It seemed odd. As the speculation started spreading about the needs and wants of the contending teams before the coming trade deadline, a common theme emerged: A lot of teams were looking for increased scoring on the wing.



And boy, did that run counter to how previous trade deadlines have gone. The trade deadline is typically a time of trying to find help down the middle and build out the defense. Just look at the high prices paid last year for Martin Hanzal and Kevin Shattenkirk.



So what gives? One Eastern Conference assistant GM gave a pretty simple explanation. At the trade deadline, it’s about finding a way to upgrade your team and this year’s crop of pure rentals offers that opportunity best on the wing. The best defensemen available have term remaining on their contracts (as we’ll cover later this week), so teams looking at rental players have been looking elsewhere.



“There’s not a lot of defense and centers in...