'Who Says No?' mailbag: Where will top NHL trade candidates land? (2024)

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions to our latest “Who says no?” reader mailbag. In less than a day, I received more than 500 proposals and pitches.

It felt as if almost half of the pitches involved possible trade destinations for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Mitch Marner, enough to ponder all the different places where Marner could end up in a separate story. That’ll be Part 2, published next week.

In the meantime, here’s Part 1, where we try to find new homes for Trevor Zegras, Jacob Markström, Linus Ullmark, Juuse Saros, Nikolaj Ehlers and others.

It’s nice to see the armchair general manager in all of us is alive and well.

Let’s start.

(Note: Questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.)

To Calgary: Alex Holtz, Akira Schmid, Seamus Casey and a 2025 conditional second-round pick (upgrades to a first-round pick if the Devils make the second round of the playoffs in 2025)

To New Jersey: Jacob Markström (50 percent retained), Andrei Kuzmenko and a 2025 third-round pick.

— Chris G.

Calgary trades Markström to San Jose for pick No. 14

San Jose trades Markström plus a second-round pick to New Jersey for pick No. 10.

— Steve S.

To New Jersey: Jacob Markström and a 2025 fifth-round pick

To Calgary: Alex Holtz, Jonas Seigenthaler (modified no-trade clause doesn’t kick in until July 1 this year) and a 2025 second-round pick (via Winnipeg)

— Ryan H.

The first and third proposals are in the ballpark as reasonable value for Markström, but as framed here, both teams say no. Proposal two — tweaked to eliminate San Jose as an unnecessary third party — probably is the framework for getting a New Jersey-Calgary trade for Markström done.

Many readers believe that the Devils and Flames can, will and should revisit the talks they had earlier this spring, which would have seen Markström waive his full no-move clause to join New Jersey before the 2024 trade deadline.

The Devils need an upgrade in goal, and reader Domenick P., who is pitching a different deal that would bring Juuse Saros to New Jersey from Nashville, made a good point on behalf of their supporters: As a Devils fan, he suggested it would be hard to endure another year with subpar goaltending. My understanding is that the original talks stalled because Calgary was holding out for Dawson Mercer, whom the Devils weren’t prepared to trade. New Jersey would almost certainly have moved Holtz, but Calgary’s greater long-term need is at center, not the wing.

If neither side budges off its previously held position, the best way to get it unstuck is for the Devils to offer their first-rounder, the No. 10 pick, for Markström. It could be as simple as that. That wouldn’t require San Jose to be an intermediary in the deal. I believe Calgary will at some point trade Kuzmenko to a team looking for scoring help, but that might be a 2025 deadline deal instead of in the offseason.

But the first proposal is interesting because it includes Holtz, and Casey as a sweetener, and also holds out the promise of a future first-round draft choice if the Devils prosper with Markström in net. If offered, the Flames would have to seriously consider it.

Nashville trades Juuse Saros, contingent on him signing a contract extension in New Jersey, for either Seamus Casey and the Devils’ 2024 first-rounder (No. 10), or Dawson Mercer and the Jets’ 2024 third-rounder. — Domenick P.

If New Jersey was unwilling to give up Mercer in a deal for Markström, it’s unlikely they would be willing to trade him to Nashville for Saros, either. Casey and the 10th pick feels like an overpay, even for a goalie of Saros’s pedigree. The Predators, a team in a soft rebuild and stocking assets for the future, would have to consider it. A lot depends on Saros, though, too. Nashville is trying to sign him to an extension, and Saros has indicated publicly he doesn’t want to leave. If both sides are to be believed, then Nashville may ultimately keep Saros and move on from prospect Yaroslav Askarov instead. That’s an internal organizational decision; we’ll have to see how it plays out.

St. Louis trades Jordan Kyrou, a 2024 first-rounder (No. 16) and a 2025 second-rounder to Ottawa for Brady Tkachuk. — Scott F.

The Devils trade Jesper Bratt, John Marino and the 10th pick to Ottawa for Brady Tkachuk and Jakob Chychrun. — Eric K.

Ottawa says no to both – and realistically, to any offer that comes their way for Tkachuk, no matter how attractive they might seem on paper. Proposal No. 2 has zero chance of succeeding. Sure, the Devils would do it in a heartbeat, even if it doesn’t address their immediate needs for help in goal. But why would Ottawa trade their heart-and-soul captain for a skilled but small forward (Bratt), a serviceable defenseman (Marino) and another draft pick? It makes no sense for where they are organizationally. They need to start turning the corner soon. I can’t see any scenario under which they trade Tkachuk unless Tkachuk wants out.

The sense I get from talking to people around the league is that, yes, he’s getting frustrated by the team’s lack of success and has made that frustration known to the powers that be. But that’s not the same as asking out.

