Trade deadline could potentially reshape a lot of the Eastern Conference, as teams have already begun to make changes, additions and improvements to their respective rosters. Let's get into our final Eastern Edge before the NHL's trade deadline this Friday. 

The Florida Panthers made the latest – and arguably most significant – splash over the weekend, acquiring defenseman Seth Jones from Chicago in exchange for goaltender Spencer Knight and a conditional 2026 first-round pick. The deal also includes a 2026 fourth-rounder heading back to Florida, with Chicago retaining 26% of Jones' contract. The conditions on the 2026 first round pick revolve around whether or not Florida decides to trade their 2026 first, then Chicago will receive Florida's 2027 first round pick. 

The posture on the condition to retain some sort of control over their 2026 1st implies that Florida is potentially still in the market to add – there's even more reason to believe they are not finished reshaping their roster given the news that star winger Matthew Tkachuk will be out long term and potentially for the remainder of the regular season. 

Following the trade, Florida recalled Chris Driedger to back up Sergei Bobrovsky, placed Tkachuk on LTIR, and suddenly found itself with $8.7 million in cap space – plenty of room to make another move if the right opportunity arises.

Both new acquisitions made their debuts over the weekend. Knight impressed in his first start with Chicago, stopping 41 of 42 shots against the Kings. Jones, meanwhile, played 22:56 in his Panthers debut, registering three shots on goal, two blocks, a hit, and a 55.56 Corsi For percentage at 5-on-5.

Fantasy managers (myself included) hoped this move would signal the end of Aaron Ekblad's run as Florida's top power-play quarterback, but for now, Jones will begin on the team's second power play unit. The Panthers have cycled through Adam Boqvist, Uvis Balinskis, Ekblad, and Nate Schmidt in that role, never fully committing to one player. Aaron Ekblad has been Florida's longest standing QB1 this season, but the metaphorical "dart throwing" of quarterbacks coupled with the acquisition of someone of Seth Jones' caliber had all the ingredients of a new heir to the QB1 throne – whether the coaching staff sees it that way remains to be seen.

With Matthew Tkachuk sidelined, Florida continues to roll out a second line of Mackie Samoskevich, Sam Bennett, and Evan Rodrigues. Samoskevich is now seeing top power-play minutes—bumping Carter Verhaeghe from the spot he held just last week. A significant opportunity for Samoskevich, and one to watch moving forward.

In Montreal, Nick Suzuki has been making headlines, earning NHL Three Stars of the Week honors. His stat line from last week alone? Three goals and four assists in just three games. Since the Four Nations break, no one has been more productive—Suzuki leads the entire NHL with 13 points in five games.

On the flip side, the Habs received brutal news regarding Kirby Dach, who will miss the remainder of the season following knee surgery. This marks his third consecutive injury-shortened season with Montreal. In 2022-23, he was limited to 58 games due to upper and lower body injuries, with his season ending in late March. The following year, he managed just two games before tearing his right ACL and MCL. Now, in 2024-25, another right knee surgery has cut his season short after just 57 games. A tough break for a player who just can't seem to catch a full season's worth of action.

Meanwhile, in New Jersey, Jack Hughes suffered a potentially serious setback on Sunday after an awkward collision with Jack Eichel that sent him sliding hard into the boards behind the net. There's been no official update yet, but Hughes was seen skating off the ice gingerly, his right arm hanging limp. As he made his way to the dressing room, even the slightest contact to Hughes' shoulder with Curtis Lazar seemed to aggravate it further—a concerning sign, considering it's the same shoulder he had surgery on last April.

Finally, before the quick hits, out of Buffalo we have a couple of hot streaks to highlight: J.J. Peterka and Alex Tuch. Peterka is riding a five-game point streak and has compiled 15 points (7G/8A) in his last 13 games, averaging just under 19 minutes of ice time and going pointless only three times. Alex Tuch has posted 13 points in his last 11 games, with eight goals and five assists. Tage Thompson has matched his 2023-24 goal total in 28 fewer games. 

Time for some quick hits around the conference:

• BOS: Brad Marchand is week-to-week.
• BOS: Pavel Zacha has 13 assists in his last 16 games. Five of these assists are from David Pastrnak goals. 
• CAR: Shayne Gostisbehere has taken top power play duties back from Brent Burns.
• CBJ: Yegor Chinakhov will make his return against Tampa on Tuesday. 
• CBJ: Boone Jenner has seven even strength assists in four games since returning to the Blue Jackets lineup. 
• NYI: Kyle Palmieri (as highlighted in my February 12 Eastern Edge Article ) is one of five players who has increased his production by 25% or more in each of the last three seasons' second halves. Palmieri has seven goals and seven assists for 14 points in his last 20 games. 
• NYR: The Rangers are closing in on a Wild Card Spot, tied with the Detroit Red Wings.
• NYR: J.T. Miller has nearly three times as many points (14) since the trade to the Rangers than Elias Pettersson has shots (5).
• NYR: Zac Jones is seeing some top power play time, as the Rangers abandon the five forward power play. 
• OTT: Tim Stutzle is on a 12-game point streak.
• OTT: Brady Tkachuk, Shane Pinto and Josh Norris all returned from injury. Pinto has goals in back-to-back games since returning. 
• PHI: Matvei Michkov wins Rookie of the Month for February posting five goals and five assists through seven February games. He has 14 multi-point games this season and is on pace for 61 points across 82 games.
• PIT: Tristan Jarry was recalled from Wilkes-Barre. He has allowed 13 goals in his last three starts with the Wilke-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Joel Blomqvist has been sent back to Wilkes-Barre.
• WSH: Charlie Lindgren signs a 3-year, $9 million contract extension with the Capitals, not long after Logan Thompson extends in Washington. The Caps have their tandem locked in for the next few years. 

That’s our Eastern Edge Eastern Conference update for the week. Thank you for reading, as always feel free to chirp me in the comments below, in the Fantasy Hockey Discord or you can reach out on X – @FHFHockey. In the meantime, you can catch updates from me on the Five Hole Fantasy Hockey Podcast.