Real Kyper's Trade Board 1.0: A first look at who could move this season

If there is a prevailing theme at the start of this NHL season, it’s that ‘player empowerment’ is having a major impact. 

We are now living in a new era of NHL hockey. The days of Lou Lamoriello telling you how long your hair can be, or managers sending you to the minors just because you looked at them the wrong way are long gone. The modern NHL star is no longer just a passenger; they are the drivers of organizations. They have the keys, they have the map, and they now believe they are in position to dictate exactly where they are going and how fast they want to get there.

There is no better example of this than Quinn Hughes, who was traded to Minnesota last year and is now beginning the 2026-27 season with an expiring contract. Then there’s Brady Tkachuk, who was traded to Florida over the summer to team up with his brother Matthew. They are both elite talents who flexed their muscles and leveraged short-term contracts to land in what they consider more favourable environments. 

But what happens when a star player attempts to change his existing circumstances while in the middle of a long-term contract?

Connor Hellebuyck and Dylan Larkin are two examples of players who committed to their organizations with seven- and eight-year contracts, respectively, and were given full no-trade clauses but both have now publicly acknowledged they’d like to move on to new horizons.

Unlike players who could test the UFA waters in 12-24 months, Hellebuyck and Larkin both still have five years remaining on their contracts and the fan bases in Winnipeg and Detroit seem to have very little patience for what’s happening here given the players accepted the security of these long-term deals only to pivot a few years later. Fans, rightfully, view this as a betrayal. 

Making matters worse, the GMs who have to navigate these scenarios are restricted to a limited number of options. 

Wings rookie interim GM Shawn Horcoff, who only was empowered recently, is in a delicate position, having to balance Detroit’s goal to make progress with the fact the team’s No. 1 centre and former captain wants out. Larkin certainly didn’t do himself any favours with his recent press conference, where he didn’t elaborate on exactly why he wanted to leave and didn’t seem to have any ideas on how to manage the fallout of his request being made public. He noted that Detroit fans deserved answers then failed to provide them. Awkward to say the least. 

Montreal took a crack at convincing Larkin to come and help Nick Suzuki, but Larkin still has no interest in coming to Canada.   

In the Meantime, Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff seems boxed in with Hellebuyck’s full no-move clause and a tricky goalie market. It’s already hard enough to attract UFAs to Winnipeg, so how do you get another team’s top-six player or goalie to lift their own trade protection to go to Manitoba? For now, the answer to that question is: you don’t.

Making the Jets’ situation even more difficult is Hellebuyck’s age. As one executive told me: “He’s 33, with a reputation for not delivering in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so it’s challenging to match a return value with his current and future value.”  

All the while, teams like Buffalo, Utah and San Jose continue to monitor the Hellebuyck situation as multiple teams try and convince the Jets to focus on acquiring their blue-chip prospects instead of roster players.  

Between Winnipeg’s asking price on Hellebuyck, Larkin’s current injury, and teams generally wanting to assess their own rosters out of camp, both players seem destined for a lengthy holding pattern. 

Some other notes on trade thoughts around the league:

• With so much attention on Hellebuyck, very few are asking what this could mean for Mark Scheifele. If their MVP goalie is on the way out, the Jets are beginning to ask themselves if it’s better keeping the 33-year-old Scheifele, or looking for an impressive trade package that could reignite the Jets and take them in a different direction for the next decade. 

The Canadiens are among the teams asking about Scheifele after failing on Larkin. They have their eye on him as the perfect 1-2 punch to support top line centre Nick Suzuki. It would, of course, be a hefty price that could include prospect Michael Hage, or 23-year-old NHLer Oliver Kapanen, among others (Kirby Dach is wrapped up in this too). And the thought of adding Sam Montembeault to work in tandem with Stuart Skinner is intriguing for Winnipeg, because they then wouldn’t need to get a goalie back in a Hellebuyck trade. 

• Now, can someone answer why Quinn Hughes hasn’t signed in Minnesota just yet? Is it that he doesn’t want to stay past this season, or that he’s waiting for an AAV 
offer over $20 million just like Cale Makar? Or is he just buying time until he unites with his brothers next?

