Bleacher Report NHL Trade Block Big Board for November 2022

It's been almost a month since the NHL's 2022-23 season began on Oct 7. Six trades took place in October, with the Vancouver Canucks involved in half of them. They sent Jason Dickinson to the Chicago Blackhawks for Riley Stillman and acquired Jack Studnicka from the Boston Bruins and Ethan Bear from the Carolina Hurricanes.

The low number of trades isn't uncommon at this stage in an NHL season. Most teams have limited salary-cap space to take on additional players, plus many of them are still evaluating their respective rosters' strengths and weaknesses.

Despite the limited activity in the trade market, several players have been the topic of trade speculation. Some, like the Arizona Coyotes' Jakob Chychrun, have been a regular topic of media gossip for months. Others, such as the Canucks' Bo Horvat, have recently surfaced in the rumor mill.

Here are our 10 trade candidates for the month of November 2022. This list is comprised of players who were featured in media rumors throughout October. They are ranked according to talent, market value and the possibility of being traded during this season.

Feel free to weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.

Patrick Kane's eligibility next July for unrestricted free-agent status plus the Chicago Blackhawks' rebuilding process has made the 33-year-old superstar winger frequent fodder for trade rumors. He could become the best player available before the March 3 trade deadline.

However, there remains no certainty that Kane will be traded. He carries a full no-movement clause in his contract, giving him complete control over the situation. His $10.5 million salary-cap hit could also prove difficult to move given the high number of teams lacking sufficient cap space to acquire him.

On Oct. 17, The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun reported Kane and his agent intend to meet with Blackhawks management around December or January to discuss his future. The winger is taking a wait-and-see approach and isn't being pressured by management to make a decision.

That hasn't stopped pundits from linking Kane to other clubs. On Oct. 20, Sportsnet's Jeff Marek and ESPN's Greg Wyshynski suggested the Tampa Bay Lightning, Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, Carolina Hurricanes and Calgary Flames could become suitors. Nevertheless, he might not hit the trade block until early 2023.

Signing a one-year, $7 million contract with the Anaheim Ducks on July 29, John Klingberg could be betting on a solid season bolstering his value in next summer's free-agent market. As the rebuilding Ducks stumbled through October with a 2-6-1 record, the 30-year-old defenseman surfaced in media trade gossip.

On Oct. 11, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman predicted Klingberg could end up with the Edmonton Oilers by the trade deadline. Three days later, the Hockey News' Adam Proteau suggested Klingberg could become a more affordable short-term trade option for clubs that tire of waiting for the Arizona Coyotes to lower their asking price for Jakob Chychrun.

A week later, on Oct. 20, The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun reported Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek didn't rule out the possibility of re-signing Klingberg to a new contract if there's mutual interest in doing so. Nevertheless, LeBrun didn't rule out the blueliner becoming a trade chip for the Ducks by deadline day.

It could come down to whether Klingberg wants to remain part of a rebuilding team and if Verbeek feels his performance merits a lucrative long-term deal. Klingberg's performance will also factor into whether he stays or goes by deadline day.

This season is likely to be the last for Jonathan Drouin with the Montréal Canadiens. The 27-year-old winger is in the final season of his six-year contract and is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

Injuries and illness have hampered Drouin's performance since he tied his career high for points (53) with the Canadiens in 2018-19. He's struggled this season for playing time as forwards such as Cole Caufield, Josh Anderson and Kirby Dach take on greater roles. Drouin's been a healthy scratch in three of the Canadiens' first nine games this season.

That's prompted conjecture that Drouin could get moved before the March 3 trade deadline. On Oct. 12, the Montreal Gazette's Stu Cowan speculated general manager Kent Hughes could attempt to shop Drouin. His colleague, Pat Hickey, felt the winger no longer fit with a club that is turning to younger talent.

Drouin will have to see more playing time, however, to bolster his value in the trade market. With just two assists in six games and a $5.5 million cap hit, he will be difficult to move unless the Canadiens retain part of his salary. Nevertheless, his status will be worth monitoring in the coming weeks.

Entering October, it seemed only a matter of time until the Edmonton Oilers traded Jesse Puljujärvi. The 24-year-old winger frequently surfaced as a trade candidate during the offseason, with reports in September suggesting the cap-strapped Oilers were looking at moving him in a cost-cutting deal.

A month later, Puljujärvi is still with the Oilers. On Oct. 3, Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli reported they lowered their asking price for the winger from a player to a draft pick. However, he felt many teams didn't believe they could get good value for a player like Puljujärvi on a one-year, $3 million contract.

The day following Seravalli's report, The Athletic's Daniel Nugent-Bowman suggested the presence of promising winger Dylan Holloway in the Oilers' lineup could see Puljujärvi moved sooner or later. However, he cautioned that it wasn't a good idea to shop him while his trade value was low.

Since then, the Puljujärvi chatter has died away in the rumor mill. He remains a roster regular but only has one point in his first nine games. That output could continue to hurt his trade value and has sent him tumbling in our November ranking.

Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun has been a fixture in NHL trade rumors for months. However, another Coyotes blueliner could also garner considerable interest if he becomes available before the March 3 trade deadline.

After struggling in his final two seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, Shayne Gostisbehere is flourishing as a puck-moving defenseman with the Coyotes. He finished fourth among their 2021-22 scoring leaders with 51 points. This season, the 29-year-old rearguard was their leading scorer in October with eight points.

