Frank Seravalli names Justin Faulk, Jamie Oleksiak as top NHL trade deadline defense targets

Mar 2, 2026 (10:47)

Photo credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Frank Seravalli on Frankly Hockey thinks the Justin Faulk trade and Jamie Oleksiak trade are this week's top defense market dominoes.

The trades are not official, it's a read on where the calls are going.

The key detail is the calendar, the 2026 NHL trade deadline hits Friday, March 6.

If Seravalli's right, we can stop guessing at twenty names and focus on two.

Justin Faulk is the more "hockey trade" target, because he actually moves the puck.

He's sitting on 11-21-32 in 60 games, and that's real help for a contender's second pair.

Here's the clip everyone is passing around.

"The defense market, I'd say the best bet to move between now and...Friday would be Justin Faulk and Jamie Oleksiak."

- Frank Seravalli

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The money is the first hurdle, Faulk carries a $6.5 million cap hit through 2026-27.

So the conversation instantly becomes retention, or a third team, or both.

Blues fans are tired of "almost," and the standings back it up at 22-29-9.

If St. Louis is selling, Faulk is valuable because he can run a man advantage without being sheltered.

Jamie Oleksiak is the other flavor, the playoff rental type every coach trusts when games get nasty.

He's at 3-7-10, and nobody is paying for points here, they're paying for reach and penalty-kill minutes.

The cap hit is cleaner at $4.6 million, and his deal expires after this season.

Seattle is the twist, because the Kraken are right in it at 28-22-9.

If they move Oleksiak anyway, it screams "we're prioritizing the next two years," not this spring.

Either way, Seravalli just made the defense market feel a lot less random.

Previously on HockeyLatest

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MARS 2\|160 ANSWERS Frank Seravalli names Justin Faulk, Jamie Oleksiak as top NHL trade deadline defense targets Will Justin Faulk or Jamie Oleksiak get traded by Friday?
Yes	129	80.6 %
No	31	19.4 %
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