Updated: Mar 22
Taylor Hall- Chicago Blackhawks
Taylor Hall looks like he will see himself out of the door in Chicago after another very disappointing start to the season by the hawks. With the Blackhawks seeing themselves potentially drop into the bottom three lottery spots once again, they will look to move some of their big assets towards the looming trade deadline. Some names include Tyler Bertuzzi and Taylor Hall in particular. Hall currently has 22 points in 43 games for Chicgao this season, and hasn't met the expectations as of yet for the Hawks fans, and could soon be on his way out. With a $6 million cap hit coming into his last year of a four year contract, Hall still has the potential and ability to find his previous form, and could be a good asset for some Playoff teams seeking a second or third line winger. Hall recently spoke out on his trade speculations, stating he ‘came into this year wanting to continue being a Blackhawk for years to come, I don't know if that's going to be the case anymore.’, and presumed he would leave the door open to any potential exit for him come March 7th. It's no doubt the Blackhawks will only move Hall for a deal which would benefit them, and most likely include draft picks, and potentially young prospects, but the value of the contract and his age will bring his stock down significantly.
Chris Kreider- New York Rangers
With the New York Rangers having a lacklustre season for their standards, they have already begun to move some players like Kappo Kakko and Jacob Trouba, but Chris Kreider could be next up on the New York chopping block. Kreider’s future at the Rangers began to seem unlikely after he was healthy scratched for the first time since his rookie year, and his name began to float around the NHL trade pool. Kreider who was a 50 goal scorer in 2021 has seen his form drop off, and with the Rangers form as whole dropping off in the last few months, Kreider has found himself on the blunt end of the blame. With Trouba’s massive $8 million contract cleared to the Ducks in a trade for Vaakanainen, the Rangers could cut their losses and move on from their longest tenured player, and move another big contract out of the big apple. Kreider who has 15 points in 35 games this season, still has the veteran ability to compete in a playoff team, and with the Rangers already receiving proposals for the 33 year old winger, expect to see Kreider in different threads come March 7th.
JT Miller- Vancouver Canucks
Finally and arguably the biggest one to watch, is the Canucks JT Miller. With the Canucks just sitting outside of the second wildcard spot in the west, it's time for them to make some changes, and move on from star centre JT Miller. Whilst having a disappointing campaign in the 2024/25 season, and their playoff hopes looking rather difficult, a crumbling bond between two players, in this instance JT Miller and Elias Pettersson is exactly what the Canucks don't need in the back end of this season. With a recent fallout between the two Canucks stars, it's looking highly likely that we will see one of the two on the trade block come March 7th, and JT Miller looks the likely candidate. With the Canucks clearly wanting to keep both stars on the team in order to boost their playoff hopes, they may have some trouble with the ongoing lack of bond between the two on the team, meaning they may have to bite the bullet, and bid farewell to one of these two. In this instance, JT Miller makes much more sense to trade compared to Elias Pettersson who is only 26, and JT Miller being in his thirties already increases the likelihood of a trade. With both players having a points tally of 29 so far in the season, the Canucks will have no trouble moving JT Miller, as he will be a player a number of teams will have their eye on. With Boston and New Jersey potentially looking to strengthen their position in the playoff picture, bringing a freight train like Miller will not only increase point production on the team, but will also majorly increase physicality and protection for stars like Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier, so expect to hear JT Miller float around in NHL trade talk in the coming months.
Comments