Phones across the league are about to be ringing off the hook.
With over half the season in the books and the March 21 trade deadline looming large, the contenders have begun separating themselves from the pretenders.
There's no such thing as a perfect team, so here's what five talented squads should do to fortify their rosters and boost their chances of playoff success.
Note: Deadline cap space indicates the amount that a team's total cap hit can increase while remaining below the ceiling at the end of the regular season. All figures courtesy of CapFriendly.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Projected deadline cap space: $4.424M
Biggest need: Goaltending
The Penguins certainly aren't the only team in need of goaltending in the brutally tough Metropolitan Division (looking at you, Washington Capitals), but we'll zero in on Pittsburgh because of the way its 2020-21 season ended.
Pittsburgh finished at the top of the realigned East Division and booked a first-round meeting with the New York Islanders, a team the Penguins had beaten in six out of their eight regular-season matchups. However, the Islanders took advantage of some seriously shoddy goaltending from Tristan Jarry and sent the Pens packing in six games.
Jarry started each of those contests and struggled enormously with an .888 save percentage and league-worst minus-5.61 goals saved above average at all strengths. The Penguins' other option in net, Casey DeSmith, was unavailable due to a core muscle injury.
That sort of disaster simply can't happen again, especially since key members of the team's core - namely Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Bryan Rust - can become unrestricted free agents this offseason. If this is to be these Penguins' final kick at the can, they need to be solid in net.
Though DeSmith has improved greatly in his last three appearances, he's struggled to a save percentage barely above .900 this season, so an upgrade is warranted. The Penguins should at least be on the lookout for some extra depth. Money is tight, though, so general manager Ron Hextall will need to be creative.
Potential targets: Marc-Andre Fleury (Blackhawks), Kevin Lankinen (Blackhawks), Joonas Korpisalo (Blue Jackets), Alexandar Georgiev (Rangers).
New York Rangers
Projected deadline cap space: $31.173M
Biggest need: Forward
The Rangers look very good from a distance thanks in part to some Vezina-caliber goaltending from Igor Shesterkin.
An up-close look will find some larger issues, though. The Rangers' five-on-five production has been lacking all season and they're in the bottom half of the league in goals scored at even strength. Their outlook up front certainly took a hit after they lost winger Sammy Blais to a regular-season-ending ACL injury just 14 games into his Rangers tenure.
Getting a top-six winger who can play the right side could give the Rangers a shot in the arm and help to alleviate some of the pressure placed on Alexis Lafreniere and the currently injured Kaapo Kakko ahead of a playoff run.
Luckily for New York, there's a familiar face out there that fits the bill. Former Rangers forward J.T. Miller leads the Vancouver Canucks in even-strength scoring and is potentially on the market, but they may not let him go easily if they can push their way into the playoff picture. The versatile 28-year-old has one year left on a team-friendly deal and is capable of playing any forward position.
Either way, the Rangers have a healthy chunk of change, a 2022 first-round selection, a pair of second-round picks, and a deep pool of intriguing young players like defensemen Nils Lundkvist and Zac Jones at their disposal to make meaningful moves at the deadline.
Potential targets: Miller (Canucks), Reilly Smith (Golden Knights), Tomas Hertl (Sharks), Victor Olofsson (Sabres), Jake DeBrusk (Bruins), Phil Kessel (Coyotes), Rickard Rakell (Ducks).
Toronto Maple Leafs
Projected deadline cap space: $4.469M
Biggest need: Defense
No amount of regular-season success will mean anything to the Maple Leafs' hungry fan base if the team doesn't make a substantial playoff run.
One addition that could certainly help Toronto move out of its first-round purgatory is a top-four, right-side defenseman. The Maple Leafs could use an upgrade on Justin Holl, who is inconsistent at best while playing second-pairing minutes. Holl could be a commodity on the market given that he plays on the right side and comes with a cheap, $2-million cap hit.
Jake Muzzin is also a bit of a question mark on the second pairing after the Maple Leafs moved him onto long-term injured reserve while he deals with concussion issues. There's no timeframe for his return and no way of knowing if the 33-year-old can return to form once he's back.
Acquiring a player to beef up the top four while chipping in on the scoresheet would be even better. Toronto's defense corps is firmly in the league's bottom half in goal production.
If Muzzin and his $5.625-million cap hit remain on long-term injured reserve until the playoffs, general manager Kyle Dubas might have the money to make a bigger splash than initially expected.
Of course, this assumes the Maple Leafs' goaltending tandem of Jack Campbell and Petr Mrazek can rebound from a truly horrific winter.
Potential targets: John Klingberg (Stars), Adam Larsson (Kraken), Josh Manson (Ducks), Hampus Lindholm (Ducks).
Boston Bruins
Projected deadline cap space: $7.378M
Biggest need: Defense
The right side of the Bruins' defense boasts the talented Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo. The left side is where things get a little dicey: Boston is currently relying on the likes of Mike Reilly, Matt Grzelcyk, and Derek Forbort.
Boston would greatly benefit from shoring up the left side of its defense corps with another solid blue-liner to play alongside McAvoy on the top pair.
This isn't to say Grzelcyk and McAvoy haven't been reliable as a pairing; the duo has played over 300 minutes together at five-on-five and the Bruins have controlled over 60% of the shot attempts and expected goals in that span. There's just no downside to adding a big, puck-moving rearguard to spread out the depth on the back end.
Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakob Chychrun would be an ideal fit even though he's struggled this campaign, but Boston would almost certainly have to part with its 2022 first-round pick, not to mention at least one promising prospect like Fabian Lysell.
Any high-price target who can get the Bruins' defense corps primed for an intense postseason run would probably be worth the cost.
Potential targets: Chychrun, Lindholm, Mark Giordano (Kraken), Calvin de Haan (Blackhawks), Nick Leddy (Red Wings).
Edmonton Oilers
Projected deadline cap space: $2.141M
Biggest need: Goaltending
Guess what? The Oilers still need a goaltender. No, it wasn't just Mike Smith's fault that the Winnipeg Jets swept Edmonton in the first round last year, but the team could still benefit greatly from an upgrade. Smith is going to turn 40 years old the day after the trade deadline and has been battling injuries, as well as less-than-inspiring performances, all season long.
The Oilers also can't really rely on the struggling Mikko Koskinen to carry them on a deep playoff run, and his $4.5-million cap hit is a bit of an eyesore on a cash-strapped team.
Both netminders are averaging over three goals allowed per contest, which simply isn't good enough on a team that boasts two of the top players in the league. The Leon Draisaitl-Connor McDavid duo can't outscore every single one of Edmonton's problems, but they can sure try.
There might not be a quality, surefire No. 1 option for the Oilers available at the trade deadline. Even if there were, Edmonton would have to open some serious cap space to get a deal done. At the very least, if any sort of upgrade is available, the Oilers should do everything they can to make that kind of move. Bonus points if they can also acquire some reinforcements on the blue line.
The acquisitions of Evander Kane earlier this season and Zach Hyman in the offseason helped to address the team's depth scoring issues, so for once, we're not harping on that.
Potential targets: Georgiev, Korpisalo, Fleury, Vitek Vanecek (Capitals), Ilya Samsonov (Capitals), Chris Driedger (Kraken).
(Analytics sources: Evolving Hockey, Natural Stat Trick)
