NHL Trade Buzz: Kempny trade to Capitals could impact Green market

Welcome to the NHL Trade Buzz. There are seven days remaining until the 2018 NHL Trade Deadline (3 p.m. ET; Feb. 26). The market for defenseman had some movement on Monday, the Philadelphia Flyers made a trade for a goaltender and the Colorado Avalanche could be sellers because of injuries.
Here's a look around the League at the latest deadline doings:

Washington Capitals

One defenseman is on the move and another may be close to signing a contract extension.
The Washington Capitals acquired Michal Kempny in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks for a third-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft on Monday.
That's one domino to fall in the race to see who might acquire Detroit Red Wings defenseman Mike Green. Green, who played in the 2018 Honda NHL All-Star Game last month, spent 10 seasons with the Capitals before coming to the Red Wings as a free agent before the 2015-16 season, so a return to Washington seemed possible.
But that is less likely with the Capitals trading for Kempny, 27, a left-shot defenseman who is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
He will be a low-cost rental for the Capitals, who would have had to pay a much higher price for Green, who also has no-trade protection. Kempny could slot in next to John Carlson on the second defensive pair, replacing rookie Christian Djoos.
Shaking up the defenseman market even more was a report that Erik Gudbranson, who could become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, is in extension talks with the Vanouver Canucks.
First reported by Rick Dhaliwal of @DhaliwalSports and confirmed by TSN's Bob McKenzie, the talks are progressing.
Gudbranson is in his second season with the Canucks after being acquired from the Florida Panthers in a trade on May 25, 2016. He has four points (two goals, two assists) in 41 games this season.
The Kempny move and possible Gudbranson extension narrows the market for defensemen, though there are still quite a few teams looking for help on defense, including the Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning. But Washington was one of the best options for Green, making Red Wings general manager Ken Holland's job slightly more difficult, as he does his best to get a good return for a number of pieces, including Green.

Philadelphia Flyers

Peter Mrazek was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers by the Red Wings for a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft and a conditional third-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft on Monday.
After an injury to Flyers No. 1 goalie Brian Elliott (core muscle surgery), which will keep him out 5-6 weeks, the Red Wings offered Mrazek to the Flyers for a third-round pick. The Flyers declined the offer, according to the Detroit Free Press.
But the Flyers' situation changed when Michal Neuvirth sustained a lower-body injury in a 7-4 win against the New York Rangers on Sunday.
The Flyers (30-19-10, 70 points) are in third place in the Metropolitan Division, five points behind the first-place Washington Capitals.

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Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche took a step back in their quest to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2013-14 on Sunday. They not only lost 4-2 to the Edmonton Oilers, but defensemen Anton Lindholm and Erik Johnson each left the game with upper-body injuries and are out indefinitely. Goalie Jonathan Bernier, who came out of the Avalanche's 6-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Friday, has a concussion and won't travel with Colorado to its game at the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; SNP, ALT, NHL.TV) .

The Avalanche (31-23-4, 66 points) are three points behind the Minnesota Wild for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference with two teams -- the Calgary Flames (30-21-8, 68 points) and Los Angeles Kings (31-22-5, 67 points) -- between them. The timing of the injuries puts pressure on Colorado and general manager Joe Sakic to determine if they want to be buyers or sellers before the deadline.

Ottawa Senators

Ottawa Senators general manager Pierre Dorion has not been shy to talk about possibly trading away players before the deadline, regardless of their contract status.
One player who is generating plenty of buzz is forward Derick Brassard, who has a modified no-trade clause and one year remaining on his contract.
According to Darren Dreger of TSN, the 30-year-old Brassard, who has 35 points (17 goals, 18 assists) this season, could be a target for multiple teams, including the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Dreger also indicated the Winnipeg Jets have talked to the Senators about Brassard and 28-year-old forward Mike Hoffman, who has two years remaining on his contract after this season.
The Senators traded defenseman Dion Phaneuf and center Nate Thompson to the Los Angeles Kings for forwards Marian Gaborik and Nicholas Shore on Feb. 13.
Other Senators who could potentially be dealt in the next week include forwards Zack Smith, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, and defensemen Cody Ceci and Johnny Oduya.