The Borrowed Stars: Players who returned to former teams after deadline trades

Feb 26, 2026, 14:32 ESTUpdated: Feb 26, 2026, 15:09 EST

The Borrowed Stars: Players who returned to former teams after deadline trades

Credit: USPRESSWIRE

When an NHL player is traded, it doesn’t always mean goodbye forever. Sometimes, it’s just so long … for now.

It’s not at all uncommon for players to return to their former teams, with Wendel Clark, Luc Robitaille, and Teemu Selanne at the forefront of that particular trend in the 1990s and 2000s. NHL players crave security and familiarity, and unless they leave a team on especially bad terms, why wouldn’t they go back if given the chance?

Of course, it isn’t always that simple. The salary cap has made it more difficult for players to call their own shots. Plus, if a team is trading away a good player, there’s usually a reason for it — and it means they probably wouldn’t be in the market to bring that player back right away.

But sometimes, that player does come back right away. Even since the salary cap was implemented in 2005, there have been more than a dozen instances of notable players being traded away before the deadline only to return to their previous team the following summer. It happens more often than you might think, and sometimes, it really works out for both parties.

These players are a cut above your typical Trade Deadline rental. Here’s a look back at the NHL’s Borrowed Stars.

Nick Bjugstad, 2023: Coyotes – Oilers – Coyotes

Get ready to see a lot of Arizona Coyotes players on this list.

It’s easy to forget now, but Nick Bjugstad had a nice little run of things with the Coyotes a couple of seasons ago. The 6’6″ center helped form a very strong secondary scoring line with Lawson Crouse and Matias Maccelli over his two seasons in the Arizona desert and remained with the club through its transition to Utah. All told, he did a great job as an elder statesman on a rebuilding team.

But in the middle of all that, the Coyotes traded Bjugstad to the Edmonton Oilers at the 2023 deadline in exchange for a third-round pick … plus a little-known defense prospect named Michael Kesselring, who ended up turning into a legit player with the Coyotes before being used to help the Utah Mammoth acquire JJ Peterka from the Buffalo Sabres. Talk about found money.

For his part, Bjugstad skated in 31 games with the Oilers that spring, helping them reach the second round of the 2023 playoffs, before returning to Arizona on a two-year deal on July 1. And he wasn’t even the only Coyote to follow the path to Alberta and back in 2023; Troy Stecher came back to Arizona in free agency that same day after a 20-game stint with the Calgary Flames.

Patrick Marleau, 2020: Sharks – Penguins – Sharks

The NHL’s all-time games played leader actually had three separate stints with the San Jose Sharks during his 23-year career. After being drafted with the No. 2 overall pick in 1997, Patrick Marleau began his career with 19 seasons in San Jose before signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2017; then, after being traded to the Carolina Hurricanes and bought out in 2019, he returned to San Jose on a one-year deal at age 40.

Spending two seasons away is not enough to be considered a “Borrowed Star” — but what happened with Marleau in the 2019-20 season certainly qualifies. Faced with the prospect of missing the playoffs for only the second time since 2003, the Sharks traded Marleau to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a third-round pick. If you’re struggling to remember that this happened at all, you’re not alone. Marleau scored a goal and an assist in eight games with the Penguins before the season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, after which he played in four playoff games with the club in the bubble and did not record a point.

Was Marleau really a “star” at this point? No, not really, and neither was Tomas Plekanec when he was similarly “borrowed” by the Toronto Maple Leafs two years earlier. But Marleau did go back to San Jose the following year to conclude his successful run at the games played record, which remains a considerable feat, so he keeps his spot on this list.

Roman Polak, 2016: Maple Leafs – Sharks – Maple Leafs

Roman Polak is best known for his long tenure with the St. Louis Blues to begin his NHL career, but that’s irrelevant to his status as a “Borrowed Star.” No … today, we’ll be talking about his illustrious stints as a member of the lowly Maple Leafs, along with his brief interlude with the Sharks during their heyday.

