Undrafted Hockey Fan Podcast · Brad Mesclier

NHL Tier List: Trade Deadline - Hard Buyers or Hard Sellers; Where does your team? Trade or sell?

March 3, 2025·53 min·5 clips

Discover which NHL teams are hard buyers or sellers in this randomized tier list analysis.

This episode of the Undrafted Hockey Fan Podcast features the host creating a tier list categorizing NHL teams as hard buyers, hard sellers, soft buyers, or soft sellers ahead of the trade deadline. The solo host analyzes each team's competitive position and potential strategy based on their current standings and roster construction. The episode is framed as a rapid-fire evaluation to determine which teams should acquire or trade away players. The host immediately declares the Colorado Avalanche as hard buyers, citing their trades of goalies Alexandar Georgiev and Justus Annunen for Jake Oettinger and Mackenzie Blackwood. He notes they traded forward Mikael Rantanen to acquire prospects like Natchez and Drury and completed the Ryan Lindgren trade. The Vancouver Canucks are assessed as being in a "weird spot" holding the second Western Conference wild card while battling Calgary, St. Louis, and Utah. The host believes Vancouver should be soft sellers, specifically recommending they move on from Elias Pettersson before his no-movement clause activates. He also suggests trading Brock Boeser to acquire future assets, similar to the Buffalo Sabres' approach. A proposed trade partner for Vancouver is Buffalo, with a player like Dylan Cozens mentioned as a potential return. The host argues Colorado should go "all in" because they are performing well in the standings. He contends that Vancouver is not in a position to win a championship currently. The analysis treats each team's strategy as dependent on their specific circumstances in the standings. The host's perspective is that a team's deadline approach is not always strictly buying or selling, as some clubs could do both. The tone is direct and opinionated, focused on swift roster evaluation. The style is informal and conversational, resembling a solo sports radio commentary. Listeners who enjoy quick, opinion-driven hockey analysis and speculative trade discussions would appreciate this episode. Fans seeking in-depth statistical analysis or interviews with guests might find the content too brief and surface-level.

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