Winners and Losers of the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline

The 2026 NHL trade deadline has come and gone, and we didn't see tons of top players on the move. In fact, most players involved in trade fodder in the weeks leading up to today pretty much stayed put.

Why is that? Well, it was a sellers market, and those sellers were pretty unwilling to budge on asking prices, as was the case with Robert Thomas in St. Louis and Vincent Trocheck in New York. Plus, some new rules in the new CBA were expedited and kicked in this trade deadline, like making double retention logistically impossible, and changes to the playoff salary cap protocol.

Still, certain teams made out pretty well: Colorado brought back Nazem Kadri to bolster their center situation. The Red Wings finally got a much-needed veteran and skilled presence on the blue line with Justin Faulk. The Islanders brought on Brayden Schenn.

Who else impressed, who disappointed us the most, and why did this deadline fall so flat? Here are the winners and losers of the 2026 trade deadline.

Losers: Trade Deadline Enthusiasts

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Steven Stamkos

We knew some of the bigger names like Quinn Hughes and Artemi Panarin had already been snatched up, and still, this trade deadline managed to fall flat.

We can chalk the lack of big movement in part to teams getting deals done earlier, but there were a few more factors at play.

You'll recall that several rules under the new CBA were expedited to kick in at the beginning of this regular season, including new salary retention rules limiting trades with "double retention," which had become a popular strategy for teams to stay cap compliant. The new rule states that there needs to be 75 regular-season days between trades in which that player's salary is retained.

The other big rule change that prevented a lot of movement at this deadline was the playoff salary cap. Teams now must submit a 20-player game-day lineup whose "averaged club salary" is under the "upper limit" of the regular-season salary cap for that team. LTIR rules were changed so teams could only replace an injured player's salary up to the previous season's average league salary, rather than replace his full salary cap hit.

Plus, the salary cap is set to rise from $95.5 million this season to a projected minimum of $104 million next season. Many teams have opted to re-sign their own free agents at this time and get that sorted out, rather than shopping them around amid the uncertainty.

The combination of these factors -- and their timing -- pretty much guaranteed a dud.

Winner: Patience in the Yzerplan

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Justin Faulk

If there's one thing GM Steve Yzerman is going to make us do, he's going to make us wait. The patience in his Yzerplan is now reaping real benefits, as the Red Wings have comfortably held a playoff position in the East for most of the season.

At the buzzer of today's deadline, the Red Wings finally made a big swing for a defenseman, something we've been waiting on from them for awhile. They acquired Justin Faulk from the Blues for a first-round pick in 2026, a third-round pick in 2026, forward Dmitri Buchelnikov, and defenseman Justin Holl.

Was a first-rounder, another pick, and two players a heavy ask? Yes, but we knew going into this deadline that this was going to be a seller's market, with many teams on the playoff bubble and few players on the trade block.

The important thing here is the Red Wings have shored up their defense with a player that will help them offensively and defensively in the playoffs. The action from Yzerman indicates the trust he finally has on the team he has spent years fine-tuning to get to this point.

Loser: Rangers Re-Tool

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Vincent Trocheck

For all the fuss about the Rangers firesale, trade deadline day was pretty uneventful for New York. The Rangers held firm on asking prices for bigger-named players like Vincent Trocheck, and buyers weren't biting at their price point.

Sure, the Rangers dealt their biggest piece, Panarin, well before the trade deadline, but failing to trade Trocheck today was a disappointment and a setback in the ongoing retool. They traded depth center Sam Carrick to the Sabres for a 2026 3rd-round pick and a 2026 6th-round pick, so at least there was some movement, but not as many high picks and coveted prospects as expected.

You can respect GM Chris Drury for not hitting the panic button and selling Trocheck, Adam Fox, or another star player for less than their worth, but things are going to drag on in New York until the Rangers finish off the firesale.

Losers: Eastern Conference Contenders

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Jake Guentzel and Sebastian Aho

It was an extremely quiet trade deadline for the top Cup contenders in the East. The Hurricanes and the Lightning added some solid depth pieces, but nothing to truly alter the complexion of their teams or terrify opponents. Again, prices were steep, and sellers seemed particularly unwilling to budge.

But take a look at areas teams truly need an upgrade in: Scoring depth and center depth for the Canes, for example. Despite the lack of options, you can't help feeling like most of the best teams in the league -- especially in the East -- didn't do enough to truly move the needle.

Winners: Teams Hitting Reset

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Brayden Schenn

The teams that did end up selling, sold pretty well.

Calgary got a sizeable return for Nazem Kadri. They also dealt Mackenzie Weegar to the Mammoth for a sizable haul of Olli Maatta, prospect Jonathan Castagna, and three 2026 second-round picks.

The Blues found themselves in some drama as they failed to trade star defenseman Colton Parayko, but they cleaned up nicely, squeezing a first-round pick, a third-round pick, and Justin Holl out of the Red Wings for Justin Faulk. Brayden Schenn collected them another first-rounder, another third-rounder, Jonathan Drouin, and prospect Marcus Gidlof.

We were worried about the assets the Maple Leafs could bring in from the players they were willing to sell, but they fared quite well. They got a first- and a fifth-round pick out of Colorado for Nic Roy, a third-rounder for Scott Laughton, and a second- and fourth-rounder for Bobby McMann.

They didn't end up trading pending UFAs Calle Jarnkrok or Troy Stecher, so that'll sting, and the worst of it was failing to ship Oliver Ekman-Larsson out. But all-in-all, they got decent enough returns for the moves they did make in a pickle.

Winners: The Avalanche

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Nazem Kadri

The Avs have been the best team in the league for most of the season, and the only thing holding them back from complete domination has been their center depth.

So what did they do? They reunited with Nazem Kadri at the final buzzer of this trade deadline.

Kadri was one of the top players at the position available on the weak market, and Colorado won't have to fret about chemistry: He won the Stanley Cup with them in 2022. He seemed eager to get out of Calgary as his career is hitting a twilight and the Flames are rebuilding, so he'll bring that enthusiasm to the roster as well.

On a deadline day where most top contenders couldn't get much done, the league-best Avalanche managed to get even better.