2026 NHL trade deadline report cards: Grading every team’s moves (or lack thereof)

Trade activity this season, leading up to the NHL’s 2026 deadline, featured everything from major moves that saw the rich get richer to reunions to big names in new uniforms.

Which teams accomplished their goals, and which left their fan bases fuming? The Athletic asked its NHL staff to assign a grade to every club on their moves (or lack thereof) ahead of the deadline — specifically looking at how successfully they improved their situation — whether the team is rebuilding, trying to make the playoffs or pushing to win the Stanley Cup.

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We had to define “ahead of” somehow, so we decided on every move starting with the Quinn Hughes trade to the Wild on Dec. 12. Any moves made before that are excluded.

Anaheim Ducks: A-

The major play obviously is for John Carlson, who is already on the short list of the franchise’s biggest deadline acquisitions. The 36-year-old has been one of the best defensemen in the NHL to not win the Norris Trophy during his 17-year career with the Washington Capitals. This was an add by Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek to reward a group that’s played its way into possibly winning the Pacific Division and to upgrade its blue line for a potential first playoff appearance since 2018. A first-round pick might seem pricey, but if the Ducks are able to re-sign Carlson — which Verbeek said is a goal — that surrendered pick won’t be as painful. While letting go of Ryan Strome was a pure salary dump, the extra $5 million in cap space this summer only adds more flexibility when it comes to re-signing the Ducks’ army of restricted free agents. — Eric Stephens

Boston Bruins: B

The Bruins acknowledged several things by standing pat. They are satisfied with the pace of their on-the-fly rebuild, but they do not want to change course after one season by trading picks or prospects. They did not want to torpedo the 2025-26 roster’s chances by moving Viktor Arvidsson or Andrew Peeke, both unrestricted after this season, just for the sake of acquiring futures. But as much as they’d like to make the playoffs this year, they are realistic about their chances. They have performed above expectations at both ends. So even though general manager Don Sweeney wanted to add, he did not want to overpay, given the risk of regression. The Bruins are what they are: a borderline playoff team whose contending window is yet to come. — Fluto Shinzawa

Buffalo Sabres: B+

It’s hard to separate what the Sabres did at the deadline from what they almost pulled off. But Jarmo Kekäläinen pivoted to some solid depth additions that will boost Buffalo’s team toughness, which will be necessary against some of their potential opponents in the playoffs. The assets Buffalo gave up aren’t needle-movers, especially considering this team has been out of the playoffs for 14 straight seasons and has been accumulating assets for a while. The Sabres are tied for first place in the Atlantic Division, so it was worth using some of those draft picks to bolster this roster. — Matthew Fairburn

Calgary Flames: A

Flames fans have been waiting on this deadline for a long, long time. Finally, they can say their team is in a rebuild. They offloaded MacKenzie Weegar and Nazem Kadri, two players in their 30s on pricey contracts who are better served on more competitive teams, ahead of the deadline and received futures and roster players who can help along with their transition. The Flames would’ve gotten an A+ if they had offloaded Blake Coleman and Zach Whitecloud. But the Flames still offloaded two stars in down seasons with an eye toward the future.