- Morning Skate
- Posts
- NHL Rumors Update
NHL Rumors Update
NHL Rumors Update for 09/09/2019
The latest NHL rumors from The Hockey Writers.
09/09/2019 edition:
By Jim Parsons on Sep 08, 2019 03:25 pm
In today’s NHL rumor rundown, there seems to be a reason the Nashville Predators haven’t locked up defenseman Roman Josi yet, NHL insiders note why other teams are upset with the Toronto Maple Leafs and there is an update on Connor McDavid with video as to how he’s progressing.
Predators Waiting for the RFA Market
The Athletic’s Adam Vingan writes that fans in Nashville can blame the restricted free agent market as the reason why the Nashville Predators haven’t locked up defenseman Roman Josi.
Nashville doesn’t currently have any restricted free agents that require attention, but there is thought that with so many RFA’s on the NHL market, teams that don’t have their own contracts are in a holding pattern as well.
Vingan writes:
The reason for the disparity, according to one NHL agent, is the ongoing stalemate between big-name restricted free agents and their respective teams. The Predators, though not involved, are still affected because of the inability to forecast their salary cap situation, which is among the tightest in the league.
… The trickle-down effect, by not having these RFAs signed who are going to command significant dollars, is that you don’t have any movement in the marketplace.
On defense, where the Predators need to get a read on the marketplace, names like Charlie McAvoy, Ivan Provorov and Zach Werenski could affect the numbers offered to Josi.
Josi has expressed a desire to remain in Nashville but it’s hard to blame him for wanting to see what the numbers look like before agreeing to a lesser contract than he’s worth.
Related: Ranking NHL Teams By Defencemen
Blues Looking for Maroon Replacement
St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Jim Thomas writes that with Pat Maroon now gone and in Tampa Bay, the St. Louis Blues need to find a replacement in the bottom-six. Thomas believes that the player could be Mackenzie MacEachern.
Thomas writes:
MacEachern was a forgotten man down the stretch. He was a healthy scratch in the last 10 regular-season games as well as all 26 playoff games. But he has some size to him (6-3, 197) and isn’t afraid to hit somebody.
Thomas notes that MacEachern hasn’t been much of an offensive threat, whereas Maroon had the ability to contribute, but once in awhile MacEachern will surprise.
Maple Leafs and Marner Update
As part of the recent Maple Leafs Hot Stove, Elliotte Friedman said on Sportsnet 960 that there is a three-year contract offer on the table for Mitch Marner.
Friedman explained that three-year numbers will be high for current RFA’s and the issue for teams is that the player will walk right into a $10 million qualifying offer and then unrestricted free agency which teams are hesitant about. Toronto is not unwilling and they set a precedent for making new contract structures when they gave Auston Matthews five years. Not everyone loves the Maple Leafs because of this.
Pierre LeBrun on TSN 1050 had already commented on the idea of term versus money and how it’s holding up a deal. He said it’s easy to understand why teams are upset with the Maple Leafs but that no team has worked harder to get their guy signed.
LeBrun explained:
“80% of are hung up on term… If you want to talk about why teams are mad at Toronto, they hate the five-year precedent. They either want to go long or short, but not five.
I think the Marner one is not on term. The two sides have talked about all kinds of different years and both sides would do a three-year deal. But we know why they haven’t signed: They can’t agree on money.”
McDavid Skating, Looking Good
TSN’s Ryan Rishaug posted a number of videos showing footage of McDavid on the ice with the Edmonton Oilers and fans in Edmonton are excited to see how good McDavid looks.
Flying around, taking some bumps and pushing the injury a bit, McDavid says he feels good and needs to test the limits. So far, he’s had no ill effects and said, “It feels like nothing’s changed. I didn’t want to push it too hard but you have to push it hard enough to ensure that it’s healing.”
He said he’s hoping he’ll be in the lineup opening night.
The post NHL Rumors: Predators, Blues, Maple Leafs, Oilers, More appeared first on The Hockey Writers.
By Jim Parsons on Sep 07, 2019 01:10 pm
In today’s NHL rumor rundown there is news the Carolina Hurricanes might look to trade a defenseman after signing one on Friday, Vancouver’s starting goaltender is being patient, the Boston Bruins aren’t ready to dump a quality player to make salary cap room and the Montreal Canadiens will not be considering a return for a former defenseman.
Faulk On the Trade Block?
Luke DeCock of the News Observer is reporting that GM of the Carolina Hurricanes, Don Waddell, is saying that the signing of Jake Gardiner on Friday now gives his team some flexibility on the blue line. This is leading to further speculation Justin Faulk might be traded out of Carolina.
DeCock writes:
The “flexibility” Waddell mentioned is critical because Faulk is entering the final year of his contract, and with five defensemen capable of playing on the top two pairings, the Hurricanes now have the security to trade Faulk at will if they can’t re-sign him.
NHL insider Elliotte Friedman added to the speculation when he tweeted, “With CAR’s signing of Jake Gardiner, there is uncertainty about the future of Justin Faulk. Let’s see where this goes.”
Gardiner is not the only reason Faulk is being mentioned in trade rumors. He’s been in the rumor mill for some time. Gardiner’s signing only intensifies the likelihood something might happen.
Markstrom Waiting for Boeser in Vancouver
Rick Dhaliwal of Sportsnet 650 writes that Vancouver Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom is simply waiting for the team to finish negotiations with Brock Boeser before trying to get his deal done.
