NHL Rumors: Top Trade Buzz Surrounding Rasmus Ristolainen, Justin Faulk, More

With the NHL preseason in full swing and the start of the 2019-20 regular season October 4, teams are still looking to fine-tune their rosters and add the missing pieces that could take them from pretender status to playoff contenders.

While there seemingly aren't many huge names on the block, there are some quality defensemen to be had, and adding even one solid blueliner to the mix can make a difference.

Here is a closer look at the top players who are rumored to be available leading up to the commencement of the 2019-20 season and where they could land.

Rasmus Ristolainen

The Buffalo Sabres have an obvious logjam along the blue line with the regular season approaching, and there is little doubt that Rasmus Ristolainen is the guy they would most like to move.

According to Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, the Sabres are listening to offers for Ristolainen, and the Anaheim Ducks are one team that has checked in on him. LeBrun also noted that Buffalo's asking price for the Finn is high.

Despite still being one month shy of his 25th birthday, Ristolainen has six years of NHL experience. He has also posted at least 40 points in each of the past four campaigns, including a 2018-19 season in which he registered five goals and 38 assists. Of those 43 points, 17 of them came on the power play, which is perhaps his greatest asset.

The biggest issue for Ristolainen is his defensive play. His plus-minus of minus-41 last season was a career worst, and it was the worst mark in the NHL as well.

Ristolainen has never had a plus-minus of better than minus-nine in a season, and his career plus-minus of minus-143 speaks to how much of a liability he can be on the defensive end.

If a team does acquire Ristolainen, it will be doing so based on his offensive ability and strength on the power play. The Ducks are in desperate need of someone like Ristolainen since none of their defensemen posted more than 28 points last season.

The Ducks and Sabres also have a history of making trades, as Anaheim dealt defenseman Brandon Montour to Buffalo last season.

Ristolainen still has three years remaining on his contract at $5.4 million per year, and clearing that off the books would give Buffalo more flexibility while also making it more likely that a young defenseman like Henri Jokiharju can crack the lineup.

Buffalo still needs some scoring help up front, so if it can pry a forward like Rickard Rakell or Jakob Silfverberg from Anaheim as part of a Ristolainen trade, it would be a major coup for the Sabres.

Justin Faulk

Like Ristolainen, Justin Faulk is a quality offensive producer from the blueline whose time may be running short with his team.

The 27-year-old is set to enter his ninth NHL season, and he has spent his entire career with the Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina is stacked on defense with the likes of Dougie Hamilton, Jake Gardiner, Jaccob Slavin and Trevor van Riemsdyk, which is why Faulk is expendable.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Ducks and Hurricanes were in talks regarding a Faulk trade, and while his agent didn't call the talks dead, there is no sign that something is going to get done between the two sides.

Friedman added that it is believed Faulk wants a contract extension worth $6.75 million per year from Anaheim in the event of a trade.

Faulk has only hit the 40-point mark once in his career (15 goals and 34 assists in 2014-15), but he is one of the best goal-scoring defensemen in the NHL. Faulk has scored double-digit goals in four of the past five seasons, including 11 last term.

While his 24 assists and 35 points were somewhat underwhelming, he posted a career-best plus-minus of plus-nine after being a minus player in each of the previous five seasons. He also contributed on the defensive end with a career-high 121 blocked shots and 156 hits.

Faulk would be a great fit in Anaheim since the Ducks are in desperate need of a power-play quarterback. He isn't shy about shooting the puck, as evidenced by his 200-plus shots in each of the past three seasons, and that plays well into forward Ryan Getzlaf's skill set since he can set screens and clean up the mess in front of the crease.

The blueliner is set to enter the final year of his contract, so if Carolina can't move him before the start of the season, he will be a prime candidate to get dealt prior to the trade deadline.

Julius Honka

Despite being the No. 14 overall pick in the 2014 draft, Dallas Stars defenseman Julius Honka has struggled to establish himself as a full-time NHL player.

The Finn has appeared in just 87 games in three seasons, including 29 in 2018-19. Since there is no guarantee Honka will make the Stars roster out of camp, he could seemingly be had via trade.

According to Sportsnet (h/t Marc Dumont of The Athletic), the Montreal Canadiens are among the teams that have shown interest in Honka.

The 23-year-old posted four assists and a minus-two rating last season. For his career, he has two goals and 11 assists for 13 points and a minus-seven rating to his credit.

Dallas' defense corps includes the likes of Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, John Klingberg, Andrej Sekera, Roman Polak and Jamie Oleksiak, so Honka likely wouldn't be anything other than an extra defenseman if the Stars were to keep him.

The 5'11", 180-pounder remains unsigned as a restricted free agent, which means something has to give, with Dallas either signing him or trading him.

Any team that acquires Honka will be banking on the notion that there is some untapped ability that might only come to the forefront with a change of scenery.

Honka undoubtedly needs to go elsewhere since the playing opportunities are few and far between in Dallas, and trading him could be worth the risk for a team like Montreal provided the asking price isn't too high.