The NHL trade deadline has come and passed, and with about a month left to go in the regular season, the chase for the Stanley Cup is as tight as ever.
Several teams gave up a lot to secure impact players they hope will put them over the edge. Let’s take a look at the five teams that have the best chance to win it all following the trade deadline. (All records through Wednesday’s games.)
Dallas Stars | 42-20-2
The Stars secured arguably the biggest piece of the trade deadline: forward Mikko Rantanen. Rantanen had already been traded from Colorado to Carolina, but, after failing to secure a long-term deal, the Hurricanes let the league know they were open to trade the Finn. Dallas ultimately secured him and subsequently signed him to an eight-year, $96 million deal.
The Stars also traded for forward Mikael Granlund in February, making their forward group, which includes stars Jason Robertson, Roope Hintz, Wyatt Johnston and Matt Duchene, one of the best in the NHL. They’ll be a favorite in the Western conference come playoff time.
Florida Panthers | 40-22-3
The defending Stanley Cup champions were once again busy at the trade deadline, adding defenseman Seth Jones and forward Brad Marchand. Jones will upgrade the right side of their defense, which has become a little thin with Aaron Ekblad’s 20-game PED suspension.
Although Marchand, like star winger Matthew Tkachuk, is injured and may miss the rest of the regular season, he should provide key experience and physicality during the playoffs. After winning eight out of their past 10 games, the Panthers are heating up going into the postseason.
Tampa Bay Lightning | 37-23-4
The Lightning have been one of the hottest teams coming out of the 4 Nations tournament, winning six out of their past nine games. They also added to the middle six of their forward group, acquiring Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand from Seattle.
With a fantastic forward group and goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy putting up some of the best numbers in the league, Tampa Bay will be a team to watch in the Eastern conference.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto addressed key holes in its lineup with the acquisitions of center Scott Laughton and defenseman Brandon Carlo.
The Maple Leafs also have improved goaltending, with the duo of Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz providing stability. If Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander can step it up in the playoffs, Toronto could make a run.
Washington Capitals | 39-22-3
The only team on this list who didn’t make a big trade (save for adding depth winger Anthony Beauvillier), the Capitals retooled in the offseason and haven’t looked back.
Newcomers Logan Thompson (G), Pierre-Luc Dubois (F), Jakob Chychrun (D) and Matt Roy (D) have fit in seamlessly. With Alexander Ovechkin finding the fountain of youth and set to break Wayne Gretzky’s goal record, Washington has been flying high this season.
ALEX OVECHKIN IS WITHIN SINGLE DIGITS OF BREAKING WAYNE GRETZKY’S ALL-TIME GOAL SCORING RECORD
The Capitals captain recorded his 1,600 NHL point as well on this goal pic.twitter.com/4Y1pfbw1PI
All this points to the Capitals pushing for the President’s Trophy and another Cup run.
Natalie Vaitas is a sports writer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She received her Sport Management degree from Aquinas College in 2021, where she was a member of the women's hockey team. She has experience covering the NHL and her hometown Detroit Red Wings; she also enjoys attending Michigan football games with her family.
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