In today’s NHL rumors rundown, are the Toronto Maple Leafs done making moves? Meanwhile, are the Boston Bruins interested in a couple of the big-name defensemen available at this year’s trade deadline? The Vancouver Canucks are taking calls on J.T. Miller, while the Detroit Red Wings have stopped taking calls on Tyler Bertuzzi. Finally, are the Montreal Canadiens likely to be quiet compared to the moves they made last season?
Maple Leafs Not Done Yet?
There are a few notable tidbits coming out about the Ryan O’Reilly trade to Toronto that make the trade even more interesting. Darren Dreger reports that the Leafs might not be done making moves yet. He tweeted, “Sense is, Dubas isn’t done, which emphasizes an all-in approach. Kerfoot? Engvall? Holl? Kampf? What collateral does Toronto use for another move?” He adds, “Obviously things heated up between St Louis and Toronto as the day went on. Sounds like Minnesota didn’t sign off on their piece of the puzzle until just before their game last night vs the Stars.”
Elliotte Friedman noted that the Maple Leafs looked at Timo Meier from the San Jose Sharks but the price was too high. Kyle Dubas moved on to St. Louis and got two players (O’Reilly and Noel Acciari) for far less that what he would have had to pay for Meier.
Bruins Looking for Left-Shot Defenseman
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek said during Saturday’s 32 Thoughts segment that the Boston Bruins are likely in on the Vladislav Gavrikov trade conversations. He noted, “They looked great, they smoked the Islanders, however, I do think one of the reasons that (Vladislav) Gavrikov was given the trade-related sit-out by the Columbus Blue Jackets is because the Bruins are in on him.”
He added that he thinks the Bruins might have kicked tires on Jakob Chychrun too but that the cap situation in Boston is something that might be holding things up. He notes, “One of the issues, Ron and Jeff, I believe is the cap. The Bruins have to do some things to make this work. But we’ll see where this goes over the next couple of days. I think left D is an area that Boston’s targeted.”
Marek adds that teams who miss out on Gavrikov could shift their focus to Dmitri Kulikov.
Canucks Getting Calls on J.T. Miller
Friedman thinks teams have called the Vancouver Canucks about J.T. Miller. He can’t be certain if discussions are leading to anything but the teams may be asking the Canucks whether they’d think about it.
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Miller is in the final season of his current deal with a $5.25 million cap hit and lacks no-trade protection. Once this deal ends, he kicks off the first year of a seven-year extension worth $8 million per season and there is a no-trade clause that kicks in on July 1.
Bertuzzi Won’t be Traded By the Red Wings
Friedman also reports that Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi isn’t on the trade market. Despite a number of rumors linking certain teams to the winger, for the time being, he won’t be moved. The Red Wings apparently wish to retain the him as long as they’re still in playoff contention leading up to the March 3 trade deadline. Obviously, should the Red Wings fall out of the race, the team might revisit the idea of moving him before the deadline.
Bertuzzi is a player the Red Wings don’t want to lose for no return. If the race is tight, trade talk could shift to the summertime and a possible deal could be in the works around the NHL Draft if Bertuzzi doesn’t sign an extension. The return won’t be as high as if they were to trade him over the next 10 days, but the Red Wings appear willing to take the risk in the hopes of getting into the postseason.
Canadiens Likely to Be Quiet at the Deadline
Marek reports that fans shouldn’t expect too much from the Montreal Canadiens at this year’s deadline. With a number of veterans who are dealing with injuries, players the club might want to deal won’t fetch what the Canadiens are hoping. So too, while general manager Kent Hughes is taking calls, he’d like to keep some of his leaders around to help usher in the youth on his team.
Hughes will make trades if he’s offered a first-rounder for any of the vets he’s got, but the market for players like Mike Hoffman, Jonathan Drouin, and Evgenii Dadonov isn’t great. Arpoon Basu of The Athletic writes:
Perhaps Josh Anderson could land one for the Canadiens if they decide to trade him, but other than that there is very little chance for them to get in this market. A healthy Edmundson might have gotten it done, but an unhealthy one won’t.
source – ‘What the Ryan O’Reilly trade reveals about how the Canadiens can approach the trade deadline’ – Arpon Basu – The Athletic – 02/18/2023