He’s a winner – like his brother Matthew. You do everything you can to hold on to players who bring that “it factor” to the mix. From the Ottawa side, Tkachuk is arguably their single most important building block. He’s signed for four more years at $8.2 million. I get why St. Louis – the organization and its fan base – would want to bring Tkachuk home. I don’t see how Kyrou, or any number of draft choices, gets it done. It’s wishful thinking, at this stage anyway.

Ottawa trades Jakob Chychrun and Anton Forsberg to Boston for Linus Ullmark. — Jeffrey M.

My first thought was: How persuasive can Ottawa’s rising managerial star Daniel Alfredsson be? Because to get Ullmark to waive his modified no-trade clause to go to the Senators, two things would have to happen. One: The Senators would have to be willing to commit to a long-term contract extension. Two: Alfredsson would have to persuade his fellow Swede that Ottawa’s future is bright — and that if the Sens could solve their instability in goal, they have a chance to be competitive almost right away. That’s because Ullmark has trade protection and almost all players have the Canadian teams on their no-trade lists.

Even if Ullmark could be persuaded to go to the Senators, Ottawa then must sort out what to do with Joonas Korpisalo, who would then become a highly paid backup, if Ullmark is brought in as the No. 1. On the Bruins’ side, as much as Chychrun is a nice piece to add to their blue line, the priority is to find help down the middle — and Ullmark represents their best trade chip. Now, if the Bruins thought Josh Norris’ injured shoulder wasn’t a long-term problem, then maybe Norris for Ullmark makes some vague sense. But as framed above, that’s a no.

Boston trades Linus Ullmark to Carolina for the rights to Martin Nečas. — Reed L.

Carolina says no. The Hurricanes will almost certainly turn over the starting goalie job to Pyotr Kochetkov next season and they don’t need a highly paid backup, especially because Frederik Andersen is also signed for next year for a modest $3.4 million. Nečas has played mostly wing in the NHL, but if the Bruins truly believed he could play center – win faceoffs, figure out the defensive responsibilities – then maybe he could be to the next Boston generation to what David Krejčí was to the last one. But it wouldn’t be Ullmark going Carolina’s way. It’d have to be a young defenseman.

Bruins trade Ullmark to New Jersey for a 2024 first-round pick. Simple and straightforward – Jeremy Swayman is clearly the Bruins’ 1A goalie going forward, but with no farm system, an early first could help them in that department and the Devils get a good goalie in return. Win-Win. — John S.

I think both sides would do it, but because I also believe Calgary would trade Markström to the Devils for that pick as well, it would then be up to New Jersey to decide who they like better – Markström or Ullmark.

Markström is older and more expensive but probably is better suited to play as a true No. 1, whereas Ullmark likely would top out at 50 games. But with Jake Allen now in the fold in New Jersey as a backup, maybe that’s good enough. This could work.

L.A. trades Carl Grundstrom, plus a 2025 second-round pick and a 2026 third-round pick to Anaheim for John Gibson. — Benjamin C.

@Benjamin C. As a Kings fan, I’m going to say the Ducks are a hard “no” on this. — Michael J.

Optics shouldn’t get in the way of any deal at any time – not in a 32-team league, and especially when one team is in its competitive window and the other is still rebuilding. But I’m inclined to agree with Michael J.’s rebuttal here. This is something that Anaheim probably should do – and won’t, because it would reflect badly on them if Gibson were suddenly to be the difference maker on a Kings team that needs to capitalize on the last handful of competitive seasons they’re going to get from Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty.

On paper, value-wise, given how expensive Gibson is, and how his numbers have flagged in recent years, the return makes some sense. Practically speaking, it would take far more managerial gumption than either team has to make it happen. Anaheim says no.

To Calgary: Jesperi Kotkaniemi and a 2025 first-round pick

To Carolina: Jakob Pelletier

— Mitchell H.

Interesting concept. Presumably, the idea here is that Carolina would be sacrificing a future first-rounder to get the six final seasons of Kotkaniemi’s eight-year, $38.56 million contract, which carries an annual $4.82 million cap hit, off their books.

Pelletier was Calgary’s first-round pick in 2019 but had most of the past season ruined recovering from shoulder surgery. He is a small, skilled forward who didn’t find his NHL stride in a 13-game cameo this year.

At the moment, Pelletier would have limited value or appeal. But Calgary does need help down the middle, and Kotkaniemi would definitely play higher in the lineup for the Flames than he does in Carolina. He’s 23, he’s 6 feet 2 inches and 201 pounds, he’s played 398 NHL games already, and Carolina has one more year to decide what Kotkaniemi really is before a modified no-trade clause kicks in and they’ll no longer have full control over where they could place him. Has he peaked? Or does he have another level to get to?

I think Calgary would do this in a heartbeat. I doubt if Carolina would give up a future first to make it happen, but maybe a different sort of sweetener would get it over the finish line.

Freeing themselves of Kotkaniemi’s contract would obviously make it easier for the Hurricanes to sign Jake Guentzel and one of their pending unrestricted free agent defensem*n, all of whom would be far more critical pieces moving forward than the young Finnish center. I like it. I’m voting yes.

