NHL Trade Talk: Crosby, Ovechkin, Toews and Each Team's Untouchable Player

The best NHL teams are made up of a core of players.

Even the Pittsburghs and Washingtons of the league cannot operate with a single superstar and no supporting cast (Atlanta tried to do that with Kovalchuk and look how that worked out).

However, each team has an untouchable player.

This is the player where, if moved, the core will lose it's hard drive (to use a pun) and turn out like Atlanta, which had to be relocated after Kovalchuk signed with New Jersey (to re-use use an analogy).

The following are each franchise's untouchable player.

Anaheim Ducks: Bobby Ryan

Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf could have been placed here, but Philly dealt Mike Richards and Jeff Carter.

Like Perry and Getzlaf, both Richards and Carter were drafted together in 2003 and were core players in Philadelphia prior to this year.

Ryan has netted 30-plus goals in the last three years and is a franchise player for the next generation of Anaheim Ducks.

Boston Bruins: Zdeno Chara

The Bruins are not afraid to let a big-name player go in order to get better in the long run (see: Phil Kessel).

However, Chara is the team captain and the heart and soul of the Boston club.

Youth like Nathan Horton, Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand should remain Bruins for a long time, and Patrice Bergeron and Tim Thomas are fan favorites, but Chara is the quintessential Bruin.

Buffalo Sabres: Ryan Miller

The Sabres score by committee and are committed to defense.

However, goaltender is a position that, by nature, is individualistic, and the Sabres often call on Miller to get them through one-goal games.

Calgary Flames: Hard To Tell

The Flames should be taking offers for everyone.

They are a veteran team that cannot get out of the playoff bubble.

However, they seem to want to hold on to everyone.

Jarome Iginla is the heart-and-soul of this franchise; therefore he got a picture…but really he should be trade bait in the future.

This team needs young talent.

Carolina Hurricanes: Eric Staal

At age 26, Eric Staal is at the prime of his career.

He’s been awarded the ‘C’ and has a potential to take the ‘Canes, who just missed the playoffs last year, to the next level next season.

Chicago Blackhawks: Jonathan Toews

Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith and Patrick Sharp are all franchise players, but Toews is the team leader and probably the most complete player on the team.

Colorado Avalanche: Matt Duchene

Paul Statsny has strong roots in Colorado, and there is a lot of young talent on the team, including T.J. Galiardi, Peter Mueller, Ryan O’Reilly and Erik Johnson.

However, Duchene has the most upside and is the poster boy in Denver.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Rick Nash

Jared Boll’s rough-and-tumble style can put butts in the seats.

Matt Calvert and Derek Dorsett have great upside.

R.J. Umberger and Jeff Carter are great additions for Philly.

And Steve Mason had a great rookie season.

However, the big name in Columbus is Rick Nash.

Dallas Stars: Brenden Morrow

Jamie Benn has great potential, and Loui Eriksson and Trevor Daley are in their prime, but Morrow is the man in Dallas.

He plays the game the right way and has become a great leader following the Mike Modano era.

Detroit Red Wings: Jimmy Howard

The Red Wings are a veteran franchise that likes to keep its players in the Motor City.

Nick Lidstrom, Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk are the three-headed monster of the Wings. They have been around forever and aren’t going anywhere.

Justin Abdelkader and Jakub Kindl are going to be part of the future.

However, they will have nowhere near the impact on the team that Jimmy Howard will in the years to come.

Edmonton Oilers: Taylor Hall

Hall is the leader of a core of young players that will eventually bring a winning team back to Edmonton.

Jordan Eberle, Linus Omark and Sam Gagner are important parts of the core and, eventually, so will Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, but Hall is the future of this franchise.

Florida Panthers: Stephen Weiss

Florida has let young talent go in the past (see: Michael Frolik, Nathan Horton) so everyone appears to be on the trading block.

However, Stephen Weiss appears to be the guy they want to keep around.

He’s 28, though, meaning that he might pass his prime before the team becomes competitive.

Los Angeles Kings: Drew Doughty

Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar are both captains that have a big impact on the team; Jack Johnson is an outstanding defensemen, and Jonathan Quick is the goaltender of the future.

