The NHL trade deadline is less than two months away on March 7, and the 4 Nations Face-Off (Feb. 12-20) probably will kick-start the festivities, with every NHL general manager expected to attend.
Teams have their midterm scouting meetings in January, when they set the course for the trade deadline, discuss which players who they are willing to move and who they are most interested in acquiring. This is another opportunity for development staff to provide updates on organizational prospects and scouts to provide analysis on prospects in other organizations. Once the meetings are done and scouts are dispatched with players to monitor, the trade talks really pick up.