Every NHL Team's Nightmare 2025 Trade Deadline Scenario

The 2025 NHL trade deadline is less than two weeks away, and it is now crunch time for teams to make their moves.

Stanley Cup contenders have dreams of adding the missing piece to their Stanley Cup puzzle.

Rebuilding teams are looking to add draft picks and young players that could help them become contenders in the future.

Everybody is hoping for the best.

Trade deadline moves do not always work out as planned, however, and sometimes the trade season does not go the way anybody wants it. So let’s take a look at the potential nightmare scenarios that every team could face over the next two weeks in advance of the NHL trade deadline. 

Maybe it is missing out on a piece a team needs. Or trading a player for lesser value than they should. Or simply not making a trade at all and risking losing a pending unrestricted free agent for nothing.

Nightmare scenario: Trading the wrong player

The Ducks' trade deadline plans should be pretty easy to figure out. They are not going to the playoffs, they are clearly still in a rebuild and they should look to sell some veteran players, specifically pending free agents like Brian Dumoulin.

If they can find a taker for goalie John Gibson (assuming his health is OK) they should do it.

But beyond that? This is a stay-the-course situation. Let the young core continue to develop and reassess your needs (both short-term and long-term) in the offseason. This also is not the time to move somebody like a Trevor Zegras, whose name is likely to keep popping up in trade speculation as he continues to struggle offensively. His value remains at a low point, and there is still a chance he can still put things together and figure it out. You want that to happen on your team, not somebody else's. Especially when the return might not be worth the gamble.

Nightmare scenario: Spending future resources to salvage this season

The Bruins are still in a position where they can make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but even if they do there is nothing to suggest they are capable of making a meaningful run at a championship. The team is still lacking top-tier centers, the defense is ravaged by injuries, and there just is not enough quality depth here on forward or defense to be a serious contender this season.

Trent Frederic should be traded.

They should explore trading Brad Marchand if he is open to it and if there is a demand for his services (there would be).

But they can not, and should not, give away any of the few long-term assets they have in an effort to salvage this season. Not for rentals. Not for short-term help.

That does not mean the Bruins should tear it all down and rebuild in the offseason. It does not mean they should not try to compete next season. It just means this season is probably a lost year in terms of championship contending and any meaningful additions should be saved for the offseason when they might have more options that can help them.

Nightmare scenario: Watching Dylan Cozens or Bowen Byram flourish somewhere else

Another season down the drain for the Buffalo Sabres as their playoff drought is prepared to hit 14 consecutive seasons. That means another year of selling at the trade deadline. But without many significant pending unrestricted free agents, the question becomes whether or not they move players under team control in an effort to rebuild from their latest failed rebuild.

Two prominent names that have been mentioned on the rumor mill are forward Dylan Cozens (signed long-term at over $7 million per season) and defenseman Bowen Byram (a pending restricted free agent).

The Sabres have had a knack in recent years of trading young players—for one reason or another—just before they go somewhere else and excel and become key parts of a championship team. Ryan O’Reilly. Jack Eichel. Sam Reinhart. Brandon Montour. Evan Rodrigues. It is not necessarily that either player should be untouchable, it is simply the risk that they might join the above list and go somewhere else to reach their full potential.

Nightmare scenario: Trying to do too much

The Flames entered the week as really the only team on the outside of the Western Conference playoff picture that actually still has a chance to sneak their way in. The fact they are even in contention for a spot is a kind of a surprise given how low preseason expectations were and how many veterans the team had traded off over the past year.

They might not be sellers, but they should not really be aggressive buyers, either. The playoffs are basically a coin-flip at this point and unless they are getting somebody back with term on their contract or under team control (like the additions of Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee) they should not really be in the market to do much. Do not give up anything of significance for rentals.

Nightmare scenario: Trading Mikko Rantanen

The Hurricanes made one of the biggest in-season blockbusters in years a few weeks ago when they acquired star forward Mikko Rantanen from the Colorado Avalanche. There was always some risk with that move given that Rantanen is a pending unrestricted free agent after this season and there is no guarantee that he will re-sign in Carolina. 

