The Week Ahead: Jones Heads to Florida

It's going to be a busy week, highlighted by Friday's trade deadline. I'm surprised that the NHL plays any games (there are six games on the NHL schedule) on deadline day, especially with so many players changing cities.

All statistics are through Saturday night, unless otherwise noted.

WEEK OF MARCH 3-9

4 Games – Anaheim, Buffalo, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia, San Jose, Seattle, Tampa Bay, Washington, Winnipeg

3 Games – Boston, Calgary, Carolina, Colorado, Columbus, Detroit, Edmonton, Florida, Minnesota, Montreal, Nashville, New Jersey, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Toronto, Vancouver, Vegas

2 Games – Utah

Buffalo and Winnipeg play all four games on the road.

Philadelphia plays all four games at home.

Chicago, Colorado, Edmonton, Florida, the New York Rangers, Tampa Bay, Vancouver, Vegas and Washington play three games at home.

Calgary, Columbus, the New York Islanders, Pittsburgh, San Jose and Seattle play three games on the road.

ANAHEIM

Games this week: @ Edmonton, @ Vancouver, vs. St. Louis, vs. New York Islanders

Tired: @ Vancouver (Wednesday)

Rested: vs. New York Islanders (Sunday)

Notes: The Ducks play four games this week including three in four nights...Lukas Dostal will definitely play at least twice, but John Gibson is currently out with an upper-body injury and could be dealt elsewhere by Friday's deadline...Trevor Zegras will return to the lineup Tuesday in Edmonton after he was suspended three games for a hit to the head on Detroit's Michael Rasmussen.

BOSTON

Games this week: vs. Nashville, @ Carolina, @ Tampa Bay

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Bruins were four points out of a playoff spot heading into action Saturday and if they have a bad week, they could be sellers at the deadline, including possibly trading Brad Marchand, who is eligible to be a UFA at the end of the season...Marchand suffered an upper-body injury Saturday and left the game during the second period...David Pastrnak has been so hot of late. He is on a 17-game point streak in which he has 15 goals and 18 assists.

BUFFALO

Games this week: @ Montreal, vs. San Jose, @ Tampa Bay, @ Florida

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Sabres play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week...Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen should get at least two starts and possibly three, while James Reimer should start at least once, unless Devon Levi is recalled...Jason Zucker could be dealt this week as he is a pending UFA...Jiri Kulich picked up his 12th goal of the season Saturday.

CALGARY

Games this week: @ Philadelphia, @ Dallas, vs. Montreal

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Flames complete their six-game road trip in Dallas before coming home to play Montreal on Saturday...Connor Zary returned to action Sunday after missing 15 games with a knee injury...He has yet to hit the scoresheet in three games since his return...Morgan Frost has two goals and an assist in eight games since his trade from the Flyers while Joel Farabee has only one goal.

CAROLINA

Games this week: @ Detroit, vs. Boston, vs. Winnipeg

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: Andrei Svechnikov has three goals and six assists in his last nine games after struggling for seven weeks with four goals and six assists across 23 contests...Mikko Rantanen has had his troubles offensively since his trade from Colorado, but he has managed a goal and three helpers in his last four games...Frederik Andersen has lost four straight games.

CHICAGO  

Games this week: vs. Los Angeles, vs. Ottawa, vs. Utah, @ Nashville

Tired: @ Nashville (Saturday)

Rested: vs. Utah (Friday)

Notes: The Blackhawks play four times this week including three games in four nights...Petr Mrazek should get at least a pair of starts with Spencer Knight picking up the rest of the starts...Seth Jones was traded to Florida for Knight and a 2027 first-round pick on Saturday night. Knight should be the No. 1 goaltender for a long time with the Blackhawks...Connor Bedard is without a point in his last four games.

COLORADO

Games this week: vs. Pittsburgh, vs. San Jose, vs. Toronto

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Avalanche are in the midst of a six-game homestand...They picked up Jimmy Vesey and Ryan Lindgren, along with prospect Hank Kempf from the Rangers for Calvin de Haan, Juuso Parssinen and conditional second and fourth-round draft picks in 2025 on Saturday...Jonathan Drouin has a goal and two assists in his last four games...Valeri Nichushkin returned Wednesday after missing 21 games with a lower-body injury and had a goal Friday in his second game back in action.

COLUMBUS

Games this week: @ Tampa Bay, @ Florida, @ New York Rangers

Tired: None

Rested: @ Tampa Bay (Tuesday), @ New York Rangers (Sunday)

Notes: The Blue Jackets have lost Cole Sillinger for "a while" after suffering an upper-body injury Thursday...Boone Jenner returned to action Feb. 22 after missing the first 56 games recovering from shoulder surgery. The 31-year-old center has points in all four games since his return, including three helpers in Detroit on Thursday, giving him seven assists in four games...Daniil Tarasov has won two straight games, giving up only four goals on 64 shots in road victories over Detroit and Utah.

DALLAS

Games this week: vs. New Jersey, vs. Calgary, @ Edmonton, @ Vancouver  

Tired: @ Vancouver (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Stars play four games this week, including three in four nights...Jake Oettinger should get three starts with Casey DeSmith playing once...Roope Hintz had four assists Friday, giving him seven points in his last three games. Overall, Hintz has 23 goals and 20 assists across 55 contests...Logan Stankoven has moved up to the top line with Hintz and Jason Robertson, and celebrated with a pair of goals Friday. Stankoven has nine goals and 28 points in 56 appearances this season, including 147 shots.

DETROIT

Games this week: vs. Carolina, vs. Utah, @ Washington  

Tired: @ Washington (Friday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Red Wings play three games in four nights...Cam Talbot should play twice with Alex Lyon playing once...Marco Kasper was selected eighth overall in 2022 and has shined at times this season. He is seeing first-line time alongside Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond and would be a fine pickup in dynasty pools at this time...Moritz Seider has excelled since Todd McLellan took over behind the bench. Seider has five goals and 31 points in 60 games, including 18 points on the power play.

EDMONTON

Games this week: vs. Anaheim, vs. Montreal, vs. Dallas

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Oilers had lost five in a row heading into action Saturday, but they snapped the losing streak with a 3-1 win in Carolina...Connor McDavid has only four assists in his last six games...Leon Draisaitl has been the lone offensive force for the Oilers of late...He has an 11-game point streak with nine goals and seven assists...Darnell Nurse missed his second straight game Saturday with an undisclosed injury...John Klingberg has a goal and four points in his last four games.

FLORIDA

Games this week: vs. Tampa Bay, vs. Columbus, vs. Buffalo

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Panthers made a bold move Saturday night in acquiring defenseman Seth Jones from Chicago...The price was steep as they gave up goaltender Spencer Knight (I guess that Sergei Bobrovsky will remain their undisputed No. 1 goaltender for at least two more seasons) and a 2027 first-round pick. Jones could come in and take over quarterbacking the first power play, demoting Aaron Ekblad to the second unit.

LOS ANGELES

Games this week: @ Chicago, vs. St. Louis, vs. St. Louis, @ Vegas

Tired: @ Vegas (Sunday)

Rested: vs. St. Louis (Saturday)

Notes: The Kings play four games this week, but not three games in four nights...They also see the Blues in back-to-back home games, as well as playing them for the third time in their last four games...Look for tempers to flare and if they do, expect to see Tanner Jeannot in the middle of things...Anze Kopitar has just one goal and three assists in his last 14 games. The 37-year-old has 13 goals and 34 assists in 58 contests, but his offensive game looks to be slipping.

MINNESOTA

Games this week: @ Seattle, @ Vancouver, vs. Pittsburgh  

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Wild picked up Gustav Nyquist from Nashville on Saturday, dealing a second-round pick in 2026 to the Predators...Minnesota is hurting badly as Kirill Kaprizov remains out of action with a lower-body injury, while Joel Eriksson Ek is week-to-week with a lower-body injury as well...That's two-thirds of your top line out of action...Filip Gustavsson has allowed seven goals on 45 shots in his last two games, both losses.

MONTREAL

Games this week: vs. Buffalo, @ Edmonton, @ Calgary

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Canadiens are getting great production out of their top line as Cole Caufield has 29 goals, while Nick Suzuki has 18 goals and 61 points in 60 games, including three goals and six assists in his last four contests...Lane Hutson has points in each of his last four games, giving the rookie defenseman four goals and 42 assists in 60 appearances...Sam Montembeault has three straight wins, allowing only five goals on 73 shots.

NASHVILLE

Games this week: @ Boston vs. Seattle, vs. Chicago

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Chicago (Saturday)

Notes: The Predators gave up Gustav Nyquist to the Wild, getting a second-round pick in 2025 in return...Roman Josi was placed on injured reserve Saturday. He suffered an upper-body injury Tuesday and has missed the last two games...Steven Stamkos has been held pointless in his last 12 games and adding insult to injury, he is a minus-15 over that span...Luke Schenn could be dealt this week. He would love to play with his brother Brayden again and it could happen at the deadline.

