New NHL Trade Rumors on Steven Stamkos' Preferred Landing Spots Ahead of Deadline

Steven Stamkos has prepared a list of preferred destinations in case the Nashville Predators propose trading him ahead of the 2026 NHL trade deadline, TSN's Pierre LeBrun reported Thursday.

One of those preferred teams is the Tampa Bay Lightning, where Stamkos played 16 seasons and won two Stanley Cups, per LeBrun.

The Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild are also at the top of the list, and the New Jersey Devils have been considered "to a certain degree,"according to LeBrun.

Stamkos holds a full no-move clause on his contract, which is currently set to keep him in Nashville through the 2027-28 season at an $8 million AAV, per PuckPedia.

After a relatively slow start to the season, Stamkos has scored 27 goals in his last 43 games to help push the Predators to the edge of the playoff bubble.

Stamkos, who since entering the NHL in 2008 has ranked behind only Alex Ovechkin for the most goals scored, spent the first 16 seasons of his career with the Lightning and helped lead the franchise to back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021.

He has not yet been back to the playoffs since signing with the Predators as a free agent ahead of the 2024-25 season.

A reunion with the Lightning would allow the team to return a consistent scorer to an already-dangerous top six while giving Stamkos a better shot at another playoff run.

The Lightning would need to do some financial maneuvering in order to make that work, however. Tampa Bay currently sits just $3.15 million below the salary cap, per PuckPedia.

The Stars, at just $1.4 million below the cap, would face similar difficulties. The Wild have more room to maneuver with an estimated $10.34 million in cap space heading into the deadline.

LeBrun said Thursday that Stamkos "is not asking out" and that a potential trade would most likely be proposed by the Predators' management rather than the player.

He also said he saw it as "more likely" the Predators would decide to move Stamkos this summer rather than ahead of the deadline.

The Predators, who missed the playoffs last spring and are heading into Thursday four points back of a Wild Card spot, are working to decide on the direction of their franchise after general manager Barry Trotz announced he would be stepping down from his position earlier this month. Trotz will remain in his position until the Predators hire his successor, according to the team.

The NHL trade window closes March 6 at 3 p.m. ET. If Stamkos is still skating for the Predators after that point, it could be up to whoever succeeds Trotz to decide whether to pursue a trade this summer.