On Feb. 23, Bally Sports Midwest's Andy Strickland took to Twitter to report that the Nashville Predators were "actively shopping" Filip Forsberg. The 27-year-old left winger is completing a six-year contract worth $6 million per season and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent in July.

Two days later, Predators general manager David Poile denied Strickland's report when speaking to The Athletic's Jeff Rexrode, claiming the goal remained to sign Forsberg to a contract extension. Strickland told Rexrode he stood by his sources but acknowledged "due diligence" would have been a better phrase. Meanwhile, Robby Stanley of Nashville's 102.5 The Game tweeted that he had been told Forsberg hadn't requested a trade.

Forsberg leads the Predators in goals this season with 27 and sits third among their scorers with 45 points. Poile appears determined to get him under contract before the March 21 trade deadline. However, the Predators GM could be gauging the winger's value in the trade market in case an agreement on a deal cannot be reached before deadline day.

That would be an unusual move for a club holding a wild-card spot in the Western Conference playoff race. Teams in that situation usually retain their pending UFAs for the playoffs despite the risk of losing them for nothing in the offseason. Poile, however, could prefer to trade Forsberg for future assets instead of possibly seeing him walk away this summer.

It will be interesting to see what teams express an interest in acquiring Forsberg's services if he hits the trade block. It could be a Stanley Cup contender such as the Colorado Avalanche seeing a rental left wing scorer Perhaps a rebuilding club with lots of cap space and trade assets could be interested if Poile gives them permission to talk to Forsberg's camp about a new contract.

Here's a look at five potential landing spots for Forsberg before the trade deadline and what it might cost to acquire him from the Predators. Feel free to voice your thoughts on this topic in the comments section.

Colorado Avalanche

The top team in the NHL's overall standings, the Colorado Avalanche can be considered among the favorites to win the Stanley Cup this season. They have been linked to Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux, but perhaps they could give consideration to Filip Forsberg as a playoff rental.

Giroux, 34, is a versatile two-way player who plays all three forward positions. He's an impending UFA like Forsberg but carries a cap hit of $8.275 million for this season. Forsberg is a more offensive-minded left winger, but his $6 million cap hit is more affordable. Giroux is the better all-around player, but Forsberg provides more speed and scoring punch.

Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog is the team's only pure scorer at left wing. Forsberg could mesh well on the second line alongside center Nazem Kadri, who's enjoying a career-best performance in his contract year. Add Andre Burakovsky at right wing, and the Avs would boast two lethal forward lines.

With $3.9 million in projected trade deadline cap space, the Avs have some wiggle room to add the remainder of Forsberg's cap hit. They could also ask the Predators to retain some of his cap hit. Colorado also lacks first and second-round picks in this year's draft. The Avalanche might have to part with a couple of quality prospects such as Oskar Olausson and Justin Barron as part of the return.

Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings have made a substantial improvement this season, thanks in part to rising young stars Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond. While they are expected to fall short of reaching the playoffs this season—they are 13 points off a wild-card spot—this club has a promising future, one that could be reached sooner with the addition of an experienced goalscorer such as Forsberg.

Scoring has been thin on left wing for the Red Wings this season. Jakub Vrana has yet to suit up after undergoing shoulder surgery in September. Filip Zadina, a first-round pick in 2018, is struggling to establish himself as a top-six forward with the Wings, while versatile forward Vladislav Namestnikov could depart this summer via free agency.

Forsberg could provide a welcome long-term boost to their offense if he would be willing to sign a contract extension. He could seek more than $8.5 million per season, but the Wings can afford it with just $44.1 million invested in 14 active roster players for 2022-23 and all their core players under contract.

General manager Steve Yzerman could package his 2022 first-rounder along with a prospect such as William Wallinder and perhaps Zadina, who might benefit from a change of scenery. Yzerman has carefully built this team with youth, but it might be time to make a big move that accelerates the process and turns them into genuine playoff contenders.