NEW JERSEY

Games this week: @ Dallas, vs. Winnipeg, @ Philadelphia

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Winnipeg (Friday), @ Philadelphia (Sunday)

Notes: The Devils are the rested team in two of their three contests this week...Luke Hughes has a goal and five points in his last five games...Paul Cotter has had a nice season as a bottom-six forward with 13 goals, six assists, 45 PIM and 192 hits. While he should not have been taken in shallow pools, he has been a nice addition in deep leagues...Jack Hughes had points in 10 of his last 11 games ahead of Saturday's clash in Utah.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS

Games this week: @ New York Rangers, vs. Winnipeg, @ San Jose, @ Anaheim

Tired: vs. Winnipeg (Tuesday), @ Anaheim (Sunday)    

Rested: @ New York Rangers (Monday)

Notes: The Islanders play a pair of back-to-back games this week...Ilya Sorokin is likely to play at least three games as Marcus Hogberg (upper body) and Semyon Varlamov (lower body) remain out of action, leaving the backup duties to Jakub Skarek at this time...Maxim Tsyplakov was a healthy scratch Saturday as Hudson Fasching has taken over his spot on the third line.

NEW YORK RANGERS

Games this week: vs. New York Islanders, vs. Washington, @ Ottawa, vs. Columbus

Tired: vs. New York Islanders (Monday), vs. Columbus (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: Adam Fox is on injured reserve after suffering an upper-body injury against the Islanders on Tuesday...The Rangers hope that Fox will be available down the stretch of the regular season, but that could be too late for the disappointing team...The Rangers made a trade Saturday, dealing Jimmy Vesey, Ryan Lindgren and Hank Kempf for Juuso Parssinen, Calvin de Haan and two draft picks in 2025.

OTTAWA 

Games this week: @ Washington, @ Chicago, vs. New York Rangers

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: The Senators were thrilled Saturday when Brady Tkachuk (lower body), Shane Pinto (upper body) and Josh Norris (upper body) returned to the lineup...Tkachuk and Pinto both scored in Ottawa's 5-3 win over San Jose...Drake Batherson has been in a big slump of late with only two goals and seven points in his last 14 games...Claude Giroux is without a point in his last five games.

PHILADELPHIA

Games this week

vs. Calgary, vs. Winnipeg, vs. Seattle, vs. New Jersey

Tired: vs. New Jersey (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Flyers three games in four nights as part of their four-game week...Samuel Ersson should get at least two starts and likely three with Ivan Fedotov playing the remainder of the games...Matvei Michkov has been rejuvenated since the break and has three goals and five assists in his last four games...Rasmus Ristolainen is not generating much in the way of trade interest and could remain with the Flyers through the end of the season.

PITTSBURGH

Games this week: @ Colorado, @ Vegas, @ Minnesota

Tired: None

Rested: None

Notes: Kris Letang will not be moved this season, but he could be asked to waive the no-trade clause in his contract in the future...Erik Karlsson's name keeps coming up in trade rumors. The Penguins would likely love to get rid of his expensive contract and may be asked to retain salary if he is moved...Sidney Crosby has one goal and three assists in five games since the end of the 4 Nations Face-Off, but he is a minus-8 since the NHL resumed action.

SAN JOSE

Games this week: @ Toronto, @ Buffalo, @ Colorado, vs. New York Islanders

Tired: None

Rested: @ Toronto (Monday)

Notes: The Sharks complete a seven-game road trip in Colorado...They olay four times this week, including three games in four nights...Alexandar Georgiev will likely play twice games if he remains on the roster at the deadline, while Vitek Vanecek will clean up the remaining games...Will Smith is coming into his own as the fourth-overall pick in the 2023 Draft has four goals and 13 points in his last 13 games. Pairing Smith with Macklin Celebrini gives Shark fans plenty to be excited about in the coming years.

SEATTLE

Games this week: vs. Minnesota, @ Nashville, @ Philadelphia, @ Washington

Tired: @ Washington (Sunday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Kraken play four games this week, including three games in four nights...Joey Daccord should play at least twice and more likely three times with Niklas Kokko playing once...Brandon Tanev could be headed elsewhere as the Kraken do not have any playoff aspirations this season and Tanev is a pending UFA...Matty Beniers has 13 goals and 32 points across 60 games this season.

