A rare February calm has fallen over the hockey world.

While the 4 Nations Face-Off may yet elicit some panic — particularly if co-host Canada falls flat in the tournament — this is a reasonably quiet window on the calendar with no NHL games scheduled again for nearly two weeks.

It’s a good time to pause, reflect and start to project what comes next.

We put out the call for mailbag questions last week, and unsurprisingly readers were most curious about the landscape ahead of the March 7 trade deadline. There were queries about the futures of Elias Pettersson, Ryan Donato and Yanni Gourde and a couple of salary-cap related questions to chew on, too.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read, engage and respond.

Let’s get at it.

(Note: Some questions have been edited for clarity and length.)

What would be the NHL’s equivalent of the Luka Doncic trade? — Justin M.

Hmmm … I don’t think I can cook up anything quite as diabolical as that. But, in NHL terms, how about the Edmonton Oilers sending Leon Draisaitl to the Vegas Golden Knights for Mark Stone and a 2029 first-round pick? It’s admittedly not perfect. Draisaitl has already signed an eight-year extension, whereas Doncic is in need of a new contract this summer, but they’re each among the absolute best players in their respective leagues and will be among their sport’s highest-paid athletes as of next fall. They’re also both just months removed from helping take their teams to the Final, only to fall a little short.

With J.T. Miller gone, what does it take to push the Vancouver Canucks to still trade Elias Pettersson before his no-trade clause kicks in? — Jeff G.

The Canucks need to see a meaningful upswing in Pettersson’s on-ice performance, plain and simple. They seem inclined to let things settle down in the wake of the Miller move and aren’t expected to further engage interested teams on a Pettersson trade before the March 7 deadline, but they will have time this offseason to take further stock of the situation. Pettersson won’t gain a no-movement clause until July 1. If what remains of this season doesn’t go any better for him than what we’ve seen so far in 2024-25, they’re going to have a big decision to make. It was telling that Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet urged Pettersson to relax and enjoy time with his Swedish countrymen at the 4 Nations tournament. It’s a clear sign of the organization’s desire for him to turn the page on a difficult few months.

Why would the Chicago Blackhawks trade Ryan Donato if they can’t get better than a third-round pick in return? What’s the upside? — Doris G.

Donato is having a career season with 19 goals and 37 points at the break, which certainly opens the door to the possibility Chicago attempts to extend him rather than trading him for futures at the deadline. It all comes down to cost-value analysis. The 28-year-old forward will understandably be looking to cash in on his solid season as a pending unrestricted free agent, so does it make sense for the Blackhawks to sign him at that number for what may be less-productive years down the road? In the event they do, how might that affect the cap picture with Connor Bedard and other young players coming up on new deals? The other point I’d make on a third-round pick is that it can be used as ammunition in a future trade. It’s a positive value asset that can be deployed for more than just drafting a young prospect.

What is Yanni Gourde’s value at the deadline after the sports hernia injury? — Richard O.

There had been some thought the Seattle Kraken might parlay Gourde into a first-round pick at this deadline, but his injury situation will make that difficult. Still, it’s important to note his five-week minimum recovery timeline from sports hernia surgery projects that he may be approaching full health close to March 7. If Gourde has resumed skating by then and produced encouraging medical reports, there’s still going to be interest from contending teams looking to acquire him as a rental. Ultimately, the market will set the price, but it wouldn’t surprise me if Gourde still garnered a second-round pick in return.

Should we expect prices to be much higher this year, given the lack of definitive sellers, or will things even out? — Jimmy R.

It’s impossible to say with any certainty, but the one variable worth pointing out is how few top teams still own their 2025 first-round pick. Those would have been prime assets for sellers to acquire in big deadline deals. Perhaps 2026 firsts will become big currency over the next few weeks. If not, I think it hints at the likelihood of lower returns than what we’ve seen historically.

Every generation seems to have a player who busts the aging curve, playing into their late 40s or beyond. Howe, Chelios, Messier, Jagr. If you had to pick a current NHLer who would be the next to do this, who would it be? — James B.

The player most capable of following that model has to be Sidney Crosby. The Pittsburgh Penguins star is in his 20th NHL season, and for a 20th straight year, he’s currently better than a point-per-game player. Special, special stuff. The only real unknown is how long he’ll choose to keep playing. Crosby is currently signed by Pittsburgh through the 2026-27 season, which will take him to his 40th birthday. If the will remains, I wouldn’t put it past him to sign another contract and keep defying gravity into his 40s.

