NHL Notebook: As teams start to stagnate, trade targets beginning to emerge

After relying on a dominant top line, a stout power-play unit and a scorching start from Jaroslav Halak to stay afloat in the early going of what should be a cutthroat Atlantic Division, the Bruins took it upon themselves to try to alleviate the scoring woes that have plagued lines 2-4 through the first five weeks of the regular swason. 

Ahead of Saturday’s home tilt with the Maple Leafs, Bruce Cassidy dipped into the organization’s prospect pool to add a spark to a dormant third line — slotting Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson in at the pivot alongside Anders Bjork and Danton Heinen, while David Backes joined a heavier, checking line with Chris Wagner and Sean Kuraly.

And while the past two games have been a bit more encouraging in terms of secondary scoring (although the Bergeron line once again dropped nine points on Toronto), it seems like a given that Don Sweeney and the B’s front office will be keeping a close watch on the evolving trade market in an effort to address two vacancies that the B’s failed to address this offseason — a top-six winger and a third-line center.

Now, JFK very well could pan out in his latest stint up in the NHL, and Joakim Nordstrom has filled in admirably up on David Krejci’s line. But if the B’s aspire to get past the big dogs in the East such as Tampa Bay, they’re going to need some more proven firepower up front.

The NHL Trade Deadline is still months away, but a number of teams are already charting their course for seller status — setting the stage for plenty of intriguing players to hit the block.

Let’s take a look at a few potential names to keep tabs on over the next couple of months.



Kevin Hayes - New York Rangers C

The Rangers are poised to go into full rebuild mode over the next couple of seasons, with Mika Zibanejad standing as the only New York forward over the age of 20 with a guaranteed contract going into the 2020-21 season.

As the Blueshirts begin to clean house, Hayes seems like an obvious choice to be dealt this February, with the Dorchester native set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer after agreeing to a one-year, $5,175,000 bridge deal with New York.

On a largely listless Rangers club (2.63 goals per game), Hayes has been one of the few bright spots, posting nine points through 16 games with a 50.84 Corsi For Percentage — the highest total for a Rangers center at five-on-five play.

The Rangers have put together a number of strong chances when Hayes, 26,  has been out on the ice, with New York holding a 50-36 edge in high-danger scoring chances over the 218 minutes of 5v5 time that Hayes has been out on the ice for.

Perhaps another team could offer more in an effort to reel in Hayes as a potential-top six option, but the 6-foot-5 skater could be a devastating addition in the middle of a third line with some tangible talent in Heinen and Bjork.

Wayne Simmonds - Philadelphia Flyers RW

Simmonds’ power-forward style might be a better fit for the Big Bad Bruins teams of old, but there’s no doubting that the 30-year-old forward could be an effective top-six weapon on a Bruins club desperate to find a big body to pair with Krejci.

The Flyers are in a bit of an odd spot, with Philly currently sitting in second place in the Metropolitan Division due in large part to a dynamic forward corps averaging 3.25 goals per game.

Simmonds (seven goals, 10 points) has played a big part in the Flyers’ strong start, although the winger still projects as a potential trade chip due to an expiring contract at the end of this season. With Philly in desperate need of some help in net and on the blue line to complement younger forwards such as Nolan Patrick and Sean Couturier, Simmonds is a logical player to part ways with if the team starts to bottom out.

In some ways, Simmonds very much projects as this trade deadline’s Rick Nash — a veteran power forward that teams will be bidding for to put their squad over the top come this spring.

Artemi Panarin - Blue Jackets LW

Ah, the Big Kahuna.

It seems like it’s not a matter of if, but when the Blue Jackets will part ways with the dynamic winger, who is set to get paid this July once he hits free agency.

Even though the Blue Jackets currently sit atop the Metro, Columbus will likely have to deal both Panarin and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky in order to net some sort of return — even if it might tank their chances for a postseason run in 2018-19.

Even if he’s set to become a free agent, teams are going to have to pay up for Panarin, who has tallied 250 points over 259 career games and will become a cornerstone offensive player for whatever team is able to lock the Russian winger up to a long-term deal.

Boston has plenty of trade capital to work with, but any deal involving a player of Panarin’s caliber is going to hurt. Columbus will obviously come asking for Charlie McAvoy, while you’d figure young regulars like Jake DeBrusk, Brandon Carlo and players further down the pipeline like Urho Vaakanainen and Jack Studnicka might be in play — especially if they can get Panarin to sign a long-term contract.

It would cost a lot, but Panarin is the type of playmaker that can transform an entire forward corps. Adding him to either of the B’s top-two lines would cause plenty of headaches for opposing D corps.

