Heineman is no stranger to being included in big trades, he was traded to Calgary as a part of the Sam Bennett trade, then traded to Montreal as a part of the Tyler Toffoli trade, and now to the Islanders for Noah Dobson. The 6-foot-2, 198 lbs winger was a full-time NHLer in 2024-25, and finished with 18 points (10G / 8A), 64 SOG and 173 hits in 62 games while playing just 11:24 TOI/gm. He'll likely fill a similar bottom-6 role with the Islanders.

Dobson had a breakout 70-point campaign in 2023-24, but followed that up with just 39 points (10G / 29A) in 71 games last season. Some of that can be attributed to the Islanders' power-play dipping from 19th (20.4%) to 31st (12.6%), resulting in 12 fewer power-play assists. In Montreal, he'll be a huge minute eater, but a bounce-back fantasy season could be tougher to come by because of Lane Hutson. Obviously, they could end up together on the top PP unit, but he's now got significantly more competition for PP time, even if it wasn't always fruitful in New York.

Sourdif was a third-round pick (No.87 overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft, who has appeared in just four NHL games since. In 2024-25, he spent most of the season in Charlotte (AHL), where he had 34 points (16G / 18A) in 43 games. Sourdif will likely battle for a bottom-6 role with the Capitals in training camp.

Minnesota made a minor trade on Thursday after acquiring winger Cameron Butler from Columbus for forward Brendan Gaunce. Butler is a 23-year-old undrafted right-winger who made his only NHL appearance in 2023-24 with the Blue Jackets. He struggled to produce offensively in 2024-25, only scoring two goals and three points in 37 games played.

Columbus acquired a depth forward on Thursday after trading for Branden Gaunce from Minnesota for AHL forward Cameron Butler. Gaunce, 31, spent most of 2024-25 as a healthy scratch for the Wild, which led to him only putting up an assist and a -4 plus/minus in 12 games played. He returns to familiar territory in Columbus, where he spent three seasons between 2021-2024 and had 12 points in 59 games played.

Florida acquired its new backup goaltender for the upcoming 2025-26 season on Thursday after picking up Daniil Tarasov from Columbus for a 2025 5th-round pick (160th overall). The 26-year-old, whose dad has ties back in Russia with Sergei Bobrovsky, struggled in 2024-25 with the Blue Jackets, posting an ugly 7-10-2 record alongside his 3.54 GAA and .881 SV%.

Minnesota has shed $2.1 million in salary after trading Frederick Gaudreau to the Seattle Kraken for a 2025 4th-round pick (102nd overall) on Thursday. The 32-year-old center spent four seasons in Minnesota, most recently putting up 18 goals and 37 points after appearing in all 82 games played in 2024-25. He is expected to take a bottom-six role with Seattle in the 2025-26 season.

Two days before the NHL Draft, Buffalo has moved on from 23-year-old JJ Peterka by acquiring Josh Doan and Michael Kesselring on Wednesday night. Kesselring will join his third organization after being drafted by Edmonton in the sixth round of the 2018 draft (164th overall) and debuting with Arizona in 2022-23. The 25-year-old has the potential to be a top-four defenseman as shown by his seven goals, 29 points, 89 PIMs and 150 SOG in 82 GP with Utah in 2024-25.

After just 62 games with Utah and Arizona, Josh Doan has been acquired alongside Michael Kesselring by Buffalo for JJ Peterka on Wednesday. The 23-year-old right-winger was Arizona's 2021 2nd-round pick (37th overall) and made an impressive debut in 2023-24 with five goals and nine points in his first 11 games played. He struggled to find the same offensive spark last year, but still put up seven goals, 19 points and 88 SOG in 51 games played in his sophomore campaign.

With rumours circulating all week that Buffalo was looking to move a few key players, Utah swooped in late Thursday by acquiring the rights to JJ Peterka for forward Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring. Minutes after the trade, Utah announced they had signed Peterka to a 5-year extension worth $7.7M AAV ($38.5M total). The 23-year-old right-winger has made consistent 18-point jumps in each of his first three NHL seasons, finishing 2024-25 with 27 goals, 68 points and 173 SOG in 77 GP after 50 points in 82 games the year before.

The Oilers did not retain any of Kane's $5.125 cap hit, giving them some much-needed cap space to work with this offseason. Kane missed all of the 2024-25 regular season but was solid in the Oilers' postseason run to the Stanley Cup Final, posting 12 points (6G / 6A), 47 SOG and 95 Hits in 21 games. He'll now get a chance to suit up for his hometown team, his fifth NHL franchise of his career.

Philadelphia added yet another flashy forward on Monday after they acquired Trevor Zegras from Anaheim for Ryan Poehling, a 2025 2nd-round pick (45th overall), and a 2026 4th-round pick. The 24-year-old forward is in the final year of a three-year, $17,230,000 contract and will cost Philadelphia $5.75 million AAV in 2025-26. Zegras will be looking for a reset after averaging over 60 points in his first two full seasons in Anaheim, followed by only 18 goals and 47 points in his previous 88 games played across the last two years.

Poehling finds himself on his third team in seven seasons after the forward was acquired from Anaheim alongside a 2025 2nd-round pick (45th overall) and a 2026 4th-round pick from Anaheim for Trevor Zegras. The 26-year-old Poehling put up career highs in nearly all categories last season, with 12 goals, 31 points and 16 PIMs in 68 games played.

Marchment will be in the final year of a four-year deal that carries a $4.5M AAV cap-hit. The Stars are pressed up against the salary cap, so Marchment is their first move to clear some space. The 30-year-old winger was on pace for a career-best season in 2024-25, but missed 20 games due to injury. He finished the year with 47 points (22G / 25A) in 62 games, a 29-goal, 33-assist pace.

Hanzel was a sixth-round pick of the Avalanche in 2023 and was traded to Nashville in March of 2024 as part of the deal that sent Yakov Trenin to Colorado. The 22-year-old defenseman had 22 points (3G / 19A) in 61 ECHL games during the 2024-25 season.

After three seasons with the Devils, Haula has been traded to Nashville, where he played during the 2021 season. Haula has one more year left on a three-year deal that carries a $3.15M AAV cap-hit. The 34-year-old forward had 11 goals and 10 assists (21 points) in 69 games last season.

Soderstrom spent 2024-25 playing professional hockey for Brynas IF (SHL) but has had his rights traded from Chicago to Boston for Ryan Mast and a 7th-round pick. The 24-year-old Swedish defenseman was Arizona's 1st-round pick in 2019 (11th overall) and has 11 points in 53 career NHL games played.

Mast was a sixth-round pick in 2021 who spent 2024 in the ECHL and 2025 in the AHL, where he had just five assists in 37 games. Mast is expected to begin the 2025-26 season with Rockford (AHL).