For the past couple of weeks, the top name forwards have been flying off the board at a rapid pace, and nearly all of them have found homes among the NHL’s Eastern Conference teams. Sure, Winnipeg picked up Nino Niederreiter on Saturday and Vegas picked up Evgenii Dadonov on Sunday, but these moves pale in comparison to the marquee names heading eastward and settling among the conference’s six elite teams.
The Eastern Conference has a legitimate claim to housing the six most likely Cup champions this season — depending on how healthy the Colorado Avalanche are — and the trade market so far has reflected this competitive balance.