Nothing creates more buzz for hockey lovers than trade season. While most fans are looking ahead to the March 3 frenzy, we're going to reflect on the 2022 deadline and analyze which deals hold up a year later.

What worked

Avalanche grab all the missing pieces

Colorado knew it was the alpha dog in the Western Conference last season, and rather than swinging for the fences with one deadline splash, then-general manager Joe Sakic opted to reinforce the lineup in as many places as possible. The Avalanche picked up Andrew Cogliano, Artturi Lehkonen, Nico Sturm, and Josh Manson in four separate trades before the playoffs, shipping out Tyson Jost, two second-round picks, a fifth, along with prospects Justin Barron and Drew Helleson in the process. Adding those pieces to a core as stacked as Colorado's at that cost was borderline unfair.

Sturm didn't make much of an impact in Avalanche colors, but Cogliano was a key veteran presence who teammates credited with easing nerves before a triumphant Game 6 in the Stanley Cup Final. Lehkonen had 14 playoff points and four game-winning goals - including clinchers in the final two series - before signing a five-year extension. Manson slotted seamlessly into the lower half of the Avs' D-corps, adding snarl and reliable minutes. He also re-signed with the defending champs.

While fans of contending teams often want management to reel in the biggest fish on the market, the Avalanche shrewdly navigating the bargain bin en route to a 16-4 run to the Cup will surely influence contending front offices going forward.

Lightning strike with depth adds

The Bolts made a pair of key trades in their quest for a three-peat, bringing in forwards Nick Paul and Brandon Hagel to supplement the big guns up front. Tampa shipped Mathieu Joseph and a fourth-round pick to Ottawa for Paul, and are looking no worse for wear a year later. Joseph's notched three goals in 34 games this season, while Paul played crucial minutes in the playoffs and stamped his importance to his new team with a pair of goals in a Game 7 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. He parlayed his strong audition into a seven-year extension at a team-friendly $3.15 million per season this past summer.

The Hagel trade was much more significant, with the Lightning surrendering first-round picks in 2023 and 2024, along with Taylor Raddysh and Boris Katchouk. Both were once promising prospects, but neither were moving the needle in Tampa's championship aspirations. Hagel, meanwhile, arrived with a $1.5-million cap hit until 2024 and has grown into a top-six fixture, ranking fourth on the club this season with 46 points.

Maple Leafs, Bruins boost defense

Toronto and Boston's main work at last year's deadline was focused on their respective blue lines, so we lumped the longtime division rivals together for this exercise. The Maple Leafs added Mark Giordano after a brief sojourn with the Seattle Kraken, while the Bruins set their sights a little higher and pried Hampus Lindholm from the Anaheim Ducks.

The Leafs got Giordano (and forward Colin Blackwell) for two second-round picks and a third. The 2019 Norris Trophy winner immediately bolstered Toronto's defensive depth, and he opted to re-sign with the club for a measly $800,000 per season to make himself one of the best bargains the NHL has to offer. He's played nearly 20 minutes per contest since joining the Leafs, posting sterling underlying numbers at five-on-five and chipping in 34 points.

Lindholm cost Boston a first-round pick, two seconds, John Moore, and Urho Vaakanainen. It was a hefty price, but Lindholm solidified the Bruins' top-four and looks to have a role there for the foreseeable future after signing an eight-year, $52-million extension shortly after the trade. This season, Lindholm leads all Bruins skaters in average ice-time, and owns a career-high 0.65 points per game. Now 29, the twilight years of Lindholm's deal may age poorly, but as of right now, he's playing a major role on the best team in the league.

Copp, Vatrano lift Rangers' attack

The Rangers sought scoring depth at last year's deadline and found it in spades, as Andrew Copp and Frank Vatrano each scored a glut of key goals to help the Blueshirts reach the Eastern Conference Final. The price for Copp - a first, second, fifth, and Morgan Barron - raised eyebrows at the time, but he was a terrific addition, registering 32 points in 36 combined games between the playoffs and regular season. The Rangers also dodged a bullet by not re-signing Copp, who's only collected five goals in Detroit this season. He was a near-perfect rental.

Vatrano didn't garner as much attention as Copp but was still productive. He tallied 13 goals and 13 assists on Broadway in limited minutes, then bolted to the Anaheim Ducks in free agency. The Rangers have already dipped into the forward rental market this year, and are surely hoping Vladimir Tarasenko pays off as well as their 2022 trades did.

What failed

Panthers swing and miss

Florida was in the midst of a Presidents' Trophy-winning campaign and decided to go all-in by acquiring Claude Giroux - who handpicked the Panthers as his preferred destination - and Ben Chiarot. It cost two first-round picks, a third- and fourth-rounder, and two prospects. Their season ended in a sweep at the hands of their biggest rival, and the Cats were unable to retain either of their big deadline additions.

Giroux was an instant fit. The longtime Philadelphia Flyer had three goals and 20 helpers in 18 regular season games before being the second-most productive Panther in the playoffs with eight points. Chiarot, as many predicted at the time of the trade, didn't move the needle on Florida's back end. He's notoriously posted poor underlying numbers for his entire career, and that continued to be the case in the postseason, with the rugged blue-liner posting an ugly 37.53% goal share and an underwhelming 48.51% expected goals clip.

The Panthers weren't in the wrong for going for it during their best season in franchise history, but learned the hard way that trading for rentals is a tricky business that rarely yields desired results.

Blues pay premium for Leddy

The Blues crafted one of the most puzzling moves of the 2022 deadline, acquiring Nick Leddy from the Detroit Red Wings for Oskar Sundqvist, Jake Walman, and a second-round pick. Leddy is a quality veteran with Stanley Cup experience, but looking back a year later, it looks like St. Louis made a mistake getting rid of Walman. Here are both their impacts this season:

It's worth noting that Walman has played significantly fewer minutes this year, but he's delivering more than Leddy at both ends of the ice. He's also only 26 with a $1.05-million cap hit, whereas Leddy, soon to be 32, will earn $4 million for the next three seasons for a Blues team that is now reportedly looking to shed salary on its crowded blue line.

Walman only had 57 NHL games under his belt at the time of the trade, but he's quickly evolved into the best player in the trade.

Fleury falters in Minnesota

Minnesota made one of last year's biggest splashes when it scooped Marc-Andre Fleury from the Chicago Blackhawks for a conditional second-rounder. The cost was minimal, but the three-time Stanley Cup champion didn't have the impact the Wild, and many fans, suspected.

Fleury went 9-2 in the regular season after the trade but faltered in the playoffs, posting a 3.04 goals against average and .906 save percentage in the first round before Minnesota turned to Cam Talbot in the series finale. Fleury re-upped with the Wild on a reasonable two-year, $7-million contract this past summer, but still hasn't provided the club with the answers they seek in goal. He owns a .901 clip in 34 appearances this season, his worst mark in that department since 2005-06.

Jarnkrok fizzles with Flames

The Flames made a concerted effort to add forward depth at the deadline last year, and one of their moves was adding Calle Jarnkrok from Seattle for a package of three picks. He was a cost-effective option with a decent track record of scoring goals, potting 12 with Seattle before the deal. Something never clicked for Jarnkrok in Calgary, though, as he managed a single goal under Darryl Sutter in 29 games between the regular season and playoffs. Whatever ailed Jarnkrok with the Flames dissipated once he left town, as he's put up 27 points in 49 games with the Leafs this season.

While the Jarnkrok trade was a total bust, Calgary's quest to add to its offense last year wasn't a complete failure. Brad Treliving swung a deal for Tyler Toffoli a few weeks prior, and the veteran winger's gone on to collect 71 points in 93 games with the club.

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Patrick Kane delivered one final blow to the Toronto Maple Leafs following a dazzling four-point performance on Sunday night, essentially ruling the club out as a potential trade partner.

"I don't think there's really, at least that I know of, much discussion of that being an option," Kane said, per Sportsnet's Luke Fox. "There's a lot of different reports out there, and not all of them are true. So, gotta be careful what you listen to."

Kane is among the biggest names potentially available for the March 3 trade deadline as a pending unrestricted free agent. The Carolina Hurricanes, Vegas Golden Knights, Minnesota Wild, and Dallas Stars are among reported suitors for the three-time Stanley Cup champion, and Kane recently admitted he was eyeing the New York Rangers before they chose Vladimir Tarasenko.

The Maple Leafs also dipped into the forward market already, acquiring Ryan O'Reilly and Noel Acciari from the St. Louis Blues in a blockbuster deal earlier this week.

Kane has a full no-movement clause, meaning he'd have to approve of his potential destination. Despite a down year statistically, Kane's showed he's still one of the league's top game-breakers of late with a hat trick and an assist against the Leafs as well as two goals Friday versus the Ottawa Senators.

He still undecided on leaving the Blackhawks, who drafted him first overall in 2007.

"I don't know," Kane said. "I think if I knew that, I'd probably make the decision already."

Chicago has six more games before the deadline.

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Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar is out Sunday against the Edmonton Oilers with an upper-body injury, according to The Athletic's Peter Baugh.

He's considered day-to-day.

Makar played Saturday during the Avalanche's 4-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues. He missed the previous four contests due to a head injury after taking a high hit from Pittsburgh Penguins veteran Jeff Carter.

Makar briefly exited Saturday's matchup in the third period following a collision with Blues forward Alexei Toropchenko, but he returned.

Head coach Jared Bednar said Makar suffered a bloody nose during the incident but that "no real problems" came out of it, according to the Denver Gazette's Kyle Fredrickson.

Makar told reporters after Saturday's game that he was hoping to play Sunday "unless anything turns."

The reigning Norris Trophy and Conn Smythe Trophy winner leads all skaters in average ice time this season (26:57). He's also recorded 13 goals and 32 assists in 46 games.

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Ottawa Senators forward Tyler Motte won't play in Sunday afternoon's clash against the St. Louis Blues for trade-related reasons, reports Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.

Motte, 27, carries a cap hit of $1.35 million and can become an unrestricted free agent this summer. He's put up three goals, six assists, 88 hits, and 43 blocks in 38 games this season while seeing 13:32 minutes of ice time per contest.

The Michigan native was also on the move during last year's trade deadline when the Vancouver Canucks shipped him to the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2023 fourth-round pick. Motte scored twice in 15 playoff games during the Rangers' run to the Eastern Conference Final.

Motte is the latest player to sit out because of the impending March 3 deadline, joining Arizona Coyotes star Jakob Chychrun and Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov.

The Senators sit seventh in the Atlantic Division with a 26-24-4 record and are seven points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

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The NHL trade deadline is less than two weeks away, and several general managers have decisions to make about the direction they want to take their respective clubs. There are obvious buyers at the top of the standings and clear sellers near the bottom. But what about the cluster of teams in between?

Some clubs, including the Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators, have been hot of late, but the chances of either team being a buyer remains next to none, so we omitted them from this exercise. Below, we dive into how the seven other fringe playoff teams should approach the March 3 deadline.

Buffalo Sabres

Standings: Tied for 5th in Atlantic (out of playoffs by 3 points)
Playoff chances: 42%

Surely, there's a segment of the Sabres' fan base begging GM Kevyn Adams to buy. After all, Buffalo's amid the longest playoff drought in NHL history.

However, the front office doesn't share the same enthusiasm for making a huge playoff push for the sake of ending an 11-year dry spell. Adams has said multiple times the Sabres "can't hit the fast-forward button" as they try to build a sustainable winner. It's all gone according to plan thus far, as the on-ice product has greatly improved and core pieces have inked extensions.

In other words, the Stanley Cup-contending timeline with a roster revolving around Tage Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, Dylan Cozens, Alex Tuch, and Mattias Samuelsson doesn't align with being a buyer in 2022-23.

(Key caveat: If the right player with term on his contract is available at a fair price, Adams should consider pivoting. With three 2023 second-round picks and a handful of A- and B-level prospects in his back pocket, Adams could conceivably straddle the line by bringing in talent while keeping his firsts.)

Don't expect Buffalo to be a big-time seller, either. Pending unrestricted free agents Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons are cherished veteran forwards, and the club's other UFAs - goalie Craig Anderson, forward Vinnie Hinostroza, and defenseman Lawrence Pilut - are unlikely to fetch much of a return.

Verdict: Sit

Calgary Flames

Standings: 5th in Pacific (tied for second wild card in West)
Playoff chances: 83.5%

The Flames' bold moves this past offseason give them a brief window to compete for the Cup. Nazem Kadri is 32, while Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar are both 29. With an average team age of 28.5, they're among the most grizzled in the league.

Calgary was viewed as a legitimate Cup contender entering the campaign, but instead, the Flames are fighting for their playoff lives. The underlying numbers are strong, though, as they're a top-five team in five-on-five expected goals share, according to Natural Stat Trick, yet they've been unlucky, ranking in the bottom five in PDO (shooting percentage plus save percentage).

The Flames are a heavy team - the type that's better suited for playoff hockey. If 2022 Vezina Trophy runner-up Jacob Markstrom can find his game down the stretch - a big if - Calgary could be very dangerous come playoff time.

Calgary also needs to get Huberdeau going (Saturday's two-assist effort is a fantastic start). He's in the middle of his least productive season on a per-game basis since 2014-15. Adding a scoring winger who could mesh with the silky playmaker should be GM Brad Treliving's top priority.

Verdict: Buy

Florida Panthers

Standings: 4th in Atlantic (out of the playoffs by 1 point)
Playoff chances: 39.4%

The Panthers have been ultra-aggressive on the trade market dating back to the 2021 offseason, surrendering a total of four first-round picks in exchange for Sam Reinhart, Claude Giroux, Ben Chiarot, and Matthew Tkachuk. They're not scheduled to pick again in Round 1 until at least 2026.

Despite those moves, their chances of making the playoffs this season are still in question. And even if they grab a wild-card spot, they'll get smoked in the first round by either the Carolina Hurricanes or Boston Bruins. They simply don't have the proper mix of defensemen or a tight enough defensive structure to compete with either team in a seven-game series.

The Panthers have some money opening up next season. Patric Hornqvist's contract expires, Scott Darling's buyout finally comes off the books, and Keith Yandle's dead cap hit lowers from $5.4 million to $1.2 million. In other words, 2022-23 is not the year for the Panthers to go for it. Maybe 2023-24?

Radko Gudas is Florida's only pending UFA who could fetch something on the trade market. It's worth trying to extend him to a modest deal given the state of the blue line, but if a deal can't be reached, GM Bill Zito should trade him to the highest bidder and set his sights on 2023-24.

Verdict: Sell Gudas if you can't extend him

Minnesota Wild

Standings: 4th in Central (tied for second wild card in West)
Playoff chances: 66.4%

The Wild are in a precarious position. They're on track to make the playoffs, but, realistically, they're a long shot to win the Cup. Sure, anything can happen in the postseason - teams go on miracle runs here and there. But the Wild likely won't be a serious threat until the Ryan Suter and Zach Parise buyouts become manageable in 2025-26.

There's one player the Wild definitely need to sell: Matt Dumba. It's become apparent the longtime blue-liner won't return to Minnesota after his contract expires this summer. Dumba is just 28, yet he's not the player he used to be and was even a healthy scratch earlier this season. That said, as a right-handed defenseman with top-four experience, the Wild would likely get a decent return for him at the deadline.

Instead of going for the usual package of draft picks and prospects for a rental player, the Wild could try and get a young, controllable player who could help them this season and moving forward. It's difficult to do but not impossible. The Senators accomplished this last year when they received Mathieu Joseph and a fourth-rounder in exchange for Nick Paul.

In that scenario, the Wild would still get something for Dumba but wouldn't be completely throwing in the towel on the season. And GM Bill Guerin knows how important that is to the players in the dressing room.

Verdict: Sell, but don't wave the white flag

Nashville Predators

Standings: 5th in Central (out of playoffs by 5 points)
Playoff chances: 13.9%

GM David Poile said earlier this week that he doesn't think the Predators will be buyers at the deadline. In the same interview with a Nashville radio station, the franchise's first and only GM couldn't commit to being a seller.

Why the trepidation? Five points out of the playoffs in mid-February isn't where Poile expected to be prior to the season considering the age of the Predators' core and the length of their contracts. Let's face it, Nashville is the definition of a mushy-middle team (not good enough to challenge for a Cup and not bad enough to bottom out) until the roster undergoes major surgery.

The cap sheet is a disaster, with $51.6 million tied up in seven players until at least 2025. Of those seven, only two are gems: Roman Josi and Juuse Saros. The other five - Filip Forsberg, Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, Ryan McDonagh, and Mattias Ekholm - are underachieving, overpaid, or injured.

From a sellable-asset perspective, it's dire. Backup goalie Kevin Lankinen and depth forward Mark Jankowski are Poile's only healthy pending UFAs. Still, Poile could get spicy and flip a player or two with term - maybe Duchene or Mikael Granlund up front or Ekholm and Dante Fabbro on the back end.

Verdict: Sell

New York Islanders

Standings: Tied for 5th in Metro (in playoffs as second wild card in East)
Playoff chances: 21.0%

The Islanders are in an awkward spot.

They've already shopped, acquiring Bo Horvat a month before the deadline then promptly signing the forward to an eight-year extension. Presumably, GM Lou Lamoriello would love to double down and add again. The reality of the situation, though, is things could go really south, really quickly on Long Island.

The 28-24-7 Isles, who've lost four of their past five games and 14 of 20 since Jan. 5, are facing only playoff teams over the next two weeks (Pittsburgh, Winnipeg twice, Los Angeles, Minnesota) and a few teams around them in the East standings (Pittsburgh, Washington, Buffalo) have games in hand.

So it appears the Isles will remain just inside or just outside the playoff cutline as the calendar flips to March. By then, the options will probably be sell or sit, and since this clearly isn't their year in a stacked Metro, it would be smart to sell. Goalie Semyon Varlamov and defenseman Scott Mayfield are a couple of pending UFAs who could help replenish the draft capital and young talent sacrificed in the Horvat trade.

Varlamov, perhaps the most overqualified backup in the league, is a great luxury and one Lamoriello would love to hang on to. But the 34-year-old probably doesn't fit into the Isles' long-term plans from a financial perspective, seeing as Ilya Sorokin is the clear-cut No. 1 guy.

Verdict: Sell

Washington Capitals

Standings: 6th in Metropolitan (out of playoffs by 1 point)
Playoff chances: 17.4%

Capitals owner Ted Leonsis said in December that the team won't consider a rebuild while Alex Ovechkin chases the all-time goals record. But would he be OK selling off expiring assets in a season that's been riddled with injuries? It's technically not rebuilding if they try and take another swing at things in 2023-24.

The Caps don't have a single defenseman outside of John Carlson signed beyond next year. Dmitry Orlov and Nick Jensen - two solid top-four blue-liners - are the most intriguing pending UFAs. Up front, Lars Eller, Garnet Hathaway, and the injured Connor Brown headline a list of forwards who would certainly draw trade interest if made available, or in Brown's case, healthy.

Does GM Brian MacLellan believe his squad can get on a roll if they're able to return to full health? Or does he call it a lost season? Sitting is the most probable scenario, though the Caps should be willing to trade away depth players on expiring deals versus buying. Meanwhile, MacLellan should be looking to extend Orlov and Jensen to fortify the blue line ahead of the offseason.

Verdict: Sit

(Playoff chances source: MoneyPuck)

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Ryan O'Reilly and Noel Acciari wasted no time making their Toronto Maple Leafs debuts, as the duo suited up in Saturday's win against the Montreal Canadiens less than 24 hours after being traded.

"Great to dive right in," O'Reilly said postgame, according to the Toronto Sun's Lance Hornby. "Pretty crazy (to start the game). I’m still in shock I’m here.”

O'Reilly and Acciari could've joined the Maple Leafs in Chicago on Sunday - an easier commute from St. Louis - but elected to make the longer trip to Toronto to be in the lineup for Saturday's contest.

"It's like going into cold water, I think it's better just to jump head first into it," O'Reilly described on Hockey Night in Canada. "I'm glad it worked out, big win for us. It's a very good team and I'm very excited to be a part of it."

O'Reilly won 12 of 14 faceoffs and tallied a secondary assist on Michael Bunting's second goal of the evening in his Maple Leafs debut. Rasmus Sandin awarded him the team's player of the game belt.

The 2019 Conn Smythe Trophy winner said it was "rejuvenating" to be joining a team going on a run, according to SI Media Group's David Alter.

Starting goaltender Joseph Woll was in for a pleasant surprise when he arrived at the rink in the morning. The 24-year-old doesn't have social media and was unaware of Toronto's blockbuster trade until he saw the new lineup chart.

O'Reilly and the Maple Leafs are back in action Sunday against the Chicago Blackhawks.

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