It didn’t take long for Blake Wheeler to find a new home as the veteran forward is set to join the New York Rangers.
Wheeler agreed to a one-year contract Saturday with sources telling ESPN’s Emily Kaplan the deal is worth $800,000 and includes up to $300,000 in bonuses.
The signing comes less than a day after the 36-year-old Wheeler was placed on unconditional waivers by the Winnipeg Jets for the purpose of buying out the final year of his contract. Wheeler, who was set to earn $8.25 million in his final season, will cost the Jets $2.75 million a year for the next two seasons.
Getting Wheeler gives the Rangers an experienced top-six winger who can create for himself and his teammates. Wheeler finished with 16 goals and 55 points last season for his 10th campaign of more than 50 points. He also provides the Rangers with another power-play option as his seven goals were fourth on the Jets.
His future with the Jets had been in question for some time, after he was stripped of his captaincy prior to the start of the season. The Jets, who missed the postseason in 2021-22, got back into the playoffs last season only to be eliminated in the first round by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights in five games.
Being knocked out in the first and/or qualifying round for the third time in five seasons led to questions about what appeared to be a stagnant core. Those concerns intensified considering Wheeler, along with Connor Hellebuyck, Nino Niederreiter and Mark Scheifele, each had one year left on their contract.
Wheeler played two-plus seasons with the Boston Bruins before he was traded to what was then the Atlanta Thrashers. He was with the team when it relocated to Winnipeg and would ultimately spend 13 years between the two franchises. His time with the Jets saw Wheeler finish with 262 goals and 812 points in 897 games.
Parting ways with Wheeler was the latest entry in a busy offseason for the Jets. The first move came Tuesday when they completed a sign-and-trade deal with the Los Angeles Kings that saw Pierre-Luc Dubois head to Southern California for Alex Iafallo, Rasmus Kupari, Gabriel Vilardi and a 2024 second-round pick. Dubois signed an eight-year deal with the Kings worth $8.5 million annually.
Wheeler was not the only veteran the Rangers are signing as they agreed to a one-year deal with goaltender Jonathan Quick worth $825,000, the team announced Saturday. Quick, who went 16-15-6 with a 3.41 goals-against average and a .882 save percentage, becomes the backup for 2021-22 Vezina Trophy winner Igor Shesterkin.
The Connecticut native and three-time Stanley Cup winner hit the open market following a whirlwind season. Quick, 37, was part of a goaltending dynamic with the Los Angeles Kings that struggled to find consistency. It led to the Kings moving Quick to the Columbus Blue Jackets, where he was on the roster for less than 48 hours before being traded to the Golden Knights and becoming part of their title-winning team.
The days leading up to the 2025 NHL trade deadline were a furious final sprint as contenders looked to stock up for a postseason run while rebuilding clubs added prospects and draft capital.
After the overnight Brock Nelson blockbuster Thursday, Friday lived up to expectations, with Mikko Rantanen, Brad Marchand and other high-profile players finishing the day on different teams than they started with. All told, NHL teams made 24 trades on deadline day involving 47 players.
Which teams and players won the day? Who might not feel as well about the situation after trade season? Reporters Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski identify the biggest winners and losers of the 2025 NHL trade deadline:
There are some who saw what the Carolina Hurricanes did at the trade deadline — or perhaps failed to do after they traded Mikko Rantanen — and believe they’re cooked when it comes to the Stanley Cup playoffs. However, based on the projections from Stathletes, the Canes remain the team with the highest chances of winning the Cup, at 16.7%.
Standing before them on Sunday are the Winnipeg Jets (5 p.m. ET, ESPN+). The Jets had a relatively quiet deadline, adding Luke Schenn and Brandon Tanev, though sometimes these additions are the types of small tweaks that can push a contender over the edge. As it stands, the Jets enter their showdown against the Canes with the sixth-highest Cup chances, at 8.7%.
Carolina has made two trips to the Cup Final: a loss to the Detroit Red Wings in 2002 and a win over the Edmonton Oilers in 2006. The Canes have reached the conference finals three times since (2009, 2019, 2023). Winnipeg has yet to make the Cup Final, and was defeated 4-1 in the 2018 Western Conference finals by the Vegas Golden Knights in the club’s lone trip to the penultimate stage.
Both clubs are due. Will this be their year?
There is a lot of runway left until the final day of the season on April 17, and we’ll help you keep track of it all here on the NHL playoff watch. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide detail on all the playoff races — along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2025 NHL draft lottery.
Points: 43 Regulation wins: 12 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 17 Points pace: 54.3 Next game: vs. NSH (Tuesday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 8
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the draw for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process can be found here. Sitting No. 1 on the draft board for this summer is Matthew Schaefer, a defenseman for the OHL’s Erie Otters.
Hintz extended his stick toward Henrique, whose wrist shot sent the puck under Hintz’s visor during his club’s 5-4 loss to the Oilers. He was on the ice, with his face in a towel, as the team’s medical staff assessed him and helped him skate toward the dressing room.
After the loss, Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said Hintz was at a local hospital, receiving tests. The coach added that the initial report was fairly optimistic for Hintz, 28, who has 25 goals and 52 points.
“Everyone’s optimistic that it’s not ‘serious, serious,'” DeBoer said. “But we won’t know until we get testing.”
The short-handed Stars rallied from a 5-1 deficit before eventually losing. Trade deadline acquisition Mikko Rantanen had a goal and an assist in his debut for Dallas, which had its four-game winning streak stopped. Wyatt Johnston, Jamie Benn and Matt Dumba also scored for the Stars.