With Christmas fewer than two weeks away I thought it was a good time to toss in a quick two part series on team's wish lists. I'll take a look at prospective deadline buyers and identify current needs of each. I will also look at some deadline sellers so we can see what might become available at the deadline.

There's no better way to start this off than with the biggest surprise of the NHL season. One team we thought for sure was a deadline buyer is now all but guaranteed to be an NHL deadline seller.

New York Islanders – 24 Games Played, 19 Points

Division: 7th Conference: 14th

Wildcard: 12 points back of Detroit (5 games in hand)

Wishlist: Grab a couple picks and regroup for 2022/23.

Don't let the games in hand on Detroit fool you. The Bruins lurk 1 point behind Detroit, also with several games in hand. The hill to climb back into the playoff picture is immense.

Lou Lamoriello still likes the core of this team so I don't see a huge tear down on the horizon. Moving out a couple free agents to restock the cupboards is more in order.

Unless they go on a historic run I suspect we'll see Andy Greene and Cal Clutterbuck dished for picks. Neither holds any real fantasy value beyond your deepest of multi-cat pools. Zack Parise is another name we should expect to be on the move and is the only name you should watch for. There could be some late season value if he lands in the right spot and at $750K, it doesn't get cheaper than that.

Anaheim Ducks – 28 Games Played, 37 Points

Division: 1st, Conference 3rd

Wishlist: Patience. Make decisions on free agents Rickard Rakell, Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson. Are they part of the future of this team or not?

The Ducks are the biggest surprise of the season. We’ve waited years for Sam Steel, Max Jones and Maxime Comtois to reach their potential. Instead, Troy Terry, Sonny Milano and Trevor Zegras have all surpassed them. There is a lot to like moving forward. Especially with $40 million in cap space.

It is easy to get ahead of a plan when you have sudden success. The biggest mistake the Ducks can make is to make too big of a push this year. They need to make logical decisions on which of these three free agents they are going to sign, and how many. If they are not, they would be wise to move at least one of them for prospects or picks.

All three will be sought after at the trade deadline.

Lindholm, I suspect, is the one the Ducks want to keep the most. He is incredibly underrated outside of Anaheim. For our purposes that's because he holds such limited fantasy value. Only SIM leagues care about positioning.

Rakell is the most likely trade candidate and offers the most fantasy upside. Especially if he’s traded. Several teams will be seeking a top six winger for a Cup run. Rakell and his $3.789M cap hit is more than inviting. If Anaheim retains any salary they should be able to grab a first rounder and more. A team like Pittsburgh will be knocking early and often. If he is not part of the teams future plans he is likely on the move.

Tampa Bay Lightning – 28 Games Played, 40 Points

Division: 3rd, Conference: 3rd (Tie)

Wishlist: Find another Barclay Goodrow and Blake Coleman, depth on defence.

They miss these two a lot, so much so I suspect they will do their damndest to recreate that third line at the deadline.

Like JT Miller in the past, whoever they add at the deadline will see their fantasy value decline. They inevitably become part of a supporting cast to Tampa Bay's deadly top six.

They will want to add a defenseman for depth. Which is something almost every contender does at the deadline. An invaluable move that will offer no fantasy value whatsoever.

Toronto Maple Leafs – 30 Games Played, 42 Points

Division: 1st, Conference 1st

Wishlist: 2020/21 version of Justin Holl, find another Zack Bogosian & cap space.

Holl is playing without confidence and it shows. Time should fix this on its own. If it doesn't then he may be the answer to creating a bit of cap space. Having him revert to last years form will be a significant defensive upgrade in itself.

The Leafs will also be looking for a physical stay at home defenceman to shore up the bottom of their defence. Perhaps that player will provide hit and block value, but really nothing else.

They hit home runs with Michael Bunting and Ondrej Kase. There will be little need to add much depth at forward. If anything, they may add another role player like Kyle Clifford to the bottom six.

They're too tight to the cap to make a big splash. Very little to see here regardless of what the media says over the coming months.

Minnesota Wild – 28 Games, 39 Points

Division: 1st, Conference: 1st

Wishlist: Power play quarterback, veteran leadership (ironic I know)

Let's start with the second one first. There are few players on this team over the age of thirty. Outside of Mats Zuccarello none of them have seen much playoff success. The irony is, they bought out the two players with the most playoff experience on their roster. They’ll be looking for a Kyle Clifford type player to help with the younger players in the room.

This team lacks a natural power play quarterback. Over the last two years they've tried Jared Spurgeon, Matt Dumba, Alex Goligoski, and Jonas Brodin, all with limited success.

Calen Addison waits in the wings but he’s not ready for that role yet.

Look for someone them to sniff around someone like Shayne Gostisbehere in Arizona. He’s a power play specialist on an expiring contract. Minnesota can shelter him at five on five and offer him big minutes with the man advantage. This is the type of deadline splash I expect they’ll try to make

Boston Bruins – 25 Games Played, 30 Points

Division: 4th, Conference: 9th, Wildcard: 1 point behind Detroit (4 Games in hand)

Wishlist: Tuukka Rask, David Krejci, Top Six Winger, Trade Jake DeBrusk, Top four defenseman

It's a long wish-list. Rask I suspect will sign with Boston when his return is imminent. This will push Swayman down the depth list and to the AHL for another year.

This team really missed Krejci. Charlie Coyle and Erik Haula don't come close to filling his shoes. His hockey IQ was elite and his importance to this team was immense. Adding a second line center should probably be priority number one.

Boston might try to resolve their need for a top six winger or defenseman by including DeBrusk as part of the package going the opposite direction. As a restricted free agent and similar cap hit to Rakell, this would seem like a good option for both to explore. I doubt Boston would have issues adding a former 37-goal scorer. Food for thought.

Boston also has a young defensive core with only John Moore over 30-years of age. They will look to add a stabilizing presence on the back end. I suspect this will be near the top of their priority list as well.

I doubt Boston can make all these moves with a flat cap at the deadline. That said, whoever they add to their top six will be joining a team that can score and likely join Taylor Hall on one side of the second line. There could be a solid offensive boost for whichever name(s) they add.

Next week we'll take a look at a few more buyers and sellers. And yes, the Arizona Coyotes, who are destined to be very busy over the next few months.

(stats from frozentools.com and salary info from capfriendly.com)

Thanks for reading.

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