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NHL Trade Talk’s 2024-25 Top 20 Trade Bait Board 3.0

Originally posted on NHL Trade Talk | Last updated Feb 6, 2025 3:08 PM ET

With the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline a month away, the buzz around potential moves intensifies. Teams evaluate their rosters, factoring in their playoff odds, and exploring deals to address critical needs. Whether it’s acquiring a game-changing forward, a reliable defenseman, or freeing up cap space, the trade market is set to deliver some blockbuster moves. And as the roster freeze kicks in on Friday, some teams are getting ahead of the rest of the market.

Despite the fact some big names have already been moved — including Mikko Rantanen, Marcus Pettersson, Martin Necas, and others — this year’s trade bait board is packed with intriguing names—veteran stars looking for a fresh start, pending free agents who could be valuable rentals, and players on expiring contracts whose teams may choose to capitalize on their value.

These 20 names represent some of the most likely—and most exciting—candidates to be on the move before the deadline.

NHL Trade Talk Top 20 Trade Bait Board

Board Ranking	Player	Team & Contract	Interested Teams
1	Brock Nelson	NYI 1 YR/$6M	DAL, EDM, TOR
2	Casey Mittelstadt	COL 2 YRS/$5.7M	BOS, CGY, WIN
3	Dylan Cozens	BUF 5 YRS/$7.1M	CGY, PHI, VAN
4	Chris Kreider	NYR 2 YRS/$6.5M	BOS, CAR, TOR
5	Ryan Lindgren	NYR 1 YR/$4.5M	EDM, DET, TB
6	Oliver Bjorkstrand	SEA 1 YR/$5.4M	CBJ, UTH, VAN
7	Rasmus Ristolainen	PHI 3 YRS/$5.1M	CGY, UTH, VAN
8	Bowen Byram	BUF 1 YR/$3.8M	FLA, SEA, VAN
9	John Gibson	ANA 3 YRS/$6.4M	CAR, DET, EDM
10	Jamie Oleksiak	SEA 1 YR/ $4.6M	CBJ, DAL, TOR
11	Scott Laughton	PHI 2 YRS/$3M	OTT, TBL, TOR
12	Trent Frederic	BOS 1 YR/$2.3M	LAK, STL, WIN
13	Brandon Tanev	SEA 1YR/$3.5M	BOS, EDM, TOR
14	Gustav Nyquist	NSH 1 YR/$3.1M	CAR, COL, FLA
15	Kyle Palmieri	NYI 1 YR/$5M	MIN, NJD, WIN
16	Ryan Donato	CHI 1 YR/$2M	CAR, FLA, LAK
17	Alex Kerfoot	UHC 1 YR/$3.5M	COL, DAL, VGK
18	Jason Zucker	BUF 1 YR/$5M	FLA, NJD, VGK
19	Jake Evans	MTL1 YR/$1.7M	CGY, TBL, WSH
20	David Savard	MTL 1 YR/ $3.5M	DAL, EDM, LAK
21	Yanni Gourde	SEA 1 YR/$5.1M	DAL, TBL, TOR
22	Alexandar Georgiev	SJS 1 YR/$2.9M	DET, LAK, PIT
23	Nick Bjugstad	UHC 1 YR/$2.1M	EDM, MIN, TOR
24	Reilly Smith	NYR 1 YR/ $3.7M	COL, NJD, VGK
25	Nick Robertson	TOR 1YR/$875K	CBJ, SEA, UTH
26	Ryan O’Reilly	NSH3YRS/$4.5M	BOS, COL, TOR
27	Ivan Provorov	CBJ 1 YR/$4.7M	FLA, TBL, WSH
28	Jeff Skinner	EDM1 YR/$3M	DAL, TBL, COL, LAK
29	Barclay Goodrow	SJS2 YRS/$3.6M	COL, TBL, VGK
30	Brian Dumoulin	ANA1 YR/$3.1M	EDM, MIN, WIN