Playing Hockey’s Doctor Love: 2024 Trade Deadline Matchmaker

We’re less than one month away from the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline. Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered at Daily Faceoff with at least one trade-focused story each day leading up to Deadline Day.

Today, in the true spirit of Valentine’s Day, we’re going to play a little game.

2024 Trade Deadline Countdown: 24 days

Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match. Find me a find, catch me a catch.

Since love is in the air, we’re going to play the role of Trade Deadline Matchmaker, lining up a team with their hockey crush by using a combination of intelligence and intuition, with an emphasis on entertainment value. We’re not “reporting” these matches, merely connecting dots where there is the potential for more than a casual encounter.

💘 Noah Hanifin: Toronto Maple Leafs 💘

Who swipes left?
To Toronto: Noah Hanifin, Andrew Mangiapane (50% retained)
To Calgary: 2024 1st Rd Pick, NYI 2024 3rd Rd Pick, CGY 2024 5th Rd Pick, Ryan Reaves, Nick Robertson, Topi Niemela

Admittedly, this proposal may sound batshit crazy, but this is supposed to be a fun exercise. Part of the trouble in matching Hanifin to a new team is really finding a solid market for him. Who has the hole, the assets and is willing to pay? The sense is Toronto is only willing to do so if they can fill multiple holes at once, which would improve the team in the here and now, and also for the future. And yes, this Hanifin deal would come with an extension – Toronto is much closer to Boston than Calgary.

This deal solves mutual problems. The Leafs need help on the back end – preferably a higher-end, right-shooting defenseman. But that is going to be difficult to find in the summer, let alone now at the deadline. Hanifin is going to be one of the best defensemen available over the course of the next calendar year. Mangiapane would give their middle six a strong boost – and he’d be going home to Toronto. At $2.9 million with 50 percent retained for this year and next, he won’t break the bank for Toronto, and he’s probably not in Calgary’s long-term plans.

Toronto clearly needs to move off of Reaves, and Calgary could use someone to look after the kids in their lineup. Plus, in addition to the picks, Calgary gets to take a flier on NHL ready players in Robertson and Niemela to see if they can fit.

💘 Marc-Andre Fleury: Carolina Hurricanes 💘

Who swipes left?
To Carolina: Marc-Andre Fleury
To Minnesota: Carolina’s 2024 2nd Rd Pick

It’s no guarantee that ‘Flower’ raises his hand and moves on from Minnesota, even with a 17-year playoff streak on the line. If he does, it’s difficult to envision a more ideal situation for him than Carolina, considering he wants to play. One of the most well-liked players in league history doesn’t have much interest in smiling on the bench and opening the door. He is one of hockey’s ultimate competitors. And the crease should be wide open in Carolina. Antti Raanta, Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov have struggled to stay upright. Andersen has made his way back from a scary blood clotting issue. Kochetkov found his game but then missed a month with a concussion. Raanta hasn’t been right all year.

The Canes are 30th in the league in save percentage. They are strong team with authentic Stanley Cup hopes – and for a team that doesn’t typically go big at the deadline, they have an extra second-round pick this year. Fleury, 39, is in complete control with a full ‘no-move’ clause. This is his 17th consecutive season with a .900 save percentage or better, and if Carolina got that type of goaltending consistently, they’d have allowed 20 fewer goals in the first 52 games of the year. They’d be in first place in the Metropolitan Division right now.

💘 Jake Guentzel: Colorado Avalanche 💘

Who swipes left?
To Colorado: Jake Guentzel (50% retained), Alex Nedeljkovic
To Pittsburgh: 2024 1st Rd Pick, 2025 1st Rd Pick, 2025 3rd Rd Pick

The last player traded for multiple first-round picks was Brandon Hagel in 2022. Part of that was because Hagel had term on his deal at an insanely low cap hit relative to his production. From Chicago’s perspective, those were going to be very late first-round picks – which is what we’d believe these would also be from Colorado. Do we think Nathan MacKinnon cares about draft picks? Many people have been thinking for months now that Colorado would target a No. 2 center addition – and that’s still possible. But Valeri Nichushkin’s departure into the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance program looms large. Coupled with the unknown status of Gabriel Landeskog, who is a possibility to return for the playoffs but no sure bet, the Avs’ forward group gets thin in a hurry. With Guentzel in the fold, and one or both of those two question markets back in the lineup, Colorado has a roster that might make them Stanley Cup favorites. If you squint hard enough, there is maybe a path forward to re-sign Guentzel too, although it’d be a stretch. Nonetheless, it’d be worth the swing for an elite scoring winger who can play on either side of the ice. (Plus Nedeljkovic has good numbers and two rounds of playoff experience if need be.)

