The National Hockey League's Trade Deadline is 3 p.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 25, and teams will be making decisions on whether to buy or sell and decide which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Check out the latest trade rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.

 


Odd Man Out

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Ryan Callahan revealed Tuesday that he's been relegated to the 13th forward role with the team and will be a healthy scratch for the majority of games moving forward.

Callahan, who has five goals and 13 points this season in 41 games, has the second highest cap hit among Lightning forwards this season at $5.8 million and is signed through next season. 

The 33-year-old has a partial no-trade clause and Joe Smith of The Athletic reports he hasn't been asked to about it as of yet. His agent Stephen Bartlett told Smith he believes Callahan will remain with the Lightning past the trade deadline. 

“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that next year is very much in question,” agent Stephen Bartlett said. “But we’ve seen this coming for a long time. They have a lot of guys coming up for contracts. At some point the role (Callahan) is playing is very expensive. I’m sure they’ll look for a solution for that. I don’t have any misconceptions of that. I understand where that is in their current system.

“But if you’re asking me about the next couple months, if I’m a betting man I say he’s here and plays a role.”

Smith believes Callahan will be a buyout candidate if the Lightning can't find a trade partner this summer, when extensions for Nikita Kucherov and Yanni Gourde will kick in and Brayden Point hits restricted free agency. 

In the meantime, Callahan said he's working to get back into the lineup.

“No matter what point in your career, it’s not easy to be a healthy scratch,” Callahan told The Athletic. “The rotation, at least it’s a little bit easier knowing you’re going to be in there. But now, being informed you’re the 13th and won’t be playing in the rotation, it makes it harder. No question, it’s tough mentally. But, at the same time, when I get in there I’ve got to do what I can to try to stay, whether it’s putting the puck in the net, blocking shots, taking the body. The way I approach it is, whenever I get an opportunity, I’ve got to prove myself.”
 


Staying Put?

While the Ottawa Senators trade deadline plans remain up in the air with pending free agent forwards Mark Stone, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel, one player who appears set to remain in Ottawa is goaltender Craig Anderson.

Speaking to Ian Mendes on TSN Radio 1200 Ottawa on Tuesday, Senators general manager Pierre Dorion said Anderson is a "cornerstone in net" for the team.

“Craig Anderson definitely fits in here,” Dorion said. “He’s had a great year. Unfortunately, he got hurt and we missed him a lot. Craig fits in our plans here. He’s a cornerstone in net for us and one of the key players here.”

Dorion did indicate to Mendes, however, that he would reassess the goaltending situation in the off-season, when Anders Nilsson hits free agency.

Anderson, 37, has a 14-16-3 record this season with a .906 save percentage and a 3.51 goals-against average. He is signed through next season at a $4.75 million cap hit.

 

What About Bob?

TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun confirmed Tuesday that the Florida Panthers did indeed reach out to the Columbus Blue Jackets regarding a trade for goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, but reports talks ended quickly between the two sides.

"My understanding is the Panthers did reach out to Columbus and what they found out was the price is too high right now to get into trade discussions," LeBrun said on Insider Trading. "Too high because they know they can go after him as an unrestricted free agent July 1. What I think is going to happen is the Panthers will keep in touch with the Blue Jackets, they’ll circle back closer to the trade deadline, and if the price goes down maybe it’s worth it for them to try and sign Bobrovsky now and advance the process. But if the price hasn’t changed, they’ll wait until July 1."

The Panthers are projected to have more than $21 million in cap space this season and speculation is that the team will make a run at both Bobrovsky and Blue Jackets winger Artemi Panarin.

TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie said last week that the Panthers could also look to pursue Panarin in a trade in order to get an early start on contract negotiations. 
 


Not So Fast?

Sitting last in the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Kings have been expected to be a seller ahead of Feb. 25, but TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports that things appear to be cooling on the trade market with the Kings.

Dreger pointed to goaltender Jonathan Quick and said it now appears the 33-year-old is more likely to be traded after the season than at the deadline.

"I’m going to jinx myself a little bit by saying that things have cooled around the Los Angeles Kings because that can change with a simple phone call," Dreger said on Insider Trading. "Yes, calls are being made and the usual suspects seem to be the targets, including goaltender Jonathan Quick, but he has four more years remaining on his contract at $5.8 million per season and the sense that I get from my sources is that if Quick gets traded, it’s more likely that it’ll happen at the draft than at the trade deadline."

The Kings entered the trade market last week, sending defenceman Jake Muzzin to the Toronto Maple Leafs for a package that included the Leafs' 2019 first-round pick. Following the trade, Kings president Luc Robitaille sent a letter to season ticket holders that said the Kings "will continue to relentlessly pursue and develop talent to become a team that is capable of winning in today’s NHL."