10 players who should be traded at the deadline

The NHL trade deadline isn’t until March 21, but it’s never too early to start thinking about transactions.

Few things get sports fans’ minds racing like trades, signings, or even potential deals. Just the thought of your favourite team making a move is enough to send you to the moon with excitement, and that’s what I intend to do in this blog.

Just under 11 weeks out from the trade freeze, I’ve compiled a list of 10 players that should be dealt. That doesn’t mean that they will or that their name has been swirling around in trade rumours, it just means that if I was general manager, I would be looking to deal this player.

If you’ve got a problem with my theoretical trades, go make your own. I’m sure I’ll hate them.

It seems pretty obvious that the Flyers’ next championship window isn’t going to include Giroux.

At 33 years old, the captain is playing out the final season of an eight-year deal that carries a cap hit of $8,275,000. His contract does include a full no-move clause, but we’ve seen players in the past be open to the idea of waiving it to join a contender. With Philadelphia deserted in the dreaded middle of the NHL standings, the squad is neither in a position to tank nor seriously contend for a title. The last thing any franchise should want to be is directionless, and if Philly were to keep Giroux around, it would be exactly that.

Plenty of teams would salivate over the opportunity to add Giroux, even strictly on a rental basis. He’s totalled 11 goals and 29 points this year, and he would serve as a high-end second-line centre on a contending team.

Considering the Flyers are short a second-round pick in each of the upcoming drafts, trading Giroux could help them re-stock some draft capital in addition to strengthening their prospect pool.

Mock Trade

Flyers acquire: Vitali Kravtsov, Greg McKegg, New York…