Mark Stone - Ottawa Senators RW

Off the ice, the Ottawa Senators are a hot mess. And, as expected, they’re not much better on the ice — ranking 26th among NHL clubs in attempts for over 60 minutes (CF/60) at 51.56, while finishing first in CA/60 at 69.49.

Clearly, the Senators are poised to be restocking their roster for the foreseeable future, and pending UFAs like Stone and Matt Duchene are fixing up to be prime trade bait this February, if not earlier.

Even on a club lacking plenty of playmakers, Stone has brought it thus far in 2018-19, posting 19 points through 16 games while leading all Sens forwards (min. 6 games) in Corsi For Percentage at 5v5 (52.36).

Given his current scoring rate, Stone could fetch a pretty hefty return for the Senators once the trade deadline draws closer. Will it be too much for the B’s, especially if the Senators request a sizable package as a divisional foe? You’d think Ottawa doesn’t have much leverage in that regard, but trying to figure out the organizational direction of the Senators is not something I’m going to spend much time doing. Considering, well — there really isn’t one.

Tyler Toffoli, Los Angeles RW

The LA Kings are in a rough spot — currently dead last in the West with 11 points, while also rolling out an aging roster with plenty of guys in the middle of long-term deals. It’s not a position that any franchise wants to be in, with perhaps the best course of action being finding deals for players set to hit free agency within the next couple of years.

With a cap hit of $4.6 million next year, Toffoli (nine points in 15 games) could be a valuable addition to a middle-six forward corps before hitting free agency in 2020. At this point, with the Kings paying guys like Ilya Kovalchuk, Dustin Brown and Jeff Carter all over $5.2 million annually through at least 2021, the team needs to do what it can to unload some pieces and start what should be a painful rebuild.

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Bruce Cassidy reflects on Joel Quenneville’s impact in Chicago

After rolling through an NHL season with zero coaching dismissals in 2017-18, the 2018-19 campaign has been much more eventful — with the Kings parting ways with John Stevens just 13 games into the year before the Blackhawks opted to dismiss Joel Quenneville following a 6-6-3 start.

While the Blackhawks are certainly trending downward, it can’t be overstated the impact that Quenneville had with the club — winning 797 games during his tenure in the Windy City and three Stanley Cup titles over the span of six seasons.

By the time Quenneville took over in 2008, the Blackhawks already had key pieces in place in Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Patrick Kane — but Bruce Cassidy was quick to note the impact that Quenneville had in terms of encouraging an active D corps to jump up on the rush, adding a new dynamic to a franchise that dominated for over a decade.

For Cassidy, who served as an assistant coach in Chicago from 2004 to 2006, the change in the team’s structure was evident, even from afar.

“Way back when, I worked for that organization and we used to run through those D interchanges with Duncan Keith and (Brent) Seabrook way back then when they had James Wisniewski and (Dustin) Byfuglien was still a defenseman, We incorporated some of those plays and they were so much better at it when Kane came along and he changed it.

"One thing that Kane did and that's credit to Joel, teams changed the way they defended in the D zone. It wasn't as much man to man and then all of the sudden, Kane would get up in that soft area and now, all of the sudden, if you're in layers, that's where teams break us down at times.

"They get a little time and space when they get up around the top of the circle. ... What Joel did is he had the D start going through with their whole group and being active and there's a lot of thinking going on there. It's kind of like Gretzky, how he changed a game when he went into the zone and pulled up there. That changed, you used to backcheck through the middle and then you start tracking to the puck. There were some changes to the game that he was involved with."

Despite Quenneville’s impact, Chicago is just the latest NHL team that has opted for a younger bench boss in an effort to spark a franchise, with the Blackhawks placing their faith now in 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton.

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Candid camera

The Ottawa Senators are still mired in an awkward situation after a video leaked of players ripping their coaching staff in an Uber back in October — but Cassidy didn’t offer much in terms of lessons learned from the incident as it relates to his club.

As he was quick to note, these conversations happen with just about any team, and just about any profession.

"Players talk about coaches all the time at any level, in any sport,” Cassidy said. “Coaches talk about players all the time, in about every sport. You just hope you're never mic'd. So they got caught in a tough spot. So hopefully — I don't know the players or that staff well.

“Hopefully they're able to put it behind them, because it does suck for everybody involved. If all of the sudden, you don't trust the players to have your back as a coach and then vice versa — if the players don't believe the coach has the intelligence, you pick the word, to do the job. Because that's a tough way to go to work every day. Hopefully they put it behind them."