💘 Chris Tanev: Dallas Stars 💘

Who swipes left?
To Dallas: Chris Tanev
To Calgary: Conditional 2024 2nd Rd Pick that can become a 1st Rd Pick if Dallas reaches West Final

The thought process is that GM Jim Nill really likes his Stars team – and rightfully so. There aren’t many (if any) glaring holes, and a squad that has missed Jake Oettinger and Miro Heiskanen for significant stretches of time is current leading the Central Division. Dallas isn’t talked about enough. It’s still hard to see Nill going through the deadline and doing nothing and Tanev would be an ideal upgrade over Nils Lundkvist. The Stars rank 22nd in the league in blocked shots per 60 minutes (14.93) and Tanev is second in the league (151) in that category. He is a human missile on the ice, launching himself in front of pucks. We did a deep dive on Tanev’s game and he is still really efficient with the puck on his stick, too, as someone who doesn’t overcomplicate things. It’s also not an overly complicated transaction as Dallas has been banking cap space and may be able to afford Tanev without retention. The Flames are believed to have a second-round pick on the table already, but Dallas might present one of the true reasonable cases on a conditional pick to actually come through and go on a deep run to enhance the return.

💘 Adam Henrique: New York Rangers 💘

Who swipes left?
To New York Rangers: Adam Henrique (50% retained)
To Anaheim: Kaapo Kakko, 2024 2nd Rd Pick

Ducks GM Pat Verbeek is reportedly looking for a second-round pick, a third-round pick and one additional third-round pick in exchange for Henrique and to retain half of his deal. The Rangers have a clear need for a third line center, one who could also play up the lineup late in games with his high Hockey IQ. But they don’t have another third-round pick until 2026. In lieu of two additional third-rounders, would Kakko fit the bill? He has struggled to produce consistently in nearly 300 NHL games, but he perfectly fits the Ducks’ age scheme and is worth the flier as the 2019 No. 2 overall pick. Henrique instantly makes the Rangers better. He is a candidate to re-sign. And the Rangers don’t have to give up their first-round pick ahead of the deadline for the third straight spring. Make no mistake, though, James Dolan wouldn’t stand in the way of the Rangers going for it – even with the Draft at the MSG-owned Sphere in Las Vegas.

💘 Jordan Eberle: Edmonton Oilers 💘

Who swipes left?
To Edmonton: Jordan Eberle (75% retained)
To Seattle: 2024 1st Rd Pick, Raphael Lavoie (to retain 50%)
To Chicago: 2025 4th Rd Pick (to retain 25%), Mattias Janmark (to make the cap hits work)

It’s not Valentine’s Day without an old flame rekindled, is it? Man, it would be fun to see Eberle back in Edmonton. Yes there is certainly some unfinished business there, it’s more than just a feel-good story. Eberle, now 33, and seven years removed from his last appearance in Oil Country, is still a productive player. He collected 20 goals and 63 points last season and is on-track for 15 goals and 49 points this year. Seattle isn’t scoring as much as they did last year, and there probably isn’t a huge drop in Eberle’s overall play. More than that, if the Oilers were to draw up a fit, they’d be looking for a right-shooting, top-six forward who is pass-first to play with Leon Draisaitl. Eberle checks all of those boxes. Plus, when you consider the market, he is likely to be among the most cost-effective players available relative to acquisition price. The narrative the previous Oilers regime created about Eberle not being a clutch playoff player was debunked the minute he left Edmonton. Eberle has 19 goals and 45 points in his last 63 postseason games, which is a higher points-per-game rate (0.71) than his career average (0.69).

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