On Oct. 3, GOPHNX.com's Craig Morgan reported another strong performance by Gostisbehere could lead to him getting shopped by the March 3 trade deadline. He's in the final season of a six-year deal with an average annual value of $4.5 million and lacks no-trade protection.

Gostisbehere told Morgan he'd love to remain in Arizona but understands he could be peddled by the deadline. He'd be an enticing trade chip for clubs seeking a rental defenseman with offensive skills.

The Boston Bruins demoted Mike Reilly on Oct. 27 to the minors to clear salary-cap space for returning winger Brad Marchand. That move buried $1.1 million of Reilly's $3 million average annual value from their books, enough to squeeze Marchand's $6.1 million AAV within their limited cap space.

Reilly had been placed on waivers on Oct. 9 but went unclaimed. Matt Dolloff of Boston's 98.5 The Sports Hub explained that enabled the Bruins to send Reilly down to the minors three weeks later without having to go on waivers again. Nevertheless, it raises the possibility of the 29-year-old blueliner getting traded at some point this season.

On Oct. 15, Boston Hockey Now's Jimmy Murphy speculated the Bruins' logjam of left-shot defensemen could make Reilly a trade candidate. With Charlie McAvoy scheduled to return from shoulder surgery in December, Dolloff suggested Reilly could become the odd man out.

The Bruins probably won't want a player in return for Reilly for cap reasons. They could instead seek a draft pick or a prospect in return. Whether they'll find any takers remains to be seen.

The Vancouver Canucks' poor start to this season forced management to seek help for their struggling roster. They acquired center Jack Studnicka from the Boston Bruins on Oct. 27 and defenseman Ethan Bear from the Carolina Hurricanes the following day.

On Oct. 29, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported management told several players that more roster changes could be coming if things didn't improve. That could stoke speculation about Bo Horvat's future. The 27-year-old Canucks captain is in the final season of a six-year contract with a $5.5 million cap hit. He's set to become an unrestricted free agent in July.

Three days before Friedman's report, The Score's Josh Wegman suggested the Canucks will have to trade their captain if he's not under contract by the March 3 trade deadline. The following day, the Toronto Star's Nick Kypreos reported hearing the Canucks center rejected a lowball offer that wasn't even close to what comparable centers are making.

The Canucks entered November having won two straight games after going winless in their first seven. Conjecture over Horvat's future will only grow if their struggles persist throughout this month. A skilled two-way center with six seasons of 40-or-more points on his resume, he'll draw a lot of attention if he becomes available in this season's trade market.

A promising puck-moving defenseman, Pierre-Olivier Joseph is hoping to stick with the Pittsburgh Penguins after playing 20 games over the past two seasons. The 23-year-old rookie has three points in eight games during October.

Joseph also surfaced as a trade candidate leading up to the start of the season. On Oct. 5, Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette speculated he could become the odd man out on their blue line as they attempted to trim their roster and become cap compliant.

The Penguins resolved the issue by demoting Ty Smith and Mark Friedman. Nevertheless, TSN's Darren Dreger reported on Oct. 18 that Joseph was “out there” in the trade market. Dreger suggested he might fit with clubs in need of blue-line depth like the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montréal Canadiens.

Two days later, Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli reported he knew of teams that had made offers for Joseph but the Penguins appear reluctant to part with him. Perhaps that might change if they have to address a weakness elsewhere in their roster. It makes the young rearguard's situation worth monitoring in November.

With 1,022 games on his resume, Wayne Simmonds has enjoyed a long NHL career. However, the 34-year-old winger finds himself the subject of trade rumors entering November.

Simmonds is no longer the strong two-way winger he was in his prime but was brought in by the Maple Leafs to add some toughness to their defensive game and experienced leadership to the roster. However, he wound up on waivers before the start of the season.

Though assigned to the Leafs' AHL affiliate after clearing waivers on Oct. 10, Simmonds stayed with the club and skated with their injured players. The day before, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported the Leafs had informed the other 31 clubs that Simmonds was available via trade. So far, they've found no takers.

Simmonds is in the final season of a two-year contract with an affordable $900,000 salary cap hit and a 10-team no-trade clause. He's since returned to the Leafs lineup in three games. He'll need to see more playing time to draw interest in the trade market but could be a cost-effective pickup for teams seeking some muscle and experience.

The top player on our October NHL Trade Block Big Board, Jakob Chychrun of the Arizona Coyotes garners the honor again for November. While the 24-year-old defenseman has requested a trade, his ongoing absence rehabbing from offseason wrist surgery and the Coyotes' high asking price have kept him in Arizona for the time being.

Chychrun has been linked to the Ottawa Senators in the rumor mill. On Oct. 15, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman cited multiple sources claiming there isn't a path for the two clubs to make a deal. He suggested that might change once Chychrun returns to action.

On Oct. 26, Friedman reported Chychrun remained a couple of weeks from rejoining his Coyotes teammates. Two days earlier, GOPHNX.com's Craig Morgan suggested that interested clubs could be waiting to see how well he plays before making trade offers.

Chychrun continues to draw interest from several clubs despite the delay in his return to the ice. On Oct. 19, the Toronto Star's Nick Kypreos listed the Maple Leafs, Senators, Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Columbus Blue Jackets and Florida Panthers among those believed to have looked into acquiring him.

Salary info (as of Oct. 31, 2022) via Cap Friendly.