksiak (Seattle Kraken) Potential fits: Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs.
- Matt Grzelcyk (Pittsburgh Penguins) Potential fits: Colorado Avalanche, Winnipeg Jets.
- Jason Zucker (Buffalo Sabres) Potential fits: Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils.
- Trent Frederic (Boston Bruins) Potential fits: Utah Hockey Club, Vancouver Canucks.
- Luke Schenn (Nashville Predators) Potential fits: Colorado Avalanche, Winnipeg Jets.
- John Gibson (Anaheim Ducks) Potential fits: Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers.
- Oliver Bjorkstrand (Seattle Kraken) Potential fits: Columbus Blue Jackets, Ottawa Senators.No matter who your favourite team is, the week leading up to the NHL’s trade deadline is always exciting and there’s usually a player or two that get moved that no one expects, for example the blockbuster move that saw the Vegas Golden Knights acquire Tomas Hertl from the San Jose Sharks.
– Cooper.