BUY, SELL, STAY - CENTRAL DIVISION

Sam Forrest

Arizona Coyotes: Sell

The Coyotes have made a few players known to be untouchable, such as Clayton Keller, Andrej Vejmelka, Shane Gostisbehere, Barrett Hayton, and Janis Moser. Otherwise, there’s not much to say about this team other than they’re in full rebuild mode. Look for names like Phil Kessel and Travis Boyd to garner lots of attention come deadline day, along with anyone else the Yotes can move for the right return.

Chicago Blackhawks: Sell

After a promising and somewhat surprising 2021 season, the Blackhawks have regressed hard. Chicago is in a strange limbo right now. Still holding on to relics of past successes in Kane and Toews means that the Hawks aren’t going to go all in on a rebuild, and massively overpaying to acquire Seth Jones only makes their future intentions less clear. Moving an ageing piece like Duncan Keith over the summer made sense, but now Chicago is left with little of value to sell at the deadline. Brandon Hagel is a name that has been floating around in trade rumours, however it looks like the Hawks intend to keep him. Marc-Andre Fleury is rumoured to have the desire to stay in CHI for the rest of the year, but I’d be shocked if Strome and De Haan weren’t moved for decent returns.

Colorado Avalanche: Buy

The Avalanche sit first place in the entire NHL, but the regular season hasn’t been the issue for Colorado in the last few years. With Nathan MacKinnon’s ungodly cheap contract set to expire, the Avs are looking to make a big push for the cup this year. Names like Hertl and Giroux have been circulating around the team, and Colorado’s successful rebuild has allowed them to have the expendable pieces necessary to make a big move. This year is looking like Cup or bust for the Avalanche. Despite having many young, talented pieces, it’s hard to see how the money will work for this team in the coming years, so I expect them to go big this deadline.

Dallas Stars: Sell

Despite being right in the thick of the Western playoff race, I see Dallas being more likely to move players out than to bring them in. John Klingberg is on an expiring deal and will be traded if he and the Stars can’t reach an agreement on an extension. I would assume Dallas is trying to move the ageing Khudobin while they can still get some value for him as well. Brayden Holtby and Joe Pavelski’s names have been circulating a bit in trade rumours as well. Dallas could sell at the deadline and still make the playoffs, so I think that the best route for them is to get some value back instead of keeping pieces and making a push with a team that likely won’t go deep in the postseason.

Minnesota Wild: Buy

Minnesota has a sneaky good team this year. One of the most potent offences in the NHL lead by sophomore Kirill Kaprizov and backed up by strong seasons coming from the likes of Kevin Fiala and rookie Matt Boldy. Strong netminding from both Talbot and Kahkonnen have allowed this Wild team to continue fighting for a spot atop the highly competitive central. With the buyout penalties for Parise and Suter taking up a large chunk of Minnesota’s cap starting next year, it might be a good idea for them to try and make something of this season before they have to deal with a drastically tighter spending window. 20th in the league in goals allowed, the Wild need desperately to improve their blue line if they want a fighting chance in the playoffs. I anticipate them being in on some solid defensive defenseman, maybe someone under the radar like Robert Hagg from Buffalo, or maybe even a bigger name like Giordano.

Nashville Predators: Sell

Nashville, like Dallas, is right in the thick of the western conference playoff race. I have higher hopes for the Predators though, as they have a very solid goaltender in Juuse Saros, and some really strong pieces throughout the lineup. There have been rumours all season that Filip Forsberg would be dealt if an extension wasn’t reached, and it looks like that won’t be happening. I don’t think Nashville really should be sellers beyond Forsberg, but I do think it’s in their best interests to move him while they still can. However, if for whatever reason the Preds decide not to trade Filip Forsberg, I’d be inclined to believe that they’re a dark horse candidate to make it deep in the playoffs.

St. Louis Blues: Stay

Ever since their Cup run in 2019, I’ve felt like the Blues have been in a bit of a downward spiral. First losing in the first round to Vancouver in the bubble as one of the top four seeds, then getting obliterated by the Avalanche in the first round last year. St. Louis hasn’t been able to recreate the success of their championship team whatsoever, and I have a feeling this year won’t be any different. I don’t have enough faith in this team as it currently stands to believe that adding pieces at the deadline will be enough, but they’ve still done well enough for themselves in the regular season so far that they probably shouldn’t raise the white flag either. Rumours of trading Ville Husso have been light but still there nonetheless, and I cannot express how against that idea I am. Sticking with this team as it stands is, in my opinion, the best possible move for St. Louis for now and in the future.

Winnipeg Jets: Sell

It’s been a bad year for Winnipeg, drastically underperforming expectations, sitting just three games above .500 and seven points out of a wild card spot. I think it’s just time to pack it up and get ready for next year. I don’t think the Jets should blow it up, they just need to move on from some players with expiring deals. Andrew Copp has come up in rumours a lot as of late, and I think Winnipeg could get a healthy return for the 27 year old forward who’s in the last year of a 2 year, $4.56M deal. Paul Stastny is also a free agent at the end of the season, and I’d be surprised if Winnipeg didn’t try to shop him to contenders as a solid, veteran third line rental.