However, Doughty may become the best defensemen of the young crop in his generation, and the Kings, under no circumstances, will let him go.

Minnesota Wild: Mikko Koivu

Koivu is the team captain and the big name in Minnesota.

Cal Clutterbuck is a fan favorite and Pierre-Marc Bouchard, Niklas Backstrom and Nick Schultz remain from the team’s better days, but Koivu became "the man" in the post-Gaborik era.

Montreal Canadiens: Carey Price

Montreal has a love-hate relationship with Price, but he’s the franchise goaltender and should be a Hab for life.

Nashville Predators: Shea Weber

The Predators often have their hands tied behind their backs financially and have seen a lot of great players leave Tennessee since their inception in 1998.

However, they should go to great lengths to keep Weber in the Music City.

New Jersey Devils: Zach Parise

Patrik Elias and Martin Brodeur will remain Devils but are aging and nearing retirement.

New Jersey will have to hold on to Ilya Kovalchuk, regardless of if they want to.

However, top priority for this team is keeping Zach Parise, who is in his prime and capable of being a premier player in the league—if he recovers from his devastating injury well.

New York Islanders: John Tavares

Josh Bailey, Michael Grabner, Matt Moulson and Kyle Okposo all will have an impact on the Islanders for years to come, but Tavares has the most upside.

New York Rangers: Henrik Lundqvist

Brian Boyle, Brandon Dubinsky and Ryan Callahan are in their primes.

Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards were big-name imports.

And Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh have incredible upside.

However, Lundqvist is "the man" in New York. He will not be touched.

Ottawa Senators: Erik Karlsson

The Senators have hit a crossroads in their 20th season.

They are no longer the upstart team skimming the bottom.

They are no longer the President’s Trophy team with the CASH line.

They are aging and don’t have a lot of great young talent.

Jason Spezza seems like a natural fit here, but he seems to want to go, and team captain Daniel Alfredsson will be retiring soon.

It’s time for a makeover in Canada’s capital. Everyone on this team except for Erik Karlsson should be expendable.

Philadelphia Flyers: James Van Riemsdyk

After seeing the Flyers blow up their core in the offseason, it looks like everyone is expendable.

However, I don’t see them ever letting JVR or Claude Giroux go.

Phoenix Coyotes: Keith Yandle

Mikkel Boedker, Kyle Turris, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Yandle will probably determine whether this franchise remains in Phoenix.

They are the future of this club.

However, Yandle is the untouchable here.

He has more upside than the other three players, and the team unleashed a big sigh of relief when he signed his five-year deal in the offseason.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Sidney Crosby

No explanation needed here.

San Jose Sharks: Logan Couture

Joe Thornton, Patrick Marleau and Dan Boyle will probably retire as Sharks, but the organization is not hesitant to wheel-and-deal in order to remain a perennial contender.

Those three players make up the old guard, however.

The team will now turn to Joe Pavelski, Ryane Clowe, Jamie McGinn, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Jason Demers and Couture to continue the winning ways in the Bay Area.

Of all those players, Couture has the most upside.

St. Louis Blues: David Backes

The Blues organization is desperate to return the team to their pre-lockout ways—the team made the playoffs every year from 1980-2004, but has only returned once since the lockout.

As a result, they were not hesitant to ship Erik Johnson, the first overall selection in 2006 to Colorado in the offseason.

That said, T.J. Oshie and Backes will probably remain Blues throughout their careers.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Steven Stamkos

Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis remain from the 2004 Stanley Cup team and Victor Hedman has a lot of upside, but Stammer is the future in Tampa.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Luke Schenn

Phil Kessel and Dion Phaneuf probably aren’t going anywhere.

However, until this team makes the playoffs, Schenn should be the only two players that are untouchable on this club.

Vancouver Canucks: Ryan Kessler

The window is closing on this Canucks team.

However, Kesler, who is entering is prime, plays like he did last season there is no reason to believe he isn’t capable of hoisting the Cup over his head for the proud city of Vancouver.

Washington Capitals: Alex Ovechkin

No explanation needed here.

Winnipeg Jets: Evander Kane

The Jets are going to do everything they can to shed the franchise from the putrid Thrasher era.

It starts will keeping Zach Bogosian and Kane around.