The possibility of him not re-signing has created some buzz that perhaps the Hurricanes might flip him again at the deadline if they are not confident they can keep him.

This does not seem like a realistic possibility, but we are not necessarily talking about things that are likely to happen here. We are talking about nightmare possibilities. Trading a superstar just weeks after acquiring him and setting yourself up for a potential Stanley Cup run would absolutely qualify as a nightmare. 

Will it happen? Not likely. But it would still stink for the Hurricanes if it did.

Nightmare scenario: Retaining major salary on a Seth Jones trade

The Blackhawks would probably like to get out from under Jones’ contract at some point, and he would probably like to get himself onto a team that is still not years away from serious contention.

The obstacle here is that Jones makes $9.5 million against the salary cap for another five full seasons after this. There are not many teams that can take on that salary even if Jones were a No. 1 quality defenseman. The fact he is not a No. 1 defenseman and has not played up to his salary only makes it worse. 

The one thing the Blackhawks should do not do is eat a portion of that salary long-term in order to facilitate a trade. Even though the Blackhawks are rebuilding, and even though the salary cap is expected to rise, the last thing they should want is a significant dead cap hit for the next five years when the rest of the roster should be improving and their other young players will be coming due for raises. It is unlikely they could get a draft pick or prospect back in return that would make it worth it for them to eat much salary for that long.

 Nightmare scenario: Not finding another center

The Avalanche are still a playoff team, but they have had some big needs throughout the year. That is still the case as they approach the trade deadline. After overhauling their goaltending situation, they need to do the same with some of their scoring depth, especially at center. The Mikko Rantanen trade gave them a little bit of salary cap flexibility and some additional trade assets to play with, and they can not miss out on that opportunity to add some much-needed help down the middle.

Nightmare scenario: Missing out

The Blue Jackets have overachieved and shockingly find themselves in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Are they a playoff lock? No. 

Should they be in the market for short-term rentals? Not at a significant cost.

But they have a lot of tradable assets and a second first-round pick at their disposal, while also having more salary cap space than any team in the NHL. If they can find a player with term remaining on their contract that can help them take a meaningful step forward, they should make a bold move for it. Not getting anything out of the deadline given all of the flexibility they have, and given how close they are to a playoff spot, would be disappointing.

Nightmare scenario: Not doing anything else

The Stars already made one big move when they traded a first-round and fourth-round pick to the San Jose Sharks for veteran forward Mikael Granlund and defenseman Cody Ceci.

On its own it is not the worst trade. Granlund and Ceci might help, but it’s a steep price to play for two rentals that might not be difference-makers. 

Do they have the assets or the desire to get anything else done? 

If not, that would be a potentially underwhelming trade deadline in a year where the Stanley Cup should be the target goal.

Nightmare scenario: Letting opportunity pass by

The Red Wings have turned their season around after hiring Todd McLellan as their new head coach and have played themselves back into a playoff position and could get back into the postseason for the first time since the 2015-16 season. As impressive as the turnaround has been, they still have some big needs defensively and during 5-on-5 play if they are going to lock down a playoff spot and end their drought. They do not have to get crazy. They do not have to lose sight of the big picture. But they have an opportunity to finally take a step forward and give their fans some excitement in the spring.

Nightmare scenario: Going into the playoffs with Stuart Skinner as their starting goalie

Every year that the Oilers have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisiatl on their roster and in the prime of their careers should be an all-in, do everything you can to win a Stanley Cup kind of year. Getting players like that, and especially at the same time, is something most franchises never get lucky enough to experience. You can not waste that opportunity. The Oilers still have major questions in net with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard both owning save percentages below .900 for the season.

Skinner was able to get hot come playoff time a year ago, but there is no guarantee he does that again and the Oilers should not take that chance. 

Goaltending options on the trade market are slim, but they have to try and find a better alternative or risk having a short spring followed by a long offseason.