The rugged right-hander first became a member of the Leafs in 2014, just in time for them to bottom out and select Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews in the first round of consecutive drafts. While Polak did his best, there certainly wasn’t much Polak could do on such an undermanned Leafs club. And with his contract set to expire at the conclusion of the 2015-16 season, the Leafs traded him to the Sharks alongside Nick Spaling in exchange for two second-round picks (!), as well as the rights to almost-retired agitator Raffi Torres.

Polak played in 24 games with the Sharks to conclude the season and skated in 24 more during the playoffs, primarily on the third pairing with Brenden Dillon, as San Jose mounted a long-awaited run to the Stanley Cup Final. But the Sharks opted not to keep Polak after their loss to the Penguins, allowing the Czech rearguard to return to the Leafs for two more seasons — and this time, he actually got to play with Matthews and Marner.

Antoine Vermette, 2015: Coyotes – Blackhawks – Coyotes

Considering how many NHL players spent multiple stints in the desert during their careers — Bjugstad, Antoine Vermette, Radim Vrbata, Matt Lombardi, Daymond Langkow, Derek Morris, and Jeremy Roenick, to name a few — it should come as little surprise that Phoenix is frequently cited as a city to which they would like the league to return. With the right ownership and infrastructure in place, there’s no reason why it wouldn’t be a hockey hotbed to rival Vegas and Dallas.

Alas. In the midst of their fruitless bid for Connor McDavid in the 2014-15 season, the Coyotes had some selling to do, and Vermette was the biggest prize of all. With deep playoff runs already under his belt with the 2012 Coyotes and 2007 Ottawa Senators, as well as his strong acumen as a two-way forward and faceoff specialist, Vermette was widely seen as a top trade target. The Chicago Blackhawks ultimately traded a first-round pick and defenseman Klas Dahlbeck to acquire Vermette, and he helped them win the Stanley Cup later that year. Worth it!

After that, Vermette signed back with the Coyotes for the 2015-16 season. He finished his career in 2019 with 228 goals and 515 points in 1,046 games with the Senators, Coyotes, Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Anaheim Ducks.

Zbynek Michalek, 2015: Coyotes – Blues – Coyotes

That’s right — another Coyote. The same year Arizona traded Vermette to Chicago, they also flipped Zbynek Michalek to the Blues. Michalek actually played three stints in Arizona during his career (2005 to 2010, 2012 to 2015, 2015 to 2017), with his brief tenure in St. Louis coming between the second and third.

An undrafted player, Michalek made his NHL debut with the Minnesota Wild in the 2003-04 season before beginning a five-year run with the Coyotes immediately after the lockout. After helping Phoenix reach the playoffs in 2010, Michalek signed a five-year deal with the Penguins as a free agent, but he was traded back to the Coyotes prior to the 2012-13 season. Then, nearly three years later, the Coyotes sent Michalek to the Blues in exchange for prospect Maxim Letunov.

At his peak, Michalek was one of the better shutdown defenders in the NHL. He excelled at blocking shots and killing plays along the boards. (Conversely, his brother, Milan, was a high-scoring winger). But when the Coyotes brought Michalek back from the Blues as a free agent in 2015, he was at the end of his rope, and he played in 73 more NHL games over parts of two seasons with the club before returning to his native Czechia.

Matt Moulson, 2014: Sabres – Wild – Sabres

One of many otherwise unassuming wingers catapulted into stardom by playing with John Tavares on Long Island, Matt Moulson scored 30 goals in three consecutive seasons with the New York Islanders before being traded to the Buffalo Sabres midway through the 2013-14 season as part of the package for Thomas Vanek.

Now, here’s where things get funky. As you may remember, Vanek ended up being traded a second time that season — to the Montreal Canadiens — after failing to come to terms on a new contract with the Islanders. But the exact same thing happened with Moulson, who played in just 44 games with the Sabres that year before being flipped to the Wild, alongside Cody McCormick, at the 2014 trade deadline.

