The St. Louis Blues have already started selling off their pending unrestricted free agents, but they're apparently also open to the idea of trading players with term - particularly on the back end.

It's "very possible" St. Louis moves one of its top-four defensemen - Colton Parayko, Torey Krug, Justin Faulk, or Nick Leddy, reports TSN's Darren Dreger. Dreger added that Parayko has drawn the most interest of the quartet.

A deal would be complicated, though, as all four players have full no-trade clauses. Parayko, Krug, and Faulk all carry $6.5-million cap hits; Parayko is under contract through 2030, while Krug and Faulk are signed through 2027. Leddy inked a four-year deal worth $4 million annually this past offseason.

Parayko, 29, shoots right and stands at 6-foot-6 and 228 pounds. He's posted only 17 points in 50 games this season, but his defensive metrics have been strong.

The Blues, who entered Thursday 11th in the Western Conference, already dealt pending UFA Vladimir Tarasenko to the New York Rangers. They're also widely expected to move on from other veterans on expiring deals, such as captain Ryan O'Reilly and forwards Ivan Barbashev and Noel Acciari.

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Count Devils executive vice president of hockey operations Martin Brodeur among those who are enjoying New Jersey's breakout 2022-23 campaign.

"This is what the Devils should be all the time," said the legendary goaltender, according to NJ.com's Ryan Novozinsky. "It's been tough for the fan base and for the people working in hockey. … We're back to where we belong, having this place buzzing again."

After ranking among the bottom five teams in the league in three of the past four seasons, New Jersey currently sits second in the Metropolitan Division with a 35-13-5 record and looks set to make the playoffs for the first time since 2018. Additionally, the team tied a franchise record with 13 consecutive wins in November.

The Devils are among the top three teams in the league in virtually every single underlying category at five-on-five this season, including goals for percentage (58.7%), expected goals for percentage (54.9%), shot attempts for percentage (53.6%), and scoring chances for percentage (55%), per Natural Stat Trick.

Brodeur has been particularly encouraged by the improvements he's seen in New Jersey's crease. The Devils allowed the third-most goals (986) from 2018-19 to 2021-22.

"It's been nice to have somewhat of a stability in net," Brodeur said. "I think (Vitek Vanecek) has brought that. (Mackenzie Blackwood) coming back from injury, too, has given us some good games."

Vanecek owns a 23-5-3 record, a .916 save percentage, and a 2.31 goals against average in his first season with the Devils. Blackwood has put up a 7-4-2 overall record and a .913 save percentage since returning from a knee injury Dec. 21, while rookie Akira Schmid has registered a .919 save percentage across nine appearances.

For comparison, the Devils used a whopping seven goalies last season, and only one - Jonathan Bernier - logged a save percentage over .900. New Jersey ranks eighth in team save percentage (.925) at five-on-five this season after being among the 10 worst teams the previous five seasons. (The team finished dead last in that category in 2021-22.)

Brodeur, 50, won four Vezina Trophies and three Stanley Cup championships with the Devils during his career. He owns the all-time NHL records for most wins (691), shutouts, (125), and games played (1,266).

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General manager Pierre Dorion acknowledged the Ottawa Senators still haven't settled on their approach to the March 3 trade deadline but said there's "no chance" he will move pending restricted free-agent forward Alex DeBrincat.

"We'll just see where it goes at the end of the year, and if we sign a contract with him before then, we'll see what happens, but he's not getting traded," Dorion said during an appearance on TSN 1200 on Thursday.

"He works hard, he's talented, he does the right thing. ... We've been very happy (with) Alex's play."

Dorion opted not to spill details about any contract negotiations with the 25-year-old, who is playing out the final season of a three-year pact with a $6.4-million cap hit.

A two-time 41-goal scorer, DeBrincat has 18 tallies and 44 points through 53 games in Canada's capital. Ottawa pried him away from the rebuilding Chicago Blackhawks in July in exchange for the seventh and 39th overall picks in 2022, as well as a 2024 third-rounder.

Dorion added that the team's also unlikely to trade pending unrestricted free-agent defenseman Travis Hamonic, who Ottawa acquired from the Vancouver Canucks for a 2022 third-round pick last March. The 32-year-old has three goals and seven helpers in 53 contests this campaign while averaging 19 minutes of ice time per game.

The Senators currently sit seventh in the Atlantic Division and seven points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. They have so far failed to live up to the hype following a flashy offseason that saw them add Cam Talbot, Claude Giroux, and DeBrincat.

"For us, obviously, our goal all year is to play meaningful games," Dorion said. "I think we're there. Right now, probably everyone is wondering, 'Are we a buyer, or are we a seller?' For us, let's see where these next seven games take us.

"We have a plan in place if we're gonna be a buyer, if we're gonna be a seller. We might be just standing pat. Also, we made a lot of moves in the summer to prepare to play meaningful games."

The Senators have gone 6-1-0 over their last seven contests. However, goaltender Anton Forsberg hasn't played since Feb. 11 and is expected to miss two-to-three months with knee injuries. Talbot hasn't played since Jan. 25 but is nearing a return from a lower-body injury.

Ottawa had to rely on the inexperienced duo of Mads Sogaard and Kevin Mandolese for its past two games. Sogaard held down the fort with a .919 save percentage in Monday's 4-3 overtime win over the Calgary Flames, while Mandolese dazzled in his NHL debut with a .958 clip during Tuesday's 3-2 shootout victory versus the New York Islanders.

The Senators will look to improve on their 26-24-3 record Friday against the struggling Blackhawks.

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We have a jam-packed eight-game slate to look forward to Thursday night. Let's waste no time in getting to our best bets.

Flyers (+160) @ Kraken (-190)

This contest doesn't seem overly exciting on the surface, but there's potential for a sneaky amount of offense.

Although the Kraken aren't overloaded with marquee names and flashy stars, they're a very deep and talented team. It has a lot of balance in the lineup and gets scoring from top to bottom.

Not many clubs can match Seattle's scoring depth, which is why it ranks fifth in the NHL with nearly 3.50 goals per game.

The Flyers appear to be buying what John Tortorella is selling. But I think they'll have a tough time limiting the damage Seattle's attack can cause, especially on the road. Philadelphia has allowed 3.23 expected goals per 60 minutes over the last 10 away dates, a far cry from the 2.88 it conceded over the past 10 home games.

The good news for the Flyers is that there's reason to believe they can also score their fair share of goals. The Kraken are strong defensively, but it doesn't much matter with the way their goaltenders are playing.

Martin Jones has fallen apart lately, posting a .886 save percentage over his last 10 starts. Philipp Grubauer hasn't been as bad but still owns a save percentage below the league average and has allowed three goals in three of his past four starts.

I expect the Flyers to score two or three (if not more) in this spot. Given the overwhelming depth of the Kraken's attack, that should be more than enough to push this game over the number.

Bet: Over 5.5 (-130)

Jets (-200) @ Blue Jackets (+170)

After hitting a bit of a rut, the Jets appear to have found their game. They've won three straight and posted some encouraging underlying numbers over the past 10.

In that time, Winnipeg controlled 53.41% of the shot attempts at five-on-five and ranked top 10 in generating high-danger scoring chances.

That spells trouble for the Blue Jackets. They continue to struggle mightily at full strength, posting a 43.68% expected goal share (29th) over the last 10 games.

Columbus isn't creating quality chances with any regularity, while opponents are generating shots in bulk at the other end of the rink.

A lack of chance volume doesn't bode well for the Blue Jackets to succeed given they're going up against an all-world goaltender in Connor Hellebuyck. He's red-hot, too, posting a .917 save percentage or better in five of his last six starts.

It's going to be tough for Joonas Korpisalo to match that. Not only will he likely see a much more difficult workload, but he'll enter the matchup in worse form.

Korpisalo has quietly put together a strong season - especially given the team in front of him - but he's tailed off lately. Korpisalo has allowed 27 goals over his last six starts (nearly four per game) and posted a .885 save percentage or worse in four of them.

The Jets are going to test Korpisalo heavily, and they have plenty of talented weapons who'll account for a lot of the shots heading his way. I don't see Korpisalo holding up behind a putrid Blue Jackets defense.

Look for Winnipeg to win its fourth straight game and do so inside 60 minutes.

Bet: Jets in regulation (-130)

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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The Detroit Red Wings signed defenseman Olli Maatta to a two-year contract extension carrying an average annual value of $3 million, the club announced Thursday.

Maatta was a pending unrestricted free agent, and he'll get a raise from the $2.25-million AAV on his current deal.

The 28-year-old has been a serviceable depth blue-liner.

Maatta is in his first season with the Red Wings, who signed him in July. The Finnish rearguard previously suited up for the Los Angeles Kings, Chicago Blackhawks, and Pittsburgh Penguins.

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Our shot props disappointed Wednesday. William Nylander came one shy against the Blackhawks, while Nikita Kucherov took only two of the whopping 47 shots that the Lightning put up in the desert.

Tage Thompson took care of business against the Ducks. However, given how the other games shaped up, it would've been easy to envision another 2-1 or even a 3-0 night.

Nevertheless, we'll look to get back on track with three plays for Thursday's games.

Kyle Connor over 3.5 shots (+105)

Connor is heating up. He's registered at least four shots in six of his last 10 contests, piling up 71 attempts (ninth) and 41 shots on target (eighth) over the stretch.

Connor draws a mouthwatering matchup against the Blue Jackets on Thursday. Columbus ranks 31st in five-on-five shot suppression this season. It'll likely be worse defensively without Vladislav Gavrikov in the lineup due to trade protection, as he's one of the club's better in-zone defenders.

The Jets forward has faced off against the Blue Jackets once this season, generating six shots on eight attempts during the game. With Winnipeg amid a heated division race, it knows every point counts. I expect a purposeful effort here as the Jets try to take advantage of one of the easier opponents on their schedule.

David Pastrnak over 4.5 shots (-110)

While things have gotten a little better lately, the Predators have really struggled defensively for quite some time. Only the Ducks, Blue Jackets, and Canadiens - teams in the Connor Bedard sweepstakes - have allowed shots at five-on-five at a higher clip over the past 25 games.

Nashville's penalty-killing problems only make matters worse. The Preds rank in the bottom 10 in shot suppression over the same period and have spent more time killing penalties than all but nine clubs.

Pastrnak is a strong five-on-five shooter and the focal point of the Bruins' power play. He figures to be the prime beneficiary of Nashville's defensive weaknesses.

The Predators have struggled to slow down opposing right-wingers all season, ranking 30th in shots allowed per game to the position.

This is a good spot for Pastrnak to build off an eight-shot performance last time out.

Alex Pietrangelo over 2.5 shots (+100)

We've frequently targeted Pietrangelo lately, and it's paid off. He's hit the over on his shot total in seven of the past 10 games, including against stout defensive teams like the Stars, Wild, and Rangers.

That's a good sign heading into a game with the Sharks, who are solid at preventing shots and scoring chances. They do a good job of keeping teams to the outside, which should allow for more perimeter looks from Pietrangelo.

That was certainly the case in the Golden Knights' previous meetings with San Jose. Pietrangelo recorded four shots in both contests with the Sharks this season, combining for 14 shots attempts across those meetings.

I expect his success to continue at home this time around.

Todd Cordell is a sports betting writer at theScore. Be sure to follow him on Twitter @ToddCordell.

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