4 Early Trade Landing Spots for Mark Scheifele Amid NHL Rumors

It has been a tumultuous offseason for the Winnipeg Jets. Not only have they not made any major additions to a team that went from the Presidents' Trophy to out of the playoffs in one year, but their best and most important player, starting goalie Connor Hellebuyck, has been trying to force his way out of town.

He not only requested a trade earlier in the offseason, he went public with it as training camp approached, did not report, and is currently suspended while the team works to deal him.

At this point it is just when and where, not if, he gets moved.

If he does get moved it could start a domino effect for the organization and lead to more dramatic changes throughout the roster.

The most potentially significant name that could also be eventually moved: Center Mark Scheifele.

So let's take a look at some teams that could potentially be interested in adding him if Winnipeg did eventually consider a move and put him on the trade block.

Would Winnipeg actually do it, and what would the market be?

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The first issue with trying to project a potential Scheifele trade is that it would require Winnipeg to actually be proactive and do something major.

That is simply not how the organization acts under general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff, and has really never acted.

It only makes major moves when its hands are forced either by trade demands or pending free agency, and it tends to take a more methodical team-building approach. Draft and develop, smaller trades and depth free agent signings, and nothing that will rock the boat too much.

Moving Hellebuyck falls under the hands are forced category.

At this point moving Scheifele would have to be a proactive move.

Maybe the departure of a franchise goalie would be an eye-opening move and dictate some sort of a change? Maybe Scheifele would eventually want out himself? It's a lot of hypotheticals and questions.

If it did get to that, Scheifele would be a fascinating player to hit the trade market.

For one, he's a center. Centers always have trade value, even if they are in their 30s.

He is also still really, really good and coming off a career-high 102 point season in 2025-26.

Given that level of production, he is also still really affordable with an $8.5 million salary cap hit for the next five years. With the way the cap is rising, that is a great deal for that level of production.

Will he maintain that level of production into his age 37 or 38 seasons? Probably not. But if you are trying to win a Stanley Cup in the next two or three years, that's probably a player you want.

So with that in mind, let's take a look at four teams that could be a reasonable fit. The list includes a couple of on-the-rise teams, and a couple of contenders that would be trying to keep their windows for contention open a little while longer.

Montreal Canadiens

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If Scheifele were to become available, the Canadiens should be one of the first teams calling.

They wouldn't need him as a No. 1 center (Nick Suzuki has that spot locked down), but they do need an upgrade at their No. 2 center spot and with their depth down the middle. That might be the one big Achilles heel they have with the roster this season, and Scheifele would give them a pretty dynamic 1-2 punch down the middle.

Montreal is also perfectly situated to make such a move given how much salary cap flexibility it has in the coming seasons due to all of its core players already being locked in to cap-friendly long-term deals. Getting your best players signed for cheap is the type of thing that gives you the flexibility to go out and get the players you still need.

This would be a great example of that.

Minnesota Wild

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The question here is whether or not Winnipeg would have the willingness to deal him within the division.

Maybe Minnesota has to pay a "division tax," but there would be a definite fit from the Wild perspective.

Center depth is a huge concern here, and has been for a few years during this contention window.

Joel Eriksson Ek is a very good two-way player, but isn't quite the dynamic playmaker and scorer that most championship teams have at the top of their lineup. He might be a No. 2 center posing as a No. 1 center. Adding a player like Scheifele could help him slide down into more of a No. 2/matchup role and give them a more dynamic scorer that could carry the load offensively.

But again, that's a big ask to send him within the division, and Minnesota depleted a lot of its best trade assets a year ago to get Quinn Hughes.

The X-factor here? Minnesota has two really good goalies in Jesper Wallstedt and Filip Gustavsson that could be of interest to Winnipeg after it eventually trades Hellebuyck.

Philadelphia Flyers

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On one hand, the Flyers are very clearly in the market for a top-line center. We know this because we saw them try to give Leo Carlsson $15 million per year on a restricted free agent offer sheet over the summer.

Sean Couturier has had a great career in Philadelphia, but he's not a top-line guy anymore.

Trevor Zegras has a ton of talent, but his all-around game is not suited for a No. 1 role, and he might not even be at his best at center.

There is a need, not only for a center, but also for somebody that can just be a difference-maker offensively. As good as they have been defensively over the past few years, generating offense has been a major problem.

Scheifele would obviously help fix that.

The question would be whether or not Scheifele, as a 33-year-old center, would fit into the timeframe the Flyers are currently on. They were a playoff team a year ago, and reached the second round, but it might not be a team that is ready to seriously contend right now. Would Scheifele get them closer to taking a big step?

Boston Bruins

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The Bruins have a lot of players that can play center, and some can do it fairly well.

Elias Lindholm is not a bad player. Pavel Zacha is not a bad player. Fraser Minten had a solid rookie season and has nice upside. James Hagens has the ability to play center if they eventually see him there (he is playing on the wing now).

But is anybody here a No. 1?

Or a potential No. 1?

Not likely.

There is also the reality that Zacha is an unrestricted free agent after this season and might be playing elsewhere after this season, creating another potential opening in the lineup.

The Bruins almost certainly still see themselves as a playoff team, and a team that is capable of contending. But there is always going to be a ceiling on what they can do without a true No. 1 center on the roster. It would not solve all of their problems, but it would solve a big problem.