Last Friday's game between the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals had the potential to upend not only the playoff race in the Eastern Conference but the NHL trading market with the deadline coming up fast.
Despite the 5-2 Capitals win, Washington is now expected to sell after falling flat in a loss to Arizona two days later. The Flyers could do some deals because it is unexpectedly in a playoff spot with less than six weeks to go in the regular season.
With many teams in limbo, the weekend provided some much-needed clarity around the league one year after the 2023 trade season featured a ton of big-name players changing places well before the deadline.