5 Playoff Pretenders That Should Blow It Up at the 2024 NHL Trade Deadline
0 of 5
Joe Sargent/NHLI through Getty Images
The NHL’s March 8 trade due date is quick approaching. Fans can anticipate a lot of activity in the trade market in between playoff competitors attempting to reinforce their lineups and non-contenders shipping gamers who no longer suit their strategies beyond this season.
While the race for the 2 wild-card areas in both conferences stays tight, a handful of playoff hopefuls ought to seriously think about ending up being sellers by the due date.
3 of those groups are previous Stanley Cup champs whose finest seasons are well behind them. Another is a Western Canadian club that as soon as appeared poised to end up being a Stanley Cup competitor just to be reversed by the departures of some essential gamers.
Here’s a take a look at the 5 groups we feel require to stop pretending they’re playoff competitors and begin the agonizing procedure of restoring their lineups. We’ll discuss the reasons that they can no longer delay the inescapable and which gamers might (or ought to) end up being trade prospects before March 8.
Do you concur or disagree with our listing? Exists a group that you think we’ve missed out on? Let us understand in the app remarks listed below.
Calgary Flames
1 of 5
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
It appears the Calgary Flames are currently in the procedure of blowing things up at the trade due date. On Jan. 31, they delivered center Elias Lindholm to the Vancouver Canucks. Goaltender Jacob Markström and defensemen Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev have actually been regular fodder for trade reports.
The Calgary Herald‘s Wes Gilbertson thinks the Lindholm trade shows basic supervisor Craig Conroy’s severity in retooling the lineup. He likewise prepared for that Hanifin and Tanev would be beside be shipped. Possibly Markström will join them if Conroy gets a major deal that does not include keeping part of his $6 million typical yearly worth.
Given that 2014-15, the Flames have actually been an irregular club. In some seasons they appeared poised to break out as Stanley Cup competitors and in others, they’ve fallen back and missed out on the playoffs. They’ve never ever truly recuperated from the departures of core forwards Matthew Tkachuk and Johnny Gaudreau in the summer season of 2022.
One factor Conroy is retooling is he’s bring veterans such as Markstrom, Jonathan Huberdeau, Nazem Kadri and MacKenzie Weegar on pricey long-lasting agreements. Moving them might show to be a tough endeavor in a season with a lot of groups bring restricted salary-cap area.
Current trade reports about Markström recommend it may not be difficult to move him.
The Denver Post‘s Sean Keeler made the case last month for the Colorado Avalanche to restore Kadri. While that might be difficult for the Avs to do, possibly Conroy might a minimum of gauge Kadri’s worth in the trade market.