Trade Deadline Preview: Central filled with buyers as Jets are primed to sell

Ahead of the Feb. 29 trade deadline, we're taking a look at each division to assess who's buying, who's selling, and who's standing pat.

The Central Division is by far the most competitive in the NHL this season. With the Chicago Blackhawks and Dallas Stars going head-to-head in the battle for top spot in the Western Conference - while three others within the group occupy playoff positions - the Central certainly screams buyer's market.

However, the Winnipeg Jets are embracing the rebuild, with plans to be a part of the aforementioned conversation in the future. Adding to the intrigue, they possess a player that could be highly coveted by a pair of their division rivals.

Here's a look at the potential trade deadline plan for each team in the tightest division in the league.

Buyers

Dallas Stars

The Stars possess arguably the most potent offense in the NHL. Their 191 goals this season - tops in the league - make them a legitimate threat. However, in order to compete with the likes of the Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues in a seven-game series, shoring up their blue line must be a priority.

Dallas is currently in the bottom half of the league in goals against. The future is bright, and the Stars can certainly remain patient in improving their mediocre goaltending tandem, but the team needs to bring in a top four defenseman immediately.

Calgary Flames defenseman Kris Russell would be a perfect fit in Dallas. He's second in the league with 174 blocked shots, and averages 22:52 minutes of ice time per game. A solid puck-mover equipped with just a $2.6-million cap hit this season, the 28-year-old could be a perfect addition to the Stars' plans - both short and long term - moving forward.

Chicago Blackhawks

Built to succeed from the net out, it's no secret the Blackhawks remain a legitimate Stanley Cup threat once again. However, there is one glaring hole on their roster: A left-winger to slot in on the second line next to Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa.

Chicago could make life easy on itself by acquiring a cheap rental player such as Toronto Maple Leafs forward P.A. Parenteau, who is equipped with a $1.5-million cap hit this season. But general Manager Stan Bowman has shown he isn't afraid to think big and pull off unexpectedly bold moves.

The Blackhawks will most certainly be a player in the Mikkel Boedker sweepstakes, and they might even have what it takes to pry Andrew Ladd from the Winnipeg Jets. One way or another, a difficult cap situation won't hinder Bowman from going over the top in an attempt at a fourth Stanley Cup in seven years.

St. Louis Blues

The young core of Vladimir Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz, and Robby Fabbri is illustrating that the future is now for the Blues. With a solid group of veteran producers surrounding the kids, St. Louis has a strong offensive core ready to win both now and down the road. However, they would be wise to look beyond this season when considering any trade deadline acquisitions.

Someone will need to go if they want to keep Kevin Shattenkirk beyond next year. David Backes' contract expires at the end of the season, and parting ways with their soon to be 32-year-old captain makes sense. The Blues must make a move that adds to their young core moving forward, but doesn't hinder their ability to win now. Jonathan Drouin certainly fits the mold.

Nashville Predators

The Predators are essentially the complete opposite of the Stars. When they traded from a position of strength to land Ryan Johansen, they made it perfectly clear that they're finally ready to take the next step. Although the 24-year-old has been a solid addition to the lineup, Nashville's top six quite simply fails to match up against that of their division rivals.

If the Predators are serious about advancing beyond the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2011-12, they must avoid wasting a solid defensive core in front of an ageing Pekka Rinne by continuing to add up front.

Winnipeg Jets captain Andrew Ladd could be a perfect solution. A big body who has averaged 26 goals over a full 82-game schedule since 2010-11, he would certainly be a perfect veteran complement up front in Nashville.

With the expectation that they will sign top college prospect Jimmy Vesey, and perhaps the addition of Kevin Fiala at some point this season, the Predators may suddenly find themselves with a very formidable mix of forwards playing in front of arguably the best defensive core in the league.

Sellers

Winnipeg Jets

It's time for the Jets to move on from their captain, and add to the plethora of strong prospects in the system. Winnipeg must embrace the rebuild, let the kids play, and begin implementing one of the strongest prospect pools in the league for the rest of the campaign and into next season.

The Jets were wise to lock up Dustin Byfuglien, and need to ensure they do the same with emerging stars Jacob Trouba and Mark Scheifele. Ladd is unfortunately the odd man out, and could fetch another pick and prospect to add to a promising future surrounding the likes of Nikolaj Ehlers, Joel Armia, Nic Petan, Kyle Connor, and Josh Morrissey.

Standing Pat

Colorado Avalanche

The Avalanche are equipped with a very solid young core - headlined by Nathan MacKinnon, Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, and Tyson Barrie - moving forward. Add in top prospect Mikko Rantanen, as well as Mikhail Grigorenko and Nikita Zadorov, and this is certainly a young team with a very bright future. There's no need to stray from the path for a brief stint in the playoffs this season.

Colorado isn't quite ready to compete with the other teams in front of it yet, but this season is a very important stepping stone for what could be a very entertaining group moving forward. The Avalanche must stand pat, gain valuable experience from another playoff race, and aim to become buyers in a year or two.

Minnesota Wild

The Wild are in a strange position, as the majority of their core is locked up for quite some time. Defensively, they're pretty solid and don't tend to give up many goals in front of Devan Dubnyk. Despite decent play in their own end, though, there is no shortage of issues up front. The Wild just can't seem to score with regularity, which is something that might not change any time soon.

Minnesota has roughly $7 million in cap space next season, which will go toward locking up Matt Dumba, Jason Zucker, and a backup goaltender. Unless the Wild can find a way to part with Mikko Koivu or Thomas Vanek, or somehow find a suitor for Jason Pominville's bad contract, they simply have no other choice but to stand pat and hope for the best with this group.

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