NHL trade grades: Report cards for biggest deals of 2026 offseason
The 2026 NHL offseason trading period has begun.
As the deals continue to roll in, ESPN reporters will be grading all the moves with the biggest impacts, including instant reaction on how the GMs involved did.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning kicked things into high gear with the Leafs landing pending free agent defenseman Darren Raddysh on Friday. Then the Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators turned the knobs up to 11 with a blockbuster trade that sent Brady Tkachuk to the Sunshine State, with four high draft picks heading back to Canada's capital.
On Tuesday, the New Jersey Devils traded 2022 No. 2 pick Simon Nemec to the Calgary Flames in exchange for future first-round picks. Then, the Sens flipped the No. 9 pick (part of the Tkachuk haul) to the San Jose Sharks for William Eklund, and the Washington Capitals dealt a package including the No. 16 pick to the St. Louis Blues for Jordan Kyrou.
Read on for more, and keep this page bookmarked as the trade volume rises ahead of the NHL draft on June 26-27 and free agency on July 1.
Note: The most recent trades will appear highest up on the page.
Jump to a trade:
Kyrou to WSH
Eklund to OTT
Nemec to CGY
Tkachuk to FLA
Raddysh to TOR
June 23: Capitals add Kyrou, send pick No. 16 to Blues
The long-rumored trade of Jordan Kyrou finally materialized Tuesday when St. Louis sent the forward to Washington in exchange for pending RFA Connor McMichael, forward prospect Milton Gastrin and the 16th pick in the 2026 draft.
The Blues didn't retain any salary on Kyrou, who has five years remaining on his deal with an $8.125 million AAV. He also waived his no-trade clause to see the transaction go through.
Who came out on the winning end of this one? Let's take a look.
St. Louis Blues
Grade: B+
The Blues had been stagnant for too long. It was going to take a significant swing -- like, say, trading one of their top forwards -- in order to put St. Louis back on track. Consider the Kyrou deal an addition by subtraction.
There aren't many top-tier offensive talents available in free agency this summer, so it made sense for St. Louis to dangle this specific carrot to a team like Washington. It's no secret the Capitals were looking for an influx of scoring talent considering the murky future of Alex Ovechkin and their recent history of seeing a key player lost to injury -- like Pierre-Luc Dubois was for too much of last season -- and having it derail their offensive attack.
Washington paid a premium for Kyrou by sending Connor McMichael -- the 25-year-old center who is an RFA with arbitration rights -- along with a high draft choice. The pick is critical for St. Louis here because its prospect cupboard needs restocking, and now the Blues have four first-round choices in this upcoming draft. They can either make picks with each of them or swap those choices for other NHL-ready skaters.
If the Blues had to give up one of Kyrou or Robert Thomas, then this was likely the savvier move, too. Thomas has been hampered by injuries but still has a higher upside than Kyrou, whose numbers dwindled significantly last season (to 18 goals and 46 points in 72 games). This is a fresh start for both sides, and St. Louis made out well with the return and not having to retain any salary -- even if it might be worse on paper (right now) without Kyrou in the mix.
McMichael -- assuming a deal gets done -- will be a fine addition to the Blues' forward core and will inject some new life into the team as it attempts to turn the corner.
Washington Capitals
Grade: B
The Capitals have been searching for another top-six forward for over a year. They finally landed their man in Kyrou.
Is there some risk here on the Capitals' end? Yes. Kyrou hasn't thrived like the Blues expected when inking his eight-year, $65 million contract extension three years ago. And the fact that Kyrou is 28 and just finished the worst statistical season of his career since 2020-21 isn't ideal when this should be his time of peak performance. Kyrou's defensive game has been an issue, and too often he is only as good as the skaters around him.
However, there is no denying Kyrou's skill and that he can excel again (like he did in three consecutive 30-plus-goal seasons from 2022 to 2025) under the right circumstances.
