NHL Rumors Update

NHL Rumors Update for 08/12/2020

August 12, 2020

The latest NHL rumors from The Hockey Writers.

 

 08/12/2020 edition:

By Jim Parsons on Aug 11, 2020 01:05 pm

In today’s NHL rumor rundown, there is an update on the severity of Mark Scheifele’s injury and how long he’ll be out of action. In Toronto, there is a lot of talk surrounding Mitch Marner and a possible trade. In Edmonton, the status of Tyler Ennis is updated, and in Minnesota, The Wild are looking to make big changes.

Wild Plans to Improve

General manager of the Minnesota Wild Bill Guerin told reporters, including Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press, that he has specific things he’ll be trying to improve for the team this offseason.

Guerin said the goaltending was a disappointment and needs to be better. He said:

“If I have an opportunity to make it better, I will. I’m also confident if those guys come back that they’re gonna be battling for a spot, and we’ve got Kaapo Kahkonen pushing them. It just has to be better, flat-out. I can’t promise anybody a spot.”

source – ‘Wild GM Bill Guerin ready for busy offseason: ‘There definitely have to be changes’‘ – Dave Mizutani – Twin Cities – 08/10/2020

He also said the team will try to address their need to land a No. 1 center. He explained:

Teams don’t trade number one centers. They just don’t. Usually, it’s got to be done in the free agent market or through the draft. It’s a position that I think this organization has needed for quite some time. We are going to try to address it.

Jets’ Scheifele Will Not Require Surgery

Winnipeg Jets’ forward Mark Sccheifele spoke with reporters including Murat Ates of The Athletic and admitted he initially thought he tore his Achilles tendon. If so, that would have included surgery and a six-month recovery.

Fortunately, Scheifele says he was “very, very lucky” and will not require surgery at all. In fact, he told Ates that he’s going to be “back to 100% in the near future.” This is great news for the Jets who struggled with Scheifele out of the line up during their series against the Calgary Flames.

Maple Leafs to Consider Mitch Marner Trade?

No doubt, general manager Kyle Dubas will have a lot to contemplate as he finds ways to improve his team for next season. Among the bigger decisions is whether or not to move one of his big four at forward. The most likely named over the past 24 hours has been Mitch Marner.

During Monday’s Writers Bloc show on FAN590, Elliotte Freidman hinted that Marner could get moved to improve the blue line but also thinks Marner along wouldn’t be enough to grab the piece Toronto needs. He specifically said he doubts they can get a defenseman of Seth Jones’ caliber by dealing Marner alone, they need to include a pick.

Toronto Stars’ Dave Feschuk also wondered what Dubas has in store for the Leafs. He notes that fans and pundits are calling for a trade but wonders if Dubas could stubbornly stick to his plan.

Feschuk writes:

Or the Leafs should trade Mitch Marner, because he’s produced precisely one five-on-five point in his past 12 playoff contests, and because if general manager Kyle Dubas is going to do something about a defensive corps that’s clearly lacking, moving Marner’s $10.9-million (U.S.) cap hit would go some distance in providing the headroom to add quality blue-line help.

source – ‘The Leafs might make the smart play and fix their defence. But first they have to admit the process failed’ – Dave Feschuk – The Star – 08/10/2020

Ennis Suffered Broken Leg

As more injury information gets revealed by the teams who are officially out of the running, in Edmonton, it has been revealed that forward Tyler Ennis suffered a broken leg.

Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal broke the news and it will be interesting to see if his injury affects his status as a UFA. The Oilers are said to be interested in re-signing Ennis for a contract under $1.5-million.

The Oilers early exit is also leading to speculation that the coiuld undergo changes, especially on the blue line where the Oilers were not good against the Blackhawks.

By Jim Parsons on Aug 10, 2020 01:10 pm

In today’s NHL rumor rundown, there is good news for Vegas Golden Knights fans as they’ll be getting a key forward back for their series against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Florida Panthers have officially parted ways with Dale Tallon, and there are questions in Toronto about whether or not this is the right offseason to break up the fabulous four.

Panthers Fire Dale Tallon

There were rumors last week after the Florida Panthers were eliminated from the play-ins that Dale Tallon would be parting the organization. That was made official on Monday.

The Panthers have officially announced that a search for their next GM has begun and in a statement by owner Vinnie Viola, the team said goodbye to Tallon. He said:

For the last decade, Dale raised the team’s profile, attracted key players to South Florida and brought character and class to our franchise. When we purchased the Panthers in 2013, we did so with a singular goal–to win a Stanley Cup. We have not seen our efforts come to fruition. We will now begin an organizational search for the next general manager.

Pacioretty Ready to Join Golden Knights

According to Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen, Vegas Golden Knights head coach Pete DeBoer revealed that forward Max Pacioretty has arrived “in the bubble,” (out of quarantine) and is expected to be ready to play for Game 1 of their playoff series against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Pacioretty missed the round-robin series due to an undisclosed injury, but has officially tested negative through four tests which will allow him to practice with the team today. It will be a key addition for the Golden Knights as he scored 32 goals and 66 points in 71 games this season.

It is presumed he will jump back up on the top line.

Suter Reveals Injury

Minnesota Wild defenseman Ryan Suter revealed to The Athletic’s Michael Russo the extent of the injuries that kept him out of the lineup against the Vancouver Canucks. Now that the team is out of the play-ins, he could share that he injured his right foot during Game 3.

Unfortunately, this is the same foot he had operated on back in 2018 when he broke his ankle. The good news is, Suter said he should be fine and is going to the doctor tomorrow to get it checked further.

In other Wild news, Russo also noted that Mikko Koivu is not ready to make a decision on his NHL future yet. Russo quotes Koivu who said:

“I need to be real careful, especially with that game and what do I want with the future and then go from there,” said Koivu, via The Athletic’s Jessi Pierce. “It’s such a big decision, there’s no way I’m ready to do that right now.”

Should Maple Leafs Break Up Big Four?

Now that the Toronto Maple Leafs are officially out of the postseason, the questions about whether or not the team should break up the big four — John Tavares, Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander — will begin.

Elliotte Friedman said on Sportsnet: “I do believe in a perfect world Kyle Dubas would give his big 4 one more year…this has been a bit of a strange finish, I think that’s what he would like to do.” That said, he did add that there are major concerns that the team only score three 5v5 goals the entire series. “There’s going to have to be a long conversation whether that still is the plan,” he said.

Chris Johnston of Sportsnet noted that it might be a little early to make such a big decision given the playoff scenario with the pandemic, but there is also a thought within the organization that it may be riskier to do nothing. The team is already going to be making some tough choices with a tight salary cap and perhaps it’s time to make major changes.

Should the Maple Leafs win the draft lottery tonight, that will change everything in terms of the feeling inside the organization to keep their top four offensive weapons in tact.

Bob McKenzie Says Goodbye

TSN Insider Bob McKenzie posted a note on Twitter today thanking fans and saying he’ll be leaving his regular role with the network. He plans to start his semi-retirement after the draft lottery on Monday and will be limited in his role with TSN moving forward.

In part of his statement he wrote:

“This isn’t goodbye as much as it is, see you later. As reported earlier, I have a new five-year contract with TSN. I’ll still be kicking around some but not nearly as much.”

McKenzie was one of the best insiders in the business. A well-respected source for information, he’ll be missed. That he’ll still be offering draft rankings and doing big TSN events is a relief for many.

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