The Colorado Avalanche sent shockwaves through the NHL last weekend, facilitating a three-team trade to move superstar winger Mikko Rantanen. The massive deal put the league on notice, and trade speculation started taking off in a major way throughout the entire league.

With the trade deadline less than six weeks away, here’s the very latest around the NHL:

Rantanen and Hall land with Hurricanes, Necas and Drury with Avalanche

The Avalanche didn’t feel they were going to be able to sign Rantanen to an affordable extension, and GM Chris MacFarland felt the timing was perfect to make a move on the pending free-agent forward. Rantanen ended up in Carolina, joining Taylor Hall from the Chicago Blackhawks, meanwhile, the Hurricanes moved both Jack Drury and Martin Necas to the Avalanche, with multiple draft picks also included in the blockbuster trade.

Rantanen is close with Hurricanes’ forward Sebastian Aho, which should help the talented winger transition into a new dressing room after parts of 10 seasons in Colorado. Rantanen’s long-time teammate Nathan MacKinnon spoke postgame last Saturday after playing his first game since 2016 without Rantanen by his side. “I never thought in a million years he would leave. So yeah, it just sucks,” stated MacKinnon. He’d go on to call the trade shocking and mentioned he spoke with Rantanen about his contract throughout this season, but didn’t want to get too involved in his business.

One wild rumour that spun as soon as the Rantanen trade took on steam was the Pittsburgh Penguins moving Sidney Crosby to Colorado. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli mentioned Friday that the Rantanen deal wasn’t even the biggest one on the table in the last 48 hours, but at no point was there any indication from any of the league’s best insiders that a Crosby move was even remotely close to being discussed. Yes, there seems to be some movement coming from Kyle Dubas, who is busy scouting Western Canada of late, but at this point, Crosby being moved out of Pittsburgh seems extremely unlikely.

Alex Pietrangelo withdraws from Team Canada due to injury

A big blow to Team Canada’s blueline at the 4 Nations Face-Off, as Vegas Golden Knights’ defenceman Alex Pietrangelo has withdrawn due to injury.

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Update: Alex Pietrangelo will be withdrawing from the 2025 4Nations Face-Off to tend to an ailment and prepare for the remainder of the regular season with Vegas. #VegasBorn

10:26 PM · Jan 26, 2025

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The King City, ON native has recorded three goals and 22 assists for 25 points in 46 games this season. Pietrangelo ranks second among Golden Knights’ defencemen in points, trailing Shea Theodore. With a roster spot opening up, it’s going to be on Team Canada’s management brass to select a replacement, as Pietrangelo was slated to play major minutes during the two-week tournament beginning Feb.12.

Pietrangelo was named to Canada’s roster on Dec. 4, joining the likes of Cale Makar, Josh Morrissey, Colton Parayko, Travis Sanheim, Shea Theodore, and Devon Toews. Canada has until the day before the tournament begins to name a replacement for Pietrangelo. Maple Leafs’ defenceman Chris Tanev could make the shortlist, and give Canada another shut-down option.

Which NHL superstar could be traded after Rantanen shocker?

MacKinnon called seeing Rantanen get traded ‘shocking’. It’s safe to say the three-team deal certainly caught the entire NHL community off guard. With that said, there’s some potential that another NHL superstar could be moved before the deadline in early March.

The Athletic’s Fluto Shinzawa recently published an article which included some details on whether the Bruins would ever consider moving their captain, Brad Marchand. It’s worth noting Bruins’ president Cam Neely has made it clear he’d like to continue to re-tool the roster. Shinzawa shared that an NHL executive mentioned to him that a Marchand deal could occur if the Bruins “think it’ll help the team.”

Vancouver Canucks‘ J.T Miller and Elias Pettersson have been involved in trade talks for weeks, and there was a ton of speculation that one of them was going to Carolina before the Hurricanes’ pivoted their focus to securing Rantanen. Miller seems like the most likely of the two to get dealt by the Canucks, with the New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, New Jersey Devils and Avalanche as potential landing spots.

While ‘superstar’ may be a stretch, it’s worth including Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders, as he could be a surprise name mentioned before the trade deadline. With all the attention on pending free agents Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri on Long Island, Barzal isn’t meeting expectations, recording just six goals, and 19 points in 27 games, meanwhile earning $9.1 million AAV through the 2030-31 season. The 27-year-old Barzal owns a 22-team no-trade clause.

Another forward is Dylan Cozens of the Buffalo Sabres. He’s been linked to the Calgary Flames at points this season, as the Sabres are once again bottom-feeding in the Eastern Conference and GM Kevyn Adams may have to adjust some of his long-term strategy. Cozens has 10 goals and 24 points in 49 games so far this year and carries a $7.1 million cap hit through the 2029-30 season. Cozens’ trade protection doesn’t kick in until 2027.

Back in the West, keep an eye on the Los Angeles Kings. They’ve managed to navigate a Drew Doughty injury to start the year and rookie defenceman Brandt Clarke has been outstanding, leading the Kings blueline with 24 points in 46 games. The Kings currently have over $10 million in cap space, and GM Rob Blake has shown he’s not shy of making a bold move. Los Angeles could use another top-six forward and find a way to spark their offence heading into a Stanley Cup Playoff push.

Quick Hits from Around the NHL

The Avalanche defeated the Rangers on Sunday, Jack Drury scored his first as an Av, while Martin Necas had two assists. Rantanen was held scoreless in his debut.
Jack Eichel and Mark Stone headline the Golden Knights’ quarter-century team, with Artemi Panarin and Henrik Lundqvist being part of the Rangers’ quarter-century lineup
Islanders’ Ilya Sorokin became just the eighth goaltender in NHL history to record a win after making just one save. Sorokin entered the game in overtime after Marcus Hogberg left due to injury.
Speaking of the Islanders, they signed defenceman Tony DeAngelo to a contract for the remainder of this season.
Devils’ Nico Hischier is considered day-to-day after leaving the third period of Saturday’s game.
Penguins’ Evgeni Malkin also left a Saturday matchup due to injury, no word yet on the timeline.
Blue Jackets’ Sean Monahan had a setback on his wrist injury and will be out an additional six-to-eight weeks.
The Rangers signed newly acquired defenceman Will Borgen to a five-year deal, worth $4.1 million AAV
MacKinnon’s 77 points lead the NHL, three clear of Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl.
Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck is running away with the Vezina, leading the NHL with wins (30), and goals against average (2.02).

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