Evan’s Daily: Makar Skates, Two Trades in One Day

The NHL trade deadline is still over a week away, but on Wednesday, there was not one, but two trades made. Two bottom feeder teams decided to take on contracts so that they could pull in some draft capital. Smart business for them.

With the Colorado Avalanche, the big news was Cale Makar’s return to the ice. In addition, with the trades that have already occurred, as well as injuries taking players off the market, we updated the Avalanche trade board.

All that and more in this Thursday edition of Evan’s Daily.

Colorado Hockey Now

Ryan O’Reilly has already been dealt. Jonathan Toews is off the market. Adam Henrique might be injured. Who is left for the Avalanche to even look at? Let’s take a look at the updated trade board before the NHL trade deadline.

Cale Makar was back on the ice for the first time since being put back in concussion protocol. Gabriel Landeskog also skated for the second time, and looked to be moving better than he did on Monday.

NHL Trades

The Chicago Blackhawks acquired Nikita Zaitsev from Ottawa. For taking on the entirety of Zaitsev’s contract, they were also given two draft picks. Smart business for a rebuilding team.

The Golden Knights dumped Shea Weber’s contract on the Arizona Coyotes to help with their cap flexibility in the summer.

National Hockey Now

Washington: In the middle of a five game losing streak, the Capitals got Alexander Ovechkin back on Wednesday.

In addition, the Capitals might be listening to trade offers for Dmitri Orlov. Contract talks with Orlov have gone nowhere.

New York Islanders: The Islanders helped out the Avalanche with a regulation win over the Winnipeg Jets.

Detroit: The hottest team in the Eastern Conference might be the Red Wings, who are making a real push for the playoffs.