Markstrom’s agent, Pat Morris, explained:
“When Vancouver wants to talk we are ready, we will explore a deal with them, they are dealing with Boeser right now anyways. Jacob proved he is a #1 goalie last year.”
Markstrom is entering the final season of his deal and the Canucks will need to find a way to keep him in the fold long-term. Right now,Rick Dhaliwal said Morris noted there is no panic to get a deal done and that Markstrom knows he may need to play out the final year of his deal first.
Bruins Not Prepared to Trade Krejci
The Bruins have been in a number of rumor rundown reports because they are actively trying to make room to sign both Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo. The most recent report was that a possible injury to David Backes might help with the cap issues.
If Backes does not miss significant time, the Bruins need to figure out something else.
NBC Sports Boston’s Joe Haggerty posts that one thing they are not prepared to do yet is part with center David Krejci. Moving Krejci would solve a ton of cap issues for the team as he carries a team-high $7.25 million annual average salary.
Boston has strong prospects at center but none of them are ready to step in and play regular NHL shifts. Moving Krejci would be problematic.
Sticking with the Bruins, Matt Porter of the Boston Globe notes that there are rumors Zdeno Chara might not be ready to start the season. Porter writes:
Chara, well-known for his strict training and dietary regimen, said he couldn’t eat normally again until nearly four weeks after the jaw surgery. His typical summer work was postponed by “six, seven weeks, with all the surgeries I had and all the rehab I had to go through,” he said. “I’m still recovering, still working at being full strength.”
If for some reason the Bruins can’t get Brandon Carlo and Charlie McAvoy signed and Chara isn’t ready, the Bruins blue line will struggle out of the gate.
Markov Will Not Return to Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin has officially declared that Andrei Markov will not be coming back to the organization. Bergevin told RDS’ Marc Denis that team is going to give their prospects a shot over a 40-year-old.
This is not terribly surprising but it will make the task of finding NHL employment a bit more challenging for Markov. He recently hired Allan Walsh of Octagon Hockey to take care of contract talks but was still holding out hope Montreal would be the team he landed with.
Related: Ranking NHL Teams By Defencemen
The post NHL Rumors: Hurricanes, Canucks, Bruins, Canadiens, More appeared first on The Hockey Writers.
By Jim Parsons on Sep 06, 2019 12:50 pm
In today’s NHL rumor rundown, there is news out of Boston where the Bruins and defenseman Torey Krug haven’t spoken about an extension, Mikko Rantanen says he won’t play anywhere but the NHL and hopefully the Colorado Avalanche, and the Pittsburgh Penguins likely won’t make a cap-clearing trade as previously rumored.
Krug and Bruins Haven’t Talked Extension
When asked about whether or not Torey Krug has spoken with the Boston Bruins about extending his current contract which ends after this coming season, Krug said talks have been “non-existent”.
Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com quotes Krug, “Nope, nothing. Maybe a little surprise nothing has been talked about, but I realize that our team is in a different situation.”
That different situation is that the Bruins still need to get Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo signed and Krug knows that is the priority right now. “I understand we have two guys who need to be signed, and that can have big effects on our (NHL salary) cap situation moving forward, and our boss has to deal with that,” Krug said.
That doesn’t mean Krug isn’t eager to get some sort of conversation going. He’s even rumored to be willing to take a little less than market value to stay in Boston.
Krug asked and answered his own question on the first day of the NHL/NHLPA preseason media tour when he said he has contemplated taking less as long as the team wants him. He wouldn’t clarify how much less. He explained:
“Of course I wish there was dialogue and some sort of call or something like that. It’s just nonexistent. I’ve put together a resume I’m very comfortable with and happy about. And trust me, I’m not saying I feel disrespected or anything. It’s just part of the situation.”
Rantanen Won’t Sign Overseas
During an interview with Russian outlet Business Online, Colorado Avalanche star Mikko Rantanen said that regardless of his contract situation with the Avs, the NHL is “the only option” for him this season and he won’t be discussing contracts with the KHL or other leagues.
The Colorado Avalanche is just one of many restricted free agent forwards still without an NHL contract and he’s coming off his second consecutive season at more than a point-per-game pace. He certainly has parties interested outside the NHL, but he has no desire to leave.
He stands to become the highest-paid player in Colorado and his not being signed is because the Toronto Maples haven’t set the market with Mitch Marner.
Penguins Won’t Make Big Cap Trade
The Athletic’s Josh Yohe recently spoke with Penguins GM Jim Rutherford who said he’s changed his stance on the urgency to make a big cap-clearing trade. The reason for the trade was that he wanted to was to give Marcus Pettersson a long-term deal.
Rutherford still wants to make a deal but said:
“You can’t make a trade when you can’t find anyone to trade with.”
“It might turn out that we won’t be able to give Marcus the contract that we want to be able to give right now. But if that’s the case, we’ll make everything work with the cap. And we can do that without trading anyone.”
If the Penguins offer Pettersson a bridge deal, his cap hit would be significantly smaller. Pettersson’s cap hit was around $800,000 last season and regardless of the type of deal he signs, he will get a raise.
The post NHL Rumors: Bruins, Avalanche, Penguins, More appeared first on The Hockey Writers.
Recent Articles:
Latest News