Nightmare scenario: Another contender getting better

The Panthers are in a pretty good spot in terms of their roster and their place in the standings. They have been the NHL’s most successful team the past three seasons, have gone to the Stanley Cup Final two years in a row and won it all a year ago. They also still have an outstanding roster.

The problem is they do not have a lot of assets to deal, nor do they have much salary cap space to play with (unless Matthew Tkachuk’s injury is significant enough to put him on LTIR—but that seems like a stretch). 

With that said, if another contender around them, specifically a team like Toronto that is competing for the Atlantic Division title with them, is able to make a significant deal that could be a tough situation for Florida to overcome.

Nightmare scenario: Not getting another goal-scorer

The Kings are going to the playoffs for a fourth straight season and, again, have a rock-solid team that should be facing some expectations to actually do something when they get there.

The problem—they have been unable to take that step yet, losing three consecutive first-round series to the Edmonton Oilers. With another potential first-round matchup with the Oilers looming (or, perhaps even worse, a potential serious with the Vegas Golden Knights) they can not afford to sit on their hands and do nothing at the deadline.

As good as they are overall, and as solid as they are defensively, they could still use another goal-scorer and finisher to help give them that added boost they might need. Failing to do so and going into the playoffs against Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel, and then bowing out in the first-round again again, would be a frustrating result for a team that should be progressing more than this.

Nightmare scenario: Kirill Kaprizov not getting healthy

The Wild are still dealing with a tough salary cap situation due to the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts. Despite those financial limitations, they have still managed to play their back into the playoffs thanks to an MVP caliber season from Kirill Kaprizov, some solid young players taking a step forward and excellent goaltending. All good things. The problem is Kaprizov is currently injured and a timeframe for his return is not yet known. Salary cap limitations are going to prevent them from doing much, so they are going to have to hope that Kaprizov is able to come back and go back to his MVP level of play. If he does not, and if the Wild are unable to make a serious move, it is hard to imagine them doing much in a very tough Western Conference.

Nightmare scenario: Not adding more draft picks and futures

If you squint, you can see some progress being made with the Canadiens. They are hovering around the .500 mark and they have a promising young core of talent that is starting to come along. But they are not where they need to be just yet, and they have quite a few unrestricted free agents that could be flipped.

If they can not come out of this with a couple of extra draft picks, or at least another prospect or young NHLer, by dealing away players like Jake Evans or Joel Armia that would be a let-down.

Nightmare scenario: Overreacting

There is no way to sugarcoat it. This season itself has been a nightmare for the Predators. After going on an offseason spending spree that saw them add Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei, while also re-signing Juuse Saros to a long-term deal, there were serious expectations for this team to contend in the Western Conference.

It has not happened. 

Instead of being a Stanley Cup contender, they are one of the worst teams in the NHL. 

It has been bad. 

For as bad as it has been, the Predators do not need to overreact here. They signed those players to be long-term pieces, and it was never going to be a one-year shot. Do not trade players at low value, do not retain salary to get out of deals, and do not try to add anything to salvage it. Stand pat, make some fixes in the offseason, and see if a fresh start helps next season.

Nightmare scenario: Not adding to their center depth

The Devils fixed their biggest issue from a year ago (goaltending) by adding Jake Allen at last year’s deadline and Jacob Markstrom over the offseason. They do not need either to be a game-stealer, they just need them to not be game-losers. They have accomplished that.

They have also had better injury luck than they had a year ago and have kept their stars on the ice for most of the season.

Those two factors have helped make the Devils a bona fide contender again.

But they could still use some help down the middle, and it would be really disappointing to let the deadline pass without getting another center to help put them over the top.

Nightmare scenario: Not having self-awareness

General manager Lou Lamoriello never wants to give up on a season, he rarely goes into a sell mode, and the Islanders little surge before the 4 Nations Face-Off break might have made it easy for him to keep players like Brock Nelson and Kyle Palmieri to make another run at the playoffs.

That would be a mistake.

