What happened: Elliotte Friedman, speaking with Nick Kypreos and Justin Bourne on Sportsnet 590 The FAN, said he cannot see how no-trade and no-movement clauses avoid becoming a flashpoint in the next collective bargaining agreement. He tied the issue directly to the ongoing contract situations of Dylan Larkin and Connor Hellebuyck, framing movement clauses as an increasingly central factor in negotiations.

Why it matters: No-trade and no-movement protections have grown more common and more expansive, giving star players outsized control over where and whether they can be dealt. That leverage complicates roster building and shapes the terms clubs are willing to offer, as the situations around Larkin and Hellebuyck illustrate. If the mechanism becomes a formal negotiating point, it could alter how future contracts are structured leaguewide.

What to watch: Watch whether movement-clause reform surfaces as an explicit topic when CBA talks advance, and how it factors into the next steps on the Larkin and Hellebuyck fronts.