NHL Rumors Update

NHL Rumors Update for 01/04/2019

January 04, 2019

The latest NHL rumors from The Hockey Writers.

 

 01/04/2019 edition:

By Jim Parsons on Jan 04, 2019 12:23 pm

In today’s NHL rumors, the Maple Leafs might be on the hunt for another netminder, the Rangers have some attractive pieces they might make available in trade and there are updates on latest speculation out of Columbus and Colorado.

Maple Leafs Might Be Looking For Goaltending

As per a report by TSN, the Toronto Maple Leafs might be looking for additional help in goal as they are without goaltenders Frederik Andersen and Garret Sparks, the latter of which was just confirmed to have suffered a concussion. The organization traded for Michael Hutchinson but might look to add more. They aren’t quite ready to bring up Kasimir Kaskisuo from the AHL.

Kasimir Kaskisuo was left undrafted during last year’s draft festivities, but the NAHL gave the netminder an avenue to continue playing toward a professional career. (Jordan Hellberg/Minnesota Wilderness)

Babcock said, “We’d like (Kaskisuo) to get playing, we don’t want him to be sitting around. So maybe we’ve got to find another goalie and go from there.”

Rangers Have Some Attractive Trade Assets

Darren Dreger was on NBCSN and was asked about the unrestricted free agents for New York Rangers. Dreger thinks the Rangers will trade Mats Zuccarello before the February 25th trade deadline. Dreger explained the Rangers were upfront with the fanbase saying they’d be moving in a different direction and Zuccarello fits the type of player the organization was talking about moving away from.

“Mats Zuccarello has been an excellent New York Ranger. He’s a quality leader inside that room, on the ice as well. At 31 years of age, he has room left to deliver some pretty good hockey. But not the direction the New York Rangers would be going in to sign him.”

According to Larry Brooks, almost everyone – including Chris Kreider and Mats Zuccarello – could be available for trade this offseason. (Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)

Dreger also said that Rangers forward Kevin Hayes is, no question desireable to many teams but the Rangers haven’t officially decided if they want to trade Hayes. “But it’s all dependent on what is being offered, the interest that’s going to continue to grow in Hayes and other players leading up to the 25th trade deadline.”

Finally, Dreger adds that the Rangers will monitor the interest in Adam McQuaid. He’s a 6’4” player who maybe you don’t need in a playoff run, but some teams will like to have him in the lineup.

Blue Jackets and Panarin

The topic shifted to the Columbus Blue Jackets when speaking with Dreger and the talk surrounded Artemi Panarin. He’s in the final of his deal and while rumors persist he may leave Columbus, Dreger did say, “there’s a mutual sense that they at least want to explore the possibility of extending there.”

Sonny Milano could have a future golden opportunity depending on what happens to Artemi Panarin. (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Dreger then said over the next three weeks to a month, Panarin’s agent will need to meet with his client to explore what it is exactly that Panarin wants to do. There is a strong chance he’ll stay but this guy is a “big money player” so there is some question about whether or not the Blue Jackets will commit to the term and money Panarin will command on the open market.

Dreger said a number of players have learned from what John Tavares went through this past summer and may emulate that sort of situation this offseason. Panarin could be one of those guys. One thing Dreger doesn’t think will happen is a trade out of Columbus before the deadline.

Avalanche to Explore Market for Depth Scoring?

The Hockey News wrote a piece looking at the top line, but lack of depth behind that line in Colorado where the Avalanche are 2-5-3 in their last 10 games. He suggests it’s time to consider making some noise in the trade market. Jared Clinton wonders if it’s time to shop goaltender Semyon Varlamov or listen to offers on blueliner Nikita Zadorov or free agent defenseman Patrick Nemeth.

The reality, however, is that perhaps none of these players fetch the Avs what they really need and that the only way to grab that immediate scoring help they’re looking for is to make available their first-overall pick, of which they have two.