What do you think is a fair return for Ehlers? Would he warrant a top-four defenseman under contract? Would a 2024 draft pick in the 10th-to-15th range be adequate? There are some highly rated defensem*n in that range. — John B.

Islanders trade Ryan Pulock to Winnipeg for Nikolaj Ehlers — Troy R.

Generally speaking, he has a good reputation around the league – great skater, feisty player for his size. Overall, Ehlers’ most productive season came in 2016-17, when he scored 64 points in 82 games, though on a points-per-game basis, he was better in 2021-22, when he managed 55 in 62. His career points-per-game average is 0.76, but he was slightly below that (0.74) this year, after producing at 0.84 the year before.

The complicating factor is how little power-play time Ehlers gets for such a creative player – he had only seven power-play points out of the 61 he scored this season and only 12 the year before. If a team evaluates Ehlers as someone who can play legitimate PP1 minutes, the scoring numbers should increase.

That’s a long way of saying there are a lot of teams in the NHL that need to boost scoring and would look favorably on Ehlers, who is 28 and has a year left on a contract that pays him $6 million.

Pulock is from Dauphin, Manitoba. Though he has a full no-movement clause, would he waive it for the chance to play for a local team? No idea. Maybe. The age of the players (Pulock is 29) and the contracts (Pulock earns $6.15 million until 2029-30) are in the ballpark. So that’s an example of a top-four defenseman who could move for Ehlers.

I think Winnipeg says no to the second proposal, involving Detroit, even though the value is fair. Copp goes back to Winnipeg, where he thrived once before, and the Jets get back into the first round after trading away their own pick in the Sean Monahan deal.

But Winnipeg is in win-now mode — to move Ehlers, they would probably want a contributing NHLer in return who does more than what Copp would. Of course, you can always flip a 2024 mid-first-rounder to get that. Let’s put both proposals in that middle, maybe yes/maybe no territory.

I remember you talking about Milan Lucic for James Neal as a concept long before the deal actually happened. Would love to hear your thoughts on Jonathan Huberdeau for Pierre-Luc Dubois as the baseline of a trade between divisional teams. Who would need to sweeten the pot and would this even be something either team would want/consider? Bonus points if you want to throw Markström into the mix and really make a deal! — Geoff P.

As with Neal for Lucic, this would be a swap of overpaid underachievers who potentially could benefit from a fresh start. Contractually, Huberdeau has seven years left at $10.5 million, with a full no-movement clause. Dubois has seven years left at $8.5 with a full no-movement clause soon to kick in. The contracts are both awful, so the rationale would be: In a different setting, playing in a different role, could one or both find a second wind?

Maybe.

Huberdeau had his greatest success in Florida, as a setup man, so I could absolutely see him playing on the top line in Los Angeles with Kopitar and Adrian Kempe. That would then allow the Kings to move Quinton Byfield to center, which is his original position and where he ultimately wants to play again. If Byfield becomes the Kings’ No. 3 center behind Kopitar and Phillip Danault, then Dubois becomes even more expendable.

Dubois, meanwhile, wants to play higher than a No. 3 center in the lineup, and with better wingers than he did in L.A. That was this year’s excuse for his underwhelming season, anyway. In Calgary, he could be a No. 2 behind Nazem Kadri and maybe find a fit with someone such as Kuzmenko.

It would require a complete leap of faith by both organizations, neither of which strikes me as a bold risk taker. In real life, probably both say no.

Anaheim trades Trevor Zegras to Montreal for the Canadiens’ 2024 first-round draft pick (No. 5). — Jeff S.

First, this caveat: Philadelphia has a lot of salary-cap issues to navigate going forward:

• Too much money for Sean Couturier ($7.75 million average annual value) and Cam Atkinson ($5.875 million), who are among the five forwards making $5 million or more.

• They have Rasmus Ristolainen, who finished the year on injured reserve at $5.1 million.

• They have to carry $3.571 million of dead cap space for the Kevin Hayes-to-St. Louis trade.

• They have Cal Petersen buried in the minors for another year at $3.85 million.

• They’re paying $1.66 million for the Tony DeAngelo buyout for another year, as well.

All of which is to say the Zegras-for-Frost proposal would be almost impossible because Frost earns only $2.1 million and Zegras is at $5.75 million on the bridge deal he signed last season.

Farabee ($5 million AAV) as the central piece for Zegras would be closer in terms of making the dollars work — though the real value there is the very late 2025 first-rounder, which probably doesn’t get it done.

Anaheim says no to both. Not enough for a player with Zegras’s upside.

In real life, simple often also works the best.

Montreal is probably targeting a forward at No. 5 – why not turn the pick into a ready-made NHL player who is only 23 and produced 65 points in 81 games two years ago, before injuries derailed his 2023-24 season?

That might be a yes on both sides.

(Top photos of Jacob Markström, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Juuse Saros: Derek Cain, Christian Petersen and Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)