I'm keeping an eye on the following players
LD:
1) Marcus Pettersson- Pittsburgh has indicated that they are selling. Pettersson is on an expiring deal and it's a matter of when, not if he's getting dealt. Cost will likely be D-Petey + a 2nd round pick. Also has history with Allvin/Rutherford. This is the likely move here.
2) Washington Trio (Chychrun, Sandin, Fehervary)- Washington has a ton of cap locked up on their D-core, and one of the 3 on the left side could shake loose. Chychrun is the likely one to be dealt as he's an expiring contract, but if he's re-signed, that could lead to a Sandin trade. Would be a great second-pairing LD behind Hughes.
3) Cam Fowler- Veteran presence who is stuck on a terrible Ducks team. He should've been traded last year. The Ducks asset management with their older players is pretty bad (Fowler, Vatrano, Gibson, etc), but Fowler might shake loose if the right deal is made. Would be an unbelievable add, and could be similar to Dan Hamhuis back in 2010. Retention would be needed in a trade though. Luckily the Ducks have all 3 retention spots open.
4) Nicolas Hague/Brayden McNabb- Vegas is likely going to make another big trade this year, so clearing out some cap room in their D-core might help with a move. I think they'll try to trade McNabb before Hague, and McNabb does seem like a Tocchet player. But I'd much rather have Hague. Think he would be excellent on the Canucks with a bigger opportunity.
5) Mario Ferraro- Not sure if San Jose trades him, but if they do, Vancouver should be all over it. Would be a huge upgrade on the second-pairing. Solid defensive defenseman.
I don't think Gavrikov gets dealt at this point, and I don't see Provorov re-signing in Vancouver if traded. That could rule both out for now.
RD:
1) Rasmus Andersson- Going to take a lot to get him, but there's already trade history between Vancouver and Calgary, and so this could happen again. Can carry his own pairing and would be the perfect fit on this team. The cost will be astronomical though.
2) Connor Murphy- A solid defensive defenseman who could play on all three pairs. He's at a reasonable cap hit and has the size and physicality that Tocchet and Foote love. He might be a more reasonable add than Andersson based on the return, and Chicago has 2 retention slots open as well, so that might be an option.
3) David Jiricek- A lot of people think that Columbus won't deal Jiricek, but I honestly think he'll be traded at some point this year. There seems to be way too much bad blood between player and organization. If there's some miraculous way to make a Jiricek deal without dealing Lekkerimaki or Willander, you do it today. Would lock in an elite right-side D-core for the next 5-7 years.
4) David Savard- The Habs are a tire-fire, and Savard is an upcoming UFA. I'm not the biggest fan of him, but he's a solid defensive defenseman and definitely an upgrade on Desharnais/Juulsen. I think Desharnais + Picks/Prospects goes back if a trade is made here.