Is Hockey Canada’s ban on 2018 World Junior players still in place? I would like to see Cale Makar on our Olympic team. — Jeffrey M.

Makar is taking part in the 4 Nations Face-Off and has already been cleared for future events, including the 2026 Milan Olympics. While the ban on Canada’s 2018 World Juniors team remains in place, Hockey Canada announced last June that Makar had participated in a third-party review of the sexual assault allegations brought against members of that team and was cleared to participate.

Any idea on the Russia situation going forward? I get the sanctions and everything for their actions, but you’ve got to admit Russia and Czechia (or someone) in a 6 Nations tourney would be a lot better to watch — Kyle J.

This issue is much bigger than any given tournament. It’s obviously much bigger than the sport of hockey itself. My expectation is that we won’t see a Russian team competing again until after the war in Ukraine is over. The IIHF has already ruled that country out of its events through the 2026 men’s world hockey championship. One thing to keep in mind: If Russia was reinstated while the war in Ukraine was still ongoing, some of its other neighbors (Finland, Sweden and Czechia among them) would almost certainly withdraw from that tournament in protest.

Regarding the salary-cap projections, what happens if hockey-related revenue goes down rather quickly? — Scott M.

The fact that the NHL and NHL Players’ Association recently agreed to the parameters of a rapidly accelerating salary cap for the next three seasons is a sign that they expect HRR to keep growing. But should some black swan event occur to keep that from happening, we need only look back to how they handled the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic to get a sense of what they’d do. Basically, they’d work together to navigate that crisis as best they can. Ultimately, NHL owners and players split revenues 50/50. So whether that revenue skyrockets or plummets, the system needs to be adjusted to either reality accordingly.

LeBrun: Will skyrocketing NHL salary cap lead to a new era of haves and have-nots?

What does Quinn Hughes have to do to get noticeable on a majority of Hart Trophy ballots? — Randolph J.

The ballots don’t get submitted until mid-April, but my sense is that Hughes is already on the radar for a large number of voters at this stage of the season. The first thing that needs to happen for him to garner the support needed to be a Hart finalist is getting healthy. You can’t win that award while being sidelined at the most important time of the year. I’d also think he needs to get the Canucks into the playoffs, at minimum, in order for him to distinguish himself from the other worthy choices. Whatever happens from here, Hughes is having a heck of a season.

The salary cap is rising, but why else is the goalie market booming? — Geoff D.

The first thing I’d do is point you to this recent story on that topic by my colleague Jesse Granger. He did a great job of hitting on the key factors at play. Beyond the rising cap environment, my personal opinion is that we just came through a cycle where a number of top players at the position came due for new deals and things snowballed. It’s not every year you get goaltenders the quality of Igor Shesterkin, Jeremy Swayman, Linus Ullmark and Jake Oettinger all needing new contracts.

The NHL salary cap is rising, but why else is the goalie market booming now?

You are Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving for a day. What do you do? — David B.

I’m sure Treliving would laugh at this question. He’s already got an entire city of people full of ideas about how he should be doing his job. For me, the current circumstances around the Leafs demand the right mix of action and patience. I’d get very aggressive at this trade deadline in trying to bolster the roster because the NHL looks wide open this season, but I’d also hold the line on negotiations with Mitch Marner and John Tavares on potential extensions until after I see what unfolds in the playoffs.

If you were hired today to be the GM of one team for the next 10 years, which team would you pick? (Keep in mind that you wouldn’t get credit for any championships your team wins in the first couple of years because you didn’t construct the roster.) — Darn it! D.

Man, this is a tough question. And a good one. After much deliberation, I’m choosing to take over the San Jose Sharks because they tick every box you’d want in the early stages of a rebuild. Most importantly they’ve got solid and stable ownership, plus a nice crop of young players and prospects in the pipeline. There’s also a reasonably clear salary cap sheet to operate with and plenty of draft capital stashed in the cupboards. All that said, Mike Grier is the main reason the Sharks are set up so well, so I can’t imagine they’ll be looking for a new GM in San Jose any time soon!