NHL Power Rankings: Sabres, Mammoth poised to swing big as trade deadline approaches
The Sabres and Mammoth could become very dangerous with the right moves
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1 min read
The NHL trade deadline is approaching quickly, and two franchises are on the doorstep of becoming true Stanley Cup threats. With the right moves, the Buffalo Sabres and Utah Mammoth could creep into contender status, and that's why they should take big swings.
In the East, the Sabres are closing in on their first postseason appearance since 2011. Fresh off winning an Olympic gold medal, Tage Thompson is playing some of the best hockey of his career, the young blue line is coming together and the goaltending has been exceptional. Given that the East is wide open this season, there's no need for Buffalo to make tweaks around the edges. The Sabres could go all in for one or two impact players, and they would become one of the favorites to win the conference.
Meanwhile, the Mammoth are trying to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2020 (when they were still the Arizona Coyotes), and the players that make up their young core are entering their prime. One of those rising stars, center Logan Cooley, just returned from injury to give his team a boost for its playoff push. Utah has salary cap space, draft capital and a roster on the rise. That's a deadly combination if handled properly.
Over the next few days, the trade buzz will pick up, and I would anticipate the Sabres and Mammoth being in the thick of it. Whatever they do, it should be bold.
Here are your updated NHL Power Rankings with the biggest trade deadline need for every team, including Buffalo and Utah.
Biggest Movers
7
Ducks
5
Lightning
Rk | Teams | Chg | Rcrd | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | Top-four defenseman | Dallas missed out on the Rasmus Andersson sweepstakes, so it needs to be aggressive in trying to land one more top-four defenseman. Outside of Miro Heiskanen and Esa Lindell, the Stars' defensemen have underwhelmed a bit in 2025-26. | 6 | 38-14-9 |
| 2 |  | Bottom-six forward | The Avs have very few weaknesses, but if you were going to put anything on their shopping list, it would be a depth forward to take some heat off the top two lines. Well, either that or any player who could help out the team's miserable power play. | -- | 41-10-9 |
| 3 |  | Game-breaker | This seems to be the Hurricanes' biggest deadline need every year. They either need a player who can score from anywhere in the offensive zone, or they need a playmaker who can get the puck into high-danger areas more frequently. | -- | 38-16-6 |
| 4 |  | No. 2 center | The Sabres have been on a roll, and they look like a team that could do some real damage in the playoffs. They would be even more formidable if they got a top-six center who could bump Ryan McLeod down to the third line, giving the team a more well-balanced lineup. If the Robert Thomas rumors are true, that would be a home run. | -- | 36-19-6 |
| 5 |  | Top-six center | There's one glaring need in Minnesota, and it's down the middle of the ice. Of course, that is one of the most difficult holes to fill. The Wild just forked over a second-round pick for fourth-line center Michael McCarron on Tuesday night, but they need someone who can play big minutes alongside Kirill Kaprizov. | -- | 36-16-10 |
| 6 |  | Depth | It's been a war of attrition for Tampa all season. The Bolts have managed to win that war so far, but they're probably going to need a few more bodies between now and the Stanley Cup Final if they intend to make it that far. The team's acquisition of Nick Paul in 2022 is a good example of what it should be looking for. | 5 | 38-17-4 |
| 7 |  | Impact player with term | The Penguins are in a tough spot. They're good enough to be buyers, but Sidney Crosby will be out a few more weeks. Ideally, Pittsburgh would be able to acquire some younger impact players who can make an impact down the stretch this season and in 2026-27, which is the last year on Crosby's contract. | 1 | 31-16-13 |
| 8 |  | Second-line winger | Beyond Lucas Raymond and Alex DeBrincat, the Red Wings lack real impact players on the wing. Patrick Kane is 37 years old. James van Riemsdyk is 36. Does Detroit really want to lean on 20-year-old former seventh-round pick Emmitt Finnie? | 2 | 35-20-6 |
| 9 |  | Two-way forward | Anaheim has a lot of young talent at forward, but none of them are exactly Selke Trophy candidates. The Ducks have room for a third-line winger who can inject some level of defensive stability into the lineup. | 7 | 33-24-3 |
| 10 |  | Center depth | Rookie Oliver Kapanen has been a nice surprise for the Canadiens, but I don't think they want to roll into the playoffs with him as the No. 2 center behind Nick Suzuki. The 22-year-old is shooting 17.5%, which seems pretty unsustainable. Montreal needs to go all out for a center. | -- | 33-18-9 |
| 11 |  | Bold move | The time is now for this franchise to do something bold. The core is entering its prime, and all the ingredients are there for a deep playoff run. It doesn't matter which part of the roster the Mammoth decide to upgrade, it just needs to be a blockbuster move. | -- | 32-25-4 |
| 12 |  | Scoring | Rookie defenseman Matthew Schaefer -- who has been spectacular -- is the Islanders' second-leading scorer. If it's going to be a threat in the playoffs, New York desperately needs more firepower up front, both at five-on-five and on the power play. | 3 | 35-21-5 |
