It's been nearly two weeks since the NHL's 2023 free-agent market opened and the pickings are lean with most of the best players in a thin talent pool already snapped up. Teams in search of skilled players to bolster their rosters for 2023-24 must turn to the trade market to address their needs.
A month ago, we published our NHL Trade Block Big Board for June entering a busy period with the 2023 NHL Draft and the start of free agency approaching. With those notable dates on the offseason calendar having passed, it's time to review and update the board for July.
There are a number of changes to our board since mid-June. Kevin Hayes was shipped to the St. Louis Blues, Taylor Hall was dealt to the Chicago Blackhawks and Pierre-Luc Dubois was traded to the Los Angeles Kings.
The most recent deal removed one of the biggest names from our trade board. On Sunday, the Ottawa Senators traded winger Alex DeBrincat to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for forward Dominik Kubalik, defenseman Donavan Sebrango, a conditional first-round pick in 2024 and a fourth-round pick in 2024.
We've also removed Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele, Philadelphia's Carter Hart, Washington's Evgeny Kuznetsov, Arizona's Nick Schmaltz, Vancouver's Conor Garland, Nashville's Juuse Saros, Washington's Anthony Mantha and the New York Rangers' Alexis Lafrenière from our July board.
The subjects of trade speculation a month ago, they've since received little or no mention in the rumor mill. They could resurface in media trade chatter at some point later in the offseason. For now, they've been supplanted by other players.
Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, San Jose Sharks defenseman Erik Karlsson, and Anaheim Ducks netminder John Gibson still remain on our list. At least one of them could be on the move this summer.
Our updated Trade Block Big Board for July is made up of players who've frequently appeared in recent media trade chatter. Factors such as skill level, contracts and the potential for getting traded went into determining the rankings.