Fortunately, the Capitals have some good linemates for him. Dubois, Tom Wilson, Dylan Strome, Aliaksei Protas and possibly Ovechkin could all be potential companions for Kyrou in some capacity, and it's nice for coach Spencer Carbery to have options in helping Kyrou return to form.
Washington had the draft capital to get its business done thanks to first-round choices at No. 16 and No. 18 in this weekend's prospect expo. Sending McMichael away had to be the toughest part. He has been an integral piece of the Capitals' success the past few seasons and was increasingly coming into his own despite a slight dip in production during the 2025-26 campaign.
Still, you can't get something for nothing, and Washington made the most of this season's lack of high-end free agent forwards with a tidy transaction. --Shilton
June 23: Senators flip No. 9 pick to Sharks for Eklund
Once the starting point for a rebuild with the Sharks, William Eklund has moved into another role for another team.
San Jose traded Eklund, prospect winger Kasper Halttunen and the rights to prospect forward Brandon Svoboda to Ottawa in exchange for the No. 9 pick in this year's draft.
Here's a look at what it means for everyone involved.
Ottawa Senators
Grade: B
The reason the Senators had the No. 9 pick as a bargaining chip to begin with stems from their substantial trade package in the deal that sent Brady Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers on Sunday. Part of the appeal of having that pick was that the Senators could use it in a trade package to land a player they felt was a replacement for Tkachuk.
Senators general manager Steve Staios did get someone who could help fill that void, with the primary question being: Was the No. 9 pick too high a price tag?
Finding a like-for-like replacement was always going to be a challenge for the Senators. There was talk that they could put together a package to make a run at Dallas Stars restricted free agent winger Jason Robertson. That speculation was met with a report from The Athletic that Robertson wasn't likely to sign a long-term contract in "a place like Ottawa."
Targeting Eklund allowed the Senators to get a young, two-way winger who can play top-six minutes and be used in other scenarios. He's under contract for the next three years at $5.6 million annually.
Eklund is a proven NHL player, though the Senators will need more offensive production from him. He has finished with 15 or more goals and 45 or more points in the past three seasons.
For his career, Eklund is averaging 0.65 points per game; Tkachuk has a 0.81 points-per-game career average.
It's possible that Eklund's production could see a surge by going to the Senators. And the Senators did add two more prospects in the deal, and both could help in the future.
If the Senators still feel they need more scoring help, they have $19.583 million in projected cap space (per PuckPedia) to address those needs, with free agency opening July 1.
San Jose Sharks
Grade: A+
If only there was another first-round, two-way Swedish winger whom the Sharks could draft on Friday. But we'll get to that shortly.
The Sharks have already collected quite a bit of talent during their rebuild, which likely made GM Mike Grier more comfortable dealing Eklund away. A rebuild that started with Eklund later added Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Yaroslav Askarov, Sam Dickinson, Michael Misa and Collin Graf, among others. That group led the Sharks to finish four points shy of the Los Angeles Kings for the final Western Conference wild-card spot this past season.
San Jose had more than $39 million in projected cap space available before the trade. So it's not like the Sharks necessarily needed the money. But adding the No. 9 pick when they already have No. 2 is the sort of scenario that can quickly boost the fortunes of a team trying to establish itself as a potential long-term power.
Grier and his staff can use the extra cap space to dip into free agency and possibly add more scoring help to replace what they lost in Eklund, with the idea that this will supplement what they do at the draft.
As for the draft, selecting Ivar Stenberg becomes a stronger possibility.
The 18-year-old winger finished with 11 goals and 33 points in 43 games while playing for Frolunda in the SHL, the premier Swedish professional league.
The Sharks could use the No. 2 pick on Stenberg, who projects as a top-line winger, and then select the best player available at No. 9. Adding those two talents to their young core would bolster one of the most promising young groups in the NHL -- one ready to take another big step forward in 2026-27. --Clark
June 23: Flames land Nemec from Devils for picks
Simon Nemec has a new home after the New Jersey Devils traded the defenseman to the Calgary Flames.
