The trade deadline is in a few weeks (March 21st) and we are going to look at my top 20 trade targets in the West. Currently, the teams on the outside of the playoffs are Arizona, Seattle, Chicago, San Jose, Winnipeg, Vancouver and Anaheim. On the bubble are Edmonton, Dallas and Vegas.

Buyers with cap space are Minnesota, Boston, NY Rangers and Nashville. Teams that have space due to LTIR are Los Angeles, Toronto, Washington, Florida, Pittsburgh and Carolina.

I've ranked the players in order of the combination of who I think is the most likely to be dealt with the level of return that the player might bring.

1st) Tomas Hertl – San Jose 52-22-20-42 $5.625 million salary-cap space

If the Sharks let Hertl become an unrestricted free agent or trade him before the deadline, he will be one of the most highly sought forwards out there. He is in the final year of his four-year $5.625 million AAV contract in which he has a no-trade clause that allows him to submit a three-team list that he can be traded to. The Sharks might want him to allow them more teams to deal with for them to get the most value, but he certainly doesn't need to agree to that.

At 28-years of age, Hertl is an important top-line player that can score 25-35 goals and 65-75 points, while taking faceoffs, playing on the power play and killing penalties. The Sharks would be wise to re-sign him but his demands might be too high for their liking.

2nd) Andrew Copp – Winnipeg 47-12-16-28 $3.64 million

Copp has been out with an upper-body injury and is out indefinitely, so teams might be a little hesitant until they are sure he is back 100%.

The 27-year-old Copp has been above 0.6 pts/game over the past two seasons and was averaging 20:27 of ice time this year. He takes faceoffs and kills penalties as well, so his value could be huge down the stretch and into the playoffs. His $3.64 million salary-cap hit should be more palpable than a few other players available and he could bring back as much as a 1st round draft pick in return.

3rd) Mark Giordano – Seattle 48-6-17-23 – $6.75 million

When Seattle picked Giordano in the expansion draft, everyone assumed that he was picked to establish leadership on the Kraken and provide a pretty good return at the trade deadline in the last year of his contract. He does have a clause that allows him to submit a list of 19 teams he can be traded to. That along with his salary cap hit will make it difficult for some teams that would love to have him.

Even at 38-years of age he is still putting up decent offensive numbers with 23 points in 49 games (0.47/g) and playing over 21 minutes per game. He will be a welcome addition to the playoff roster of any team that gets him. The price won't be cheap though, as I'm sure the Kraken will be asking for a 1st rounder plus prospect.

4th) Marc-Andre Fleury – Chicago  $7 million

Fleury is in the final year of a three-year deal that has a cap hit of $7 million and a salary of $6 million this season. He has a 10-team no-trade clause that will limit Chicago with the options they can send him to. Fleury is 37-years-old and struggled at the start of the year but has rebounded to put up 16 wins in 39 games with a save percentage of 91.1.

Fleury wants to go to a winning team, so could Edmonton be an option? If so, Mikko Koskinen would need to come back the other way, along with a fairly high draft pick or prospect.

5th) Rickard Rakell – Anaheim 45-14-11-25  $3.8 million

The 28-year-old impending UFA makes $3.79 million and is averaging 18:03 per night of ice time. He is on pace for 22 goals and 17 assists in 69 games this year and could help a contending team as he is flexible to play on the second or third line of most teams. I think the team would rather move Jakob Silfverberg (has a 12-team no-trade clause) and his remaining two more seasons at $5.25 million and keep Rakell, but keeping both is unlikely and Rakell is the easier move.

6th) Calle Jarnkrok – Seattle 42-10-12-22  $2.0 million

He might be miscast as a first or second-line center in Seattle, but Jarnkrok will be a value add for any team looking for help on the penalty kill and the third line. He has put up decent offensive numbers this year with 10 goals and 12 assists in 43 games (0.51/g) but has struggled a little as have most of the Kraken forwards at times.

Jarnkrok has played 63 career playoff games with Nashville and has three goals and 12 assists. His price tag might be a 2nd or 3rd round pick or equivalent prospect for the impending 30-year-old UFA.

7th) Paul Stastny – Winnipeg 42-12-10-22 U22 – 36 $3.75 million

The 36-year-old Stastny will be an unrestricted free agent this off-season and the Jets could be in a seller's position. Stastny has been very consistent over the past three seasons between 0.52 and 0.55 points/game and is a very versatile forward who can slide up and down the lineup. He can play center or wing and kills penalties as well.

He has 103 playoff games in his career with 26 goals and 43 assists with Winnipeg, Vegas, St. Louis and Colorado. He might fetch a 2nd or 3rd round draft pick in return.

8th) Dominik Kubalik – Chicago 54-10-9-19  $3.7 million

Kubalik had a 30-goal rookie season in 2019-20 and had averaged 0.68 pts/game in his first two seasons. He's struggled this season (0.38/g) and is in the last year of a $3.7 million AAV contract in which he is set to become a restricted free agent. Will Chicago want to qualify him at more than $3.7 million or get something for him now, rather than letting him become unrestricted?

He is 26-years old and he has seen his shot rate go from 2.8/game down to 2.1 this season and combined with a shooting percentage of 8.8 down from his career average of 13.3, there is an appeal to a playoff team to add him as a rental.

