Nick Foligno is joining his brother Marcus with the Minnesota Wild, who started off NHL trade deadline day by making two moves they hope will finally deliver some playoff success.
Minnesota is acquiring Foligno from the Chicago Blackhawks ahead of the deadline Friday. The trade confirmed by Chicago coach Jeff Blashill is expected to be for future considerations, with the rebuilding organization doing its 38-year-old captain a favor by giving him a chance not only to play with his brother but chase the Stanley Cup.
The Wild, who have not advanced beyond the first round since 2015 and have only one trip beyond the second in franchise history back in 2003, have been active all week. Before getting Foligno, they acquired forward Bobby Brink from Philadelphia, sending defenceman David Jiricek to the Flyers.
Minnesota general manager Bill Guerin, fresh off constructing the U.S. roster that won gold at the Milano-Cortina Olympics, has been active all week. He claimed forward Robby Fabbri off waivers from St. Louis and made trades with Nashville for center Michael McCarron and Florida for defenceman Jeff Petry, filling a handful of depth needs and getting better at faceoffs, one of the Wild’s biggest weaknesses.
With the likes of Vincent Trocheck, Nazem Kadri, Justin Faulk and maybe even Robert Thomas still on the market, sellers appeared to be in control, with prices high and leaving playoff-contending buyers weighing a range of options.
Trocheck remains with the New York Rangers, who traded Sam Carrick to Buffalo. Toronto has multiple players on the block. And St. Louis is open for business with almost everyone on its roster gettable at the right price, from Thomas and Faulk to Colton Parayko and Jordan Binnington.
Toronto sat three players — forwards Scott Laughton and Bobby McMann, and defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson — for its past two games to prevent them from getting injured. Any or all of the three could get traded before 3 p.m. EST.
John Carlson is going to the Anaheim Ducks as part of a surprising deal from the Washington Capitals agreed to just after midnight. Anaheim sent a conditional first-round pick in either this or next year’s draft plus a 2027 third-rounder to Washington for Carlson, a 36-year-old defenceman who has only played in the league for the Capitals since 2009 and helped them win the Stanley Cup in 2018.
Carlson is a pending free agent without a contract beyond this year but was not expected to get moved before the deadline. He joins the Ducks as they look to end a seven-year playoff drought.
“John Carlson brings leadership, character, a high hockey IQ and a presence to our lineup,” Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said. “We are very excited to add a Stanley Cup winner to complement our group and make a big push down the stretch.”
Also overnight, the Sabres added defencemen Luke Schenn and Logan Stanley from Winnipeg, while the Blue Jackets won a bidding war to get winger Conor Garland from Vancouver.
Poised to end an NHL-record 14-year playoff drought, the Sabres sent forward Isak Rosen, defenceman Jacob Bryson, a 2026 fourth-round pick and a 2027 second-rounder to the Jets for Schenn and Stanley. They also got Carrick for third- and sixth-round picks.
Though they struck out on finalizing a deal with the Blues for Parayko, who invoked his no-trade clause in rejecting a trade to Buffalo, the Sabres have already shored up plenty of depth needs without affecting their core roster.
Columbus sent a third-round pick in the draft this year and a 2028 second-rounder to the Canucks for Garland, the soon-to-be 30-year-old who drew interest from multiple Eastern Conference contenders.
Much of the action Friday could be in the Eastern Conference after most of the top teams in the West did their shopping earlier this week. Back-to-back Stanley Cup finalist Edmonton is expected to be done after shoring up its defence with Connor Murphy and getting shutdown centre Jason Dickinson in separate trades with Chicago; Dallas made moves for Tyler Myers and Michael Bunting; and league-best Colorado filled its biggest need at center by getting Nicolas Roy from Toronto.
Minnesota has added around the edges, though the Wild remain on the lookout for a top-six centre who can help them match up with the Stars and Avalanche to get through a gauntlet of a Central Division.
Carolina and Tampa Bay are atop a wide-open East and, along with Detroit, would seem to be in the running for Trocheck and others. The Sabres, who swung big and missed on Parayko and Blues teammate Robert Thomas, also could be active.
The Utah Mammoth, trying to get into the playoffs for the first time since moving to Salt Lake City, got better on defense by acquiring Mackenzie Weegar from Calgary, but also have tons of draft picks, prospects and salary cap space to make another big splash.
Florida, after winning the Stanley Cup back to back and making three trips to the final in a row, is heading toward missing the playoffs, the first time for a defending champ since Los Angeles in 2015. Captain Aleksander Barkov’s torn ACL started a series of injuries that derailed the Panthers’ season and made them unexpected sellers.
As such, they are a team to watch in the final hours. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky is a pending free agent, though depth forward A.J. Greer appears more likely to get traded, along with a handful of others.