Nemec and forward Maxim Tsyplakov are going to the Flames in exchange for prospect defenseman Etienne Morin, a 2026 second-round pick (originally from the New York Rangers), a 2027 first-round pick (originally from the Vegas Golden Knights) and a 2028 first-round pick (originally from the Colorado Avalanche).
Here's a quick look at why it's a win-win move for the Devils and Flames.
New Jersey Devils
Grade: B+
Nemec wasn't going to work as a long-term option for the Devils for a few reasons. When a team drafts a defenseman like Nemec, who went No. 2 in 2022, there's an expectation he is going to be a top-pairing puck mover who also will quarterback the top power-play unit.
The issue is that the Devils already had Luke Hughes, drafted No. 4 in 2021. He is the same age as Nemec and has already signed his second NHL deal, making $9 million annually for the next six seasons.
Hughes, Dougie Hamilton and Brett Pesce averaged more ice time per game this season than Nemec, who was fourth. Jonas Siegenthaler averaged only 12 fewer seconds per game, and the Devils have other players they can use to round out their top six without eating into their cap space, which they would have had to do with restricted free agent Nemec.
In short, it was imperative for first-year Devils general manager Sonny Mehta to find a trade for Nemec that could help the Devils.
He did so in getting two first-round picks and a second-rounder as well.
Several factors contributed to the Devils missing the playoffs in 2025-26. Mehta and his staff will use this offseason to strengthen their roster to try to return in 2026-27.
The draft capital Mehta gained -- along with the Devils' $13.152 million in cap space, per PuckPedia -- gives him even more runway to address what he feels are the Devils' most pressing personnel concerns.
Calgary Flames
Grade: B+
Perhaps the most important aspect of any deal that Flames GM Craig Conroy makes is retaining his team's own first-round picks, given that the Flames are expected to be in a rebuild for the next few years.
But bartering with first-round picks that belong to playoff teams which are among annual favorites to win the Stanley Cup? Those are fair game to use in building a brighter future.
For a variety of reasons, Nemec could be a significant part of that build.
Conroy and his staff have used the past few drafts to build one of the strongest prospect pools in the NHL.
The proverbial jewel of their prospect pool is right-handed defenseman Zayne Parekh, who was selected ninth in 2024. Adding Nemec to the group gives the Flames a pair of defensemen drafted in the top 10 as a starting point for their blue line of the future.
This past season, Parekh had four goals and nine points in 37 games and averaged 17:08 in ice time, while Nemec had 11 goals and 26 points while averaging 19:40 in ice time in 68 games.
Adding Nemec three days before the NHL draft confirms that this might be one of the most important weeks for determining the Flames' future.
Calgary has the sixth pick and the 30th pick, the latter of which is one of the two first-rounders it got from the Golden Knights as part of the Rasmus Andersson trade in January. The Flames also have three second-round picks and two third-round selections.
Possessing that much draft capital -- while adding Nemec to a young core that already featured Matt Coronato, Matvei Gridin, Samuel Honzek, Dustin Wolf and Parekh -- only heightens the Flames' potential to emerge from their rebuild in the coming years. --Clark
June 21: Brady Tkachuk traded to the Panthers
Having Matthew Tkachuk simply wasn't enough for the Florida Panthers. That's why they collected the full set with the summer's first blockbuster.
The Panthers acquired Brady Tkachuk from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for the Nos. 9 and 25 picks in this year's draft, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2030 second-round pick.
So, what are the short- and long-term impacts -- aside from it being easier for their parents to catch all their games? Here's a look at how both teams performed in this trade and what it all means.
Florida Panthers
Grade: A
"There are levels to this." We hear that phrase a lot, and this trade is another example of why it's such a popular saying.
