Predators: 4 Possible Trade Destinations for Yaroslav Askarov – Hockey Writers – Nashville Predators

After two seasons in the American Hockey League (AHL), with a possible third to come, Nashville Predators prospect Yaroslav Askarov has requested a trade. The 22-year-old, the 11th overall pick in 2020, may be struggling to find his way into the organization’s goaltending following Juuse Saros’ eight-year extension earlier this season.

Related: The Predators’ Yaroslav Askarov Dilemma

While Askarov isn’t a big name in the NHL yet, he is very valuable in terms of trade. He is considered one of the best prospects in the world, and many feel that he has the potential to be a top-level NHL player for years to come. Many teams would love to add him to their organization, and these three in particular seem to work well together.

San Jose Sharks

A quick look at the San Jose Sharks roster gives many good reason to believe they will finish dead last in the NHL for the second straight season. This team doesn’t have the forward or defensive talent to be successful in 2024-25, but perhaps their biggest weakness is on the field.

The Sharks have no top scoring prospects, and their pairings with MacKenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek point to a major struggle for next season. Both have struggled so far in their careers and aren’t poised to be top-tier starters anytime soon. As is often said, goaltending is the most important position in hockey, and the Sharks could bolster their rebuild by acquiring Askarov.

Carolina Hurricanes

A few seasons ago, the Carolina Hurricanes were the team that was about to win the Stanley Cup, but, despite a deep playoff run, they couldn’t capture their final goal. A large part of this is due to a lack of certain offensive pieces, but their fans will tell you that scoring doesn’t help.

The Hurricanes are expected to enter the 2024-25 season with Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov. While there are some of the worst duos in the NHL, those two don’t exactly make for a Stanley Cup contender. The Canes figure to continue to be a competitive team for the next few seasons, and adding Askarov could be what is needed for them to finally succeed.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers’ crease became a major concern last season after Carter Hart was named as one of five players from Team Canada’s 2018 World Juniors roster to be charged with sexual misconduct. The offense led to Samuel Ersson taking over as coach, and he struggled with a 2.82 goals-against average (GAA) and a .890 save percentage (SV%) in 51 games.

The Flyers have an interesting option in 27-year-old Ivan Fedotov next season, although his ceiling isn’t as high as Askarov’s. With the Flyers still in the early stages of a rebuild, adding a veteran goaltender would be a great addition to the organization.

Toronto Maple Leafs

The last official NHL starter the Maple Leafs had was the Hurricanes’ Andersen, and he was heavily criticized for not being good enough to get the job done. It’s been a revolving door since when it comes to scoring in Toronto, as they now enter 2024-25 with the duo of Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll.

Related: Maple Leafs at Risk of Losing Robertson to Offer Sheet

Woll is also an interesting prospect, but again, he has a much lower ceiling than Askarov. It’s fair to say that at the beginning of the season rumors were rife about Mitch Marner possibly being traded to the Predators. Although things have changed in the Preds’ favor since then, maybe something can be fixed here involving both players.

The Preds Have No Reason to Hurry

While trade requests, especially from highly regarded players like Askarov, tend to draw a lot of media attention, the Predators have no real reason to panic. He has one more season left on his contract, and once that is up he will remain under team control as a restricted free agent. For now, the best thing the Predators can do is sit back and wait for the best offer, whether it comes from one of the four clubs mentioned above, or one that feels they need to improve their goaltending.