The arms race is underway.

The emails and tweets began a little after 8:30 P.M. on the night of Feb. 28. Dallas and Calgary and New Jersey had engineered a little bit of business.

Essentially, Calgary traded free agent-to-be defenseman Chris Tanev and unsigned New Jersey goaltender Cole Brady to Dallas for Artem Grushnikov, the Stars’ second round pick in June’s Entry Draft, a conditional 2026 third-round draft pick. The Devils, who are retaining 50 percent of Tanev’s salary for the remainder of the season, received Dallas’ fourth-round pick in 2026. Calgary is retaining the remaining 50 percent of Tanev’s salary.

The immediate reactions were praise for Dallas general manager Jim Nill, criticism directed toward Calgary GM Craig Conroy, and New Jersey GM Tom Fitzgerald earned ambivalence.

Let’s start with Dallas. It has been believed for some time that the Stars were looking to add to their defense corps, and Tanev is the kind of physical defenseman that all Cup contenders covet. And all it cost Nill was a prospect defenseman, a second round pick and a conditional third? It’s hard to do a much better job than that.

While Nill–who it is believed is still on the hunt for another defenseman–was receiving plaudits, the question asked of Conroy was simple: Why was this the best deal available?

It is a reasonable query as, theoretically, Conroy could have held onto Tanev and gotten more for him as the Mar. 8 NHL Trade Deadline drew closer. But, in fairness, there are rumors that Conroy will move defenseman Noah Hanifin and goaltender Jacob Markstrom as part of an organizational rebuild which got started a few weeks ago when centerman Elias Lindholm was dealt to Vancouver.    

 

For Fitzgerald, he essentially acted as a broker and as such received a fourth-round pick for his troubles. 

So, then, what does it all mean?

We won’t fully know until after this playoff season–at the earliest–but what can be said is that the silly season is upon us.

The NHL Trade Deadline is the time of year in which executives attempt to bolster or begin renovating their teams, with fans and media and other interested observers providing instant analysis, oftentimes based on little to no real insight.

With that in mind, we, your friends at OSDBSports.com, have compiled a trade deadline primer with the biggest names on the market.

Without any further ado:

BEST AVAILABLE PLAYERS ON THE MARKET:

FORWARDS:

1: Jake Guentzel, Pittsburgh Penguins: A two-time 40-goal scorer, Guentzel, 29, is an unrestricted free agent this summer. He can normally be found on Sidney Crosby’s left wing, but an upper-body injury has Guentzel on the injured list. Plus with Pittsburgh stating that the organization has to start thinking about its future, moving Guentzel makes sense since he’s likely to bring a lot back in a trade. 

2: Pavel Buchnevich, St. Louis Blues: Ironically nicknamed Captain Happy during his tenure with the New York Rangers, Buchnevich has blossomed into a consistent offensive force in St. Louis. For teams that are looking to add a top-six winger–say, like the Rangers–Buchnevich does check off a lot of boxes. Especially since he has a full year left on his deal which pays him $5.8 million. So GM Doug Armstrong doesn’t have to trade him. But if the executive hears something he likes…

3: Adam Henrique, Anaheim Ducks: Henrique has been linked to the Rangers for months, due in part to the fact that he’s (A) a centerman and (B) the team’s need for an experienced third-line center. However, there is a subset of Rangers fans who will never forgive or forget Henrique scored the 2012 Eastern Conference Final series-winning goal in Game 6 at the Prudential Center. Does time heal all wounds? If Henrique can tally a series-winning goal for the Rangers, it would help. 

4: Frank Vatrano, Anaheim Ducks: The veteran right wing picked the right season to have a career year. He’s already set a new single-season high in goals and points with 26 and 45. Anaheim GM Pat Verbeek could, in theory, package him and Henrique in a deal to a team looking to add experienced veterans.

5: Jordan Eberle, Seattle Kraken: Year Three has not been super in the Great Northwest. The Kraken are seven points out of the second-and-last Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, and 11 points behind third-place Edmonton in the Pacific Division. Eberle is a free-agent-to-be after this season, and would have value for any playoff contender. 

DEFENSEMEN:

1: Noah Hanifin, Calgary Flames: Hanifin has not become the all-situations stud that many observers predicted when he played at Boston College. But he’s as good a shutdown defenseman as there is in the league and is heading for unrestricted free agency. The belief is that Hanifin wants to play for an American-based team, so the team who acquires him might be getting a rental. 

2: Sean Walker and Nick Seeler, Philadelphia Flyers: We are combining these two since (A) they’re both Flyers, (B) had their names linked to Dallas prior to the Tanev trade, and (C) Philadelphia president of Hockey Operation Keith Jones, general manager Danny Briere, and head coach John Tortorella are all on record as saying that the Flyers will be sellers at the deadline. Not because they have underachieved. The truth is that the Flyers have overachieved this season. But all three are acutely aware that Philadelphia has to be stockpiling picks and prospects, and the best way to do that is to part with solid veterans at the deadline.

3: Jakob Chychrun, Ottawa Senators: It has not, to be kind, been a great season in the Canadian capital. Which is why Chychrun–amongst others–has had his name in trade rumors. Still, 25-year-old puck moving defensemen who make $4.6 million are hard to find. So there will be suitors.

4: Matt Dumba, Arizona Coyotes: It had been a pretty fun season in the desert for the Coyotes. Then they dropped 13 straight (0-11-2) and are now in the familiar position of selling. Dumba is a second or third-pairing defenseman who can skate and possesses a good shot. 

5: Joel Edmundson, Washington Capitals: Not a big name. Doesn’t possess a flashy game. Edmundson is a stay-at-home defenseman who doesn’t hesitate to clear the crease and has a good reach.

GOALTENDERS:

1: Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames: Need a legitimate No. 1 goalie to carry your team deep into the playoffs? Call Conroy, who has an unhappy one in Markstrom. The goaltender spoke to reporters about having his name in trade rumors following this past Friday’s practice, and he made it clear that he is upset with Flames management. “Everyone in here I really respect everything that’s been going on and not going on, and how everyone in this room has handled everything. I think it’s been really good. And then the whole situation and everything, am I happy about that? No, I’m not. I think it could have been handled a lot different from up top.”

2: John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks: To be clear, if general manager Pat Verbeek moves Gibson, it will likely happen during the off-season due to the 30-year-old goalie’s contract status. Gibson is signed through the 2026-27 season and has an annual average value of $6.4 million. Plus he has a 10-team no-trade list. Add to that Gibson has struggled the last five seasons, compiling a 74-122-33 record with .902 save percentage and 3.29 goals against average in 234 games. Still, he is someone who could benefit from a change in scenery.

3: Elvis Merzlikins, Columbus Blue Jackets: So many things have gone wrong in Columbus this season, including the Blue Jackets’ handling of Merzlikins. As OSDBSports.com noted in a Jan. 30 piece, Merzlikins told reporters following the Blue Jackets’ 4-3 shootout win over Vancouver on Jan. 15 that he had requested a trade. Is he a franchise goalie? No, but he’s solid enough and could be the difference between a series loss and advancing for the right team.

4: Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators: Nashville’s No. 1 goaltender has had his name in trade rumors for some time, but general manager Barry Trotz told The Athletic last Wednesday he did not envision trading Saros. 

5: Marc-Andre Fleury, Minnesota Wild: Like Saros, Fleury’s name has been in trade rumors for awhile, but Sportsnet NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman tweeted last Wednesday that the Wild planned to keep the three-time Stanley Cup winner in the fold.