NHL rumblings: Will the Mikko Rantanen trade trigger an East arms race?

The question was a rather simple one.

I reached out Tuesday to general managers for the other top Eastern Conference teams and asked them if Carolina s blockbuster trade would have a tangible impact on how they approach the March 7 trade deadline.

I dont think so, I dont believe it does, replied Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving.

Advertisement It doesnt really change anything for us, Chris Patrick, GM of the first-place Washington Capitals , said.

We will follow the same process we always do at this time of year, and if there are opportunities to improve our team, we will pursue them.

It was a quick No from Tampa Bay Lightning GM Julien BriseBois.

For us, it doesnt change anything, Tom Fitzgerald, president of hockey operations and GM of the New Jersey Devils , said.

We go through a process on evaluating our team and identify the areas where we want to improve.

We want to be intentional on adding the right piece or pieces while being cognizant of the cost and our future.

The defending Stanley Cup champions arent going to deviate from their plan, either.

Weve spent the entire season on it: You look at your assets, you look at your standings, you look at your projections, you have your plan, and my plan is to put together the best possible team we can, Bill Zito, president of hockey operations and GM of the Florida Panthers , told The Athletic .

I cant get a better team now than I could a week ago, right? So, I just dont think keeping up with the Joneses is part of the equation for teams.

Well always do our best to get any players and pursue any situation thats going to give us the best chance to win.

But I dont think it changes because everyone else is doing it.

Its the same.

Thats a pretty unanimous reaction.

A team cant let what another one does affect its game plan for the trade deadline.

Knee-jerk reaction trades are dangerous.

Ive had some GMs over the years admit to me a certain trade was just that.

And they regretted it later.

The reality is that all of those top teams, most of which have had their pro scouting meetings planning for the deadline, were already focused on the moves they want to make for the deadline before Carolina shocked the hockey world .

GO DEEPER LeBrun: Unpacking the Mikko Rantanen trade a rare NHL in-season blockbuster The Leafs are looking for a center and perhaps a third-pairing defenseman.

That doesnt change.

Fitzgerald told me in a recent interview that the Devils are looking for a center.

The Panthers need a blue-line upgrade after their offseason defections.

The top-scoring Lightning also probably need a blue-line upgrade and are never shy to act at the deadline.

GO DEEPER Is the NHL sleeping on the Lightning? After dramatic offseason, contention window looks wide open During his annual, in-season session in Tampa with Lightning beat media Monday, BriseBois was asked if anything was off the table ahead of March 7: Were trying to accomplish difficult, challenging, hard things here, and we cant limit ourselves in terms of what were willing to do to accomplish those great things, he responded.

Advertisement The surprising Capitals were the most aggressive team last offseason, acquiring via trade the likes of Pierre-Luc Dubois , Jakob Chychrun , Andrew Mangiapane and Logan Thompson , plus adding via free agency the likes of Matt Roy , Jakub Vrana , Taylor Raddysh and Brandon Duhaime .

So theyve made a lot of roster changes already.

But my sense is the Caps would like to add another top-nine winger before the deadline.

Whether thats a second-line or third-line player depends on what the market makes possible.

But I believe thats their stated need internally.

But again, that has nothing to do with reacting to what a divisional rival did.

Its what the Caps have been thinking about for a while now.

Still, what I think Carolinas bold move also says is that the Hurricanes view the conference as there for the taking.

Which I totally concur with.

Lets see how the other top Eastern teams react before the deadline.

GO DEEPER Analyzing the East's Stanley Cup contenders: Signature strengths and fatal flaws NHL OK with Pietrangelos 4 Nations pull-out There were some eyebrows raised, to be sure, when it was announced Sunday that Alex Pietrangelo was pulling out of 4 Nations, needing to nurse to some ailments, and then proceeded that evening to play 24 minutes for the Golden Knights .

Although I believe it is very much genuine that the veteran star blueliner hasnt been 100 percent.

Either way, the NHL is not concerned about the players decision nor the optics for the 4 Nations tournament that perhaps players want to bail on it.

I dont think this is anything like All-Star, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told The Athletic on Monday morning.

(A) player has to do whats best for him and I have no problem with a decision that takes into account being healthy for his NHL club down the stretch.

Pietrangelo is a former Olympic champion and its hard to fault him for not wanting to play in an event thats serving as an appetizer to the actual Olympics next year, especially when hes not fully healthy.

His priority is to be in the best shape possible to help Vegas win a Stanley Cup.

I totally get that.

Advertisement Whether or not other players bail for similar reasons in the coming two weeks, we shall see.

For some players, theres a need to showcase themselves in best-on-best to help secure an Olympic spot in 12 months.

For others, while they obviously want to play in the Olympics in Italy next February, if theyre not 100 percent healthy the 4 Nations event doesnt carry enough weight to take that risk.

Who will replace Pietrangelo? Team Canada management will take all the time it has before deciding and naming a replacement for Pietrangelo.

The players are arriving Feb.

9, so if youre not naming your player by the 10th youre missing an opportunity for practice time, Team Canada 4 Nations GM Don Sweeney told The Athletic on Tuesday.

Thats a precious time frame, so well be in front of that date.

First off, its a tough loss indeed not having Pietrangelo.

We respect his decision, his priorities are with his own health and with Vegas, Sweeney said.

Hes had a lot of buzz in terms of why pull out if youre going to play 24 minutes, but he made it very, very clear to us this is something hes wanted to take care of (his ailments) and the break in the schedule affords him that opportunity.

So you have to respect it.

Its a big loss for us because hes an all-situation player with a lot of experience.

He was justifiably named to the team and now we go about our business.

As weve said all along, there were going to be some injuries and that we were going to have a tight group of (replacement) guys that were going to consider depending on the type of player that weve lost.

Sweeney, as always has been the case in our Team Canada discussions, would not get into names as far as replacement options.

But I did ask about Drew Doughty , just because of how unique his situation is.

What would Canada have to see from him once hes back to feel comfortable taking him so close to 4 Nations? Advertisement Well, my understanding is that hes going to play soon, Sweeney said.

How many games hes able to play and how quickly he gets up to speed ...

(head coach Jon Cooper) will inevitably speak to coaches and see where the player is at.

Well follow up with ( Kings GM) Rob Blake to have his input.

Were going to do due diligence whether its Drew or anybody else.

In his first media session since his preseason injury, Doughty over the weekend told L.A.

media he was still holding out hope for 4 Nations and really wanted to play in it.

Team Canada has a group of D they are monitoring right now for the replacement spot.

A right-shot D like Pietrangelo (and Doughty) is the most likely route.

Aside from Doughty, Evan Bouchard was one of the most glaring omissions on Dec.

4, so hes an obvious name.

Dougie Hamilton and Noah Dobson also come to mind.

But given the all-around role Pietrangelo would have played in that event, who Team Canada names may very well depend on the exact role they want that player to come in and play.

Youre spot on in terms of us identifying some players that can pick up some slack in some areas in which, with Petro, we would have valued his presence, Sweeney said.

These are all great players, and inevitably theyre playing the lions share of minutes on their current teams.

So I dont think having role responsibility will be too foreign to them.

So, for example, if Canada ends up wanting more of a shutdown/penalty-kill guy, Leafs blueliner Chris Tanev would be a name to monitor.

There are some who would take MacKenzie Weegar of the Flames for his overall game.

If it were me, I would take two-time Olympic champion Doughty as my top choice if I feel comfortable that hes up to speed.

If not, I would go with Tanev for his shutdown capabilities.

Just go look at this work on Jack Eichel in the first round last spring followed by his work on Nathan MacKinnon in the second round.

I know Oilers fans are upset Bouchard isnt on the team, and I really like the Bouch Bomb.

But Cale Makar is probably going to play 90 percent of the power-play minutes in that event.

GO DEEPER Which 4 Nations snubs are making the best cases to be injury subs? NHL/NHLPA ready to move on without IIHF on 2028 World Cup Interesting news was broken by TSN colleague Darren Dreger on Monday night via a tweet: The NHL and NHLPA have advised the IIHF they intend on moving forward, at least for now, without IIHF involvement in the 2028 World Cup of Hockey.

The NHL and PA are hoping to make an announcement on the 2028 WCH in some form at the upcoming Four Nations Faceoff.

Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) January 27, 2025 One of the main issues appears to be the IIHFs reluctance to support a February World Cup, which is important for the NHL and NHLPA running it at the same time in the NHL season that an Olympics would run.

Again, the idea starting with the Olympics next February is to have a full, best-on-best international hockey event every two years.

Hence plans for a 2028 World Cup of Hockey, followed by the 2030 Olympics, etc.

Advertisement But it also begs the question? If the NHL and NHLPA are planning a traditional World Cup with lots of countries represented, how will it have access to non-NHL players overseas if IIHF isnt part of it? How do countries like Switzerland and Czechia fill out their rosters beyond their NHL players? We should get more answers from the league and NHLPA at the 4 Nations next month.

I would also say this: Just because the league says it is ready to move forward on a World Cup without the IIHF at this juncture, that doesnt mean things cant change.

Ive got a feeling theres still more to play out on this front between all parties.

But in the bigger picture, it does concern me.

A permanent, best-on-best international calendar has been a fleeting reality for the best part of 25 years, for various reasons.

The Olympic part of it appears settled for now.

Obviously, the plan right now is for the 2028 World Cup to bridge the gap, but it sure isnt smooth sailing getting there.

(Top photo: Michael Martin / Getty Images).

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