But Moulson didn’t return to the Wild, and neither did McCormick. In fact, both players ended up going back to the Sabres as unrestricted free agents on July 1, and they both finished their NHL careers there. But why didn’t they stay in Minnesota? Well, because the Wild had already used up all their cap space … to sign Vanek. Go figure.

Joe Corvo, 2010: Hurricanes – Capitals – Hurricanes

During Jim Rutherford’s tenure as general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, he absolutely loved to trade, acquire, and re-acquire players, and few players embodied that tendency quite like Joe Corvo. The Oak Park, Ill., product had three separate stints with the Hurricanes during his career, most notably helping the club reach the Eastern Conference Final in 2009.

Corvo first arrived in Carolina midway through the 2007-08 season, less than a year removed from helping the Senators reach the 2007 Stanley Cup Final. The 6’1″ right-handed defender had some of his best offensive seasons with the Hurricanes, tying a career high with 14 goals in 2008-09, but was flipped to the Washington Capitals late in the 2009-10 campaign amidst a decline in team and individual success.

But Rutherford wasn’t done with Corvo — far from it. He signed him right back for the 2010-11 season, and Corvo responded by hitting the 40-point mark for the second time in his career. Then, after trading Corvo to the Boston Bruins for the 2011-12 season, Rutherford signed him again for the 2012-13 season. Talk about a yo-yo! (Tim Gleason would later bounce between the Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, and Capitals in similar fashion).

Olli Jokinen, 2010: Flames – Rangers – Flames

We’re finally getting into the heavy hitters now. By the time he first got to the Calgary Flames midway through the 2008-09 season, Olli Jokinen had lost a step from his 90-point years with the Florida Panthers, but he was certainly still a top-six center who made his linemates better. Jokinen suited up for 10 different NHL teams during his career, but he played his only six Stanley Cup Playoff games as a member of the Flames in 2009.

Jokinen began the 2009-10 season as a member of the Flames but struggled to find the scoresheet on a consistent basis. With his contract set to expire and the Flames languishing in no-man’s land, having already given up their 2010 first-rounder to get Jokinen in the first place, the team traded the veteran center to the New York Rangers alongside Brandon Prust in exchange for Chris Higgins and Ales Kotalik.

The trade ended up being a loss for virtually everyone. Higgins did next to nothing in Calgary, while the Flames eventually had to pay to get rid of Kotalik. Meanwhile, Jokinen scored 15 points in 26 games with the Rangers to finish the season but memorably failed to score in a Game 82 shootout to decide the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Rangers lost that game and had to watch as the Philadelphia Flyers, who won, made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final.

The Rangers opted not to re-sign Jokinen, who instead returned to the Flames on a two-year deal. Fittingly, Jokinen is the only player on this entire list whose team did not make the playoffs during his stint as a “Borrowed Star.”

Vinny Prospal, 2008: Lighting – Flyers – Lightning

If you thought Jokinen’s luck was bad, get this: Vaclav “Vinny” Prospal spent virtually all of the 2000s with the Tampa Bay Lightning and ranked among the team’s scoring leaders pretty much every single year, but while he scored 79 points with the Bolts in 2002-03 and hit the 80-point mark with them in 2005-06, he managed just 54 in 2003-04 … and missed the playoffs entirely as a member of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

Prospal had three separate tenures with the Lightning between 2001 and 2009 and still somehow missed out on their Stanley Cup win in 2004. He couldn’t have done it with more precision if he tried. Nevertheless, the Czech forward doesn’t get enough recognition as one of the most consistent scorers of that era, with 765 points in 1,108 career games split between seven different teams.

