Mattias Ekholm
At this point, Ekholm just deserves a final decision on whether he is staying in Nashville for the long haul, or if he is being moved soon.
Back in 2020-21 when the Predators were struggling, his name was well at the top of trade boards, but they went on a tear right before the deadline, so they ended up keeping and re-signing him. Now that they are looking like sellers, Ekholm has naturally re-appeared in trade rumors.
Ekholm is in the first of a four-year contract, and trading a player in that situation usually does not happen and would just look really weird. That being said, it would not be a holdup in a potential trade like some of the other players on this list.
Ekholm has no clauses or any kind of movement protection, so Poile and the Predators would hold all of the cards if they wanted to deal him. Secondly and more importantly, he is a solid player and is reasonably worth what he is making per year.
If the #Preds sell at the deadline, do you think there's a guy who could get somewhat of a return?
— Michelle Knezovic (@MichelleKnezov) February 16, 2023
"It's Ekholm, that's it." - @wyshynski
Ekholm struggled earlier in the season as he was trying to adapt to playing on the right side, but he eventually returned to playing on the left side and got back to playing like a quality shutdown blue-liner, which he has been known to be. He is also a trusted leader and voice in the Predators locker room, and adding leadership is never a bad thing for a team that is contending for a Cup.
Ekholm is a commodity and if a team views themselves as one defenseman away from making some serious noise, they will be willing to take on him and his contract.
The Predators value him a lot and would not deal him unless it was truly worth it, but I would say that the likelihood of him getting traded is a solid maybe.