By Jim Parsons on Jan 03, 2019 03:17 pm

In today’s rumor rundown there are updates in Dallas surrounding the team and the comments made by Jim Lites towards Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, there is news out of Calgary as it pertains to Michael Frolik, and there are a number of updates on other teams including the Edmonton Oilers who won a game in Arizona on Wednesday but  still have a ton of holes the organization needs to fill.

Clearing the Air in Dallas?

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported that Dallas Stars owner Tom Gaglardi met with Jamie Benn on Monday and was to meet with Tyler Seguin quickly following that Benn meeting to try and clear the air regarding the comments made by Stars CEO Jim Lites.  It was expected Gaglardi’s message was that things went too far and things got too personal.

Dallas Stars Jamie Benn is congratulated by teammate Tyler Seguin (AP Photo/LM Otero)

I spoke with Sean Shapiro of the Athletic on Thursday morning as part of The Hockey Writers Podcast and Shapiro was curious about how much of a risk it was to take this approach and that the Stars took a huge risk when they came out so publicly, specifically when it comes to Jamie Benn who may not take as kindly to the message and the way it was delivered.

As a team coming into a city that hasn’t talked directly to Benn or Seguin about this story, opposing team reporters will want both players to answer questions about the story and that’s not a distraction the team needs at this point.

A Calgary Flames Update

After it was somewhat shocking that agent Allen Walsh took a shot at the Flames organization for their treatment of Michael Frolik, Friedman also reported the Calgary Flames, GM Brad Treliving, and Michael Frolik all knew Walsh was going to send out the tweet that caught everyone’s attention, as Walsh always consults the player or talks to the team first. At the end of the day, the Flames won’t trade Frolik unless it improves the team or the Flames can acquire a left-handed defenseman.

Michael Frolik Calgary Flames (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Other Friedman Hits From 31 Thoughts:

  • The Vancouver Canucks are shopping Nikolay Goldobin.

  • The New York Rangers will be sellers at the deadline but not likely before it.

  • The Ottawa Senators will wait on pending UFAs Matt Duchene and Mark Stone but have talked with pending UFA Ryan Dzingel.

  • The Carolina Hurricanes are negotiating with Micheal Ferland but if they don’t work out a deal he’ll likely be traded.

  • There are no ongoing talks between the St. Louis Blues and pending free agent defenseman Joel Edmundson.

  • There may be no news on Islanders pending UFAs in Brock Nelson, Anders Lee, Jordan Eberle, Valtteri Filppula, and Robin Lehner.

Edmonton Still Looking to Fill Holes

Darren Dreger was on NBCSN and discussed the depth the team added on the blueline and how it cost the Oilers a top-nine forward to add that depth. Dreger said that the Oilers aren’t probably done making moves and that there are too many holes to fill and perhaps not enough assets on the team to acquire them.

Dreger explained, “The issue in Edmonton though is that there are too many holes in the ship and Chiarelli can’t plug them all. When he held his media conference after making these two deals, I mean, he looked haggard. He looked tired… he can’t fix everything.”

Jesse Puljujarvi (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Dreger adds that half of their forwards are not contributing players. If they don’t make the playoffs, management changes could be coming. If the Oilers find themselves out of the playoffs, fans should expect some other bigger moves.

Blackhawks to Keep Dealing

A recent article by Jimmy Greenfield on the Chicago Tribune speculated the Blackhawks might keep dealing. Stan Bowman already shipped Nick Schmaltz to the Arizona Coyotes and on Sunday traded defenseman Brandon Manning to the Edmonton Oilers.

Greenfield writes:

Are there more big deals to be made? If so, it would likely include Brandon Saad or Artem Anisimov. Saad doesn’t have a no-trade clause and Anisimov can be dealt to 10 teams from a list he submitted to the Hawks.

source – ‘5 questions the Blackhawks need to answer in the second half’ – Jimmy Greenfield – Chicago Tribune – 01/02/2019

Chicago should be a team to watch as the NHL moves closer to the trade deadline.

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