Elliotte Friedman was on NHL Now following Friday’s NHL Trade Deadline, and he was asked about one of the biggest reasons why there has been so little player movement. His answer focused on the trade protection that most players in the NHL have.
Writing for NHLRumors.com
2025-26 NHL Trade Tracker
Cory Schneider: “I wanted to ask you a question. I’m not saying there’s anything missing today (yesterday), but there were some big names that didn’t end up moving. Some teams that I thought were clear sellers, maybe they didn’t sell as much as we thought. How much did the new CBA rules affect that in terms of the absence of the game, IR and IR rules are now able to keep their waiting agents who are still waiting Do you have a feeling that maybe the guys are not moving that we thought will they go?
Elliotte Friedman: “You know, Cory, I think about all those things. I think the double retention played a huge factor, because if you wanted to double retention this year, you should have had the first trade done at the beginning of December. And just, I really think, and I’ll admit it freely, I hate the league for doing this because it’s wrong, the biggest thing for us. The new LTIR playoffs, yes, I think the teams were worried about it, but the double retention was bigger.
NHL Rumors: Will NHL Trade Deadline Live Up To The Hype?
Honestly, Cory, I think the biggest thing is the no-trade clause, and I’m not complaining about that, and you negotiate the deal, and both sides sign the deal. Fair is fair. You live up to your agreement. But I think sometime down the road, and maybe it’s the next CBA. I expect teams and the league to try to see if they can come up with a way to limit them. I don’t know if it will work, but I hear a lot of complaints about that.
Right now though, Cory fair is good if you sign a deal, and there are guys like Kelly Hrudey. He is a completely strong person. You feel that if you don’t have a trade clause. You should not even be allowed to ask to cancel. But I think that’s a big factor.”
NHLRumors.com Note: Now, to be fair to Elliott and the GMs in the NHL, they asked for a playoff cap. They asked for LTIR in the playoffs and double retention. Many aggressive or creative OGMs like Kelly McCrimmon in Vegas, Bill Zito in Florida, Julien BriseBois in Tampa Bay, Jim Nill in Dallas, and others on the list felt they were skipping the program. So they set these rules. These are also the same GMs who wanted a spread frame. So fair is right.
NHL Rumors: Canadiens, Flames, Wild, Islanders, Leafs, Capitals, Bruins, and Panthers
Regarding NTC/NMCs, teams don’t like to give them out, but players want cost certainty and don’t want to wonder about their future every year. That’s why Winnipeg Jets manager Kevin Cheveldayoff finally started offering them to keep players in Winnipeg and bring them there. Currently, his top six players have NTCs. Some don’t. That’s how former GM Lou Lamoriello worked.
There’s nothing in the CBA that says you have to give a player an NTC, but it’s unlikely he’ll sign there. But having 13 players with some form of trade protection hinders the team’s ability to get trades done.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? Rumors and hot topics from around the league. We also post some stuff on Instagram.