Of course, there's the Tkachuk of it all. It's been talked about for some time now. Especially as the NHL continues what must now be viewed as an exodus of star American-born players leaving Canadian markets. One of the earliest examples of that trend was, well, Matthew Tkachuk, back in 2022.
As for the dynamics of the trade itself? The first level came earlier Sunday, when Panthers general manager Bill Zito got the No. 25 pick in this year's draft in a trade with the Seattle Kraken in which Florida parted with forward Mackie Samoskevich.
By getting a second-first round pick in this week's draft, Zito had some options. It also meant the Panthers were saving potential cap space for something (or someone) else, with Samoskevich having yet to sign a contract as a restricted free agent.
But with all of that in his control, Zito offered a package that was headlined with the No. 9 pick and another first-round pick in this year's draft as part of a haul of three first-round picks, a tactic that showed his intent to get Brady Tkachuk and the need to win now.
Injuries to Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk damaged the Panthers' bid for a third straight Stanley Cup this past season. But adding another Tkachuk to what should be a fully healthy roster makes what was already a dangerous team even more of a threat.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice will have a top-six forward group that can feature any combination of Barkov, Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand, Sam Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe and both Tkachuk brothers.
That's seven forwards who are all under contract for at least the next two seasons. Brady Tkachuk has two years remaining on his contract worth $8.21 million annually, with the idea that there's a strong chance he'll likely re-sign with the club when the time comes. Matthew Tkachuk has four years left on his contract, at $9.50 million annually.
PuckPedia projects the Panthers still have a little more than $7.071 million in cap space now that they have both Tkachuks. It's still enough space to address what remains their biggest question going into free agency: goaltending.
Zito and his front office staff have between now and when free agency starts July 1 to figure out what their goaltending will look like, with the idea that their latest move to acquire the younger Tkachuk further reinforces why South Florida remains a destination.
Ottawa Senators
Grade: B+
The Senators were in what has become a familiar bind whenever a team has a star player who is constantly being discussed as a flight risk:
- Do you trade the player now with the aim of getting a significant return that can help you immediately and in the future?
- Or do you try to make it work, knowing there's a chance you could lose him for nothing in free agency?
Senators general manager Steve Staios took the first option and received a return for Brady Tkachuk that is indeed comparable to what his counterparts attained in similar deals involving Jack Eichel and Quinn Hughes.
That's the aspect of this trade that really can't be logically questioned.
Now, it's just a matter of what life looks like for the Senators post-Tkachuk. And that is the aspect of this deal that can be questioned, adding to the complexity in the aftermath.
The Senators now own three first-round picks in this year's draft -- and more than $25.183 million in projected cap space. They certainly can entertain nearly any option entering July 1.
Can the Sens use this coming week to get someone who is a like-for-like replacement for Tkachuk? Or do they pick up a player who is close enough when it comes to replacing Tkachuk's production?
Even the production aspect comes with a few questions. Is it important for them to go get another power forward who can consistently generate offensive opportunities? Or is it more about attaining the player with the strongest offensive skill set regardless of his playing profile?
Tkachuk averaged 0.81 points per game for his career with Ottawa. He averaged 0.98 points over 60 games this past season, and he scored 20 or more goals in all but one of his eight campaigns with the Sens.
Finding that player in free agency this summer could prove to be challenging. There are players available -- for now -- such Anthony Mantha, Mason Marchment and Alex Tuch who could be options if they do not re-sign or have their rights traded elsewhere prior to July 1.
There also will be teams that need to create cap space or players who could become options because they're in need of a change of scenery, includingJake DeBrusk.
What helps is that Staios and his front office can sell any potential options on what players would be coming to if they wanted to sign with the Sens.
Ottawa was a playoff team in 2025-26, and it is trying to get back to the postseason for a third straight campaign -- and advance beyond the first round for the first time since 2016-17.