ST. LOUIS

Games this week: @ Los Angeles, @ Anaheim, @ Los Angeles

Tired: @ Los Angeles (Saturday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Blues play three games in four nights...Expect Jordan Binnington to play two games with Joel Hofer playing once...The Blues play the Kings twice this week as well as three times over the last seven days and there could be plenty of bad blood between the two sides...Brayden Schenn leads the Blues with 48 PIM but he could be on his way out of town at the deadline as his name has been bandied about in trade rumors.

TAMPA BAY

Games this week: @ Florida, vs. Columbus, vs. Buffalo, vs. Boston  

Tired: vs. Columbus (Tuesday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Lightning play four games including three outings in four nights...Look for Andrei Vasilevskiy to play three games with Jonas Johansson playing once...Vasilevskiy has won eight straight games and has reestablished himself as a top-three goaltender in the NHL this season after a tough 2023-24 campaign...Brandon Hagel scored his 30th of the season Saturday and has an eight-game point streak in which he has eight goals and six assists with a plus-15 rating.

TORONTO

Games this week: vs. San Jose, @ Vegas, @ Colorado

Tired: vs. San Jose (Monday)

Rested: None

Notes: The Maple Leafs have won all four road games since the break...Calle Jarnkrok could return to the lineup this week after undergoing sports hernia surgery in November. He has yet to play this season...Chris Tanev is out of action with an upper-body injury suffered Tuesday against Boston. He could return this week...Auston Matthews has only one goal in his last 10 games and it was into the empty net.

UTAH

Games this week: @ Detroit, @ Chicago

Tired: @ Chicago (Friday)

Rested: None

Notes: Utah is attempting to get a contract extension with goaltender Karel Vejmelka done but if they are unable to do so before the trade deadline, Vejmelka could be dealt elsewhere...Clayton Keller had a goal and four assists Thursday in a 6-1 win over Minnesota. He is on a six-game point streak ahead of Saturday's tilt with New Jersey, tallying four goals and eight assists...Logan Cooley returned to action Sunday after missing seven games with a lower-body injury. He has two goals and two assists in the three games since his return.

VANCOUVER

Games this week: vs. Anaheim, vs. Minnesota, vs. Dallas

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Anaheim (Wednesday), vs. Dallas (Sunday)

Notes: Elias Pettersson continues to look lost in Vancouver as he had only two assists in eight February games. He didn't look good at the 4 Nations Face-Off either and the Canucks have to be quite concerned about Pettersson moving forward...Brock Boeser wants to sign a deal and remain with Vancouver, but the pending UFA could find himself elsewhere at the trade deadline if no deal is finalized...Kevin Lankinen is 2-1-0 in his last three starts, allowing five goals on 82 shots.

VEGAS

Games this week: vs. Toronto, vs. Pittsburgh, vs. Los Angeles

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Los Angeles (Sunday)

Notes: The Golden Knights are home for all three games this week...Expect them to make a splash at the trade deadline as they seem to do so every season...Mark Stone has one goal in three games since returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off...Jack Eichel has also had trouble after the tourney as has only one helper in three games, despite the Golden Knights finding the back of the net 12 times in the three contests.

WASHINGTON

Games this week: vs. Ottawa, @ New York Rangers, vs. Detroit, vs. Seattle

Tired: None

Rested: vs. Detroit (Friday), vs. Seattle (Sunday)

Notes: The Capitals play four times this week, but the games are spread apart every other day, accounting for the team playing twice against tired opponents...Logan Thompson, who has lost two straight games, giving him a 25-4-5 mark, and Charlie Lindgren are expected to share the crease this week...Alex Ovechkin has nine goals in his last 10 games, giving him 31 on the season.

WINNIPEG

Games this week: @ New York Islanders, @ Philadelphia, @ New Jersey, @ Carolina

Tired: @ New Jersey (Friday)

Rested: @ New York Islanders (Tuesday)

Notes: The Jets play three games in four nights as part of their four-game week...The Jets could have Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Comrie share the net to give Hellebuyck some extra rest...Gabriel Vilardi continues to pile on the points. He has already set career highs in goals and assists with 26 and 29 respectively in 61 appearances and has settled in quite nicely on the top line with Kyle Connor and Mark Scheifele. Vilardi also has career highs in power play goals and assists with 11 apiece.