Late last week, we looked at players who could be value buys on the trade market. Today, we’ll look at players NHL teams should avoid if they’re on the market ahead of the March 7 trade deadline. Who could carry the most risk?
Rasmus Ristolainen
Rasmus Ristolainen used to be a punching bag for his poor play on the ice, but that isn’t the case anymore. He’s turned his game around since joining the Philadelphia Flyers and playing under John Tortorella. So why should teams avoid trying to acquire him at the trade deadline?
Related: NHL Trade Bait List for 2025 Trade Deadline
Fit matters, and he seems to be a good fit for the Flyers. Plus, there’s the Tortorella Effect since he always seems to get the most out of his players. Ristolainen is under contract through the 2026-27 season at a cap hit of $5 million, so there’s risk in giving up assets for him and he reverts closer to how he looked with the Buffalo Sabres. Even with the salary cap rising, that’d be a problematic contract to have on the books if he regresses.
Yanni Gourde
Yanni Gourde will be out of action until the trade deadline at a minimum and perhaps even a bit longer after undergoing surgery for a sports hernia at the beginning of this month. Health is the most significant reason teams should avoid him at the trade deadline, as he’s only appeared in 35 games this season.
Gourde can still play and would likely upgrade a team’s third line if they acquired him. Injuries may have lowered his trade value too, but there’s no guarantee he will stay healthy for any team that acquires him. There are other options with less risk if teams want to add a third-line center for the stretch run and the playoffs.
Ryan Lindgren
The New York Rangers are on the cusp of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, so what they do at the trade deadline remains to be seen. They already acquired J.T. Miller before the 4 Nations Break, but that trade was about more than just the 2024-25 season, given the term Miller has left on his contract.
If the Rangers do sell, Ryan Lindgren could be a player they decide to move. He may only be 27, but he’s already shown dramatic signs of decline. His defensive impacts have fallen off a cliff, and his style of play suggests that it will only get worse over time. Granted, he’d be a rental for any team acquiring him, but he’s not the player he was even a couple of seasons ago. The defense market doesn’t look particularly impressive this season, but teams should still avoid Lindgren if they need an upgrade on defense.
Carson Soucy
The Vancouver Canucks have already made a couple of moves, acquiring Marcus Pettersson and moving out Miller in separate trades a few hours apart. Next on their list could be Carson Soucy, who’s popped on trade boards in recent weeks. It’s been a struggle for him in his two seasons with the Canucks, and it might be time for a change of scenery.
Still, teams should probably steer clear of Soucy. His two-way impacts have been well in the red this season, and he still has an extra year left on his contract at a cap hit of $3.25 million. Many of the arguments against acquiring him are similar to Lindgren’s, but add the extra year on his contract, and there seems to be too much risk in giving up assets for him.
Seth Jones
Seth Jones is certainly better than he was before signing his mega contract with the Chicago Blackhawks in free agency in the summer of 2021, but he still isn’t worth the $9.5 million cap hit that he has. Granted, the Blackhawks are not a good team, but his market value is just $4.4 million (per The Athletic).
Jones is 30 and turns 31 at the start of next season. His contract runs through the 2030-31 season, and he’s only likely to keep declining as he ages. The Blackhawks might have to throw in a sweetener for a team to take on his contract, but it wouldn’t surprise me if some NHL teams think more highly of Jones than they should and are willing to give up assets for him. A trade for Jones may be more likely in the offseason because of his contract, but that doesn’t change the fact that teams should stay away from him. There’s not much upside to acquiring him.
Trent Frederic
The Boston Bruins would probably be best off selling. They have a goal differential of minus-25, and history suggests that’s a poor position to be in (unless you’re the 2023-24 Washington Capitals). They don’t have many tradeable assets, but Trent Frederic may be one.
Frederic is not having a great season, totaling just eight goals and 15 points in 55 games. That’s a relatively significant decline from last season, when he recorded 18 goals and 40 points in 82 games. Still, Frederic will probably garner plenty of attention on the trade market because of the physical style of hockey he plays that teams love to add for the playoffs. He isn’t likely to cost a team their top assets to acquire, but he may not move the needle much with how his season has gone.
Dylan Cozens
Dylan Cozens is a tough one to include here because of the Sabres Effect. Players like Ristolainen, Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart have gone on to play the best hockey of their careers since leaving the Sabres, so there’s always the risk that Cozens thrives in a new environment. Given his age, it’s not hard to think that could happen with him.
Cozens has regressed since his breakout season in 2022-23, when he posted 31 goals and 68 points in 81 games. He finished with just 47 points last season and is only on pace for 41 this season. That’s well below the value of his $7.1 million cap hit, and that contract runs for another six years after this season.
It’s more than possible Cozens is the product of a poor environment in Buffalo, but he may also not be the player he was in 2022-23. While he did play well that season, he shot nearly 15 percent, almost five percent above his career average. I can see why Cozens would appeal to teams, but there’s plenty of risk that he won’t be the player he showed in 2022-23. And with the contract he has, teams should proceed with caution if they’re looking to acquire him.
It’s Term That Can Be the Killer
There’s not as much risk in rentals since there’s no long-term commitment, but players like Cozens, Jones, etc. offer the most risk if they get dealt at the deadline due to their lengthy and pricey contracts. Those are generally the types of deals teams should look to avoid.