| 13 |  | Nothing | This is not the answer any fan wants to see, but I just don't see the Blue Jackets as real Stanley Cup contenders this year. Now, having said that, there's no need for this team to wave the white flag. Columbus has been playing well since Rick Bowness took over, and it's probably fine to see how things play out the rest of the way. | 1 | 31-21-8 |
| 14 |  | Defense | Boston surrenders expected goals at the second-highest rate in the NHL. Andrew Peeke and Mason Lohrei simply aren't good enough in their own end. If the Bruins actually want to be a factor in the East, they have to beef up their blue line. | 5 | 34-21-5 |
| 15 |  | Goaltending | Well, it's Groundhog Day again. Edmonton needs to improve its goaltending after swapping Stuart Skinner for Tristan Jarry didn't work out (shocker). Someone get Connor McDavid a goalie who can make timely saves. | 3 | 30-24-8 |
| 16 |  | Penalty killer | In all fairness to the Ottawa skaters, goaltending probably has a lot to do with the team's abysmal 73.1% penalty kill rate. Still, that's a concerning number, and it could get Ottawa beat in a seven-game series. The Sens need to find a shorthanded savant. | 1 | 29-22-9 |
| 17 |  | Reality check | Reports indicate that the Kraken are looking to buy. That would be a pretty big miscalculation on the part of GM Jason Botterill. Seattle just isn't very good, and it's one of the worst five-on-five teams in the NHL. Investing in this roster just doesn't make much sense. | 1 | 29-22-9 |
| 18 |  | Saves | The Golden Knights have had some success spinning the goalie carousel in recent years, but it's backfired on them this season. Now, Vegas is reeling as the trade deadline approaches, and goaltending shoulders a lot of blame for that. None of the four goalies that have suited up for the Golden Knights is above water in goals saved above average. | 5 | 28-19-14 |
| 19 |  | Dynamic defenseman | The Sharks are one of the most exciting young teams in the league, but I'm not sure they have the blue line to slow down my men's league team. San Jose needs a bona fide star on defense. Maybe that's more of an offseason move, but if something presents itself at the deadline, San Jose has to consider it. | 3 | 30-25-4 |
| 20 |  | Top-six winger | If the Capitals do make the playoffs, I do think they could be a tough out, especially in the East. Washington just needs a bit more pop up front. Anthony Beauvillier and Connor McMichael would be playing out of their depth against the best teams in the conference. | 4 | 31-25-7 |
| 21 |  | Losses | It's over, Philly. This team isn't going anywhere in 2025-26. Embrace the tank the rest of the way and watch those draft lottery chances rise. Make some upgrades over the summer and give it another shot next season. | 6 | 28-21-11 |
| 22 |  | Cap space | It's not happening for the Devils, so they'll have to take another crack at the playoffs next season. In order to do so, New Jersey will probably need to clear up some cap space, so finding a team to take on Dougie Hamilton's contract will be crucial. | 1 | 30-29-2 |
| 23 |  | Health | Barring a miracle, the bid for a three-peat is dead. The Panthers are 10 points out of a playoff spot with 21 games left, and they would have to climb over six teams to get there. Shut down any player with bumps or bruises, let Aleksander Barkov heal, and make another run at it in 2026-27. | 3 | 30-28-3 |
| 24 |  | Reset | This has been a disastrous season for Toronto. The Leafs need to get what they can for Bobby McMann, and reset in the offseason, whether that means a front office shake-up, a coaching change or both. Things have just gotten stale. | 5 | 27-24-10 |
| 25 |  | Scoring ... again | The Kings made a brilliant move to land Artemi Panarin just before the Olympic break. He filled their biggest need, and L.A. looked like a more complete team. Then Kevin Fiala suffered a season-ending injury in Italy. Back to the drawing board. | 2 | 24-22-14 |
| 26 |  | Rebuild | The Predators have been clinging to the playoff bubble for nearly a decade now, and the time has come to take a dive into the unknown of an NHL rebuild. Trade Ryan O'Reilly and Steven Stamkos and load up on future assets to put the next general manager in a favorable position. | 1 | 27-26-8 |
| 27 |  | NHL-ready prospect | Calgary has a few trade targets on its roster in Nazem Kadri, Blake Coleman and MacKenzie Weegar. They could get nice returns for each player, but the Flames' roster would be barren. Getting back some more NHL-ready prospects to fill out the lineup as the rebuild continues would be ideal. | 2 | 24-29-7 |
| 28 |  | Direction | For a while, the speculation was that the Jets would try to add talent in order to save their season. I can't imagine that's the case any longer. Winnipeg has an aging core, and the results have taken a sharp downward turn. It feels like the franchise has reached an inflection point. | 2 | 24-26-10 |
| 29 |  | Growth | After sending Connor Murphy to the Oilers, the Blackhawks probably won't make any more big moves. It's probably time for the rebuild in Chicago to start bearing some fruit, so growth from those young players in the last 20 games would be encouraging. | 1 | 23-28-10 |
| 30 |  | Restock | The Blues might be the belle of the ball at this trade deadline. Jordan Kyrou, Robert Thomas and Jordan Binnington (for some reason) are all getting some buzz. St. Louis should be able to restock its war chest if it plays this week correctly. | -- | 22-29-9 |
| 31 |  | Relief | Well, Ranger fans, Vincent Trocheck should fetch a nice return. Plus the season is almost over. Just six weeks left! | -- | 23-29-8 |
| 32 |  | Gavin McKenna | The only thing that would make this season worth it would be the No. 1 overall pick. Best of luck in the lottery, Vancouver. | -- | 18-35-7 |
