The Edmonton Oilers defense has been a bit of a mess of late. But with the chances looking pretty slim of making another Mattias Ekholm-type addition to the blueline, as they did in 2023, they've done the next best thing at this point, bringing back legendary defenseman Paul Coffey to the coaching staff. Paul Coffey is rejoining the Oilers coaching staff 🤝 pic.twitter.com/F868iCddXq — Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) February 18, 2026 The Hall of Fame d-man will be back behind the be...
25 days ago
| 4 reads
The St. Louis Blues are in no place to compete for a playoff spot this season and there are going to be some moves, or so we think. There should be trades coming, but general manager Doug Armstrong is making it tough to pull anything off as he is overvaluing the players on the roster. Frank Seravalli said, "I think the price for a lot of the Blues' players has turned people off, so Doug Armstrong is going to have to soften on that or else they're going to be hanging on to their guys." That wou...
26 days ago
| 6 reads
The Minnesota Wild pulled off the big trade of the season and it might end up staying as the biggest deal between them and the Vancouver Canucks involving Quinn Hughes. The trade cost the Wild four assets: Marco Rossi, Liam Ohgren, Zeev Buium, and a 2026 first-round pick. That is a lot of assets to use on one player, even though it seems to be worth it as their new defenseman has 34 points in 26 games since the trade. But that somewhat limits the Wild from making any more massive trades. Chris...
26 days ago
| 0 reads
It's not a certainty that Nazem Kadri will be traded at the deadline or even this summer, but the heavy interest is there from teams desperate for a top-6/second line center with experience. The free agent market is never that good and teams will have to greatly overpay for someone if one is available. This is where the Calgary Flames come in. The team is near the bottom of the league and for the next couple of seasons, they aren't going to compete. Dustin Wolf is good, but will likely get bet...
26 days ago
| 2 reads
The Athletic's Harman Dayal and Thomas Drance tossed out an interesting lane for the Vancouver Canucks , and it is not the usual go get the best player available shopping list. The idea is to target distressed assets, meaning underperforming veterans on awkward contracts who might bounce back with different usage, a different role, or just a different room. In a cap world where pure talent is the scarcest thing, the Canucks sniffing around players other teams are frustrated with ca...
26 days ago
| 6 reads
The NHL resumes next week and with the Olympic roster freeze ending on Tuesday, expect to see a flurry of moves into late next week. Several insiders have stated they're expecting the action to be as busy as the four days after the 4 Nations Faceoff last February, and don't be surprised to see the St. Louis Blues and New York Islanders talking a blockbuster deal. Mike Rupp: Re Jordan Kyrou/Islanders: That would be the one team that I think can make it happen [in-season], and they've got Cole E...
26 days ago
| 5 reads
Patrik Laine could have a new home before the Mar.6 trade deadline. There's multiple reports surfacing that the Montreal Canadiens are going to move on from Laine ahead of the deadline, and use him as part of a trade package to bring in an impact top-six forward with term on their contract. Laine's currently on the injured reserve, and so far this season, has appeared in appeared in just five games, recording one assist. The Finnish winger carries a $8.7 million cap hit and is a pending free a...
26 days ago
| 5 reads
The Philadelphia Flyers are a team to watch heading into the Mar. 6 trade deadline, as GM Daniel Briere appears open to just about any move he feels will make his team better. The Flyers have been linked to several teams, and could wind up acquiring upgrades in net, on defence, and up front over the next few weeks. The Olympic roster freeze is up as of next week, so expect to see the Flyers amongst the action. Philadelphia entered the break with a 25-20-11 record, sitting eight points out of a...
26 days ago
| 0 reads
Two notable Vancouver Canucks have been moved thus far, but there are undoubtedly more to come as the team engages in what they're calling a 'hybrid rebuild'. After Quinn Hughes and Kiefer Sherwood, the next to go could be physical forward Evander Kane. He's been linked to a number of teams to this point, but Canucks insider Rick Dhaliwal gives us the latest buzz on the hometown power forward and what the team might be looking for in return. . @DhaliwalSports updates the latest on the po...
26 days ago
| 5 reads
There are disputed reports about what the Edmonton Oilers are targeting as we get closer to the March 6th trade deadline. Defensive troubles are obvious. But are they or are they not focusing on adding a defenseman? Or will they simply bring back defense coach (and legendary Oilers D) Paul Coffey? If they do ultimately hit the trade market looking for a blueliner, a right-shot d-man is their most pressing need. Preferably one that can serve in the top four when necessary. Jac...
26 days ago
| 4 reads
The Florida Panthers find themselves in an unfamiliar position. Sitting eight points back of a Wild Card berth, the team has only a 15.5% chance of making the playoffs , per MoneyPuck. Instead of buying a top-four defenseman and an iconic two-way forward and leader (Seth Jones and Brad Marchand) to help for a playoff push as they did last year, it sounds like the team will be willing to sell off a couple of pieces at this year's deadline, come March 6th. On the weekend, we heard ab...
26 days ago
| 6 reads
The Calgary Flames should have a lot on the table in terms of players that are available to trade this season, and already started their trading early by moving Rasmus Andersson and acquiring a first-round pick, second-round pick, and Zach Whitecloud. In terms of the players that have had some noise around them, the list includes Nazem Kadri, Blake Coleman, and even Mackenzie Weegar dominantly, but nothing on Yegor Sharangovich, whether that means there's no interest or the Flames are interest...
26 days ago
| 3 reads
The Toronto Maple Leafs sit six points out of a playoff spot in the East with four teams to jump to take a spot, but they had a win streak going into the break and they are close enough where a push and an appearance in the postseason is doable. Nothing drastic should necessarily be done just yet, but there are a handful of games prior to the trade deadline to determine exactly what the plan will be. The Maple Leafs are very likely a team that will wait until the day before the trade deadline ...
