In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we start with the Toronto Maple Leafs and their general manager, Brad Treliving, and the criticism he has faced over his trade deadline execution. Next, we head to the Colorado Avalanche and Calgary Flames, who hashed out a Nazem Kadri deal after a tough negotiation. Finally, the St. Louis Blues have reportedly held an internal investigation to figure out where the leak came from regarding the Colton Parayko deal he nixed, which would have sent him to the Buffalo Sabres.
Many teams were busy on deadline day, but not everyone was able to come out in the position they wanted to be. Some players like Robert Thomas, Rasmus Ristolainen, Sergei Bobrovsky, and others were expected to be moved, but didn’t. Meanwhile, there were plenty of surprise moves, including John Carlson heading to the Anaheim Ducks. Here are the biggest rumours out of one of the biggest days of the season.
Treliving Admits Failure on Deadline Day
It is a routine for general managers to address the media following the 3:00 p.m. trade deadline, and while Treliving has done that press conference many times before, his attitude during his availability on March 6 was much different than in the past.
Related: 2026 NHL Trade Deadline Tracker
While addressing the media, talking about both the trade deadline and the disappointing season as a whole, he took ownership, stating, “The failures here start with me.”
There is a lot of rightful frustration with the Maple Leafs’ deadline moves, or lackthereof. It took until the dying minutes for Treliving to pull off two highly anticipated moves, sending Bobby McMann to the Seattle Kraken and Scott Laughton to the Los Angeles Kings.
Looking at McMann first, given how the market was set earlier in the week, the price for the winger was expected to be higher than the second- and fourth-round picks they received for him. While there likely won’t be a definitive answer as to what was on the table for a trade earlier in the week, it appears that Treliving may have overextended his patience and was forced into a move here.
The same could be said about Laughton, who was traded for a conditional third-round pick, which, according to MoneyPuck’s playoff odds, has a 32.6 percent chance of turning into a second-round pick should the Kings make the postseason.
The Maple Leafs gave up a first-round pick and prospect Nikita Grebenkin, and just a year later, got such a little return for him.
Finding a first-round pick, along with a fifth-round pick, for Nicolas Roy helps settle things a bit, but considering that was all they were able to turn Mitch Marner into, there is more reason to be disappointed in the decisions from Treliving.
Of course, a trade takes two willing teams, but with Calle Jarnkrok, Nick Robertson, Simon Benoit, Troy Stetcher, the pair of goaltenders, and others all in trade rumours, to come out of the deadline with just three trades, two of which are underwhelming, calling it a failure is fair.
Kadri Deal Fell Apart Before Regaining Traction
According to Elliotte Friedman on the latest episode of 32 Thoughts, the trade sending Kadri back to the Avalanche was at the finish line on March 5, but after not being able to get the deal across the finish line, they pivoted to Nicolas Roy.
Friedman noted that the Flames, the Avalanche, and Kadri were all very frustrated and disappointed that the deal didn’t materialize, but in the hours leading up to the deadline, the deal came back together.
There was reportedly only a 15 percent retention on Kadri’s contract during the March 5 negotiations, but that ended up at 20 percent.
Once the deal was announced, the Avalanche players were very excited to get Kadri back. Of course, Kadri won the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche in 2022 and had entered the Conn Smythe conversation, despite missing games with a broken thumb. He played a huge role for them and was a key part of their success.
The Avalanche will have Kadri at $5.6 million against the cap for the next three seasons. This was far from a rental, and in a perfect world with no cap constraints, they likely would have never let him test free agency after the Cup run.
Blues Investigate Parayko Trade Leak, Check Phone Records
A deal in the NHL is never done until it is processed by the NHL. In the modern world, where no-trade clauses and no-movement clauses are so common, players are in more control of their future than ever.
There was a deal that was reportedly agreed upon between the Blues and Sabres, which would have sent Parayko to one of the hottest teams in the league. The trade didn’t happen as he refused to waive his full no-trade clause.
This puts everybody in an awkward spot. While it is his contractual right that he negotiated for, telling a team no is never easy. The Blues haven’t been quiet about their wish to sell pretty much every player over the age of 25, but to have the trade on the table, and still have to go represent that team, isn’t easy.
Clearly, the Blues wished to move him. While it was the least of his concerns, it put the Sabres in a tough spot and forced them to pivot, too.
Some may think that leaking the trade being on the table would allow the Blues to put more pressure on Parayko to waive, but that was shut down by general manager Doug Armstrong as he stated, “When we checked the phone records and text records, I said, ‘If it’s out there, you’re losing your job.’”
He didn’t place blame on the Sabres for putting them in an uncomfortable spot, either. He noted that there are many people involved in trades, including friends, family, and others.
