NHL Trade Rumors: 5 Teams That Will Still Be After Rick Nash This Summer

The NHL trade deadline has come and gone, and the most talked about trade target this year, Columbus Blue Jackets' captain Rick Nash, remains in Columbus for at least a few more months.

After missing the playoffs for the 10th time in 11 years, the Jackets were believed to be entering into a rebuilding phase where their most talented players would be traded for draft picks and prospects.

All-Star center Jeff Carter was shipped to Los Angeles for defenseman Jack Johnson and the Kings' first round draft pick, and it was assumed that Nash would be next.

However, Nash remained with the team past the deadline and will complete his ninth-season in Columbus.

Just because the 27-year-old was not traded before the deadline, this does not mean he won't be traded before the start of next season.

After the deadline had passed, Jackets general manager Scott Howson revealed that it was Nash who had come to the team's front office and asked to be traded out of Columbus.

The Jackets were asking for an immediate impact player, two or more prospects, as well as a first-round draft pick in return for Nash.

Several teams were interested, but no one was willing to give up that much, at least during the season.

There were teams that spoke with Howson and told him they would be more willing to give Columbus what they are asking for in return for Nash before or during the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Howson has no plans of lowering his asking price for Nash, and these five teams may be willing to pay it this summer.

The Philadelphia Flyers were rumored to be in and out of the Rick Nash sweepstakes.

One week, the Flyers would not even be mentioned as being interested, only to be followed the next week with how they were making smaller moves so they could go after the Columbus captain.

However, at deadline day, the Flyers did not make any moves, sticking with the team they had heading into the postseason, currently ranked fifth in the Eastern Conference.

The biggest issue holding the Flyers back is their goaltending, which seems to happen on a yearly basis.

Philly pulled out all the stops this offseason so that they could sign Ilya Bryzgalov to a monster nine-year deal.

Bryzgalov has been inconsistent recently, having put together back-to-back wins only once since mid-January.

If the Flyers get knocked out of the postseason because of shoddy goaltending, they may look to upgrade their offense to try and solve it.

Having better offensive numbers would take some of the pressure off Bryzgalov, allowing him to not have to stand on his head night-in and night-out trying to keep the Flyers in the game.

Philadelphia currently leads the league in goals per game with 3.3, but it clearly isn't enough as they struggled during the month of February.

If this continues, the Flyers could very well be in on the Nash sweepstakes this summer.

Just a couple of names the Jackets would most likely look for in return include Sean Couturier and James van Riemsdyk, a player that was no stranger to trade rumors this year.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are a team that is no stranger to having an interest in Rick Nash.

Each year the Jackets miss out on the playoffs, it seems that the most talked about Nash rumors involve the Ontario native heading to Toronto, but a deal never seems to get done.

The Maple Leafs were considered front runners for Nash throughout the month of February, but backed off towards the end as general manager Brian Burke grew impatient.

Toronto currently sits on the outside of the top-eight in the Eastern Conference, and may feel the need to make some changes if they were to miss the postseason for the seventh time in as many years.

A few days ago, Burke made his first change, by firing head coach Ron Wilson and quickly replacing him with former Anaheim Ducks coach Randy Carlyle.

There is no limit to how many moves Burke is planning to make, but if he wants to keep himself off of the hot seat, he will make as many as necessary.

Because of this, the Leafs could make a push for Nash this offseason as they try and get the right puzzle pieces to make a push for the postseason next year.

The Leafs still have a chance of making the playoffs this season, but if they miss out again, they may become desperate.

One of the biggest issues that the Blue Jackets will look to fix this offseason is their goaltending.

It seems like Columbus has finally reached their boiling point when it comes to goalie Steve Mason and is finally ready to cut the cord, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

After winning the Calder Trophy in 2009, Mason has had three consecutive unimpressive seasons where he has struggled with consistency.

Mason struggled early on during this season, which made for some rumors that the Jackets were looking for an upgrade in net.

Two of the most popular names that were brought up were Vancouver's Cory Schneider and Boston's Tuukka Rask.

Rask is considered the future in net for Boston and was quickly taken off the table, but Schneider was very much still in play.

The Canucks are in a pickle as Schneider has proven to be a capable No. 1 goaltender, but the team has Roberto Luongo signed to a long-term deal.

Schneider is set to become a free agent this offseason, and the Canucks may look to get as much as they can for him before he hits the open market.

Before the trade deadline, it was rumored that if Schneider was available, the Canucks would be considered the front-runner for Nash.

However, the Canucks would be faced with a challenge when it came to their cap space, as Nash brings a hefty $7.8 million annual cap hit.

The Canucks could shed some cap space during the offseason and be more willing to talk to the Jackets about Nash, possibly bringing a future franchise goaltender to Columbus.

One of the teams that was in on the Nash sweepstakes until what seemed like the very end were the San Jose Sharks.

The Sharks were considered to be the dark horse in the race for the Jackets' captain, but emerged as a late front-runner just days before the deadline.

One player very much involved in the talks was center Joe Pavelski, a proven 20-goal scorer who could make an immediate impact in Columbus.

The Sharks had the NHL-ready players, but the big question facing the Sharks was if they had the prospects the Jackets desire to get this deal done.

When it came to prospects, the Jackets wanted Calder Trophy finalist Logan Couture to help replace the scoring hole left by Nash.

This is where the Sharks said no deal, but it was rumored that they are still interested and could have a better offer for the Jackets in the offseason.

It will be interesting to see what deal the Sharks come up with that will please the Jackets, while also keeping Couture in California.

The team that seemed to have the best chance at acquiring Nash before the trade deadline was the New York Rangers.

According to The Hockey News, the Rangers put together a last-ditch effort to grab the elite scorer by offering Brandon Dubinsky, prospects J.T. Miller, Tim Erixon, and Christian Thomas, as well as a first-round pick.

As enticing an offer as that may be, the Jackets once again turned down the deal, keeping Nash in Columbus for just a little bit longer.

Columbus was looking for different prospects than the ones offered by the Rangers, wanting players like either Ryan McDonagh or Michael Del Zotto, center Derek Stepan, Carl Hagelin, and Chris Kreider.

However, the Rangers did not want to completely tear up their roster to acquire Nash and a deal could not be reached.

It is understandable that the Rangers would not want to give such players up while in the middle of a playoff push, but an early exit from the postseason could cause the Rangers to rethink their offer.

The two teams could re-ignite their trade talks in the offseason and the Jackets may be able to get some of the prospects they were hoping for.