What we're hearing ahead of the NHL Trade Deadline: Rantanen acting as a domino, sellers with immense opportunities, and teams buying AND selling

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – We are just over 24 hours away from the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline and the market for forwards is being held up by the Carolina Hurricanes. With the knowledge that they will be unable to extend Mikko Rantanen before Friday, the club has gone on a fact-finding mission. The goal is to parse out the very best offers that teams can make, and they will consider in-house and decide if the juice is worth the squeeze. 

Carolina conducted a similar mission just a few weeks ago as they had the Canucks and Avalanche make their best offers to move J.T. Miller, Elias Pettersson, and Rantanen. Ultimately, the Canes landed on Rantanen. Now, they need to determine whether a flip (with added retention to sweeten the pot) is worth it. 

I'm told that they are still very strongly considering keeping Rantanen with the hopes that a long playoff run will entice him to extend before July 1st. This seems like the most likely scenario since the club is right in the prime of their contention window, and any return another contender has to offer is unlikely to move the needle nearly as much as Rantanen could. Or provide the long-term value that a player like Martin Nečas did. 

However, this is an analytically driven club that values… value. So if they can get a package that helps them now AND has further security long-term, they'll make that deal. 

It appears as though Dallas, Florida, and Vegas are the most active in attempting to bring Rantanen in. But don't sleep on LA either. 

Columbus not expected to make waves

Despite a lot of talk that the Blue Jackets would be in the market to buy and buy hard to help reward their team's herculean effort this year, it is not expected they will be involved in any of the bigger named players. It's also very unlikely they will move any of their pending UFAs. Ivan Provorov is the big name there, but they have seven altogether. 

As far as adding, we know they were deeply involved in Gustav Nyquist before he moved to Minnesota. Expect them to look for a similar type of depth scoring forward to boost the front end. Perhaps a Kyle Palmieri. 

Canucks to buy and sell

The Vancouver Canucks will be an interesting team to watch over the next 24 hours. Their major piece of business is Brock Boeser. It is not expected that the two sides will agree on a contract at the final hour, which leaves the trade or hold options. With the prices for rentals extremely high this year, it would make sense for the club to move on. But they currently sit in a playoff spot and want to lean into that. 

It is expected that before teams get too deep into Boeser, they'll want to know they don't have a shot at Rantanen. Everyone wants the prom queen, but sometimes you have to settle. I'm told the Canucks prefer to move him to the East, or the very least outside of the division. But the quality of return can always mitigate that. 

They have not been enamoured with the offers at this point. 

We're told that teams have returned to check on Carson Soucy, who is well-known to be available. We're hearing Pius Suter is very likely to be moved as well, and the team is listening on Derek Forbort. In a seller's market, the team has a chance to net strong returns – potentially to be flipped for players under term

At the same time, Vancouver is actively shopping as well. But not for rentals. Sources indicate they're in the market for players in their mid-20s with term or team control. The centre ice position is the priority, but finding some more scoring on the wing is there as well. These sound like hockey trades, which are more difficult to pull off at this stage of the season.

The Panthers and Golden Knights are in on everything

With Matthew Tkachuk's cap hit on LTIR until the playoffs, the Panthers are suddenly flush with space and intend to use it. Sources indicate they have made major inroads on bringing Rantanen into the fold, but of course, they are not alone in that regard. If they lose out on the big fish, look for them to circle back on Boeser. 

Meanwhile, Vegas doesn't have the cap flexibility that Florida, Dallas, or even LA has, but that rarely stops them. This is one of the most aggressive teams at buying and will make every attempt to land an impact piece. If it's not Rantanen, though, look for Ryan Donato to become the next target. 

The Kings are window shopping and buying

Sources indicate that the LA Kings are big-game buying but have also told teams that some players are available to move out as well. Pending UFA, Tanner Jeannott is attracting some interest, as is Trevor Moore, who has term remaining on his deal. But the big name out there is Brandt Clarke. 

League sources have indicated to Elite Prospects that the Kings have made it known they would listen to offers on the young and talented defenseman. Like the Kings, other clubs are weighing whether the former 8th overall pick will reach his ceiling as a top-scoring offensive back or fall somewhere into that power-play specialist role.

Clarke won't be shipped off in a rush. He has another year on his ELC before hitting RFA status. But if the Kings do land a bigger fish, don't be surprised if Clarke is part of the package heading out. 

Edmonton is looking to add to the blueline

You can never have too many defensemen for a long playoff run. The Oilers know this and also know that giving up a half-goal more per game than they're scoring won't do. Finding an upgrade on the right side is paramount. I'm told the team has checked in on Connor Murphy, who has a year remaining at a 4.4M cap hit

The Blackhawks are open for business

Speaking of Chicago, the club is actively looking to find a new home for Petr Mrázek, who has one more season at 4.25M on the books. They are waiting to maximize the potential return on Donato. But also, have alerted teams that the remaining players without contracts next year are available. Alec Martinez could provide nice depth and Cup-winning experience to a contender. 

Pittsburgh Penguins

Plenty of talk around Rickard Rakell potentially being moved, and with three more years at 5M per. But the player I've been told is more likely to move this week is pending UFA, Anthony Beauvillier. The 27-year-old has rebounded well with 13 goals on the season and represents a nice depth scoring option to teams who are bargain shopping. 

Mario Ferraro could go

Finally, watch out for Mario Ferraro. He has one more season left on his deal at 3.25M, but teams are very active in checking on his availability as the defense rental market is light this year. It won't be cheap, though.