Trade Deadline, playoff races among top storylines after Olympic break

The NHL returns to play following the break for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 with eight games Wednesday. Here are 10 storylines to watch heading into the last eight weeks of the regular season.

1. 2026 NHL Trade Deadline

The end of the Olympics on Sunday also meant the end of the NHL trade freeze during the Winter Games. Teams have 10 days left before the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline at 3 p.m. ET on March 6 to make deals to improve their rosters or acquire assets for the future. With tight races for Stanley Cup Playoff spots in both conferences, some teams have been waiting to decide whether to be buyers or sellers, or to stand pat at the Deadline. Those decisions will have to be made soon.

2. Panarin's Kings debut

A significant trade happened before the Olympics when forward Artemi Panarin was dealt by the New York Rangers to the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 4. Panarin, who also signed a two-year, $22 million contract ($11 million average annual value) that begins next season, will play his first game with the Kings when they host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, truTV, TNT, SNO, SNE, SN1, TVAS). Panarin, who has 57 points (19 goals, 38 assists) in 52 games this season, adds much-needed offensive skill for Los Angeles' playoff push. The Kings (23-19-4) are three points behind the Anaheim Ducks (30-23-3) for the second wild card from the Western Conference and will be without forward Kevin Fiala for at least the rest of the regular season after he fractured his lower left leg while playing for Team Switzerland at the Olympics.

3. Olympic injuries to Crosby, Rantanen and Hedman

Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby, Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman each missed his team's final game of the Olympics because of injuries. Crosby sat out Team Canada's last two games, including the 2-1 overtime loss to Team USA in the gold medal game, because of a lower-body injury. Rantanen missed Team Finland's 6-1 victory against Team Slovakia in the bronze medal game because of a lower-body injury, and Hedman didn't play (but sat on the bench) during Team Sweden's 2-1 overtime loss to the United States in the quarterfinals because of a lower-body injury. They are key players for teams jockeying for positioning in playoff races, so their teams hope to get them back as soon as possible.

4. The Art Ross Trophy race

Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and Nikita Kucherov of the Lightning are separated by five points in the battle for the Art Ross Trophy, which is awarded to the player who leads the NHL in points each regular season. McDavid leads with 96 points (34 goals, 62 assists) in 58 games, followed by MacKinnon with 93 points (40 goals, 53 assists) in 55 games. Kucherov is third with 91 points (29 goals, 62 assists) in 51 games, but he has catapulted himself into contention for his third consecutive Art Ross win and fourth overall with 49 points (16 goals, 33 assists) in 21 games since Dec. 20. McDavid is looking to win the Art Ross for the sixth time. MacKinnon is bidding to win it for the first time.

5. Can Celebrini lead the Sharks to the playoffs, win the Hart?

Macklin Celebrini is fourth in the Art Ross race with 81 points (28 goals, 53 assists) in 55 games for the San Jose Sharks and coming off a standout performance at the Olympics, where he was second among all players with 10 points (five goals, five assists) in six games for Canada. The forward is the main reason San Jose (27-24-4) is one of the surprise teams in the NHL this season and is five points behind Anaheim for the second wild card in the West. If Celebrini can lead the Sharks into the playoffs for the first time since 2019, he'd have a strong case to be first 19-year-old to win the Hart Trophy as the League's most valuable player since Crosby in 2007.

6. The Panthers' struggle to keep their three-peat bid alive

The Florida Panthers' hopes of becoming the first team to win three consecutive Stanley Cup championships since the New York Islanders' run of four in a row from 1980-83 are on thin ice. Florida (29-25-3) has been hampered by injuries all season and trails the Boston Bruins (32-20-5) by eight points for the second wild card from the East with 25 games remaining. The Panthers still are missing forwards Aleksander Barkov (knee surgery), Tomas Nosek (knee surgery) and Jonah Gadjovich (upper body), and defensemen Seth Jones (upper body) and Dmitry Kulikov (upper body). Barkov and Nosek might not play this season unless Florida makes the playoffs.

7. Red Wings and Sabres look to end postseason droughts

The Detroit Red Wings haven't qualified for the playoffs since 2016 and the Buffalo Sabres haven't made the postseason since 2011, but each is in a good spot coming out of the break. Detroit (33-19-6) is tied with the Montreal Canadiens (32-17-8) for second in the Atlantic Division with 72 points, and Buffalo (32-19-6) is two points behind in the first wild card in the East, one point ahead of Boston. The Red Wings missed the playoffs by a tiebreaker in 2023-24 and the Sabres missed by one point in 2022-23. Can they finish the job this time?

8. Can any of the East teams on the outside get in?

In addition to the Panthers, the Columbus Blue Jackets, Washington Capitals, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers are looking to mount late comebacks to get back into the East playoff picture. Columbus (29-20-7), which has won seven in a row and is 10-1-0 since Rick Bowness replaced Dean Evason as coach on Jan. 12, is four points behind Boston for the second wild card and four points behind the Islanders (32-21-5) for third in the Metropolitan Division, as is Washington (29-23-7). Ottawa (28-22-7) and Toronto (27-21-9) are six points behind Boston. Philadelphia (25-20-11) is eight points behind Boston and New York.

9. The battle in the Pacific

It's shaping up to be a free-for-all for the top three spots in Pacific Division. The Seattle Kraken (27-20-9) and the Ducks are one point behind the Oilers (28-22-8) for second in the division, and the Vegas Golden Knights (27-16-14) lead Edmonton by four points for first. The Kings (three points behind the Kraken and Ducks) and the Sharks (two points behind Los Angeles) also are within striking distance of the top three, while contending for the two West wild cards. A late-season hot streak for any of those teams not only could bring a playoff berth, but also home-ice advantage in the first round, which goes to the top two teams in each division.

10. Is this Ovechkin's last ride?

Alex Ovechkin said he will "probably" wait until after the season to decide whether this be his last in the NHL. The 40-year-old Capitals captain is in the final season of his contract, though, so this could be his last opportunity to get in the playoffs and make a run. He also has time to make more history. With 996 total goals -- an NHL-record 919 in the regular season and 77 in the playoffs -- Ovechkin is four away from joining Wayne Gretzky (1,016) as the only players in League history with 1,000 combined goals. His 752 regular-season assists also leave him 11 away from breaking Nicklas Backstrom's Capitals record of 762.