Five NHL teams that should emulate wheeling-and-dealing Panthers

New York Rangers

Larry Brooks, who covers the team for the New York Post, suggested a trade of defenseman K'Andre Miller is all but inevitable. His reporting indicates 2020 No. 1 overall pick, winger Alexis Lafreniere, may not be far behind. It would be a risk for the Rangers to move on from either of these players, but they also represent two of their more valuable trade chips. New York apparently is willing to make a lateral move just to change the chemistry. It's about time.

Montreal Canadiens

If Montreal's front office can get past lingering bad blood with the Rangers, it might be an excellent fit for either Miller and/or Lafreniere. (Montreal EVP of hockey operations Jeff Gorton is a former Rangers GM.) The Canadiens have been tight to the salary cap during some of this rebuild and have let bad contracts expire. But during the next two summers, the Habs will have eliminated nearly all of their bad money. Montreal can't afford to let a short playoff appearance this season fool the brass into thinking the work is done. 

Dallas Stars

The Stars are cap-strapped and have plateaued as a Western Conference finalist. Winger Jason Robertson, still under contract for one more season and eligible for an eight-year extension July 1, would command significant value as a big, mobile two-time 40-goal scorer. There's a delicate balance in the NHL between having too few superstars (Carolina) and too many (Colorado before the Mikko Rantanen trade). A Robertson trade should be about one thing and one thing only: improving the team around its new core.

New Jersey Devils

The Devils have an abundance of top-end prospects and young players because of years of rebuilding. They're good enough to be a playoff team. But this postseason showed the large chasm between New Jersey and the top contenders in the Eastern Conference. Trading forward Dawson Mercer, young defensemen Simon Nemec or hulking 6-foot-7 prospect Anton Silayev should be on the table. 

Vancouver Canucks

A potential franchise-altering trade of defenseman Quinn Hughes isn't the only deal the Canucks should consider this offseason. Vancouver must retool around center Elias Petterson, a superstar-caliber player coming off a nightmare season. Could the Canucks convince retooling Boston to part with center Elias Lindholm? Streaky for a few seasons, he had a stellar playoff run in Vancouver with 10 points in 13 games in 2024. 

Forget the franchise-altering draft pick. The franchise-altering trade is waiting for a front office brave enough to follow the Florida model.