Pair of forwards who could net surprising returns before March 3rd's deadline
We're less than 20 days away from the National Hockey League's trade deadline and the activity is expected to pick up very soon. Within the last couple of weeks, we've seen two big names moved with Bo Horvat going to the New York Islanders and Vladimir Tarasenko to the New York Rangers.
The next domino to fall is widely expected to be Jakob Chychrun, who is linked with a move to the Los Angeles Kings. A trade involving Chychrun could go down at any hour now.
Two names to keep an eye on over the next couple of weeks are Sam Lafferty of the Chicago Blackhawks and Ivan Barbashev of the St. Louis Blues, both of whom could fetch their current team a fairly big return.
According to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, Lafferty could get Chicago a decent return for a few different reasons, including his inexpensive cap hit ($1.15 million), he's under contract for one more year beyond this season and can slide right into a team's bottom-six, playing minutes on the penalty kill.
Seravalli added that the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs are among the teams that could be a fit for Lafferty.
As for St. Louis Blues forward Ivan Barbashev, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period is reporting that the asking price is a second-round pick as well as a prospect.
Barbashev, 27, is in the final year of his contract with a cap hit of $2.25 million and his numbers are a far cry from last season's 26 goals and 60 points in 81 games, so team's may be hesitant towards St. Louis' asking price. There's no doubt that there will be interest in Barbashev over the next couple of weeks, but it'll be interesting to watch what the final outcome and return will be on any trade and when that trade could come down. If the Blues stick with that asking price, there's a good chance that teams may hold out until the final hours before 3 p.m. ET on March 3rd.
Who would you rather have on your favourite team's roster down the stretch and into the playoffs? Let us know in the poll below!
| POLL | ||
FÉVRIER 12 | 224 ANSWERS Pair of forwards who could net surprising returns before March 3rd's deadline Who would you rather have on your favourite team's roster? | ||
| Sam Lafferty | 51 | 22.8 % |
| Ivan Barbashev | 81 | 36.2 % |
| Neither | 54 | 24.1 % |
| See Results | 38 | 17 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
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APRIL 24, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Kirby Dach | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Alexandre Texier | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Mackenzie Weegar | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Zachary Bolduc | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Lawson Crouse | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mikael Granlund | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brandon Hagel | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Lane Hutson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mason McTavish | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Vasily Podkolzin | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brayden Point | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Leo Carlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Logan Cooley | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jake Guentzel | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Drew Helleson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Tyson Hinds | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Clayton Keller | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Chris Kreider | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nikita Kucherov | - | 1 | 1 | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||
| 2025-2026 NHL STANDINGS | ||||||
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Sabres | 82 | 50 | 23 | 9 | 109 | |
| Lightning | 82 | 50 | 26 | 6 | 106 | |
| Canadiens | 82 | 48 | 24 | 10 | 106 | |
| Bruins | 82 | 45 | 27 | 10 | 100 | |
| Senators | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 99 | |
| Red Wings | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 92 | |
| Panthers | 82 | 40 | 38 | 4 | 84 | |
| Maple Leafs | 82 | 32 | 36 | 14 | 78 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Hurricanes | 82 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 113 | |
| Penguins | 82 | 41 | 25 | 16 | 98 | |
| Flyers | 82 | 43 | 27 | 12 | 98 | |
| Capitals | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 95 | |
| Blue Jackets | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 92 | |
| Islanders | 82 | 43 | 34 | 5 | 91 | |
| Devils | 82 | 42 | 37 | 3 | 87 | |
| Rangers | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Avalanche | 82 | 55 | 16 | 11 | 121 | |
| Stars | 82 | 50 | 20 | 12 | 112 | |
| Wild | 82 | 46 | 24 | 12 | 104 | |
| Mammoth | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Blues | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 86 | |
| Predators | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 86 | |
| Jets | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 82 | |
| Blackhawks | 82 | 29 | 39 | 14 | 72 | |
| GP | W | L | OL | PTS | ||
| Golden Knights | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 95 | |
| Oilers | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 93 | |
| Ducks | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 92 | |
| Kings | 82 | 35 | 27 | 20 | 90 | |
| Sharks | 82 | 39 | 35 | 8 | 86 | |
| Kraken | 82 | 34 | 37 | 11 | 79 | |
| Flames | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 77 | |
| Canucks | 82 | 25 | 49 | 8 | 58 | |
COMPLETE STANDINGS | ||||||