Defensemen Seth Jones and Ryan Lindgren and forward Gustav Nyquist were on the move on Saturday as three Central Division teams got a jump on the NHL’s looming trade deadline.
The Colorado Avalanche got the ball rolling with another splash by acquiring Lindgren and forward Jimmy Vesey in a trade with the New York Rangers. The Minnesota Wild answered hours later by acquiring pending free agent forward Gustav Nyquist.
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And the last-place Chicago Blackhawks shipped out another veteran, sending Jones to the defending champion Florida Panthers.
The NHL trade deadline is on Friday.
The Rangers acquired a second- and a fourth-round pick, young forward Juuso Parssinen, veteran defenseman Calvin de Haan and the rights to unsigned prospect Hank Kempf. New York is retaining half of Lindgren’s salary, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the salary retention was not announced as part of the trade.
The Rangers will receive the better of their own or Carolina’s pick in the second round and the better of Carolina’s or Vancouver’s in the fourth round of the draft later this year, the person said.
Nashville acquired a 2026 second-round pick from Minnesota, while retaining half of Nyquist’s salary. The 35-year-old forward is joining the Wild at the trade deadline for the second time in three years.
“They’re getting a real good player, real good,” Predators coach Andrew Brunette said. “He’s a smart player, versatile, can play any role on your team. They’re getting one of the best teammates you’ll ever find and one of the best people. So they’re lucky to get him, and hopefully he plays up to what he can bring.”
Florida got Jones and a 2026 fourth-round pick from Chicago for goaltender Spencer Knight and a conditional first-round pick in next year’s draft. The Blackhawks also are retaining 26% of Jones’ salary.
“It is definitely hard but he is going to a good team and I think that’s what he wants,” the Blackhawks’ Lukas Reichel said after Chicago's 6-3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. “I hope he does well there.”
The 30-year-old Jones was the No. 4 overall pick by Nashville in the 2013 draft. He is under contact through 2030.
“Seth is a pro, great guy in the locker room so we wish him the best,” Blackhawks interim coach Anders Sorenson said.
Florida is already deep at forward with Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell, Carter Verhaeghe and Gustav Forsling all locked up for at least three more seasons after this.
The Avalanche trade was their second big one of the season. They sent top-line forward Mikko Rantanen to the Hurricanes in late January, getting a younger player back in return in Martin Necas, and it’s possible general Chris MacFarland is not done making moves before the deadline.
New York, which will be without No. 1 defenseman Adam Fox for some time because of an upper-body injury, is four points back of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Moving on from Lindgren and Vesey does not mean the Rangers are giving up on the season, but they did not want to lose them for nothing this summer.
They had been interested in Parssinen, 24, for some time. He could fill the depth role vacated by fellow Finn Kaapo Kakko, who was traded to Seattle in December.
Lindgren, 27, has struggled this season, but he gives Colorado some left-handed-shooting depth on the blue line in an attempt to make another long playoff run this spring. Vesey, 31, did not get as much playing time as he would have liked in New York, skating under 10 minutes a game, and could get a bigger opportunity with the Avalanche.
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AP Sports Writer Tim Reynolds, AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow, and freelance writers Scott Charles in New York and Doug Padilla in Los Angeles contributed.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl