Having made one significant addition by acquiring Quinn Hughes, the Minnesota Wild could attempt another big swing in the off-season. Meanwhile, the Toronto Maple Leafs have a logjam of goalies, which could require a trade to address.
The Minnesota Wild made the biggest move of the regular season in December by acquiring superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks in a multi-player blockbuster.
During the off-season, GM Bill Guerin could attempt another major trade, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic.
Russo reported there's already speculation in Toronto that something's got to give for the struggling Maple Leafs. He wondered if Guerin might look into acquiring Auston Matthews, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last week.
Guerin was GM of Team USA, which Matthews captained to a gold medal in the Winter Olympics last month. He hasn't stopped singing the Leafs center's praises since.
If Matthews isn't available, Russo wondered if Guerin might look into the availability of Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk, or make a bid for St. Louis Blues center Robert Thomas.
Other options could include Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devils, though Russo acknowledged the Devils aren't keen to break up their roster core.
Joel Eriksson Ek and Jack Hughes (Brace Hemmelgarn-Imagn Images)It remains to be seen if any of those players are available. Matthews and Tkachuk have full no-movement clauses, Thomas has a full no-trade clause, and Hischier has a 10-team no-trade list. Hughes' 10-team no-trade list goes into effect on July 1.
None of those players has indicated that they're open to being traded. Thomas was the subject of considerable speculation before the recent NHL trade deadline, but recently said he wasn't approached about waiving his clause and hasn't requested a trade.
The lack of depth in this summer's free-agent market means teams must turn to the trade market if they want to make significant additions to their rosters. Russo believes that's why Guerin hung onto most of his tradeable assets at this year's deadline, hoping to put them toward better options this summer.
Speaking of the Maple Leafs, their recent signing of Artur Akhtyamov gives them four goaltenders under NHL contracts, joining Anthony Stolarz, Joseph Woll, and Dennis Hildeby.
Sportsnet's Luke Fox believes one of them will end up getting traded during the off-season. They cannot risk losing one of them to waivers next season. The thin free-agent market for goalies this summer could provide them with an opportunity to peddle one to a club seeking depth between the pipes.
Assuming they won't move the recently signed Akhtyamov, that leaves Stolarz, Woll, or Hildeby as a potential trade candidate.
Stolarz has a 16-team no-trade list for the rest of his current deal and in the first year of his four-year extension, which begins on July 1, according to puckpedia.com. Woll and Hildeby could garner more interest because they're younger, more affordable, and lack no-trade protection.
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