After two up-and-down seasons in Colorado, Ivan Ivan has been acquired by Boston for Fabian Lysell. The 23-year-old undrafted Czech forward found himself on the outside looking in after only appearing in nine games for the Avalanche in 2025-26, picking up a point, two PIMs and four SOG. He is expected to compete for a spot in Boston's bottom-six for the start of the 2026-27 season.
Lysell's time in Boston's ends after just 12 appearances after the forward was traded to Colorado for Ivan Ivan on Saturday. Lysell was Boston's 2021 1st round pick (21st overall) but never panned out as planned last appearing in the NHL in 2024-25. He spent all of last season with Providence (AHL), where he put up 17 goals and 42 points in 57 games played.
With New York collecting draft picks, they also acquired Massimo Rizzo alongside the no.148 pick in the 2026 draft from Nashville for Adam Edstrom on Saturday. Rizzo is 25 and has spent the last two seasons jumping around the AHL after graduating from the University of Denver (NCAA) in 2023-24. In 14 games combined between Providence (AHL) and Milwaukee (AHL) last season he had two goals, five points and four PIMs.
Edstrom will join his second team in his fourth NHL season after it was announced mid draft on Saturday that Nashville had acquired the towering forward from New York for Massimo Rizzo and the no.148 pick in the 2026 draft. Edstrom will likely be grateful for a new start in Nashville after struggling to stay healthy in 2025-26, resulting in just three goals and five points in 35 games played.
Carlo's short tenure in Toronto is over after a season and a half after the team announced Saturday that St. Louis had acquired the 29-year-old defensemen for the 73rd overall pick in 2026 and the 76th overall pick. Carlo not only failed to score in 2025-26, but only appeared in 55 games due to injury, ending the season with seven points, 37 PIMs and a +4 plus/minus.
With Detroit already having Michal Postava and Trey Augustine in their goaltending prospect pipeline, Detroit has traded Sebastian Cossa to Utah for the No.23 overall pick (2026). The 23-year-old goaltender led Grand Rapids (AHL) with an impressive 26-8-4 record, .915 SV% and 2.33 GAA in 2025-26 and is expected to play a key role in Utah's crease in 2026-27.
After four full seasons in Anaheim, Mason McTavish has been acquired by St. Louis for the No.15 overall pick and the No.29 overall pick on Friday. The 23-year-old was Anaheim's 2021 1st round pick (3rd overall) and had 17 goals, 41 points and 42 PIMs in 75 games played in 2025-26. He is expected to be a key part of St. Louis' top-six for the 2026-27 season.
New York secured their top-six forward of the future on Friday after the team announced they had acquired Pavel Dorofeyev from the Golden Knights for the No.26 overall pick, the No.92 overall pick, and a conditional 2028 first-round pick. Moments after the trade New York announced they had signed Dorofeyev to a seven-year contract worth $11.0M AAV ($77.0M total). The 25-year-old is coming off a career season where he posted career highs in goals (37), assists (27), points (64), PPG (20) and PPP (30) across 82 games played.
Peterka's time in Utah lasted just one mediocre season after the 24-year-old was acquired by Boston for the No.23 overall pick in 2026 and a 2028 first-round pick on Friday. Peterka is just one season removed from a 27-goal, 68 point campaign in 2024-25 but took a step backwards in Utah last season with just 25 goals and 47 points in 82 games played. He is expected to play a key top-six role in Boston's lineup this upcoming season.
After scoring a career-high 61 points (22G / 39A) in the 2021-22 season with the Colorado Avalanche, Burakovsky has struggled to recapture that offensive touch, bouncing around and ultimately joining the Ottawa Senators, his fourth team in the past six seasons. The 31-year-old forward averaged 16:25 time-on-ice and scored just 33 points (11G / 22A) last season while recording a career-worst -32 plus/minus in 75 games with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Wahlberg was drafted 39th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, but has yet to make his NHL debut. The 20-year-old Swedish forward spent the 2025-26 campaign in the AHL, where he scored 38 points (9G / 29A) in 68 games with the Rochester Americans.
Zellweger was drafted 34th overall by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft and had an impressive 2025-26 season with the Ducks, scoring 22 points (7G / 15A) and averaging 16:59 time-on-ice in 76 games. With Bowen Byram's recent departure from Buffalo, the 22-year-old Zellweger looks poised to see an elevated role in 2026-27 with his new team.
Just a week after being dealt from Philadelphia to Toronto, Ottawa has acquired the rights of goaltender Samuel Ersson for a 2027 5th round pick. The 26-year-old had informed Toronto he did not intend to sign with the Maple Leafs on Friday. He struggled in 2025-26, with an ugly .870 SV%, 3.12 GAA and 14-11-5 record.
After two seasons spent between the Rangers and Hartford (AHL), New York has traded Brett Berard to Montreal for William Trudeau. Bedard appeared in 13 games with the Rangers in 2025-26, but failed to pick up a point while collecting six PIMs. He is expected to compete for a bottom-six role in Montreal this upcoming season.
Trudeau's time in Montreal is done after four minor league seasons with Laval (AHL) after the 23-year-old defensemen was traded to New York for Brett Berard on Friday. Trudeau was originally drafted in the 4th round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft (113th overall) and put up a combined 90 points across four seasons in the AHL. He is expected to compete for one of New York's final defensive spots out of training camp.
Chisholm alternated in and out of the lineup for Washington in the 2025-26 season, spending significant time as a healthy scratch, but provided reliable depth when called upon. The 26-year-old defenseman averaged 13:44 time-on-ice, tallying 22 blocks, 11 hits, and seven points (1G / 6A) in 26 games last season.
McKown made his NHL debut in the 2022-23 season, scoring two assists in 12 games with the Columbus Blue Jackets, but has spent all of his time since in the AHL. The undrafted 23-year-old forward scored 25 points (9G / 16A) last season in 63 games with the Cleveland Monsters (AHL).
Tuch was drafted 47th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft but has yet to make his NHL debut. The 24-year-old forward has spent the entirety of the last two seasons in the AHL. In 2025-26, he scored 14 points (9G / 5A) in 68 games with the Laval Rocket (AHL).
Lombardi was a fourth-round pick, 113th overall, by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The 23-year-old has yet to play an NHL game and has spent the entirety of the past three seasons in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins. In 2025-26, he scored 42 points (16G / 26A) in 47 games.
Nichushkin's offensive production took a dip in the 2025-26 season, scoring only 49 points (17G / 32A) in 72 games, but he remained a prominent part of the team's forward group. His departure creates a sizeable absence in Colorado's top-six, but he should be an effective contributor with his new team in Columbus. The 31-year-old Nichushkin has four years remaining in his contract with a $6.125 million AAV.
NHL trades are decided between two or more team general managers. The front office’s job is building a winning team. Building a winning team means discussing trades with other general managers across the league.
During the NHL regular season, players can be traded up until the trade deadline. The deadline is the official cutoff point for when teams can no longer make moves between each other. Players can also be traded throughout the offseason.
Teams trade players in hockey for a variety of reasons, but generally, it is done to find success, whether that is in the short term or long term. Teams may trade their top players in search of draft picks if they are undergoing a rebuild, whereas contending teams may look to acquire talent to boost their playoff chances.
Trades are a common occurrence throughout the NHL and happen often. Some years feature less trades than others, it all depends on each teams needs and the availability of attractive talent.