26 days ago
| 6 reads
The Winnipeg Jets are going to have a lot of work to do before the trade deadline and in the summer because they can't stand pat and hope that their team is going to bounce back to where it was last season. There have been many players not playing up to expectations and this season was more than just the loss of Nikolaj Ehlers, though losing him was a significant part. The Jets need much more scoring to not only replace Ehlers' production, but go beyond that. In order to do that, it seems like...
27 days ago
| 9 reads
The French Hockey Federation has announced that it has banned men's hockey team player Pierre Crinon from the rest of the Olympics for "provocative behaviour”. France’s Pierre Crinon has been banned for the rest of the Olympics by his OWN French Hockey Federation. Noted he violated the Olympic spirit with his “provocative behaviour” after ejection. pic.twitter.com/TmuJ0V86tu — Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) February 16, 2026 The combative, 6'4", 220-pound defenseman had one ...
27 days ago
| 4 reads
The San Jose Sharks and forward Jeff Skinner have decided to part ways, as he has been placed on unconditional waivers for the purpose of mutual contract termination. #sjsharks have placed F Jeff Skinner on unconditional waivers for purposes of mutual contract termination. — Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 16, 2026 Skinner signed a 1-year, $3M deal with the Sharks this past summer. He's now free to sign on with any team as an unrestricted free agent. The 33-year-old has...
27 days ago
| 7 reads
All aboard the Bussi in Raleigh. The Carolina Hurricanes have signed breakthrough goaltender Brandon Bussi to a three-year extension with a $1.9 million AAV. Brandon Bussi is staying parked in Carolina for the foreseeable future as he’s signed a 3 year extension at a $1.9M AAV. 💰 🔥 The 27 year old was scooped off waivers this season from the Panthers and has a 23-3-1 record with Canes 🤯 pic.twitter.com/gMgydxW80z — B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) February 16, 2026 The 27-year-old rookie has ...
27 days ago
| 7 reads
The Calgary Flames are going through some changes, and this season it started with Rasmus Andersson, a pending UFA, heading to the Vegas Golden Knights . The Flames have a number of young players they'd like to get in the NHL or see take control of the team with better opportunities quickly, but can't really do that with certain players hanging around. Blake Coleman is one of the players I'm talking about and David Pagnotta said, "A lot of smoke. I would be surprised if he's not moved by the d...
28 days ago
| 5 reads
The Winnipeg Jets ' season has not gone anywhere close to how they envisioned it ahead of the season. They finished with the best record in the NHL in 2024-25 and made it to the second round of the playoffs, but didn't have the same start and things only got much worse. Injuries and performances outside of the top line and a couple of defensemen have them where they are, tied for 28th in the NHL with a record of 22-26-8 and 11 points out of a playoff spot. With there only being a handful of ga...
28 days ago
| 6 reads
The Calgary Flames appear to be somewhat open to going into a rebuild. They have some talented young pieces and plenty of players that they can move for more assets. They may not want to tear it completely down, but while sitting 29th in the NHL this season, there is interest coming their way for a number of their players. One name in particular that is intriguing and would be a big one is Mackenzie Weegar. David Pagnotta said, "They haven't approached him about his no-trade. There's already s...
28 days ago
| 4 reads
The two-time Stanley Cup champions are finding themselves in an unfamiliar situation this season. The Florida Panthers could actually look to sell off a body or two as we approach the March 6th trade deadline. One pending unrestricted free agent that could become trade fodder is physical bottom-six forward AJ Greer, per analyst Jason Gregor on the DFO Rundown . An AJ Greer type player, I just wonder, what type of value he might have for a (rival) team? He has won some Cups... He's a very...
28 days ago
| 5 reads
The New York Rangers are ready to pull the trigger on a retool. Several players will likely be heading out the door when NHL rosters are unfrozen and we get closer to the March 6th trade deadline. Depending on how much is torn down, it sounds like top-pairing defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov will start to ponder his own future in New York. Former Ranger and current NHL Network analyst Mike Rupp said on the DFO Rundown that the Russian d-man might not want to stick around for a retool. I'm hearing...
28 days ago
| 1 read
The Los Angeles Kings chose to go for it when they executed the deal to acquire Artemi Panarin and ink him to a new contract. Unfortunately, now Kevin Fiala seems to have suffered an injury that will keep him out a while, but that shouldn't stop the Kings from continuing forward and trying to get into the playoffs and win some rounds. David Pagnotta reminded us, "(The Kings) still have that second-round pick they got from the Habs for Phillip Danault. They basically told everybody they're will...
29 days ago
| 6 reads
The Winnipeg Jets have had a very underwhelming season up to the Olympic break. They are 11 points out of a playoff spot and some injuries and a lot of poor performances from players have caused them to be in this position. Josh Morrissey is one of the Jets who have had another strong season and was selected to Team Canada, where he got injured and missed the second game. It's yet to be determined whether the injury is bad or not, but it could impact the rest of the Jets' season. While many wo...
29 days ago
| 6 reads
The Minnesota Wild are gearing up to finally make an impact in the playoffs after acquiring Quinn Hughes and looking to do more. By do more, there is a high chance that a center is brought in. They feel they need an upgrade to be able to go toe-to-toe with the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche and actually make a deep run. The center depth is as follows: Ryan Hartman, Joel Eriksson Ek, Daniil Yurov, and Nico Sturm. Given the production and overall play, I only see one top-6 center, Eriksson ...
29 days ago
| 5 reads