They have a talented core led by Drake Batherson, Thomas Chabot, Dylan Cozens, Shane Pinto, Jake Sanderson, Tim Stutzle and Linus Ullmark.
It's a good sales pitch. But it comes with the understanding that there's going to be competition from other teams for those players, with the reality that it could take time (and possibly additional resources) to find the strongest replacement. -- Ryan S.Clark
June 19: Leafs land Raddysh from Lightning
The Maple Leafs acquired defenseman Darren Raddysh from the Lightning in exchange for Toronto's fifth-round selection in the 2026 NHL draft.
Raddysh has signed an eight-year contract extension with the Maple Leafs worth $8.5 million annually.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Grade: B
The NHL free agent puddle just got even shallower thanks to Toronto, as Raddysh was one of the best options for offensive defensemen. That said, there's undeniable risk for the Maple Leafs here. Raddysh, 30, had the best season of his late-blooming NHL career in 2025-26 for the Lightning: career highs in goals (22), assists (48), points (70) and plus-minus (+21), playing a career high 22:42 per contest in 73 games.
That a decent chunk of those points (26) came on a power play featuring NHL MVP Nikita Kucherov, Jake Guentzel, Brayden Point and others shouldn't be a strike against him. The defenseman with a booming shot will also have ample weaponry in Toronto, with Auston Matthews, William Nylander and potentially Gavin McKenna once the Maple Leafs draft him next week. Please note that Jim Hiller, just hired as Maple Leafs head coach, ran the power play during his four years as an assistant under Mike Babcock in Toronto.
Raddysh wasn't a one-dimensional player in Tampa. GM John Chayka of Toronto called him "one of the NHL's premier two-way defensemen, combining elite puck-moving ability with poise, competitiveness and strong play in all three zones." He's not wrong, based on the results last season.
Emphasis: last season.
Raddysh is one of two things. He could be a defenseman who figured things out a little later in his career -- keep in mind he was an undrafted free agent who got his start in the Chicago Blackhawks' organization in 2017-18 -- but then really hit his stride as a top offensive D-man. The Lightning have seen this story before: Dan Boyle was also an undrafted rookie who broke out at 26 but didn't hit his offensive apex until he was 30 years old (63 points).
Or, Darren Raddysh could be another in a long tradition of NHL players singing for the supper before unrestricted free agency. In his case, he belted out an aria.
The Leafs handed Raddysh an eight-year contract worth $8.5 million against the salary cap annually, which is a slight raise over the $836,000 in base salary he made last season. AFP Analytics expected his contract to net out to around $8 million annually on a six-year term. So the Leafs went a little higher and a little longer than you might want on a player like Raddysh, but given what the market could have been on July 1, they wanted to make sure they got him.
Logistically, he gives Chayka a new PP1 quarterback before the Leafs trade defenseman Morgan Rielly, assuming the seemingly inevitable comes to fruition.
Raddysh may never repeat last season's numbers, but they also shouldn't fall off a cliff. He's a good, solid addition to a Maple Leafs blue line that needed more puck-movers and defenseman that can win the neutral zone. It's a risk worth taking.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Grade: C+
The Lightning get a fifth-rounder for what amounts to the negotiating rights to Raddysh. Please recall they sent a third-rounder to the Carolina Hurricanes for the negotiating rights toJake Guentzelback in 2023.
They were hoping Raddysh might stick around on a hometown discount, with other lineup holes to fill and a monster extension for Kucherov looming -- he's entering the final year of his current deal. But with this kind of money on the table, Raddysh was going to walk.
Obviously, the gamble here by GM Julien BriseBois is that they're going to find another offensive defenseman who can fill the hole created by Raddysh for less money and fewer years than the Leafs handed him. That's not necessarily someone who can play PP1, assuming that Victor Hedman is good to go next season. But they could use another puck-mover on the right side, and don't really have anyone in their system that pops out as a potential replacement.
The search begins. -- GregWyshynski
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