5 Teams Linked To Kirill Marchenko Trade

Columbus Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko has just one season remaining on his three-year, $3.85 million AAV deal. He is reportedly unlikely to sign an extension. With that, trade rumors have been circulating all summer, though the Jackets insist they don't want to move him.

But until we hear some news that the two sides can work together on a new contract, those rumors won't be going away anytime soon. 

Lyle Richardson of Bleacher Report has posited five trade landing spots for the pending restricted free agent. Let's go through the list, starting with three rival teams from the Atlantic Division. 

Buffalo Sabres

The Sabres are hoping to repeat their surprising performance from 2025-26 when they made a Cinderella run to the Atlantic Division title and snapped a 14-year playoff drought. But the loss of Alex Tuch up front will hurt. He's been pretty much a guaranteed 30 goals the past few seasons, and that offense will need to be replaced. Marchenko's 58 goals over the past two seasons would get them close. 

"The Sabres could draw on their deep pool of promising young forwards as trade bait if Marchenko becomes available. They could offer a package with Jack Quinn and Noah Östlund as part of the return, though the Jackets could prefer Zack Benson or Josh Doan in the deal," wrote Richardson. 

Pretty safe to say that Benson and Doan are off the table in such a scenario, after the big seven-year deals the Sabres signed each of them to over the past year. 

Montreal Canadiens

The Habs have been linked to Marchenko for most of the offseason. This isn't surprising, since the Russian's agent, Dan Milstein, continues to fan the flames of a potential deal with Les Habitants. 

The Montreal Gazette has suggested that the price would be awfully high for the Canadiens to pry him loose from Columbus, however, and could even have to include a top prospect such as Michael Hage or Alexander Zharovsky, plus another player or prospect.

Ottawa Senators

The Senators are apparently not done yet this offseason, as a report in the Ottawa Sun had GM Steve Staios longing for "that elusive pure goal scorer."

Marchenko could certainly fit that bill. The Sens, too, however, writes Richardson, would have to sacrifice an elite prospect like, perhaps, Carter Yakemchuk, plus a young player off their roster. 

Seattle Kraken

The Kraken have made some big swings this year at landing the goal scorer they are so desperate for. They tried to win the Artemi Panarin sweepstakes but failed, and then had the Dallas Stars' Jason Robertson turn down their massive $15M AAV sign-and-trade offer. Marchenko might be another target for the Kraken, and "perhaps including (Shane) Wright in a package deal along with a first-round pick or a prospect could get a deal done," Richardson wrote.

Utah Mammoth

Always looking to make a big move, the Mammoth are another team that have been linked as a possible destination if Marchenko were ever to be moved. Utah also has the young talent and prospects to pique the Blue Jackets' interest in a potential trade. "They could pitch a package with Barrett Hayton and Dmitri Simashev, but the Jackets may prefer a top prospect such as Tij Iginla or Caleb Desnoyers in the deal," Richardson suggested. 

The Jackets are standing firm at this point, but at some point this season it'll be time to fish or cut bait on Marchenko. If he's simply not going to extend, one of the above-mentioned packages could grease the wheels on a move.