• The Matchup: Buffalo Sabres (32-19-6) @ New Jersey Devils (28-27-2)
• The Time: 7:00 pm EST
• The Broadcast: MSGSN, Devils Hockey Radio

Last Devils Game

Way back on February 5th, the Devils lost at home to the New York Islanders 3-1. The game was scoreless after the 1st period before the Devils and Islanders traded goals in the 2nd period. Nico Hischier (who is the captain of the team, in case Bryce Salvador never told you before) had the lone goal for the Devils, his 19th of the year. The Islanders sealed the game with 2 late goals in the 3rd period (one of them an empty net goal). On the bright side, as Tim said in his recap of this game, at least the Devils made progress in this game, only losing 3-1, as opposed to the 9-0 nuke that the Islanders dropped on the Devils back on January 6th. Jake Allen started in net for the Devils and while he did let up 3 goals, it’s hard to win when the team in front of you only scores 1 goal.

The game was their 3rd loss in a row, and also their 5th loss in their last 6 games. During their 3 game losing streak, the Devils have only scored 2 goals, while letting up 10 goals. 10 goals against in 3 games, is actually not horrible. Scoring 2 goals in 3 games though is atrocious. The lack of offense though has been a problem for a while now with the Devils. As of this article, the Devils have scored 146 goals this season. That’s good for dead last in the entire Eastern Conference, including 5 goals behind the Rangers. Their goal output is “good” for 31st, in the league, only 4 more than the Calgary Flames. The Devils have suffered many problems this season, not just one or two specific problems. Right now though, it doesn’t matter what your goalies do, or what your defense does, if you can’t put the puck in the net.

Last Sabres Game

Like the Devils, The Sabres also played their last game on February 5th, losing 5-2 at home to the Penguins. The Sabres jumped out to an early lead, less than 2 minutes into the game, on Jason Zucker’s 15th goal of the season. The Penguins would score 2 goals before the end of the 1st, to make it 2-1 and they added another goal in the 2nd to start the 3rd period up 3-1. Tage Thompson scored less than 2 minutes into the 3rd period on the PP, his 30th of the season, to bring the Sabres within 1 goal at 3-2. However, the Penguins added 2 late goals, including an empty net goal, to put the game away 5-2.

The loss was their 2nd in a row, and 3rd in their last 4 games. However, prior to that, the Sabres had a 5 game win streak from 1/20 – 1/29. Overall the Sabres are playing pretty well this season. They currently have 32 wins, which is tied for 4th place in the Eastern Conference. Alex Lyon has been the go to man in net for the Sabres, having started 25 games already this season. He started 4 out of the last 5 games for the Sabres before the break, however, with the time off, I would expect him to get the start tonight.

Injuries, Roster for Tonight, Yada, Yada, Yada.

The Devils held a practice on Tuesday afternoon, and Amanda Stein posted the lines on X. Keep in mind that Timo Meier and Jonas Siegenthaler were traveling back to NJ on Tuesday. Per Stein, “both will be back for the morning skate ahead of facing Buffalo.” As of this article, it looks like Jack’s arrival time in New Jersey is still to be determined.

Here's how the #NJDevils are lining up today at practice… so, take this for what it is… of course, they are still missing some key components.

No Jack Hughes, Meier or Siegenthaler today. pic.twitter.com/XRHHierkVr

— Amanda Stein (@amandacstein) February 24, 2026

Grimace’s Prediction and 2025-2026 Record Tracker

Grimace has been feeling good so far this week from watching the Jack Hughes goal over and over on YouTube. To be frank, I had to politely ask him to turn if off after the 115th time. I think he’s just overconfident at this point, but he has predicted a Devils win for tonight.

Grimace’s 2025-2026 Season Prediction record currently stands at 12-11-0.

Your Take

I know there are a large number of Devils fans that are still riding the high of seeing Jack Hughes score the golden goal for USA in the olympics. That was awesome to see, and great for his confidence and the sport in general. With that being said, the Olympics are over and this is the NHL, not Team USA. Will the high from that game and the confidence from the win carry over to the Devils? Hopefully, the answer is yes. At the same time, nothing would surprise me with this team this year. Feel free to leave your thoughts and comments below and thanks for reading!

