Fansided

5 buyers who can complete a Stanley Cup roster at the trade deadline

By Bruin Belisle

TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 12: Zdeno Chara #33 of the Boston Bruins battles against William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on January 12, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Bruins defeated the Maple Leafs 3-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 12: Zdeno Chara #33 of the Boston Bruins battles against William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on January 12, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Bruins defeated the Maple Leafs 3-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /
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The NHL trade deadline is fast approaching. Here are five teams looking to bolster their line ups and win a Stanley Cup.

Sometimes all it takes is one key roster change or addition to go from Stanley Cup contender to Stanley Cup champion. Whether the player, or players, are rentals or wind up with the team long-term, the NHL trade deadline is when Stanley Cup rosters are completed.

The same 5-10 names are being tossed around leading up to next week’s trade deadline and I’m sure you are tired of hearing them, so let’s go through them again. Mark Stone, Matt Duchene, Mats Zuccarello, Kevin Hayes, Wayne Simmonds, Michael Ferland, Dougie Hamilton (again), Charlie Coyle and a handful of others. That’s it. Oh, wait. Did I miss one? Oh yeah – Artemi Panarin (although there’s a good chance that his asking price will remain too high). I personally guarantee that at least one of the players named above will end up on one of the teams below.

This post pairs nicely with “5 Sellers that need to be stripped down for parts” that was posted last week, so check that out and match up those players with these teams in your trade predictions. Disregard the St. Louis Blues, who have been surging since being hit with the FanSided reverse curse.

Keep in mind that the following five teams aren’t bubble teams, they are true contenders in need of one or two additions to compete for the Cup.

WINNIPEG, MB – FEBRUARY 12: Brendan Lemieux #48 of the Winnipeg Jets reacts at the bench following a third period goal by Andrew Copp #9 against the New York Rangers at the Bell MTS Place on February 12, 2019 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images)
WINNIPEG, MB – FEBRUARY 12: Brendan Lemieux #48 of the Winnipeg Jets reacts at the bench following a third period goal by Andrew Copp #9 against the New York Rangers at the Bell MTS Place on February 12, 2019 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Winnipeg Jets

The Winnipeg Jets made one of the better deadline rental trades we’ve seen when they picked up Paul Stasny at the end of last season. While resigning him wasn’t in the cards in the offseason, they’ll look for a similarly successful pick up to compete with the Western power house teams in this year’s post-season.

The Jets have been shopping around their first overall pick in 2019 in an attempt to add to their already spectacular roster. They sit in first place in the Western Conference and Patrik Laine hasn’t been producing for the better part of a month. There’s nowhere to go but up for this team, especially if they can land one of the top players on TSN’s trade bait list.

Speaking of Patrik Laine, 18 of his 25 goals this season came in November. When he’s hot, he’s unstoppable. Though the 20-year-old has been known to be a little streaky in his very young career, he’s too good not to get his scoring touch back. The Jets are dominating without him scoring. Imagine what they’ll be like once he starts finding the back of the net again.

The Jets could use a top center, perhaps someone like Matt Duchene, to beef up their top six. If they can package their first round pick with a player or prospect that doesn’t hurt them all that much, this could be the year they finally hoist the Stanley Cup.

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