9th) Tyler Motte – Vancouver 39-6-7-13  $1.225 million

Motte is a very effective third or fourth line energy forward, but he has battled injuries over the past three seasons (his 39 games this season is the most he has played in that period). The Canucks would be happy to keep him at his current salary for two or three years, but another team might give him $2 million over three or four years.

In 63 games over the past two seasons, he has 12 goals and 10 assists and 164 hits. He's also an excellent penalty killer, that could help out any team. He is probably worth a 3rd round draft pick, but the Canucks would struggle to replace him.

10th) Alex Barabonov – San Jose 44-8-19-27  $1.0 million

In what is his rookie season, Barabonov has put up 27 points in 44 games (0.6 pts/g) with the Sharks this season and now has 11 goals and 24 assists in 67 career games (0.52/g). The 27-year-old is set to become unrestricted this summer and while he might struggle a little defensively his offensive output would be a welcome addition to a playoff-bound team.

He might re-sign with the Sharks, but San Jose might be selling high if they can move him before the deadline.

11th) Marcus Johansson – Seattle 43-6-13-19  $1.5 million

The 31-year-old Johansson will be unrestricted this off-season and can play up and down the lineup on most rosters, although it's not the best sign if he's on the first line. This season he has put up six goals and 13 assists in 43 games with Seattle while averaging 16:43 per night.

Johansson has 97 career playoff games with Washington, Boston and Minnesota and has 13 goals and 28 assists. He might get the Kraken a 3rd or 4th round draft pick in return.

12th) Kailer Yamamoto – Edmonton 52-10-8-18  $1.175 million

While the Oilers don't want to move a player like Yamamoto, they might have to dangle him in a package with Mikko Koskinen to improve the obvious weak link in their game – goaltending.

Yamamoto is 23-years-old and has now played 157 games in the NHL with Edmonton with 30 goals and 40 points. I'm sure the Oilers would prefer to give up a 3rd or 4th round pick along with Tyler Benson or Ryan Mcleod and Koskinen for Marc-Andre Fleury, Braden Holtby or Semyon Varlamov. 

Yamamoto missed Edmonton's Sunday game after blocking a shot on Saturday and is out pending evaluation.

13th) Hampus Lindholm – Anaheim 52-5-15-20  $5.2 million

It is strange to think of Lindholm on any other team than the Ducks as he was the 6th overall pick in 2012 and has played 574 games with them. The Ducks would love to keep him, but I'm sure the 28-year-old Lindholm will be looking for a five or six-year deal for at least the $5 to 5.5 million AAV as he becomes unrestricted this summer.

I think he'll end up staying in Anaheim, but if he's looking for a longer-term or more salary, they might do something sooner than later rather than risking losing him for nothing.

14th) Phil Kessel – Arizona 53-6-27-33 $8.0 million

There is little doubt that Kessel will be moved before the deadline, but he does possess a no-trade clause that allows him to submit an eight-team trade list. He also carries a cap hit of $8 million AAV, with $6 million in salary owed this season. With only six goals in 53 games, it's easy to think that his scoring touch is gone at the age of 34. Looking more closely, he is still generating 2.1 shots per game which is the same pace as he had last year when he scored 20 goals in 56 games. The difference between the two seasons is his shooting percentage of 5.4 compared to 17.4 last year. His career average is 11.1 percent and any team that adds him will get a power-play producer that is starting to struggle at even strength.

The return might not be as high as the Coyotes hoped for entering this season, and they will have to take salary in return.

15th) Joonas Donskoi – Seattle 52-1-15-16 $3.9 million

The 29-year-old Donskoi still has one more year of term at $3.9 million AAV, but could be of interest to some teams that are intrigued by his 69 career playoff games where he had 15 goals and 17 assists with Colorado and San Jose.

He has one goal in 52 games this season, but he has averaged about 16 goals and 22 assists per year. It will be interesting to see if the Kraken can get value for what Donskoi has averaged or will other teams be hesitant enough to have Seattle keep him for one more season.

16th) Evgenii Dadonov – Vegas 51-10-11-21 U23 – 33 $5.0 million

Vegas will need to shave some significant salary cap room if they wish to bring Alec Martinez off the LITR in a week or two.

Dadonov has one more year under contract at $5 million AAV and has a clause that allows him to submit a 10-team no-trade list. To move him Vegas will need to add value to the deal by adding a prospect and/or a 2nd or 3rd round draft pick. He has gone pointless over his last 12 games and any hopes of a rebound from last season are slipping for the 33-year-old.

Some players not included are Jakob Chychrun in Arizona, Brandon Hagel in Chicago, John Klingberg in Dallas, J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser in Vancouver as I don't think the teams will move them before or at the deadline if at all.

I can't see Arizona moving the 23-year old Chychrun at the bottom of his curve. They don't need to trade him and should hold him to at least the draft.

Chicago doesn't need to trade Hagel. The 23-year-old is signed until the end of the 2023-24 season at $1.5 million AAV.

Dallas will do everything they can to get into the playoffs this season and moving Klingberg won't help them get there. There is a risk that they lose him to free agency with nothing in return.

The Canucks are in a bit of a different conundrum with Miller and Boeser, not that I think the Canucks will make the playoffs, but that Miller and Boeser might be more valuable to the team than what returns they might get. Unless a team overpays for Miller, I don't know why the Canucks would trade him.

Thanks for reading, and let me know if you want me to focus on any players or topics by messaging me below or following me on Twitter @gampbler15.