2020 NHL Trade Deadline: Fisher’s Big Board of Bait (THW)

It is a sellers’ market and the prices are steep.
That is evident, based on the deals to date. Teams wanting to upgrade ahead of Monday’s NHL trade deadline are going to pay a premium, especially for players with term. See Blake Coleman.
Even the rentals — from top-six wingers like Tyler Toffoli to bottom-pairing defenders like Marco Scandella — are fetching significant (and surprising) returns. Nobody is coming cheap.
The real impact players are sure to command substantial packages.Whether that is Chris Kreider or Matt Dumba, Tomas Tatar or Sami Vatanen. Thereare quality players available despite the lack of sellers, with so many teamsstill in playoff contention.
That makes for more buyers, which means bidding wars. Severalgeneral managers are feeling the pressure to add — or the urge to improve— while matching the moves of their rivals.
Take the Pacific Division, for example, where Arizona actedearly in landing Taylor Hall and Vancouver reacted to their injuries by reelingin Toffoli. Now all eyes are on Edmonton and Calgary to keep pace on paper. BothAlberta teams are missing their captains at the moment but aren’t expected tostand pat — not with the standings so tight as of today.
Other arms races will emerge between now and Monday, asevery team attempts to accomplish their deadline goals in addressing theirneeds going forward.
Established contenders will be seeking a specific piece toput them over the top. The playoff locks will be shopping for a ringer toensure a longer run. The bubble teams may also be looking to load up for a postseasonpush. Or they might pull the plug to focus on their future — retooling to someextent for next season, if not entertaining a full rebuild.
Regardless, it should be an exciting few days in the hockey world. Who knows what will happen, but it’s always fun to speculate. I enjoy making predictions at this time of year — it had become an annual tradition until I sat out the 2019 deadline — but I’m admittedly terrible at trade proposals, so I’m going to try something new for 2020.
I’m calling this project Fisher’s Big Board of Bait — get itFisher, fishing, bait … as in trade bait. Essentially, this is a list ofplayers I envision being on the block — listed in order of their likelihood tobe dealt. Starting with the teams that have the most players available.
In total, there are 130 players from 20 teams — primarilyfrom perceived sellers since the buyers will be parting with draft picks andprospects as currency, which is more of a crapshoot.
Realistically, I’m anticipating around 50 more NHL players to move by Monday and I’m hoping the majority of them will appear here on my bait board.
Montreal Canadiens (12)

Ilya Kovalchuk
Tomas Tatar
Jeff Petry
Nate Thompson
Jordan Weal
Nick Cousins
Brett Kulak
Max Domi
Artturi Lehkonen
Charles Hudon
Christian Folin
Keith Kinkaid
Ilya Kovalchuk has played his way back into the rental market since arriving in Montreal.
(Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Ottawa Senators (10)

Jean-Gabriel Pageau
Ron Hainsey
Tyler Ennis
Vladislav Namestnikov
Chris Tierney
Mikkel Boedker
Craig Anderson
Max Veronneau
Filip Chlapik
Mark Borowiecki
Jean-Gabriel Pageau is Ottawa’s best trade chip and arguably the top centre available.
(Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Buffalo Sabres (10)

Conor Sheary
Michael Frolik
Johan Larsson
Jimmy Vesey
Evan Rodrigues
Zemgus Girgensons
Rasmus Ristolainen
Zach Bogosian
Colin Miller
Jake McCabe
Conor Sheary comes with plenty of playoff experience, so Buffalo should get a decent return.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Florida Panthers (10)

Mike Hoffman
Michael Matheson
Mark Pysyk
Henrik Borgstrom
Denis Malgin
Evgeni Dadonov
Vincent Trocheck
Brian Boyle
Dryden Hunt
Aleksi Heponiemi
Mike Hoffman is a proven scorer and several teams will be interested if Florida decides to sell.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Detroit Red Wings (9)

Trevor Daley
Mike Green
Jimmy Howard
Valtteri Filppula
Andreas Athanasiou
Luke Glendening
Darren Helm
Patrik Nemeth
Anthony Mantha
Trevor Daley should fetch Detroit as much as Andy Greene got New Jersey.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
San Jose Sharks (9)

Patrick Marleau
Melker Karlsson
Tim Heed
Aaron Dell
Barclay Goodrow
Joe Thornton
Marcus Sorensen
Radim Simek
Lukas Radil
Patrick Marleau is on his last legs, but his leadership could be invaluable come playoff time.
(Darren Yama****a/USA TODAY)
Nashville Predators (9)

Mikael Granlund
Craig Smith
Dan Hamhuis
Kyle Turris
Nick Bonino
Colton Sissons
Rocco Grimaldi
Miikka Salomaki
Daniel Carr
Mikael Granlund has heated up as of late, which should also be heating up his trade value if Nashville goes into sell mode. The Predators could go either way, still within striking distance of a playoff spot as a potential buyer. (Christopher Hanewinckel/USA TODAY)
Minnesota Wild (8)

Matt Dumba
Jonas Brodin
Ryan Donato
Marcus Foligno
Ryan Hartman
Brad Hunt
Eric Staal
Devan Dubnyk
Matt Dumba is the best defenceman on the market with term remaining on his contract.
(Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
New York Rangers (7)

Chris Kreider
Jesper Fast
Alexandar Georgiev
Lias Andersson
Anthony DeAngelo
Pavel Buchnevich
Brady Skjei
Chris Kreider is the premier rental, assuming he doesn’t re-sign with the Rangers this week.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Los Angeles Kings (7)

Alec Martinez
Trevor Lewis
Ben Hutton
Derek Forbort
Tim Schaller
Joakim Ryan
Martin Frk
Alec Martinez will be Vegas bound as early as today, according to the insiders.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Anaheim Ducks (7)

Derek Grant
Ondrej Kase
Michael Del Zotto
Devin Shore
Ryan Miller
Daniel Sprong
Josh Manson
Derek Grant is a cheap, serviceable centre that could be in demand at the deadline.
(Sergei Belski/USA TODAY)
Toronto Maple Leafs (7)

Jeremy Bracco
Nic Petan
Tyson Barrie
Kasperi Kapanen
Alex Kerfoot
Frederik Gauthier
Michael Hutchinson
Jeremy Bracco, left, has never played a regular-season game for the Leafs and likely won’t since he is no longer waiver eligible next season. That reality makes him trade bait in the present.
(Dan Hamilton/USA TODAY)
New Jersey Devils (6)

Sami Vatanen
Wayne Simmonds
Kyle Palmieri
Mirco Mueller
Michael McLeod
Louis Domingue
Sami Vatanen is better than the defencemen garnering second-round picks, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the Devils can get a first-rounder for him. (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Edmonton Oilers (5)

Jesse Puljujarvi
Jujhar Khaira
Sam Gagner
William Lagesson
Cooper Marody
Jesse Puljujarvi is enjoying a successful season in Finland and planning on returning to the NHL next season, providing Edmonton can find a new home for him. (Anne-Marie Sorvin/USA TODAY)
Chicago Blackhawks (3)

Erik Gustafsson
Brandon Saad
Robin Lehner
Erik Gustafsson is one of the better offensive defencemen available among the rentals.
(Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
Arizona Coyotes (3)

Michael Grabner
Christian Fischer
Brad Richardson
Michael Grabner has fallen out of favour in Arizona, but his speed should be welcomed elsewhere. (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Columbus Blue Jackets (3)

Josh Anderson
Sonny Milano
Riley Nash
Josh Anderson is coming off a lengthy injury absence, but the budding power forward will have several suitors if Columbus is seriously listening. (Aaron Doster/USA TODAY)
New York Islanders (3)

Josh Ho-Sang
Michael Dal Colle
Tom Kuhnhackl
Josh Ho-Sang is a castoff for the Islanders and should be shipped out at the deadline.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Philadelphia Flyers (1)

Shayne Gostisbehere
Shayne Gostisbehere has been sidelined and the Flyers have been winning without him, so he might be deemed expendable at the deadline. His name has been floated in the rumour mill again. (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Calgary Flames (1)

Sam Bennett
Sam Bennett is another frequent flyer in the rumour mill, but he has also performed well in the playoffs for the Flames, so Calgary may or may not be dangling him at this year’s deadline.
(Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

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Well, what do you think — could any or all of those players be traded prior to Monday’s deadline? Are there any glaring omissions? Feel free to weigh in or share your own predictions in the comments below.


The post 2020 NHL Trade Deadline: Fisher’s Big Board of Bait appeared first on The Hockey Writers.

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