In a shameless bit of non hockey related self promotion (approved by Chris – thanks Chris), I wanted to plug my brand new podcast on here, if any of you are interested in listening. We have a light hearted, fun discussion about any movies, music or video games mostly from the 1980s and 1990s. Please feel free to listen to us on any of the formats below and any feedback is welcome (positive and negative). Also, please follow us and subscribe, even if you think we stink. 🙂

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The 2026 Winter Olympics are over, the United States won its first gold medal since 1980 and now Olympians are rejoining their NHL teams for the stretch run.

The league is starting up again on Wednesday, Feb. 25, and NHL games will be played for the first time since Feb. 5. The Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Boston Bruins, Seattle Kraken, Utah Mammoth and Anaheim Ducks sit in a playoff position after missing the postseason in 2024-25.

The trade deadline is around the corner and the rush to a playoff berth is on before the regular season ends on April 16.

Here's a look at key questions as the NHL regular season resumes:

Will the trade deadline be busy?

The date is March 6 this year, so teams don't have a lot of time to work something out.

There was a major trade right before the Olympic freeze when the Rangers moved Artemi Panarin to the Kings. Once the freeze lifted, the Avalanche traded defenseman Samuel Girard to the Penguins for Brett Kulak on Feb. 24.

There's an opportunity for more trades because there's a gap between the haves and the have-nots, and top teams have needs. The last-place Canucks, who already moved Quinn Hughes and Kiefer Sherwood, have Evander Kane and Teddy Blueger as pending free agents. The Rangers could move Vincent Trocheck, Flames center Nazem Kadri would be coveted and the Blues could be sellers.

Will the Panthers keep their Stanley Cup hopes alive?

They won the last two Stanley Cup titles, went to the Final the year before that and were Presidents' Trophy winners in 2021-22. But that string of success suffered a serious blow when captain and Selke Trophy winner Aleksander Barkov needed ACL surgery after being injured on his first day of practice in September.

They're also missing defensemen Dmitry Kulikov and Seth Jones and sit in last place in the Atlantic Division with 61 points, eight points out of a playoff spot. The good news is Matthew Tkachuk returned before the break and that Jones is skating with a non-contact jersey. Bill Zito is a creative general manager and Paul Maurice a top-notch coach. They have 25 games to make up those points, which is possible if they come out strong after the break. And as they showed the last three years, if they make it into the postseason, they can go far.

Can the Sabres end their playoff drought?

Their 14 years out of the playoffs is an NHL record. It looked like it might reach 15 when they started slowly. But things turned around when they fired general manager Kevyn Adams and promoted Jarmo Kekalainen. They pushed a winning streak to 10 games and now sit in the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. But they lost three out of four heading into the break and will need to remedy that, especially when they will be facing the Lightning and Golden Knights two times each in the next 11 games.

Can the Red Wings end their playoff drought?

They haven't made the playoffs in nine years and are sitting in third place in the tough Atlantic Division. Other teams have a game or more in hand. But their goaltending is better than in the past because of John Gibson, and they have plenty of cap space to make a move at the deadline.

Can Kings overcome the loss of Kevin Fiala?

Fiala broke his leg while playing for Switzerland at the Olympics, had surgery and will miss the rest of the regular season. The Kings have Panarin now, but his acquisition was designed to boost an offense that had Fiala in the lineup. Fiala leads the Kings with 17 power-play points. Los Angeles is three points out of a playoff spot, so it might need to make another trade.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NHL season resumes: Here are 5 pressing questions

The NHL is back in action after its damn-near-monthlong Olympic break with eight games tonight, though the Islanders don’t resume until tomorrow night in Montreal, one of 12 games Thursday.

That didn’t keep them from kicking off the looming trade frenzy, though, with a minor league swap of Julien Gauthier to the Blues/Springfield for Matt Luff for the Isles/Bridgeport. This continues what is becoming a tradition of late-season scrapyard swaps between these two franchises.

Both guys have NHL experience and can step in when needed, but they are primarily AHL resources at this point. The Blues are terrible this season and have dealt with a cascade of forward injuries but only afforded Luff five NHL games. He’s been a scorer in the A though. Gauthier looked like he might have a chance at a regular bottom-line role a couple of seasons ago before injuries derailed both 2024-25 and 2025-26.

• Both Isles Olympians are back in town (Bo Horvat did not skate though) and expected to play Thursday. [THN | Isles]
• The official announcement of Luff for Gauthier. [Isles]
• Patrick Roy knows how both Horvat and Ondrej Palat are feeling after falling short at the Olympics. Roy was on the 1998 Canada team that fell to the Czechs. [Newsday]
• Five important games among many for the Isles down the stretch. [Newsday]
• Islanders Anxiety podcast: Dan and Mike relive the Olympics and some hilarious hot takes. [LHH]

Elsewhere

• The Penguins continue to build flexibility and get younger, flipping Brett Kulak (part of the Jarry trade) to Colorado for Samuel Girard and a second-round pick. [NHL]
• The Kyper trade board is updated for the drama to follow over the next week. [Sportsnet]
• The Canucks are one of those teams that knows they’re about to lose some guys. [Sportsnet]
• Coming off IR just in time for the trade deadline, Blake Coleman is a Flame until he’s told he’s not. [NHL]
• Out since the first day of training camp, Aleksandar Barkov says he’s on track for a playoff return following knee surgery. [NHL]

Here are your Pens Points for this Wednesday morning…

Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas made yet another intriguing trade on Tuesday, as the March 6 trading deadline draws nearer. The Penguins have traded defenseman Brett Kulak to the Colorado Avalanche for defenseman Samuel Girard and a second-round pick in the 2028 draft. [PensBurgh]

Ryder Fetterolf, a Sewickley, Pennsylvania, native playing goalie for the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s, has been one of the league’s top netminders this season with an impressive record, strong metrics, and multiple shutouts, earning a spot in the Top Prospects Game as he prepares for the NHL Draft. [Trib Live]

Forward prospect Bill Zonnon is embracing his role as a visible Black hockey player and role model, using his platform to inspire youth and highlight the importance of representation in the sport. He credits seeing players like P.K. Subban as a child for shaping his passion and is proud to give back through community engagement and leadership. [Penguins]

Updates from around the NHL…

The International Ice Hockey Federation says it will continue using 3-on-3 overtime at international tournaments, including the Olympics, despite criticism that the format strays from traditional 5-on-5 hockey. Critics argue it isn’t true to the sport, but IIHF president Luc Tardif defended it as necessary to fit tight tournament schedules. [Sportsnet]

Winnipeg Jets forward Jonathan Toews said he will not waive his no-movement clause before the March 6 trade deadline. Toews, 37, said he wants to keep playing for his hometown club as they try to climb the standings. [Sportsnet]

Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen will miss at least the next two weeks with a lower-body injury suffered during the Winter Olympics. The team expects him to return before the end of the regular season. [TSN]

Chicago Blackhawks (22-26-9, in the Central Division) vs. Nashville Predators (26-24-7, in the Central Division)

Nashville, Tennessee; Thursday, 8 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Blackhawks travel to the Nashville Predators looking to stop a three-game road losing streak.

Nashville is 26-24-7 overall with an 8-9-3 record in Central Division games. The Predators have a 20-6-2 record in games they score at least three goals.

Chicago has gone 22-26-9 overall with a 7-4-2 record in Central Division play. The Blackhawks have committed 217 total penalties (3.8 per game) to rank 10th in league play.

The matchup Thursday is the third time these teams square off this season. The Blackhawks won 3-0 in the previous meeting.

TOP PERFORMERS: Steven Stamkos has 28 goals and 16 assists for the Predators. Filip Forsberg has seven goals and five assists over the past 10 games.

Tyler Bertuzzi has 25 goals and 17 assists for the Blackhawks. Ilya Mikheyev has three goals and six assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Predators: 3-4-3, averaging 3.3 goals, six assists, 3.3 penalties and 7.7 penalty minutes while giving up 4.2 goals per game.

Blackhawks: 3-5-2, averaging 2.2 goals, 3.7 assists, 2.7 penalties and six penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.

INJURIES: Predators: None listed.

Blackhawks: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

New York Islanders (32-21-5, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Montreal Canadiens (32-17-8, in the Atlantic Division)

Montreal, Quebec; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The Montreal Canadiens and the New York Islanders take the ice in Eastern Conference action.

Montreal is 16-11-1 in home games and 32-17-8 overall. The Canadiens have a 29-6-7 record when scoring at least three goals.

New York has a 32-21-5 record overall and a 16-11-3 record in road games. The Islanders have gone 23-3-3 when scoring at least three goals.

The matchup Thursday is the first meeting of the season between the two teams.

TOP PERFORMERS: Nicholas Suzuki has scored 18 goals with 47 assists for the Canadiens. Lane Hutson has two goals and 11 assists over the last 10 games.

Mathew Barzal has 17 goals and 34 assists for the Islanders. Jean-Gabriel Pageau has scored four goals with two assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Canadiens: 6-3-1, averaging four goals, 7.3 assists, four penalties and 8.3 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.

Islanders: 6-4-0, averaging 2.8 goals, 4.8 assists, 3.2 penalties and 6.7 penalty minutes while giving up 2.5 goals per game.

INJURIES: Canadiens: None listed.

Islanders: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Chris MacFarland may have quietly struck again.

The Colorado Avalanche general manager has built a reputation for uncovering value on the margins, and early signs suggest his latest move could be another savvy addition. The winger acquired in the trade that sent defenseman Ilya Solovyov out of the organization is already making an impression with the Colorado Eagles — 26-year-old Valtteri Puustinen.

We have acquired Valtteri Puustinen and Pittsburgh's own 7th Round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in exchange for Ilya Solovyov. pic.twitter.com/zegVaNPIgW

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) January 20, 2026

Before arriving in Loveland, Puustinen recorded seven goals and 19 assists for 26 points in 35 games with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, the AHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Since joining the Eagles, he hasn’t missed a beat.

In just 11 games with Colorado, Puustinen has tallied three goals and three assists for six points, quickly establishing himself as a reliable offensive contributor. At his current scoring rate with the Eagles, he is on pace to reach seven goals by his 26th game with the club. That would put him roughly nine games ahead of the pace it took to reach seven goals in his previous 35-game stint — a clear sign that his offensive touch is translating seamlessly with his new team.

Valtteri Puustinen with the one-timer👊@ColoradoEagles | #COLvsCHIpic.twitter.com/5VIw7Bx8Ty

— American Hockey League (@TheAHL) February 15, 2026

Given the Avalanche made a headline-grabbing trade on Tuesday, sending their longest-tenured defenseman, Sam Girard, and a second-round pick to Pittsburgh for defenseman Brett Kulak, it’s clear Colorado is actively managing its roster. But come playoff time, Puustinen could emerge as a valuable, underrated depth piece for the organization.

Puustinen Fits the System

Puustinen is a naturally skilled winger with excellent puck control and sharp playmaking ability. He reads the ice intelligently, finds seams in the defense on the power play, and possesses a quick, deceptive release that keeps goaltenders guessing. His consistent production at the AHL level shows he can generate offense in multiple ways.

One of his most underrated strengths is his ability to move the puck seamlessly through the neutral zone. He supports breakouts with poise, makes smart passes, and is exceptionally difficult to dislodge from the puck. Calm and composed under pressure, Puustinen’s game meshes perfectly with Colorado’s up-tempo, possession-based style.

And dare I say, his ability to carry the puck and facilitate transition play could give the Avalanche the spark their power-play unit has lacked this season — an area that arguably cost them in last year’s playoffs.

With his vision, skill, and composure, Puustinen has the tools to make an immediate impact on both the Eagles and, eventually, the Avalanche.

The Pittsburgh Penguins made a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday, sending defenseman Brett Kulak to the Avalanche in exchange for fellow defenseman Samuel Girard and a 2028 second-round pick.

Kulak was with the Penguins for a little over two months before being traded to the Avalanche. He was originally acquired by the Penguins in the Tristan Jarry trade back in December. 

Now that the dust has settled, this is a nice piece of business from Penguins president and general manager Kyle Dubas. He got a younger defenseman who is signed for one more year, along with a second-round pick, for a defenseman who was going to walk into free agency this summer. Dubas has been on an absolute heater for the last year and a half and is showing no signs of slowing down. 

That 2028 second-rounder is one of seven second-round picks that the Penguins have in the next three drafts. They also have three first-round picks and six third-round picks in the next three drafts. There's still plenty of time for those numbers to grow, too. 

Dubas continues to prioritize his plan to get the Penguins back to being a long-term contender as urgently as possible, while also rewarding his team for the season they're having. He knows this is a team capable of making the playoffs and potentially earning home ice in the first round. 

Girard brings a different skill set than Kulak. He may not be as steady in his own zone or in front of the net, but he's a good puck-mover, something the Penguins need more of on the backend. Outside of Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang, the Penguins don't have another true puck-mover. Girard is also someone who plays well in transition and exits his own zone cleanly.

He brings more of an offensive presence, and if the Penguins really want to, they can have an offensive-first defenseman on all three of their defensive pairs.

They're going to keep the Wotherspoon-Karlsson pairing together since it's been their best pairing all year. After that, they could look to reunite the Shea-Letang pair since it was successful at times earlier this season. That would leave Girard to play on the third pair with one of Connor Clifton or Ilya Solovyov. Either way, you'd have a pure offensive-first and a defense-first player on each defensive pair. 

However, the Penguins could also look to try Girard with Letang and at least see how it goes. It might turn into a full chaos pairing, but head coach Dan Muse hasn't been afraid to try new lines/pairs at times this year. 

Girard's underlying numbers have been really strong this year. He has played 653 minutes at 5v5 and has been on the ice for 56.4% of the shot attempts, 54.9% of the expected goals, 58.1% of the scoring chances, and 53.4% of the high-danger chances. Yes, the Avalanche are a juggernaut this season, but those numbers speak to his ability to drive possession and work the puck into the offensive zone for some good chances.

TRADE: Penguins & Avalanche Swap DefensemenThe Penguins have made a change to their blueline.

All in all, Girard is a nice fit for the blue line and will have the chance to help this team in a multitude of ways on a nightly basis. 

We'll see if he's in the lineup on Thursday when the Penguins host the New Jersey Devils. It will be their first game in three weeks since the NHL has been on its Olympic break.

(Data via Natural Stat Trick).

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One of the Buffalo Sabres' top objectives ahead of the 2026 NHL trade deadline should be to add a right-shot defenseman. It is clear that the right side of their blueline could use more depth.

When looking at potential trade candidates around the NHL, one blueliner who could make sense for the Sabres to pursue is Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Perbix. 

If the Sabres landed Perbix, he would have the potential to be a solid addition to their bottom pairing. He would also give the Sabres another option for their penalty kill. 

Perbix's contract also adds to his appeal. This is because he has a reasonable $2.75 million cap hit until the end of the 2026-27 season. With this, he would be more than a rental for the Sabres if acquired. 

Perbix has appeared in 54 games this season with the Predators, where he has recorded three goals, six assists, nine points, and 56 blocks. This is after the right-shot defenseman had six goals, 13 assists, 19 points, and a plus-8 rating in 74 games this past season with the Tampa Bay Lightning. 

With the lengthy injury to Kevin Fiala and the acquisition of superstar Artemi Panarin, the Los Angeles Kings are not backing down with the NHL's trade deadline approaching.

The latest reports from The Fourth Period and Dennis Bernstein reveal that Kings GM Ken Holland has contacted the Montreal Canadiens regarding the status of right winger Patrik Laine.

"As the Kings explore the market for a top-six forward, I can confirm they spoke with Montreal about Patrik Laine," Bernstein said on X.

It's no surprise that Holland is dabbling in the trade market to look for more scoring help. Kings left winger Fiala has been ruled out for the remainder of the NHL's regular season following a serious leg injury he suffered during the Olympics. His absence will be a massive blow to the Kings offensively.

With that, Los Angeles continues to look to find someone who can fill in the hole on the flanks.

While it seems clear that Holland is looking for even more help in the scoring department, it appears that he won't further pursue Laine after the initial inquiry.

"There doesn’t seem to be a fit right now and Kings are now looking elsewhere," Bernstein reported.

Former Los Angeles Kings Defenseman In Spotlight Of NHL Trade RumorsFormer Los Angeles Kings defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov has appeared in the NHL trade rumor mill less than one year after signing with the New York Rangers.

Laine, the second-overall pick in the 2016 draft, is known for his scoring touch and heavy shot. However, the 27-year-old has been on the wrong side of luck in terms of health and injuries.

He's only made five appearances this season for the Canadiens and hasn't played a game since Oct. 16. Laine has been sidelined for the past four months after receiving core muscle surgery.

Canadiens: Laine Back On The IceIt was business as usual in Brossard for the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday as the team held its second practice since the start of the Olympic break.

In addition to Laine's health and inconsistencies over the past few years, there are other aspects that have driven the Kings' brass into another direction.

Bernstein said that Los Angeles may be looking for more of a play driver or facilitator rather than a finisher like Laine is. He also pointed out that finding a center is likely the main focus for the organization going into the March 6 trade deadline.

The Kings have over $12.41 million to work with in current salary cap space, according to puckpedia.com. They also have several respectable prospects, as well as three first-round picks and four second-rounders in the next three drafts.

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Now that the NHL Olympic Break is officially over and the regular season resumes tomorrow, the Colorado Avalanche have made a trade before the trade deadline officially comes up just over a week from now, on March 6. The Avs have traded Samuel Girard and a 2028 second round draft pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for defenseman Brett Kulak.

Kulak was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to Pittsburgh earlier this season as part of the Stuart Skinner trade. The 32-year-old defenseman has played 25 games for the Penguins so far, logging seven points in those games so far. At this point in his career, he’s widely considered a depth defenseman, and it’s likely that he’ll slot in either on Colorado’s third pairing or be a 7th defenseman that can enter the lineup here and there when needed.

The fit of Kulak in Colorado made sense, we even included him in our Avalanche trade targets last week especially as Colorado and Pittsburgh have been frequent trade partners recently. The thought of acquiring him for a second round pick would have been steep, to throw in Girard on top of it makes this very much a lopsided trade. With Girard now headed to Pittsburgh, Sam Malinski will likely play more minutes as Girard is not the fail-safe any longer. The last piece of this is that Colorado cleared up some more cap space with this deal.

Kulak is currently on the last year of a four-year deal, with an AAV of $2,750,000. Girard’s AAV on his contract is $5,000,000, with one year remaining so the Avs now have $8,741,926 in cap space with this move, which is obviously the goal moving Girard as a cap dump. That’s a pretty decent amount of cap space to make another move or two before the trade deadline next week, so we’ll see if the Avs have any other moves in the pipeline in the meantime. Given that contenders generally load up on defense the idea is to add to the defensive core, not take from it, therefore another move has to be in the works.

The Philadelphia Flyers are about to have a unique opportunity to take full advantage of a crazy trade market ahead of this year's March 6 NHL trade deadline.

On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins traded veteran defenseman Brett Kulak to the Colorado Avalanche for defenseman Sam Girard and a 2028 second-round pick, with the latter gearing up for a deep playoff push with clear aspirations of winning another Stanley Cup.

On the surface, though, this isn't a very impressive trade by Colorado. They've already won with Girard on their roster, and Kulak, 32, finds himself on his third team in as many months after originally getting jettisoned by Edmonton in December.

Kulak, at 6-foot-2, is much larger than the 5-foot-10 Girard, and he's played 22 or more playoff games with Edmonton in each of the last two years.

The price of that size and experience, though, was a smaller but more accomplished puck-moving defenseman in Girard, plus a premium draft pick.

NHL Rumors: 2 Suitors Named For Flyers' Rasmus RistolainenThese two teams are reportedly interested in Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen.

As for the Flyers, they've long had interest in moving burly right-hander Rasmus Ristolainen for the right package, though nothing matching their trade taste buds has come to fruition just yet.

Ristolainen, 32, has two years remaining on his contract at a $5.1 million cap hit, and the Flyers have the requisite retention slots available to cut that down to as low as $2.55 million to sweeten the pot for a prospective buyer.

Because Ristolainen is 6-foot-4 and a right-shot, he is inherently more valuable on the NHL trade market, and especially to those who still harbor the old-school hockey views.

Teams like Detroit, Tampa Bay, and Dallas have been said to have interest in adding a right-shot defenseman, and Ristolainen fits the bill.

