The NHL draft presents an opportunity for teams to not only select the players who will form their future core, but to make trades that could improve their rosters next season. This year, there is another dynamic at play: the salary cap. With the cap not expected to see a big rise, there will be teams looking to drop salary and others trying to buy quality players at a cheap price.
In the West, there could be major win-now trades with at least six teams having the right to believe that they were only a piece or two away from a Stanley Cup appearance. There are also long-suffering teams that badly need to take the next step in their rebuilds.
As the draft approaches, we look at each Western Conference team's biggest need heading into the event: