These teams need to get on the phone about a Evgeni Malkin trade

2. Nashville Predators

After being bounced early from the playoffs for the second straight year, the Predators could be in line for a major offseason shakeup. They also have a notable hole beyond Ryan Johansen at center, as Kyle Turris has particularly underachieved.

Nashville would have to pretty much match Malkin’s salary in a trade, which automatically puts Turris and his $6 million cap hit for next season in the conversation. But the Penguins shouldn’t embrace that downgrade on its face, and another piece or asset would need to be included.

But there’s a possible 1-for-1 trade that’s very intriguing, with another h/t to our buddy Stevenson over at Puck Prose, even with some subsequent dominoes that could be hard for both teams to navigate.

Subban has a $10 million cap hit for 2019-20, so dollar for dollar the money almost perfectly lines up. It would be odd for a second team to willing trade Subban in the span of a few years, but the Predators can address a significant need as they deal from a relative position of strength with good blue line depth.