Editor’s note: This is a part of an occasional USA TODAY Sports series on the best moments, teams, players and figures in sports over the last 25 years.
After a big flurry, the holiday roster freeze is here, which means no trades until after Christmas.
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There were two big trades on Dec. 11, with the Minnesota Wild acquiring defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks, plus the Edmonton Oilers acquiring goalie Tristan Jarry from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Stuart Skinner.
Then two trades beat the 11:59 p.m. ET freeze deadline on Dec. 19. The Montreal Canadiens acquired center Phillip Danault from the Los Angeles Kings for a second-round pick. The Columbus Blue Jackets sent two draft picks to the Seattle Kraken for forward Mason Marchment.
No trades, waivers or loans can take place until 12:01 a.m. ET on Dec. 28.
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Once the freeze lifts, it’s not too long until the trade deadline at 3 p.m. ET on March 6.
With no trades taking place for a while, here’s a look at the best and the worst trades from the first 25 years of the 21st century. Today are the worst trades (best trades can be found here).
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Mitch Marner joined the Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Mitch Marner joined the Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Nikolaj Ehlers signed with the Hurricanes.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Mikael Granlund signed with the Ducks.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov signed with the Rangers.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Pius Suter signed with the Blues.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Nate Schmidt signed with the Mammoth.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Jonathan Drouin signed with the Islanders.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Corey Perry signed with the Kings.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Brent Burns signed with the Avalanche.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Connor Brown signed with the Devils.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Evgenii Dadonov signed with the Devils.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Christian Dvorak signed with the Flyers.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Ryan Lindgren signed with the Kraken.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Tanner Jeannot signed with the Bruins.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Gustav Nyquist signed with the Jets.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Cody Ceci signed with the Kings.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Brian Dumoulin signed with the Kings.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Nico Sturm signed with the Wild.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Jeff Skinner signed with the Sharks.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Nathan Bastian signed with the Dallas Stars.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Victor Olofsson signed with the Colorado Avalanche.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Travis Hamonic signed with the Red Wings.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev signed with the Buffalo Sabres.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Luke Kunin signed with the Florida Panthers.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Hudson Fasching signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Noah Dobson was traded to the Montreal Canadiens.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman Matt Dumba was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Defenseman K’Andre Miller was traded to the Hurricanes.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goalie Arturs Silovs was traded to the Penguins.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forwards Miles Wood (28) and Charlie Coyle (10) were traded to the Blue Jackets.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Mason Marchment was traded to the Kraken.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Viktor Arvidsson was traded to the Bruins.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goaltender John Gibson was traded to the Red Wings.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Chris Kreider was traded to the Ducks.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goaltender Connor Ingram was traded to the Oilers.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Ryan Reaves was traded to the Sharks for defenseman Heny Thrun.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Evander Kane was traded to the Canucks.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward JJ Peterka was traded to the Mammoth. Michael Kesselring and Josh Doan went to the Sabres in the trade.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic was traded to the Sharks.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Forward Trevor Zegras was traded to the Flyers.
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NHL players on the move in the 2025 offseason
Goalie Ivan Fedotov was traded to the Blue Jackets.
8. Hurricanes acquire Mikko Rantanen from the Avalanche
Date: Jan. 24, 2025
Details: The Hurricanes acquire Rantanen in a three-team trade, sending Martin Necas, Jack Drury and draft picks to the Avalanche. Taylor Hall also was sent by the Blackhawks to the Hurricanes as part of the deal.
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Analysis: This is more a wait and see. Some context: A year earlier, the Hurricanes also went big and traded for Jake Guentzel only to be unable to re-sign him. They picked up a third-round pick to send his rights to the Lightning. Fast forward a year, and the Hurricanes were equally aggressive. But again, no guarantee of Rantanen re-signing, plus his production fell off in Carolina. The Hurricanes learned their lesson and traded him before the deadline to the Stars, where he had a dominant playoff run.
If you take Rantanen out of the two trades, the Hurricanes moved out Martin Necas and brought in Logan Stankoven. That might end up being better down the road, but not at the moment. Necas is the Avalanche’s No. 2 scorer and signed an eight-year, $92 million contract extension. Hall, a former MVP, has been a good fit in Carolina in the bottom six.
