Groundwork the theme of this year’s deadline — The Fourth Period

MAMMOTH WANTED THOMAS

The Utah Mammoth and St. Louis Blues went back-and-forth all week on a deal centered around star forward Robert Thomas, but the Mammoth weren’t prepared to give up multiple key future assets in order to make it happen.

Utah wasn’t prepared to package two of their top-five prospects in a deal, despite the Blues’ insistence. Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong may have been willing to include 2025 fourth-overall pick Caleb Desnoyers in a deal, but that seemed to be as far as he’d take it.

Other teams, including the Habs, Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings and Seattle Kraken, tried to enter the Thomas sweepstakes, but the price was just too high. And no, I don’t think Thomas is the player Hughes was referring to, either. There were other teams, too, including the New York Islanders, but they pivoted to Brayden Schenn.

Utah wants to land a top-line forward and that will be atop Armstrong’s wish list this summer.

The Mammoth also kickstarted contract talks with Nick Schmaltz this past week and there is a strong belief that an extension is on the horizon, which would take another player out of the free market this July.

Sidebar: Thomas will join Jeff Marek and Greg Wyshynski on “The Sheet” tomorrow… may want to tune into that one.

TURBULENT TIMES IN TORONTO

The Toronto Maple Leafs moved out three forwards ahead of the deadline, but more was expected.

Leafs GM Brad Treliving was willing to listen on just about everybody not named Auston Matthews, William Nylander and John Tavares, and while chatter on some players picked up, the talk around others originally quieted leading up to deadline day.

Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton were asking for significant raises, which shifted Toronto’s focus to trading both pending UFAs. The Edmonton Oilers, Colorado Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets were among the teams in the mix for McMann before he was dealt to the Kraken, while Tampa Bay was one of the clubs eyeing Laughton.

Inquiries on Max Domi, Simon Benoit and Calle Jarnkrok were almost nonexistent going into the deadline, despite all three being available.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson made it clear before and after the deadline that he wanted to stay in Toronto. According to separate sources, he believed Thursday night he was going to be moved – several teams tried – and there was relief from OEL when he found out he was staying put.

Another player worried about being dealt was Matthew Knies. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman brought up his name the night before the deadline, and there was speculation all week that Toronto was listening. I’m told “there was a chance,” at one point, that he could’ve been moved. I’m not convinced that’s explored again this summer.

Major questions need to be asked in Leafs Land after their season wraps. I have been led to believe Treliving is sticking around as GM, but a change behind the bench will not come as a surprise. At some point this off-season, the Leafs will chat with Matthews about his future and the overall direction of the franchise. And speculation over Morgan Rielly’s future will increase – and one team our West poked around on him all week.

The Leafs are 0-5-2 in their last seven games. The boobirds are out and they only have seven more opportunities at home to voice their discontent with their team – 11 of Toronto’s last 18 games this season are on the road. It’s going to be a bumpy ride along the way, and this off-season will prove to be an important one for the team’s immediate future.

HERE AND THERE

• The Vancouver Canucks didn’t trade as many players as expected, including Teddy Blueger. There are no guarantees, but management will now try to sign him to an extension.

• Even after bringing in Michael Bunting, the Dallas Stars kept tabs on Blake Coleman in Calgary. If they were able to move out a contract, they were planning on circling back to try and acquire him.

• Chicago GM Kyle Davidson spoke highly of Ilya Mikheyev in his post-deadline press conference and the Blackhawks are going to try and sign him to an extension. He likes it there and a new deal shouldn’t be too difficult to negotiate.

• The Carolina Hurricanes tried to land a top-six forward and explored multiple options – they were in on Vincent Trocheck – but ultimately stuck to just one move.

• San Jose has been looking to augment their blueline but only moved out Timothy Liljegren to Washington. Mario Ferraro wants to stay in San Jose, and while contract negotiations haven’t occurred all season, talks are expected at some point before the off-season. According to sources, the Sharks have not been interested in a long-term deal, though. We’ll see if that changes.

• Seattle tried to go big game hunting, again, and will try (again) this summer. In the meantime, they’ll start contract negotiations with pending UFA forward Eeli Tolvanen this coming week.

• The Philadelphia Flyers came close to moving Rasmus Ristolainen, who will enter the final year of his contract next season. There was significant progress on a trade, but the Flyers decided to keep him. They were also shopping Carl Grundstrom, but talks didn’t seem to escalate on that front.

• Don’t shoot the messenger, but the Edmonton Oilers discussed the possibility of moving Darnell Nurse. I can’t pinpoint how deep trade talks actually went, but that’s a name to watch this summer, NMC and all.

• The Los Angeles Kings were close to signing Corey Perry to a one-year extension, but the last-minute opportunity to chase another Stanley Cup with the Lightning made the 40-year-old change his mind.

• The Florida Panthers had good offers for A.J. Greer, and things went down to the wire before they held back. They’ll try to get him signed to an extension now, and contract talks with Sergei Bobrovsky will also continue, though he first asked for a long-term extension and I think the Panthers prefer a two- or three-year deal. We shall see.

• Trade talks surrounding Erik Haula cooled down going into deadline day, but the noise around Jonathan Marchessault seems to have amplified. Nashville listened, but it obviously never got far enough.

• The Boston Bruins tried to do more and seemed to focus on a top-four defenceman instead of a top-six forward. Many believe they took that stance because 2025 seventh-overall pick James Hagens is expected to sign with the team after his season at Boston College wraps up.

• Something to watch in New Jersey, as Anton Silayev’s contract in the KHL expires after this season and sources suggest he’s poised to come over and sign with the Devils soon after.

• As Colorado tried to maneuver the salary cap, one name that made the rounds was Ross Colton’s. Ultimately, Victor Olofsson was the body moved out in the Kadri deal.

• Two other names out there were Anthony Duclair and Maxim Shabonov of the New York Islanders. Per sources, Duclair was not interested in waiving his no-trade clause, which shifts to a 16-team no-trade list starting this summer, and nixed a deal earlier in the season.

• Some teams kicked tires on Alexis Lafreniere this past week. The Rangers seemed focused on Trocheck and didn’t budge on their asking price, but Lafreniere appeared to be a topic of discussion, according to multiple teams.

• The Buffalo Sabres were shopping goalie Devon Levi and are expected to keep those talks going this summer.

• When trade talks surrounding the Washington Capitals picked up after they moved Nic Dowd to Vegas, some around the club wondered if they were in on something big that could’ve involved forward Connor McMichael.

• The St. Louis Blues are expected to resume trade talks involving their available players, including right wing Jordan Kyrou, goalie Jordan Binnington and presumably Thomas, this off-season.