And it would also be a risk to re-sign either of them given their ages. The Islanders need to get younger and need to avoid adding more long-term contracts to players on the wrong side of 30. Nelson and Palmieri might have some real value and could bring back solid returns in the form of draft picks or young players. They need to know what they are and what the expectations should be.

Nightmare scenario: Not having self-awareness

Yeah, it is the same risk as their crosstown rivals. 

The Rangers have made a series of trades this season and recently traded away Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil—as well as a first-round draft pick—to bring in long-term commitments to the likes of Will Borgen and J.T. Miller.

While Miller is still a good player and productive, he is another player with a big-money deal on the wrong side of 30. Trading young players for older, expensive players has rarely been a formula that has worked for underachieving Rangers teams. 

This team just does not seem to have the juice it had in recent years, and nothing about their overall play suggests they are where they should be. 

They should strategically sell. They should not trade more young players or picks for veteran players to try and salvage this season.

Reilly Smith? Ryan Lindgren? They should be shopped and moved.

Nightmare scenario: Not making a depth move

There is a playoff spot right there for the taking for Ottawa, and after adding Linus Ullmark over the summer it is pretty clear they are determined to make the playoffs this season. The top part of the lineup has enough impact players to get there, but the bottom part of the lineup could use some help at both forward and defense. They do not need to get crazy about it or give up too much, but this might be a situation to add a cheap rental at the bottom of the lineup to help end the playoff drought.

The true nightmare scenario would be trading Brady Tkachuk, but that seems so unlikely to happen that it is not even worth discussing. Especially after his 4 Nations Face-Off performance. That is guy you build around.

Nightmare scenario: Not shopping certain players

The Flyers already made a big move this season to trade Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee to Calgary, and it was an intriguing move in the way it cleared up some big salary cap space this offseason.

They should not be afraid to make more moves that can clear space and bring back more assets.

The name to watch would be center Scott Laughton. He still has term left on his deal, he does not make a lot of money, and a lot of contenders would certainly love to have him down the middle of their lineup. The Flyers are progressing, but they need to keep thinking long-term and should not pass up opportunities to add more future pieces.

Nightmare scenario: Standing pat

Even though they have not come out and declared it, it should be pretty clear the rebuild is here and underway. Every move they have made going back to last year’s trade deadline has been about adding young players, prospects and future draft picks. They have been mostly successful in doing so.

They need to continue it.

Trading Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin is not going to happen, and it is unlikely that Bryan Rust, Rickard Rakell or Kris Letang are going anywhere unless somebody really wows them with an offer.

But they still have a lot of other players that could be moved, including Anthony Beauvillier, Kevin Hayes, Matt Grzelyck, Danton Heinen and Vincent Desharnais. Will any of them bring back a huge return? No. But adding more mid-round picks into their rapidly growing pool of picks would give them a ton of flexibility for the offseason and the future.

Nightmare scenario: Standing pat

Another team deep into a rebuild that still has a ways to go before it gets back to the playoffs. While the Sharks do not have a lot of big-ticket trade pieces, there is no reason why they can not flip Luke Kunin or their pending free agent goalies. Keep collecting picks, even if they are not flashy.

Nightmare scenario: Not getting good value for Jared McCann

The Kraken have really struggled to gain any traction over their first four years in the league, and the 2024-25 season has been another disappointment.

They seem likely to trade pending free agents Yanni Gourde and Brandon Tanev. 

If they decide to move a bigger piece that still has term remaining on their deal, Jared McCann would probably be the most attractive piece. He is an outstanding finisher, has a great shot, can play all over the lineup, and still has term remaining on his deal with a very manageable salary cap number ($5 million per season). Contenders should be interested in him if he is on the market.

If the Kraken do decide to move him, however, they have to make sure they get a huge return. This can not be a trade for the sake of a trade situation. Get big value or do nothing.

Nightmare scenario: Not replenishing their draft pick capital

The Blues are going to miss the playoffs again, and that has to be seen as a disappointment given some of the aggressive moves they made this season, including the offer sheet contracts for Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg, and the hiring of head coach Jim Montgomery.

None of those moves were necessarily bad, but the results on a team-wide level are simply not there.

They also find themselves in a situation where they have only three draft picks in 2025 and do not have a second-round pick until the 2028 class.

Nightmare scenario: Not adding more forward depth

The Lightning still have the stars to make a run at a championship. As long as Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Victor Hedman, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Jake Guentzel are here and playing the way they are, they are going to have a chance to compete.

But this lineup has become increasingly top-heavy in recent years and that is not going to cut it in the playoffs against some of the teams at the top of the Eastern Conference. 

They are at a point where a lot of their draft picks and prospects are likely to have more value to them as trade chips than anything else. The window is still cracked open. Try to keep it open. Standing pat and not trying to help their stars would be a disappointment.

Nightmare scenario: Not getting a third-line center

There is a common denominator in a lot of the Maple Leafs playoff disappointments that does not get mentioned enough.

It is not always the defense.

It is not always the goaltending.

It is usually the offense. 

Sometimes it is their stars, a lot of times it is their depth. As good as their big-four group of forwards are with Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander, their depth scorers are lacking. Especially at the center position. The pressure is on again for them to make a deep run, and if they do not make a big move for a legitimate third-line center it would be hard to imagine them making the sort of run they want.

Nightmare scenario: Selling anybody that is not a pending UFA

Their first year in Utah has seen the team take a small step forward both on and off the ice. They have a real ownership situation, they have a real arena to play in, and they have an energized fan base that has fully bought in. They also made some big splash moves over the offseason to add Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino.

Combined with some young stars in Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther, as well as some serious salary cap space ths offseason, it is not hard to imagine them being a playoff team next season.

Because of that it would be unwise for them to sell too much this season unless somebody really makes them a ridiculous offer. If you want to sell off your pending UFA’s, do that. But do not force yourself into anything more than that.

Nightmare scenario: Trading Elias Pettersson

There is clearly something off with Pettersson this season. There was clearly an issue between him and J.T. Miller, and by the end the Canucks were not even trying to hide it before they sent Miller to the Rangers.

Even with all of that said, and even if the Canucks are frustrated with Pettersson, the absolute worst thing they can do right now is trade him at the deadline. That is a trade they are never going to win. Not only because it is hard to win a trade for an in-his-prime player with a 100-point season under his belt, but also because his trade value is about as low as it could possibly be right now.

Nightmare scenario: Not finding a way to get a second-line scorer

It will not be easy for them to do, but it never is for the Golden Knights at the trade deadline. They always have to deal with salary cap issues, they never have a ton of prospects or young players to deal, but they always manage to get it done when they have a need or a desire.

This season they have a need, and they should have a desire.

They are still very much a Stanley Cup contender in the Western Conference, but they could really use another second-line scoring winger to really round out their lineup.

Nightmare scenario: Not going all in while they still can

The Washington Capitals are writing quite a special story this season. Not only is Alex Ovechkin on his way to setting the all-time goals mark by breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record, but they are also the best team in the Eastern Conference and one of the best teams in the NHL. They have done a complete 180 from the mid-team that snuck into the playoffs a year ago, and are a legitimate contender. 

They might not get many more opportunities like this with Ovechkin still in the lineup and playing like this. Especially with so many pending unrestricted free agents after this season.

The Capitals made a serious effort to get better this season, now they need to make a serious effort to win it all. Not getting a third-line center upgrade, or a bottom-six upgrade, or doing everything in their power to win Ovechkin another Stanley Cup would be a failure by the front office. They have not had many of those over the past few years.

Nightmare scenario: Not getting a second-line center

The Winnipeg Jets got off to one of the best starts in NHL history and have used that to establish themselves as one of the top teams in the league. Their record is outstanding, and they have the type of top-line talent that can compete. Especially with Connor Hellebuyck playing at a Vezina Trophy level again in net.

As good as the top of their lineup is, they still have some secondary scoring weaknesses. Especially at the second-line center spot. They have a great opportunity to win this season, but they really need more help if they are going to compete with the top contenders in the Western Conference. They need another scorer in their lineup.