7. Blackhawks trade Artemi Panarin to Blue Jackets
Date: June 23, 2017
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Details: The Blackhawks trade left wing Artemi Panarin, forward Tyler Motte and a sixth-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft to the Columbus Blue Jackets for forward Brandon Saad, goalie Anton Forsberg and a fifth-round pick in 2018.
Analysis: The Blackhawks had signed Panarin to an extension in 2016, so he was under contract, but they still moved him to bring back former Cup winner Saad. The move followed the Blackhawks being swept in the first round. Panarin, the 2016 rookie of the year, continued his rise to stardom. Though there were other reasons in addition to the trade, Chicago missed the playoffs in 2018 and has been back only once.
6. Lightning acquire Tanner Jeannot from the Predators
Date: Feb. 26, 2023
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Details: The Lightning acquire Jeannot from the Nashville Predators for a first-round pick in 2025, second-round pick in 2024, third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks in 2023 and Cal Foote.
Analysis: Jeannot showed promise in 2021-22 with 24 goals and 130 penalty minutes, but he had only six goals at the time of the trade. That was a lot of draft capital to spend for a player who scored eight goals in 75 games in Tampa Bay. The Lightning got some of that back by sending him to the Kings in 2024 for second- and fourth-round picks.
5. Capitals acquire Jaromir Jagr from the Penguins
Date: July 11, 2001
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Details: The Capitals acquire Jagr from the Penguins for Kris Beech, Ross Lupaschuk and Michal Sivek.
Analysis: This was a splashy move under owner Ted Leonsis, especially since Jagr had just picked up his fifth scoring title with 131 points. But he wasn’t able to repeat that in Washington, never getting out of the 70-point range. The Capitals also signed him to an eight-year, $88 million contract, the richest in the NHL at that time. They ended up retaining millions of that when they dealt him to the Rangers in January 2004.
Jagr, of course, will be a Hall of Famer after he stops playing in the Czech league. The three players the Penguins picked up in the trade didn’t amount to much.
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4. Flyers trade Sergei Bobrovsky to the Blue Jackets
Date: June 22, 2012
Details: The Flyers trade Bobrovsky to the Blue Jackets for a second-round pick and two fourth-rounders.
Analysis: The Flyers had Ilya Bryzgalov in net and Bobrovsky reportedly didn’t want to re-sign as a backup. But the trade immediately looked bad because Bobrovsky won the Vezina Trophy in his first season in Columbus. It looked worse when the Flyers bought out Bryzgalov in 2013. Bobrovsky would win another Vezina in Columbus and has won back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in Florida. And what’s the common refrain in Philadelphia? If only their goaltending were better.
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3. Capitals acquire Martin Erat from the Predators
Date: April 3, 2013
Details: The Capitals acquire Erat and Michael Latta from the Predators for Filip Forsberg.
Analysis: The Capitals won their division that year and Erat seemed like a good missing piece for a playoff run. But he and the Capitals were knocked out in the first round. Erat was traded the following season and Forsberg has developed into a star in Nashville.
2. Islanders trade Roberto Luongo to the Panthers
Date: June 24, 2000
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Details: The Islanders traded Luongo and Olli Jokinen to the Florida Panthers for Oleg Kvasha and Mark Parrish.
Analysis: The Islanders moved Luongo because they had drafted Rick DiPietro No. 1 in the 2000 draft. Luongo had played one season at the time and DiPietro showed plenty of promise. But Luongo became a Hall of Famer and DiPietro’s career was disrupted by injuries. DiPietro was given a 15-year contract averaging $4.5 million in 2006, the Islanders bought him out in 2013 and are paying him $1.5 million a year until 2029.
Zdeno Chara, part of the Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2025, was traded by the Islanders early in his career.
1. Islanders trade Zdeno Chara to the Senators
Date: June 23, 2001
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Details: The Islanders acquire Alexei Yashin from the Senators for Chara, Bill Muckalt and a 2001 first-round pick.
Analysis: The Islanders moved out another future Hall of Famer from their roster. Chara was still developing and Yashin was an established star, but the Islanders eventually bought out Yashin’s contract. Chara had a successful career that included a defenseman-record 1,680 games, seven All-Star appearances, a Norris Trophy and a Stanley Cup (in Boston). The first-rounder that Ottawa acquired was used to draft Jason Spezza.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Worst NHL trades since 2000: Islanders deal 2 future Hall of Famers