Report: Flyers Rejected Big Maple Leafs Trade for Rasmus RistolainenAccording to a new report, the Philadelphia Flyers received a massive trade offer from the Toronto Maple Leafs for veteran defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. GM Danny Briere and Co. didn't budge.

The value a smaller, left-shot defender in Kulak fetched should set the Flyers up to have a massive trade deadline day if they play all their cards right.

After re-signing Christian Dvorak for five years earlier in the season, Ristolainen is now by far their most attractive trade chip.

Forwards Owen Tippett and Bobby Brink will have value, too, to be clear, but Tippett's size and fairly reasonable $6.2 million cap hit work favorably for the Flyers. Any inquiring team will have to take on the full seven years remaining on his deal, with trade protection set to kick in this summer, lasting until 2030.

As for Brink, he's an inexpensive pending RFA and has excelled in a checking role for the Flyers, but contenders may be turned off by his combination of (5-foot-8) lack of size and lack of playoff experience.

NHL Trade Rumors: Predicting Flyers Trade Deadline Plans, TargetsThe 2026 NHL trade deadline, which falls on March 6 this year, is officially less than two weeks away. In that short period of time, the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Philadelphia Flyers</a> are going to have to make some important decisions with long-term implications.

So, with that all said, now is as good a time as any for the Flyers to maximize the return they can get for Ristolainen. The market clearly favors them, but the final choice will be theirs to make.

The Detroit Red Wings are expected to be active ahead of the NHL trade deadline next Friday, March 6, as the club evaluates both potential additions and expendable assets in an effort to reshape parts of its roster.

Detroit is exploring ways to strengthen key areas of its lineup while also shopping some of their own players on expiring contracts with the most notable name being pending unrestricted free agent Erik Gustafsson.

The 33-year-old blueliner, who once recorded a 60-point season earlier in his NHL career, has not be given a consistent role yet this year. Gustafsson has appeared in just two games with Detroit this season and has spent significant time in the press box.

While at the AHL level, he's also played just 22 games this season as the team has been moving pieces around as they have too many veterans and need to remove some from the lineup each game to fall under the AHL's cap for veteran players and has led to less games for Gustafsson. As a result, the NHL veteran has seen very limited action and has not played in a game since late January. 

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The lack of playing time raises questions about whether Gustafsson’s trade value has been affected. Earlier in the season, league sources indicated there was interest in the veteran defenseman, with the New York Rangers frequently mentioned as a potential landing spot.

Gustafsson enjoyed one of his more productive recent stretches in New York, tallying 31 points during the 2023-24 campaign and playing some of his strongest hockey in the Big Apple. However, trade chatter has cooled in recent weeks, and it remains unclear how aggressive teams will be in pursuing a defenseman who has seen limited game action.

With Gustafsson set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, GM Steve Yzerman would love to recoup any possible assets rather than risk losing him for nothing. 

There is also the possibility the Red Wings could insert Gustafsson into the lineup before the deadline to showcase that he remains game ready and capable of contributing to a contender’s blue line. A short audition could help reassure interested teams that the veteran still has something to offer.

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The Montreal Canadiens play their first game following the Olympic break on Feb. 26 against the New York Islanders. The Habs are undoubtedly in a good spot at this point of the season, as they have a 32-17-8 record and are second in the Atlantic Division standings with 72 points.

There are several reasons why the Canadiens are one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference this season, and forward Oliver Kapanen is undoubtedly one of them. After posting two assists in his first 18 career NHL games last season, Kapanen has broken out in a big way this campaign for the Canadiens and has cemented himself as a key part of their forward group in the process. 

In 57 games so far this season with the Canadiens, Kapanen has recorded 18 goals, 13 assists, 31 points, and a plus-5 rating. Kapanen is currently tied with Anaheim Ducks forward Beckett Sennecke for the most goals among all NHL rookies. He is also fourth in points out of all NHL rookies, so he has undoubtedly been one of the top rookies in the NHL this season.

With all of this, there is no question that Kapanen has been having an impressive breakout year for the Canadiens. The young forward should only get better as he continues to gain experience, and it will be fascinating to see how he finishes off the season from here.