Fantasy Hockey Trade Deadline Winners, Losers, Wildcard, and What’s Next for Playoffs

Hey, folks! We're going to review six teams and how they did not only on trade deadline day, but the weeks leading up to it. There were a lot of trades over the past few weeks and I covered every single one here on FantasySP.

If you want to take a peek at what these trades did to your players' value for your fantasy league, be sure to check out our Fantasy Hockey Trade Value Chart.

The Winners

Dallas Stars

Is this a surprise to anyone? If it is, I would move the rock you have been under for the past week or so. The (second) winner of the Mikko Rantanen sweepstakes, who got double points for the acquisition by inking him to an eight-year deal as part of the trade. Considering Rantanen would not sign with the Carolina Hurricanes, this is an extra win for the Stars.

Losing prospect Logan Stankoven, two first-round picks, and two-third round picks is a steep price, but considering Rantanen is an elite player, who was the best on the market by far, and is now locked up for right years, it is well worth it.

Rantanen did take a bit of a production slide with his short stint in Carolina, but let's hopefully chalk that up to being in shock and being unhappy, rather than riding Nathan MacKinnon's coattails for years. I do believe that all roads to the Stanley Cup go through the Stars in the West. Let's not forget that soon Miro Heiskanen is soon to return. If you have any Stars on your fantasy team, then you should be celebrating in the streets!

The Stars should consider themselves lucky that Mitch Marner decided not to waive his no move clause, as Carolina offered a Rantanen to Marner trade, and it was Marner who put a stop to the move.

Florida Panthers

The Boston Bruins lost their captain, Brad Marchand, in a shocking trade to the Panthers. The price was also a near fleece, for the sunshine state team. Yes, Marchand had a few back surgeries this summer, but it's still Marchand, and a conditional first or second pick is relatively inexpensive considering the market this year.

Again, as I stated in my trade deadline day Marchand trade article, who will the rats coming down on the ice be for? Marchand or the Panthers?

Wait no, that wasn't what I said. Well, yes it is, but my point was going to be; imagine a line with Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, and Marchand. 

Sorry, to me Marchand will always be “the rat”, and forever a pest. If I were a Panthers fan or someone who is loaded up in fantasy with Panthers players, I would be thrilled. That line makeup could be scary, though.

Colorado Avalanche

So Lou Lamoriello decided to move Brock Nelson after all. The Avalanche had to pay a high price, because nobody is taking advantage of Lamoriello, but again this trade has already been worth it.

Nelson is filling their second line center position, playing between Jonathan Drouin and Valeri Nichushkin. A pretty good upgrade from his linemates with the New York Islanders. Nelson has also landed a number one powerplay spot alongside three other guys who might be a big deal: MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Martin Necas.

If you didn't figure it out, that's the highest scoring player in the league, the league's best defenseman, and Necas. Did we forget that the Avalanche also got Necas?!

Two huge additions only make the Avalanche an absolute threat to every other team in the league. They are my favourites to win the Stanley Cup this year. They are stacked at every position, have figured out their goaltending, and with the additions of Necas and Nelson, they are near unbeatable. That's not including another really decent addition from the Bruins in forward Charlie Coyle.

They made the Maple Leafs look like an AHL team the first game post trade deadline after both teams' acquisitions.

The Losers

Boston Bruins

Remember two years ago when the Bruins had a 65-win season? When they won 22 consecutive home games in a row? When they broke a record for fastest to 100 points? When they were the fastest team in history to 50 wins?

Guess what? They sold the farm. The Marchand era is over, sadly. Some are calling the Bruins a winner this trade deadline, but I just can't see it. Not yet, anyways.

Losing their captain is a devastating blow, but it's not the only negative loss this year. Starting in net, the Bruins moved Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators, then immediately got into a public contract dispute with Jeremy Swayman. While it did eventually resolve itself, it really set the Bruins off to a negative start of the season.

During the trade period, they have also shipped away forward Charlie Coyle and defenseman Brandon Carlo, revealing to the league they are officially sellers.

Maybe in the long run, the Bruins will be winners of this year's moves, however right now I am putting them as losers. Between the negative publicity of Swayman's contract, losing key players who still have term, and moving their beloved captain, it's left a sour taste in many fan's mouths and these moves take them completely out of the race to compete this year, and likely several years to come.

Vancouver Canucks

A couple things of note here: the Canucks freed up about $13M in cap space and made big moves with it, acquiring a big name to help push them forward as captain Quinn Hughes recovers just in time for playoffs.

Just kidding, the Canucks sat on that cap space and did nothing with it. Even if they would have gotten a pick or two to eat that space for another team it would have been more of a win than doing nothing.

Further, forward Brock Boeser is on an expiring deal and was taking calls on him and allegedly refused a first-round pick offer. If the Canucks can't get a deal done with Boeser, it'll only make things worse.

For years the Canucks have battled a negative stigma surrounding the team, and even brought in the Sedin twins in a player relations role to try to turn the culture around and try to garner a destination environment to entice players to want to play there, instead of having players always include Vancouver in their no move clauses.

Sitting on your hands with available cap space is a huge waste in my eyes, as is either not accepting good returns on expiring contracts or not signing extensions on them. Come on Canucks, you can't get better by doing nothing. Do better!

Wildcard Team

Carolina Hurricanes

OK, put the pitchforks and torches away. Hear me out!

Let's call a spade a spade here; the Canes somehow lost both Necas and Rantanen, but...

I don't want to look at this season. Yes, they are giving up a season where they could be going for it, too, but!

What did they bring in, putting both losing these players and this season aside? Well, first Necas had one more year on his deal and there was no guarantee he would re-sign. It is no secret he was not happy with his deployment there, being utilized on the second power play unit and on the second line. Rantanen also made it clear he was not going to sign there, despite rumoured offers of $13M+, which is why the Canes inevitably moved him to the Avalanche.

So to answer the question, they had to get some returns for these trades, and while they may not help them this season or fill the holes they created, these trades will most certainly help them in the future. The Canes picked up forwards Taylor Hall, Logan Stankoven, and conditional first-round picks in 2026 and 2028, and third-round picks in 2026 and 2027.

A decent haul (not Hall, he's not helping anyone anymore) all things considered. Stankoven as mentioned before is a promising prospect who was touted to be the best prospect in the Stars' system, a couple firsts and a couple thirds.

All of this for Necas/Rantanen, forward Jack Drury, a 2025 second-round pick, a 2025 third-round pick and a 2026 fourth-round pick. Honestly, not too shabby. The Canes are still good today, and this has ensured they will continue to be good in the future too.

Wildcard, not a loser. I will die on this hill.