While his unfortunate year in Anaheim is a worthwhile discussion topic, Prospal actually gained his “Borrowed Star” status by way of his second stint with the Flyers in the 2007-08 season. The veteran winger had begun his NHL career with the Flyers back in 1996 and returned to Philadelphia at the 2008 trade deadline in exchange for Alexandre Picard and a second-round pick. Prospal scored 13 points in 17 playoff games that spring as the Flyers reached the Eastern Conference Final; after that, he went back to the Lightning on a four-year deal to play alongside top draft pick Steven Stamkos. Unfortunately, the Bolts bought out the final three years of Prospal’s contract after the 2008-09 season.

Keith Tkachuk, 2007: Blues – Thrashers – Blues

Did you know that Keith Tkachuk played for the Atlanta Thrashers? It’s true, it happened, and they even made the playoffs with him, although they didn’t win a single game once they got there.

Let’s wind it back a little bit. Big Walt started his career with the Winnipeg Jets and Phoenix Coyotes, putting up 50-goal seasons both before and after their relocation in 1996. But while the Coyotes were a perennial playoff team in the late 1990s and early 2000s, they could never get out of the first round. The Blues could, so they acquired Tkachuk from the ‘Yotes in 2001 and immediately made it to the Western Conference Final.

In St. Louis, Tkachuk raised his kids (you might’ve heard of them) and put down roots. But the Blues became less and less competitive during his tenure and fell out of the playoff race entirely after the lockout, leading Tkachuk to contemplate other options. And in 2007, the Thrashers were absolutely in the mix. They won the Southwest Division with 97 points, enough to lock down the No. 3 seed in the East. They had Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa, and Slava Kozlov up front, Kari Lehtonen in goal, Bob Hartley behind the bench, and, uh, Greg de Vries and Niclas Havelid on defense. They were set!

On top of Tkachuk, Thrashers GM Don Waddell went out and acquired Alexei Zhitnik, Eric Belanger, and Pascal Dupuis to prepare for what would end up being the only playoff appearance in club history. So, how’d it go? Well, Tkachuk scored seven goals and 15 points in 18 games to conclude the season, and then he added three points in four playoff games. Why just four? Because the Thrashers were swept by the Rangers, prompting Tkachuk to sign right back with St. Louis the following summer — which may have been his plan all along.

Doug Weight and Mark Recchi, 2006: Blues – Hurricanes – Blues, Penguins – Hurricanes – Penguins

Let’s wrap this up with a two-fer, and arguably the most successful example of a team borrowing a couple stars for a Cup run.

Doug Weight spent most of the 2000s playing alongside Tkachuk with the Blues. Weight had narrowly missed out on winning the Stanley Cup with the Rangers in 1994, having been traded to the Oilers the year before in exchange for Esa Tikkanen, and had never come particularly close during his time in Edmonton or St. Louis. So, with his contract nearing its conclusion in the 2005-06 season, Weight waived his no-trade clause and was sent to the Hurricanes in January.

Not bad, right? But the Canes weren’t done. Mark Recchi, AKA one of the kings of second (and third) tenures with the same teams, had signed a two-year deal with the Penguins prior to the lockout and ended up as a pending UFA for Sidney Crosby’s rookie season in 2005-06. Recchi had already won the Cup with the Penguins all the way back in 1991, although he’d also played with the Flyers, Canadiens, and the Flyers again in the years since. Of course, the 2006 Penguins were awful, and Recchi also consented to waive his no-trade clause to facilitate a move to Carolina.

It all worked out spectacularly well. Weight and Recchi scored 16 playoff points apiece as the Hurricanes vanquished the Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, Sabres, and Oilers in order to win their first and only championship. And after that, everybody went right back to doing what they were doing. Weight returned to the Blues; Recchi went back to the Penguins, and he even ended up winning the Cup again with the 2011 Bruins at age 43. And, eventually, the Blues and Penguins both won championships of their own.

Let this stand as a reminder to all the selling teams out there that might be worried about parting with the leaders in their dressing room — if they’re truly destined to lead your group, they’ll find their way back.

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