7 Buy-Low Candidates for the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline
The trading deadline is a marquee event. Contenders are looking to add pieces for an immediate playoff run, while the sellers hope to scoop up draft picks and prospects.
Every once in a while a different type of trade happens: the change-of-scenery move. Last season, the Rangers acquired Frank Vatrano, who had no place on the Florida Panthers depth chart, for a measly fourth-round pick. He became a critical piece of their run to the Eastern Conference Final.
In 2021, the San Jose Sharks acquired winger Alexei Barabonov, boxed out of a lineup spot, from the Toronto Maple Leafs in return for career AHLer Antti Suomela. Barabonov has turned into a top-six NHL forward in San Jose.
These types of moves, more often than not, don't work out. Yet every once in a while a team panning for gold finds an unexpected nugget. Sometimes a talented but struggling player simply needs a new home to tap into his potential. Finding that hidden value can make a big difference for a playoff run or give a team an unexpected contributor.
Here are seven buy-low candidates available at the 2023 NHL trade deadline.
Jesse Puljujärvi, Edmonton Oilers
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Edmonton's trading of Jesse Puljujärvi appears inevitable. He has fallen out of favor with head coach Jay Woodcroft, averaging only 12:33 of ice time and spending time in the press box.
The 24-year-old has a $3M cap hit and will be an unrestricted free agent following the season. If general manager Ken Holland wants to make any sizable additions prior to the trade deadline, then he'll need to move Puljujärvi's inhibitive contract.
The Finnish winger certainly hasn't shown much in the way of scoring this season; Puljujärvi has only five goals and six assists through 52 games even despite playing a good chunk of minutes with Connor Mcdavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. He will probably never produce at the rate the Oilers had hoped he would when they drafted him fourth overall in 2016.
But that does not tell the full story of what he contributes to his team. When Puljujärvi plays with confidence, he helps his team between the margins. He is an impactful defensive winger. He uses his 6'4" frame to collect pucks and move it out of the defensive zone. He gets a lot of pucks on net, and while they may not go into the net often, it creates rebounds and extends offensive zone pressure.
In the prior two seasons, Puljujärvi contributed 61 points in 120 games. His total game conglomerates to a strong third-line checking forward. Edmonton will take whatever they can get for him. He'd be a shrewd addition to a team with a lineup opening to give him an opportunity to play meaningful minutes.
Vitali Kravtsov, New York Rangers
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The Rangers drafted Vitali Kravtsov ninth overall in 2018 in the first stage of its promised rebuild. Initially, the move looked to be a great one. Kravtsov tallied 21 points in 50 KHL games as a 19-year-old. That was right in line with how NHL stars Pavel Buchnevich and Vladimir Tarasenko performed at the same age.
It hasn't worked out since. The Russian winger failed to establish himself and bounced between the NHL, AHL, and KHL over the past four seasons. This season, Kravtsov sits with six points in 28 games. There is plenty of blame to go around for why he hasn't developed as hoped.
Right or wrong, head coach Gerard Gallant has lost faith in Kravtsov and the team doesn't seem particularly distraught about his request for a trade.
Though his reputation doesn't reflect it, Kravtsov has worked hard off the puck and is competently performing as a defensive winger; Evolving Hockey's metrics rank him in the 68th percentile by defensive impact. Still, Kravtsov's potential lies in his offensive creativity. In his best moments, he takes defenders on one-on-one and creates scoring chances using deception and stickhandling.
Can Kravtsov find his offensive touch with a change of scenery? For the Rangers' reported asking price of a third-round pick he is worth a gamble.
Erik Brännström, Ottawa Senators
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Brännstrom, a Vegas Golden Knights first-round pick, was a major piece in the 2019 blockbuster trade involving Mark Stone.
At the time, Brännstrom was described as an offensive defenseman. Now 23, the optics aren't great. The Swedish defenseman has only three goals and 34 assists in 164 career NHL games.
Coming into this season Brännstrom averaged 17:32 of ice time in Ottawa. This season he has dropped down to 15:21. Top prospect Jake Sanderson has jumped above him on the depth chart. With him and Thomas Chabot on the left side, Brännstrom's path for upward mobility is nonexistent.
While he's not accumulating points, Brännstrom does create offense in kind. He has excellent vision and can quarterback play from the back-end, creating a number of zone entries for his team. He may not produce points, but he does provide his teammates with offensive zone opportunities. He also defends well at the blue line. He wins the neutral zone battle, sending many more pucks into the offensive zone than he allows into his team's defensive zone.
And perhaps there is some offense to unlock. When Brännstrom is on the ice at five-on-five, Ottawa is averaging an underwhelming 1.92 goals per 60 minutes. This is significantly lower than the expected 2.97, per Evolving Hockey. The results don't reflect the process. Simply put, he has been unlucky.
Unlike others on this list, Brännstrom is not a lost soul in need of a change in scenery. But he has permanently dropped down the depth chart and the Senators do have other left defensemen in the system whom they like. The Swede will be a restricted free agent in July. While the Senators don't have to trade him, perhaps General Manager Pierre Dorion would be willing to sell him at a time when his value might not be at its peak.
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Jonathan Drouin, Montreal Canadiens
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The rental market for offensive wingers is dreadful. Vladimir Tarasenko was already moved to the Rangers. Patrick Kane is potentially hurt and will have a narrow list of teams he'll accept a move to. If any. Teams are so desperate that Blues forward Ivan Barbashev is viewed as the "consolation prize" for teams hoping to acquire Timo Meier.
It's surprising that Jonathan Drouin is not receiving more attention. The Quebec native has had an up-and-down career. He's dealt with various health issues and his production has dropped significantly since his 21-goal, 53-point season with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2016-17. Over the last three seasons the former second-overall pick has potted only six goals in 110 games. He has zero this season.
He does have 17 assists in 32 games, which makes him one of the league's better playmaking wingers. Drouin is an immensely talented player who could thrive in the right circumstances. If a playoff-bound team has an opening on the power play and the space to put him in a sheltered role, he could catch lightning in a bottle and become an offensive contributor during a playoff run.
He's not a faultless player, but the market hardly provides any reassuring options. In a shallow market, paying a low cost for a high-upside player sounds a lot better than acquiring other mediocre players who are way overpriced.
Sean Walker, Los Angeles Kings
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If the Los Angeles Kings are going to acquire defenseman Jakub Chychrun, for whom they appear to be frontrunners, then they will have a surplus on right defense. Certainly, Drew Doughty is going nowhere. Even if Chychrun isn't in the picture, Sean Durzi is playing on his off-side and prospects Jordan Spence and Brandt Clarke waiting in the wings. That leaves Matt Roy and Sean Walker.
While Roy is potentially available, let's focus on Sean Walker. He is averaging only 15 minutes this season; a steep decline from the 18-19 minutes he reliably played in the previous three seasons.
There is no getting around his defensive deficiencies; The 5'11" blueliner is a turnstile at his own blue line; opposing teams know it's his weakness and All Three Zones ranks him among the worst at defending the rush in the NHL this season. He's not very good at defending in his own zone, either.
But he does move the puck up the ice. He's one of the better defensemen in the league at moving the puck out of his defensive zone with possession rather than dumping it off the glass. Likewise, he carries into the offensive zone cleanly. He generates offense from the point, shooting through traffic and creating rebounds.
Walker, 28, is signed to a $2.65M contract through 2024. He'd be a good addition by a playoff team for two playoff runs or for another team who could give him an elevated role and either make him a piece for future seasons or a flippable asset at the 2024 trading deadline.
Jakub Vrána, Detroit Red Wings
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Jakub Vrána requires a lot more due diligence than an outsider can take on. The Czechia native has missed most of the season after entering the NHL's player assistance program in October. The Red Wings put him on waivers, where he went unclaimed, in early January. Vrána collected 11 points in 17 AHL games and has played two games for the Red Wings, registering two points against the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 15.
If all checks out off the ice, then Vrána would be a quality addition for any team in need of offense. He does it all in a top-six role. He drives play with puck possession and he is a dual threat as a passer and shooter. Last season, Vrána scored 13 goals in 26 games. Over his past three seasons, which included time in Washington, Vrána totaled 107 points in 145 NHL games; a rate of 61 points in an 82-game season. The 26-year-old, who won a Stanley Cup with the Capitals in 2019, is a great second-line left wing on some teams and a bonafide first-liner on others.
The Red Wings are on the outside looking in of the playoff picture and they don't seem particularly enthralled with Vrána at the moment. He is signed through 2024 on a $5.25M cap hit. When on his game, Vrána is worth that and then some. If General Manager Steve Yzerman is eager to offload him, then a focused Vrána is the type of offensive dynamo who is hard to add in any capacity, let alone with term at the trading deadline. He has the potential to be a steal not only for a playoff run in 2023 but also as a long-term addition.
Nils Höglander, Vancouver Canucks
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Left wing Nils Höglander went 40th overall to the Vancouver Canucks at the 2019 NHL Draft, with some believing he was a first-round talent. He thrived in the Swedish Hockey League as a teenager and was one of the top players at the 2020 World Junior Championship.
His success continued in his rookie season. The Swede registered 27 points in 56 games as a 19- and 20-year-old. His play dipped in 2021-22, and that trend has continued this season. Höglander's nine points in 27 games aren't catastrophic, but his defensive game is underwhelming. The Canucks haven't been thrilled. He has been benched, healthy scratched, and demoted to the AHL.
Still, he is only 22 years old. He has proven he is a middle-six NHL winger. Maybe most importantly, it's hard to blame a young player for struggling in the absolute circus that Vancouver has proven to be in the last couple of seasons.
The Canucks aren't running Höglander out of town, but General Manager Jim Rutherford is in a position where virtually everyone should be considered available for trade on some level. I personally would not give up on the left wing at this juncture, but the Canucks may be more willing.
If so, another team could probably scoop up a young player with considerable potential to become a middle-six NHL winger.
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