We couldn’t really put together a long list, given the fact most teams with a surplus of blue-liners (and there aren’t many of those) would like to keep it that way. But here’s a short list of potential trade targets:
Cody Franson (Toronto): A pending unrestricted free agent, there’s good reason to believe he’ll be traded at some point this season. The 27-year-old put up 33 points in 2013-14, and he shoots right, a trait that teams like Detroit and Dallas are looking for. Franson’s cap hit is $3.3 million.
Jeff Petry (Edmonton): Another right-shooting pending UFA with offensive ability who many expect to be traded prior to the March 2 deadline. The 26-year-old has a cap hit of $3.075 million.
Mike Green (Washington): The Caps aren’t going to give him away cheap, but GM Brian MacLellan has taken calls on the 29-year-old pending UFA. Does Green fit in their long-term plans? If not, would they keep him for a playoff run, even if he were unsigned past this season? Those are the two key questions. Green’s cap hit is $6.08 million. And yes, he shoots right.
Andrej Sekera (Carolina): The ‘Canes have righted the ship since their awful start, and GM Ron Francis recently said the team’s preference was to re-sign the 28-year-old pending UFA. Still, if they can’t get Sekera’s contract extended prior to the deadline, it’s hard to see him finishing the season on a team that remains liable to miss the playoffs. (Cap hit: $2.75 million)
Andre Benoit (Buffalo): Have to include a Sabre here. We chose Benoit because he’s cheap ($800,000 cap hit), he’s a pending UFA, he logs over 20 minutes a game, and, well, we’ve already written a lot about trading Tyler Myers.