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NHL Rumors Update
NHL Rumors Update for 11/13/2019
The latest NHL rumors from The Hockey Writers.
11/13/2019 edition:
By Jim Parsons on Nov 12, 2019 12:05 pm
In today’s NHL rumor rundown, there is finally a decision on Jesse Puljujarvi, the Toronto Maple Leafs are looking at possible options for the backup goaltender position, and are the New York Rangers considering trading one of their prospects? Finally, how long are the Dallas Stars willing to wait to get production from their two highest-paid forwards?
Puljujarvi Staying in Finland
According to Sami Hoffren of Ilta-Sanomat, he has been told that Jesse Puljujarvi will be staying in Finland for the rest of the season. While there was some speculation Puljujarvi might return to the NHL before the December 1, 2019 deadline, his success in Finland and comfort with Karpat make it sound like he’s not coming back, regardless of which NHL that owns his rights.
This news changes things as far as any trade would be concerned. The Edmonton Oilers could still move him, but no team will pay full value for Puljujarvi knowing he’s not likely to return.
For now, expect the story on Puljujarvi to disappear this season and for the Oilers to re-look at this situation next summer. Their best hope is that he continues to put up big numbers and a team shows interest after the season ends.
Maple Leafs Backup Goaltending
After the Toronto Maple Leafs placed goaltender Michael Hutchinson on waivers, they’ve called up Kasimir Kaskisuo from the Toronto Marlies. The hope is that he can step in and adequately fill the backup position.
There is some uncertainty around how well he’ll perform considering he’s not played an NHL game over his four-year career. As such, there are rumors the Maple Leafs had actually reached out to former NHL goalie Scott Darling.
NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that the Leafs “reached out” to Darling, only Darling wound up in Austria. It will be interesting to see if there’s any more news to come out of this situation should Kaskisuo struggle. Considering how poorly Darling played in Carolina before he left the NHL, he hardly seems like the solution.
Related: Five 90s NHL Jerseys Gone Too Soon
Rangers to Trade Lias Andersson?
Former seventh-overall pick in 2017, Lias Andersson may find himself on the way out of New York. He’s been up with the big club in the NHL all season but his playing time has dropped to just 9:54 per game so far in 2019-20. Larry Brooks of the New York Post believes the writing is on the wall for Andersson to be traded.
At 21-years-old, Andersson should still have a lot to offer an NHL team but if he keeps struggling with the Rangers, his value may drop and the Rangers don’t appear keen to send him to their AHL Hartford affiliate. Brooks believes if they don’t think he’s part of their long-term core, they can salvage something out of his age and draft pedigree.
Stars Disappointed in Seguin and Benn
The drama that surrounded the Dallas Stars’ Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin last season doesn’t seem to be going away. This season, they’ve been held scoreless in 14 of the last 18 games and their coach is calling them out.
When Jim Montgomery was asked if he was disappointed with the scoring of the top players, he responded, “Very disappointed.” When asked if he was seeing progress, he responded, “No. Are you?”
As Matthew DeFranks of the Dallas Morning News writes:
On many levels, it’s paramount that Benn and Seguin begin producing. In the long term, they are the pieces with the most money invested in them, with ironclad no movement clauses that tie them to Dallas, in part responsible for the Stars operating at the salary cap. In the short term, the Stars are without Hintz (for at least a week longer) and John Klingberg (for between one to three more weeks), engines for their offense at their best.
Perhaps most concerning is that Benn doesn’t seem to be bothered by his lack of production. When asked if he was frustrated with his personal scoring drought, he paused for eight seconds and said “No, not really, actually.”
Who Will Replace Don Cherry?
And, of course, the latest news out of the Don Cherry saga is that the long-time Hockey Night in Canada personality has been removed from his position with Sportsnet. Who will replace him on Saturday’s broadcast? Or, will Sportsnet even have a Coach’s Corner segment? That remains to be seen.
Early speculation seems to be moving Elliotte Friedman and Chris Johnston into a new segment while others are calling for Brian Burke to play some sort of role.
The post NHL Rumors: Oilers, Maple Leafs, Rangers, Stars, More appeared first on The Hockey Writers.
By Jim Parsons on Nov 11, 2019 12:25 pm
In today’s NHL rumors, there is an update on the severity of Mitch Marner’s injury, the Buffalo Sabres may be forced to make a trade earlier than they might have liked and defensemen Torey Krug went down with a mysterious injury on Sunday; how long will he be out?
Marner to Miss a Month
The Toronto Maple Leafs announced via Twitter that Mitch Marner will miss a minimum of one month due to the ankle injury he suffered earlier this week. He will be re-evaluated by the team in a month’s time and likely placed on LTIR until then.
This is not good news for the Maple Leafs who were hoping to see what a fully-healthy lineup would look like when Zach Hyman was placed back into the mix. For now, it does mean the Maple Leafs won’t need to make a quick roster move to open up space.
Related: Worst Toronto Maple Leafs Trades
Sabres May Not Be Able to Wait
There have been rumors surrounding the Buffalo Sabres that they may have to trade one of their defensemen for forward help. Speculation was they’d wait until Zach Bogosian and Marco Scandella returned injuries but Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News suggests the Sabres may not be able to wait.
Sabres GM Jason Botterill is watching as the team struggles to score, reaching three goals in a game just once in their last seven. They’ve also dropped in the standings after leading the NHL at one point. With a stretch of 10 games in 17 days coming up, talk around the team is growing.
Harrington writes:
It’s a brutal schedule largely caused by the time it takes to get to and from Sweden and get used to the time change. General Manager Jason Botterill probably doesn’t want to risk suddenly getting thin on defense with that kind of schedule by making a trade.
He might have no choice. It doesn’t seem like he can wait until the trade deadline in February. It seems like a big move needs to happen.
Related: Buffalo Sabres Jersey History
Torey Krug Injured?
In last night’s Boston Bruins vs the Philadelphia Flyers game, Torey Krug wasn’t on the bench as the game wound down in overtime and the shootout. It was unclear as to where he was. News after the game and on Monday is that Krug has suffered an injury.
It is unclear as to how severe the injury is or where it happened, only that its an upper body injury. The Bruins have called up Urho Vaakanainen on an emergency basis this morning, which leads to speculation it can’t be good news for Krug front.
Don’t Expect Apology From Don Cherry
After Don Cherry made comments about the wearing of poppies on Saturday’s broadcast, making what many deem to be discriminatory remarks, Sportsnet has issued an apology and his partner during Coach’s Corner, Ron Maclean, has as well. Don’t expect an apology from Cherry.
Cherry, 85, has been dragged through the mud on social media since Saturday but it doesn’t appear that will change his stance. “I have had my say,” he told the Toronto Sun on Sunday.
Joe Warmington writes:
He doesn’t care if you are new to the country or born here, he just doesn’t want people to forget the safe and prosperous lifestyle enjoy here thanks to those who fought or died in war.
“It seems to have upset people,” Cherry said.
“Like I said, Joe, you can put in that I said my piece and I will leave it there.”
The post NHL Rumors: Maple Leafs, Sabres, Bruins, More appeared first on The Hockey Writers.
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