• Kirill Marchenko, who desperately wants out of Columbus, should have an easier time doing so since he doesn’t have any trade protection on his contract, so it comes down to the Blue Jackets finding a deal they like. Furthermore, he’s a pending RFA with arbitration rights so a team trading for him won’t just be getting a one-year rental. Toronto, Edmonton and Montreal seem poised to try and make something work with Columbus. 

• In Vancouver, there is still plenty to watch out for. Brock Boeser may be in the most difficult predicament of all because he’s a pure shooter, but who is the centre that will reliably get him the puck this season? He needs to find ways to get the puck in the back of the net, build his trade stock back up, and position himself to be a trade candidate between now and the deadline in March.

And then there’s Elias Pettersson, who we’re still monitoring on the trade front. Making $11.6 million against the cap, Vancouver would probably need to eat about $2-2.5 million of that in a deal, but teams are beginning to come around to the idea of acquiring Pettersson. The inflation occurring around the league has changed the calculation on how much Pettersson needs to produce to justify a $9-10 million cap hit. Even with reduced output in the 55-to-60-point range, Pettersson is becoming more attractive given where the cap is going. 

The flurry of high-profile trade requests and contract standoffs as of camp makes a late-September trade board rather relevant. Usually we don’t start seeing major player talk until closer to American Thanksgiving or the quarter mark, which arrives earlier now that the regular season begins in September. But the sheer amount of “unhappy situations” lingering has kept the off-season rumour mill spinning at a mid-season pace. 

For my first trade board, I’ll look at players who can solidly be designated as trade candidates right now, plus other players who are on my “watch list” to see how they and their teams perform in the early-goings, and how that may affect their own availability. 

TOP TRADE CANDIDATES

Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets

His trade request was made at the end of last season, and though the Jets had many talks with teams around the draft and into the summer, they ultimately haven’t received the right offer for him yet. Now, Hellebuyck has not reported to camp and will sit out the start of the season waiting for a resolution, but it’s not often a star, award-winning goalie of this stature is moved so it won’t be an easy trade to make. 

Kirill Marchenko, Columbus Blue Jackets

A scrum with local reporters did nothing to calm the rumours around Marchenko. The 26-year-old’s production has exploded the past two years, making him a real difference maker who would be able to net a nice return for Columbus. Though he is a pending RFA for next summer, he’s only one more year away from becoming UFA eligible. 

Alexaner Nikishin, Carolina Hurricanes

A Stanley Cup champion in his rookie season, Nikishin is different than others on this trade board in that he doesn’t have any real control over his situation. The 24-year-old blueliner isn’t at camp and he doesn’t have a contract, but he’s an RFA who cannot receive an offer sheet. He either has to sign with the Hurricanes, or wait for a deal to be found and then sign. There’s lots of chatter about this delay being about a massive asking price from Nikishin’s side, but that isn’t necessarily the case. This is more about getting an opportunity in a market to be a top-three defenceman, no different to comparable players like Brandt Clarke in Los Angeles ($7.4 million), Simon Nemec in Calgary ($7.25 million) and Pavel Mintyukov in Anaheim ($7.2 million).    

Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

His trade request went public, his captaincy was stripped, but Larkin is at camp and participated in practice Wednesday. This is an important trade the Red Wings can’t afford to undervalue. Given he still has five years left on his contract, it’s not necessarily a trade that has to happen quickly either. 

Jason Robertson, Dallas Stars

A carryover from last season’s board, Robertson’s RFA contract status with Dallas was resolved when he signed a one-year, $12 million deal. That will get him back on the ice in a Stars jersey for 2026-27, but what happens after that? He’s eligible to extend with Dallas Jan. 1, but that likely won’t happen because under CBA rules any no-trade clause wouldn't kick in until his next contract does. That means Dallas could sign him long-term and still trade him to Seattle, where he has already rejected a move to. Robertson is completely on track to become a UFA next July or get traded if he doesn’t sign a new deal somewhere before then. Something to watch out for: Word is the Penguins’ acquisition of his younger brother Nick was done for a number of reasons, including the chance it will help lure Jason to town either in a trade or through free agency. Pittsburgh is one market Jason has tremendous interest in.

