Top 3 Nashville Predators Trade Destinations for Ryan O'Reilly

Now that it has been reported that the Nashville Predators are at least willing to entertain trade offers for veteran center Ryan O'Reilly, it has become even clearer that the team will be selling players ahead of the 2025 NHL trade deadline.

Given that the Predators would only accept a trade offer that impresses them and O'Reilly, and given O'Reilly's age and the Predators' current situation, the team that acquires the 33-year-old next is going to be a contender.

Contenders are generally low on cap space, though, and O'Reilly has a $4.5 million cap hit for 2.5 more years. Which teams make the most sense for the former Stanley Cup champion?

No. 1: New Jersey Devils

New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald, the former Predators captain who played four years under Predators GM and ex-head coach Barry Trotz, starting with the team's inception in 1998, has already publicly stated that he needs his depth forwards to do more.

Since then, it has also been reported that the Devils are looking for third- and fourth-line centers, as well as depth scoring in general. They're also projected to have $7.4 million in cap space by the trade deadline.

That sounds like a job for Ryan O'Reilly.

O'Reilly is still an effective player on a good team, which the Predators currently are not. He is just one year removed from a 26-goal, 69-point season after falling off the wagon towards the end of his tenure with the St. Louis Blues.

A defensive maven down the middle, O'Reilly relishes the challenge of facing the toughest matchups opposing teams have to offer. By doing so in New Jersey, he frees up Devils captain Nico Hischier to do some of the scoring.

Hischier, 26, posted career-highs in goals (31), assists (49), and points (80) in the 2022-23 season, with Michael McLeod taking on most of the prominent defensive responsibilities.

As for a potential return, the Devils do not have a 2025 first-round pick, but they do have three second-round picks. They also have 21-year-old right-shot defenseman Seamus Casey, an offense-oriented player who scored three goals, one assist, and four points in an eight-game cameo with New Jersey earlier this season.

By acquiring Casey, for example, the Predators could add another young, NHL-ready talent on the right side (i.e. Justin Barron), an area of weakness in the organization.

Ryan Ufko is not as talented as Casey, while Andrew Gibson is a different type of player still a few years away from the big leagues.

Other intriguing prospects include Simon Nemec, a remote impossibility, Mikhail Yegorov, and Lenni Hameenaho.

No. 2: Utah Hockey Club

The Utah Hockey Club is in an interesting spot this year.

With an 18-17-7 record, they have 43 points and are only five points away from the second wildcard spot in the Western Conference. Utah has also been without goalie Connor Ingram and defensemen John Marino and Sean Durzi for the majority of the season.

Utah is currently projected to reach the trade deadline with a jaw-dropping $25 million in cap space, and they aren't far from taking the next step.

The NHL's newest franchise has three first-round picks and two second-round picks in 2026; perhaps acquiring O'Reilly could be a shrewd move for now and in the future.

Utah already has established stars and standout players, like captain Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Lawson Crouse, Logan Cooley, Matias Maccelli, Dylan Guenther, and Mikhail Sergachev. Prospects like Daniil But, Dmitry Simashev, Tij Iginla, and Maveric Lamoureux are trending up the pipeline.

The question is: does Utah believe parting with a prospect and/or draft picks to acquire Ryan O'Reilly pushes them over the hump? It's a worthy question to consider.

No. 3: New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are so close, yet so far from that last wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference. A 20-20-2 record sits them 13th in the conference, and they have a 4-5-1 record in their last 10 games, two-game win streak notwithstanding.

According to PuckPedia, the Rangers are projected to have over $21 million in deadline cap space, and the team is too talented to bottom out. Veterans like Artemi Panarin, Igor Shesterkin, Vincent Trocheck, Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, and Jonathan Quick aren't getting any younger and won't be around forever.

There's been some noise around Zibanejad regarding J.T. Miller, and the Rangers already offloaded Kaapo Kakko and Jacob Trouba. One way or another, general manager Chris Drury is making things happen, for better or for worse.

Perhaps adding a veteran like O'Reilly can stabilize a volatile locker room and a volatile situation seemingly always on the verge of turning nuclear. The Predators will be happy to note that the Rangers have their first-round pick in each of the next three drafts.

On the other hand, the Predators won't be interested in smaller puck-movers like Zac Jones. But maybe a package including a big right-shot defender like Victor Mancini would be enough to pique Trotz's interest.

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