Once the top players have completed the chase for a gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, the National Hockey League’s 32 general managers will continue their pursuit for help down the stretch.
There will be only 11 shopping days left until the March 6 NHL trade deadline after the roster freeze is lifted at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, following the gold-medal game earlier that day in Milan, Italy.
In the nation’s capital, all eyes will be on Steve Staios, the Ottawa Senators’ president of hockey operations and general manager, whose club sits six points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with only 25 games left in the schedule, starting next Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings.
League executives have told the Ottawa Citizen in recent weeks that Staios has been working the market to see if the Senators can acquire a right-shot defenceman and possibly a forward who could play in the top six.
We’re told the top priority is a right-shot blueliner because veteran Nick Jensen has struggled to regain the form he displayed down the stretch last season after having off-season hip surgery.
A check with league executives on Wednesday indicated that the market was thin and prices were high for any team that has a blueliner it would be willing to move before the deadline.
The Senators have shown an interest in Calgary defenceman Mackenzie Weegar, who, if acquired, would stabilize the team’s top four on the blueline.
We’ve stated in this space that the Senators have shown interest in Calgary blueliner MacKenzie Weegar, who has a cap hit of $6.25 million U.S. through the 2030-31 campaign. He would stabilize the right side in the club’s top four.
The Senators have also likely kicked tires on Calgary defenceman Zach Whitecloud. The Flames acquired him as part of the package in the deal that sent Rasmus Andersson to the Vegas Golden Knights, but we’re told that other teams have also been checking on the Flames’ asking price for Whitecloud.
The Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars and Utah Mammoth are all in the market for a right-shot blueliner. We believe the Wings have also shown interest in Weegar.
League executives believe the Flames would want a top draft pick (first- or second-round) and a high-end prospect or roster player for Weegar. We won’t speculate on what the asking price would be from the Senators because we haven’t heard.
Weegar, 32, isn’t the only option, though.
A league executive told the Citizen that Brandon Carlo of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Doug Hamilton of the New Jersey Devils, Connor Murphy of the Chicago Blackhawks and both Justin Faulk and Colton Parayko of the St. Louis Blues are likely available.
Boston-based James Murphy of RG Media reported on Tuesday that, if the Blues were going to trade Faulk or Parayko, GM Doug Armstrong would be seeking a package similar to what the Flames received for Andersson.
Could Zach Whitecloud be a fit in Ottawa? The Calgary Flames recently acquired the defenceman in the deal that sent Rasmus Andersson to Vegas.
Murphy also reported the Bruins were in hot pursuit of Faulk.
Along with Whitecloud, the Flames received prospect blueliner Abram Wiebe, a conditional first-round pick in 2027 and a conditional second-round pick in the 2028 draft.
Rob DiMaio, the Senators’ director of player personnel, is a former member of the Blues’ front office, so it would make sense for Ottawa to study what it might take to acquire Parayko or Faulk.
Meeting an asking price similar to what the Flames received for Andersson would be difficult for the Senators to achieve, however. Ottawa doesn’t have a first-round pick this spring because it must forfeit the selection as a penalty for a botched deal with the Vegas Golden Knights.
A league executive told the Citizen that the only prospects the Senators had of any interest were Belleville Senators defenceman Carter Yakemchuk and blueliner Logan Hensler of the University of Wisconsin.
The Senators don’t have interest in dealing either of those players, and Yakemchuk may get a chance to play in the NHL this season if the club falls out of the playoff mix completely. He is a right shot, but league executives say he’s not ready to play at the NHL level.
Staiois opted not to make any moves heading into the roster freeze because he wanted to take this time to evaluate the roster and determine a route forward.
Ottawa went into the break with a 6-3-1 record in its past 10 games. It’s believed the Senators will have to win 19 of their final 25 games to make a serious push for a spot.
If the Senators fall too far out of the race when the NHL does return to action, then Staios will have decisions to make on Ottawa’s potential unrestricted free agents, including forwards Claude Giroux, David Perron, Lars Eller and Nick Cousins and defenceman Jensen.
Goaltender Mads Sogaard, who suited up for Denmark at the Winter Olympics, is with the American Hockey League affiliate in Belleville, and there is talk he could get moved.
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