The Detroit Red Wings have a golden opportunity.

In a season in which all but two teams are within single-digit points of a playoff spot - the Colorado Avalanche and Arizona Coyotes are long out of the race - the Red Wings could become the third party in what is a strong sellers' market.

The Avalanche and Coyotes are courting buyers with high-end wares like Matt Duchene and Martin Hanzal, but the Red Wings would be wise to add a few of their own pieces to the seller's table.

A 25-year playoff streak remains in the balance - the Red Wings have not missed the postseason since 1990 - but now is the opportune time for Detroit general manager Ken Holland to ship off his better pieces. Several skaters are likely to draw the interest of rival suitors, returning assets that will brighten the team's future.

Pending free agents are the easiest moves at the deadline, and the Red Wings have an attractive option in winger Thomas Vanek. After the Minnesota Wild bought out his contract, Vanek agreed to a one-year, prove-it deal with Detroit. He's done exactly that, scoring 32 points in 39 games, sitting second to only captain Henrik Zetterberg in team scoring.

Between the pipes, netminder Jimmy Howard, sidelined since late December with a leg injury, has been the league's best in the 17 games he's taken the ice, owning an NHL-high .934 save percentage. He's had a nice bounce-back campaign, particularly after a summer in which his near $5.3-million cap hit seemed immovable.

Still, 24-year-old Petr Mrazek is the goalie of the future in Motown, while Jared Coreau has proven that he's ready for the backup job. That could put Howard on the market.

One other player of interest could be defenseman Mike Green. Given the high demand for right-handed blue-liners, particularly those who can move the puck, Green could draw some interest and a nice return for the Red Wings.

With 24 points on the season, Green is on pace to finish the campaign with 41, which would mark his second-best finish since he put up 76 with the Washington Capitals in 2009-10 (he scored 45 points with the Capitals two seasons ago). The 31-year-old has one year remaining on his contract, carrying a $6-million AAV.

As for the Red Wings, with 51 points in as many games, the team sits eight points back of a playoff spot, ahead of only the Buffalo Sabres and Tampa Bay Lightning in the East, while a jump to the postseason would require a leapfrog of six other clubs. No easy task.

League wide, the Red Wings are only better than four clubs, currently holding the fifth overall pick come June. With a little lottery luck, Detroit is poised to make its highest pick at the draft tables since Keith Primeau went third overall 27 summers ago.

A top pick and some bonus pieces added at the deadline would truly kick the Winged Wheel's rebuild into overdrive.

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Resistance looks good on the Colorado Avalanche.

Before putting the finishing touches on a 5-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday afternoon, defenseman Nikita Zadorov punished Mark Scheifele for wheeling into neutral ice with his head down with a massive open-ice hit.

Colorado's win ended a four-game losing streak on home ice.

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Brad Marchand has emerged as one of the game's top talents over the past two seasons, posting career-best numbers in 2015-16 and arguably finding an even more dangerous gear this year.

But a closer look at the Boston Bruins winger's performance over the past month suggests he might just be one of the most versatile scorers in the league.

Marchand has set himself apart on the scoresheet over the past month, racking up a league-leading 13 goals and 23 points in just 14 games. This offensive outburst helped him climb into the top tier of league scorers, with the gifted agitator now tied for the seventh-most goals in the NHL, and the fourth-most points.

But Marchand's 2016-17 effort is far more impressive than the numbers might initially suggest.

The 13 goals he's put up over the last month have been spread fairly equally in terms of strength, as Marchand posted six of them at even strength, four on the power play, and three short-handed.

The near goal-per-game pace is already impressive, but the fact that Marchand has been doing it every which way has been the true game-changer. And his competition hasn't matched him in this regard.

Winnipeg Jets pivot Mark Scheifele and San Jose Sharks veteran Patrick Marleau each have nine goals over the past month, with all but two coming at even strength. Calgary Flames winger Sean Monahan and New York Islanders captain John Tavares posted nine as well, both posting six during five-on-five play.

Expanded past the last month to 2016-17 as a whole, Marchand still comes out on top on the versatility front.

Compared to the rest of the top 15 goal-scorers in the league, Marchand has relied far less on any one game situation. He ranks in the middle of the pack in terms of even-strength tallies (14) and power-play goals (six), while his three short-handed markers are tied for most in the league.

The actual manner in which he's finding the net is just as unconventional as the situations in which he's scoring.

While the majority of the rest of the game's top snipers are beating netminders primarily with wrist shots, Marchand has nearly as many backhand goals as he does wristers.

His seven tallies off the backhand are the most league wide, and just a handful below his 10 wrist shot goals. He's added one via deflection and five off snap shots as well.

Marchand isn't taking Sidney Crosby's crown as the league's most versatile offensive force, but it's clear the Bruins' star is cut from the same cloth as his fellow Nova Scotian.

That's excellent news for Boston, as its 23rd-ranked offense is clearly in need of all the help it can get as it struggles to hold on to a playoff spot.

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Nobody saw this coming.

Peter Budaj, the AHL veteran holding down the fort in Los Angeles with starter Jonathan Quick on the sidelines, now leads the NHL in shutouts.

Budaj secured his seventh goose egg in a 1-0 Kings victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.

It marked Budaj's third shutout in his past four outings, a stretch where he's allowed just two goals and turned aside 91 shots.

Through 45 games this season, Budaj has come away with a 25-14-3 record alongside a .923 save percentage. He appeared in one game with Los Angeles last season and played 60 games with the Ontario Reign, the Kings' AHL affiliate.

The 34-year-old was up for grabs after failing to make the Kings out of training camp, when Los Angeles placed the veteran goaltender on waivers.

Budaj is a pending unrestricted free agent. He earns a bargain $600,000 at the NHL level this season.

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If you're going to beat the Los Angeles Kings, stay away from overtime.

Stuck in a scoreless draw Saturday in Philadelphia, who else but Kings forward Jeff Carter broke the deadlock, depositing his 27th goal of the season and his league-leading ninth game-winner.

Carter's goal improved Los Angeles' three-on-three record to a ridiculous 10-1 this season, and earned the Kings their fifth consecutive win.

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Starting now, every NHL goaltender is going to look a little thinner as the league's new streamlined goalie pants became mandatory Saturday.

Several netminders have expressed concern about the tighter, more form-fitting gear, which they've had an opportunity to test out in games before this weekend.

Related - Crawford: Better ice, not smaller goalie gear, increases scoring

Arizona Coyotes netminder Mike Smith was the most vocal critic.

"I think to have an equipment change midseason, it's crazy, especially in the goaltending position," he said, according to NHL.com's Dan Rosen. "It's nuts that it can't wait until the beginning of next season."

Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Matt Murray likened the new pants to "skinny jeans," according to Sam Werner of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,

The NHL originally planned to make the new pants compulsory prior to the start of the season, but senior director of hockey operations Kay Whitmore told Rosen that safety concerns delayed the mandatory rollout.

Goalies who refuse to don the new equipment will be subject to a two-game suspension, their teams will be fined $25,000, and the offending club's equipment manager will be docked $1,000, according to ESPN's Pierre LeBrun.

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Welcome to the highlight reel, Michal Neuvirth.

The Philadelphia Flyers goaltender made one of the best saves of the season Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings, recovering after biting on a Dustin Brown fake to absolutely rob him with the glove midway through the first period.

Neuvirth stopped all 18 shots he faced over the first 40 minutes, but no save was better than this one.

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Steve Mason wasn't starting Saturday, but he still had to keep his head up.

The Philadelphia Flyers goaltender got up close and personal with Los Angeles Kings defenseman Kevin Gravel, who was hip-checked into the Flyers' bench by Radko Gudas.

Nobody appeared to be hurt on the play, and Mason seemed to get a kick out of it.

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There's nothing like a Saturday in Central Park.

The Calgary Flames apparently shared that sentiment, as they held practice at one of the outdoor rinks in New York's most famous public space ahead of Sunday's game at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers.

Here's what it looked like when the drills began:

Hydration is always important, and even more so in the elements.

The Flames drew a decent crowd, considering they're in enemy territory.

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Some big names could be on the move before March 1, but there are several less productive players who could still provide value to buyers looking to add ahead of the trade deadline.

From veteran forwards to seasoned blue-liners, more than a handful of reasonably priced options abound for teams looking to bolster their playoff-ready rosters.

Here are five under-the-radar players who might find new homes before the clock strikes 3 p.m. ET on deadline day:

Mike Ribeiro

Ribeiro went unclaimed on waivers Saturday, so he's not exactly in high demand, but his value should rise closer to the deadline as teams get a better idea of where they stand.

The 36-year-old center has certainly flown under the radar with only four goals and 25 points, but he's only a season removed from a 43-assist, 50-point campaign.

He's a pending unrestricted free agent with a cap hit of $3.5 million, and that figure shouldn't be too cumbersome for teams looking to add depth down the middle.

Patrick Eaves

There's a ton of parity in the league at the moment, and that's essentially led to crickets in terms of significant trades, because so many teams aren't sure whether they'll be buyers or sellers.

The Dallas Stars are one of those teams, sitting third-last in the Western Conference but only four points out of a playoff position.

If they bottom out and decide to sell, Patrick Eaves would have to be considered a trade candidate, considering his status as a UFA, his age (32), and his team-friendly cap hit of $1 million.

The fact that he's on pace for a career year - leading the Stars with 19 goals - doesn't hurt his value, either.

Drew Stafford

When you look at Stafford's production this season as a whole, it's not very impressive, but the Winnipeg Jets' notoriously streaky forward was putting together a nice run before an injury forced him to miss the last six games.

He's posted only 12 points in 34 contests, but eight of those points came in the last 13 games he played prior to getting hurt.

He's nearing a return, and if he picks up where he left off upon retaking the ice, he'll be a possible trade target as a pending UFA who's proven he can contribute.

The Jets are only two points out of a playoff spot, so they may opt to hold on to him, but, should they falter in the weeks ahead, Stafford could garner some interest despite his $4.35-million cap hit.

Brian Gionta

The Buffalo Sabres won't admit it, but let's be honest - they're not really in contention this season, sitting eight points out with effectively seven teams to leapfrog if they hope to claim a playoff berth.

That means, barring a February surge, general manager Tim Murray will look to do what he did at last year's deadline, when he dealt versatile forward Jamie McGinn to the Anaheim Ducks.

McGinn was a pending UFA, just like Sabres captain Brian Gionta is this year. The latter is 38 years old, but he can still score on occasion, and teams might covet his wealth of experience.

Dennis Seidenberg

The New York Islanders have resurrected their season under new head coach Doug Weight, but it's still going to be an uphill battle to qualify for the postseason.

If they deem the playoffs a lost cause come deadline time, Dennis Seidenberg would likely be discussed considering his ultra-affordable cap hit of $1 million, and his status as a steady defenseman with plenty of playoff experience, including a Stanley Cup championship with the Boston Bruins in 2011.

He's 35, and the offensive production hasn't quite been there this season, but Seidenberg could be a reliable bottom-pairing addition for a team looking to solidify its blue line.

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