TRADE WATCH LIST

Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets

The Jets want to compete, but are they in a position to do that still? If the season starts slowly, urgency to react might pick up. The Jets may be asking themselves if the Hellebuyck trade request is the best time to pivot the direction of the overall roster. As mentioned above, if Winnipeg can get a great package for Scheifele that includes a goalie, it would take the pressure off needing to get a netminder back in a Hellebuyck move. 

Quinn Hughes, Minnesota Wild

Unlike Larkin or Marchenko, Hughes is saying all the right things about Minnesota, but until an extension is signed he has to be a trade candidate to watch. What’s the hold up? It can’t only be money as Minnesota is willing to go to a $20 million AAV for him. How long can the Wild go before they have to trade him or, if a contract doesn’t come, would they hang on to him as if he’s a rental?  

Zach Werenski, Columbus Blue Jackets

Some damage control has been done here by both GM Don Waddell and Werenski after it seemed like a trade was imminent in June. But once you get past that smoke, what’s really changed? He’s got two years left on his contract, we don’t know where the Blue Jackets are going as a team, he’s 29 years old and wants to be chasing a Stanley Cup, but hasn’t tasted the playoffs since 2020. 

Matthew Knies, Toronto Maple Leafs

After rumours swirled about his availability last season, I’m keeping Knies as a player to watch because, aside from his size and speed, the greatest asset right now for Toronto is that there are no trade restrictions on Knies’ contract. The noise will not go away with a new season. Not many top-six forwards around the league are without any trade protection and if the Leafs are still looking to land a big fish, Knies is a candidate to go the other way. 

Alex DeBrincat, Detroit Red Wings

Horcoff only recently was green lighted to take over and make decisions in Detroit and he’s walking into a tough situation. Right now, he could use a win after the team has been getting beat up for a while. DeBrincat would be that easy win if Horcoff could get an extension done, but until that happens this player is one to watch for in trade rumours since he’s on an expiring contract and could be a UFA next summer. 

Vince Dunn, Seattle Kraken

Nobody did Dunn a bigger favour than Bo Byram, who signed a long-term deal with Chicago this past summer with a $12.5 million AAV. Dunn also knows that Seattle’s opening bid for Jason Robertson was a $15.6 million AAV on an eight-year deal. Dunn falls into the same category as DeBrincat. He’s a pending UFA, so until he inks a new deal his name will be out there. We know he can get a minimum of six years elsewhere if he goes to market, and likely get a number in the neighbourhood of Byram’s contract. 

Erik Karlsson, Pittsburgh Penguins

What sort of team will the Penguins be this season? They were able to get back to the playoffs in 2026, but can they do it again? Karlsson is coming off a very solid season and now goes into the final year of his contract where his base salary is just $1.5 million. If the Penguins fall out of it, Karlsson becomes a very real trade candidate provided he lifts his NMC to play for a Stanley Cup-contending team.  

Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues 

Another carryover from last season, Binnington starts as a player to watch because he’s heading into the last year of his contract with the Blues. But until Hellebuyck is traded, Binnington takes a back seat in the goalie market. 

Pavel Zacha, Boston Bruins

The Bruins are in a real pickle with 29-year-old Zacha and teams like Nashville, Columbus, Philadelphia and Montreal are watching closely. Boston could commit now to a long-term deal in around a $9 million AAV, or wait it out to see what type of start they get out of the gate. If it’s a slow one, Zacha could skyrocket as a top trade candidate this season. 

Brock Boeser, Vancouver Canucks

They still would like to find a way to move him, but it’s harder to do that now. Still a situation to watch as the season gets going.

Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks

There is no urgency for the Canucks to make a move here, but teams are taking an interest in Pettersson again. If the Canucks retain money and trade Pettersson at a $9 million cap hit, they might be able to find a deal that puts them in a better place to rebuild.