Good news! We’re going to up the content production here! We’ve talked to the fine gents over at The Scoring Touch and they’ve agreed to post some of their daily NHL rumors here at Beer League Heroes!
Now, if you don’t know, The Scoring Touch is the official website of The Puck Report from Instagram/Twitter. They produce some really rad IG graphics and are on the ball NHL news-wise on Twitter as well. You definitely need to give them a follow if you aren’t already!
The plan I have for this new segment is to comment on some of the speculations that are out there from an Edmonton Oilers perspective to try and keep things interesting during this next four-month layoff…
*This post is more or less a re-post from this morning BUT I’ve added some more comments to freshen it up!*
Notes from Elliotte Friedman and Jeff Marek on the latest “31 Thoughts: The Podcast”
- Elliotte Friedman says it’s getting to the point for the Toronto Maple Leafs where “talk is cheap.” It’s going to be an interesting off-season. They’re going to throw a lot of players out and test the market on them and see what comes up.
- Friedman wonders if the Oilers look at potentially trading Oscar Klefbom or Adam Larsson. Says Ken Holland will take a hard look at moving Larsson if he feels they can’t sign him (one year left on his deal). Also adds he sees Thomas Greiss as a sneaky good signing in net for Edmonton if Mike Smith leaves and they can afford it.
BLH’s Thoughts: I’m very curious to see if the Maple Leafs and Oilers get together and make a deal that will help each team out. Edmonton has some extra beef in the freezer and Toronto is overstocked with skilled wingers. Sounds like a perfect match, no? Plus we’ve been hearing Adam Larsson/Andreas Johnsson rumors for what seems like forever. If I were GM I’d try to squeeze a bit more than Johnsson out of them in return for the top-pairing shutdown Swede.
- Jeff Marek says Mike Matheson has fallen out of favor with the Florida Panthers. Doesn’t see a lot of teams wanting his contract ($4.875M x 6) though. Friedman adds he can see the Panthers making a push to keep Evgenii Dadonov, but they won’t be able to sign all of their UFAs.
- Friedman says he could definitely see Henrik Lundqvist playing somewhere else next season. Says a buyout was the most likely option before the pause, but now doesn’t know what the New York Rangers will do with him.
BLH’s Thoughts: Reckon the Oilers would have interest in Matheson if they choose to move on from Klefbom or Nurse? I don’t think he’s a bad defender and he is a very good skater. He’s had a tough year and Coach Q’s leash is insanely short, plus the team is looking to shed salary. Young fella too. As for Lundqvist, could he really go to New Jersey? That would be near blasphemy, wouldn’t it?
- Elliotte Friedman says one of the RFAs that may not get a QO because of the tight cap and new arbitration rules is Buffalo Sabres defender Brandon Montour.
- Friedman believes Nashville Predators UFA forwards Mikael Granlund and Craig Smith will walk. Wonders if they buy out Kyle Turris at $2M/yr for 8 years. It just hasn’t worked for him there whatever the reason.
BLH’s Thoughts: Craig Smith is a guy the Oilers could use on the wing. He’s a bit older and he scores consistently. In addition to that, his fancy stats are quite good with regards to producing offense as well as keeping shots and goals low while he’s on the ice. Not sure they could maneuver the cap enough to fit him under but would they sacrifice James Neal to bring a fella like Smith in?
Speculation Station (8/13):
- Nashville Predators GM David Poile: “Some players aren’t going to be brought back… We’re not satisfied, and we’re going to make some changes. We have to manage better, John Hynes and his staff have to coach better, and the players have to play better.”
BLH’s Thoughts: James Neal for Nick Bonino? Preds are letting some forwards walk away apparently and the Oilers need a good third-line center…
- Chad DeDominicis: If the Buffalo Sabres don’t plan to qualify Brandon Montour this off-season, they need to trade him ASAP. Can’t lose him for nothing. He never reached his potential with the Sabres but they didn’t put him in positions to succeed either. Another example of asset misuse at the club.
- The Athletic (subscription required): The Pittsburgh Penguins are planning to limit their salary cap spending to the “low-to-mid $70M range” for next season, citing lost revenues. The team will seek to trade multiple veterans, ownership favors that over buyouts. GM Jim Rutherford told reporters he prefers to keep Crosby, Malkin, and Letang together. However, rival executives expect him to explore a Letang trade.
- Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin: “I’ve got to figure out what’s the issue. Why have we been falling short? The teams are good. The guys play hard, but there’s something rooted here that it’s not working and it’s not just trading players and changing the GM and things like that. It’s something in the way we operate every day. It’s something in the culture, and we need to change it.”
BLH’s Thoughts: If the Wild are looking to move Ryan Hartman, he’d be a really nice addition to the Oilers’ bottom-6. Hartman is a real pain in the ass to play against and brings an element of sandpaper and truculence to the lineup.
- Per Elliotte Friedman, the Chicago Blackhawks are interested in re-signing Robin Lehner this off-season but aren’t willing to offer him more than a two-year contract. He wants at least three years on a deal this off-season.
BLH’s Thoughts: If Lehner did go back to Chicago, does that mean Corey Crawford would be looking for a new place to play, and some have wondered; could that place be in Edmonton? Crawford is exactly the kind of experienced professional that Edmonton could use in tandem with Mikko Koskinen but he is closer to 40 than 30 years old and there’s no indication he’d be willing to take a low base salary that’s laced with bonuses to come to Northern Alberta to split netminding duties. There are questions regarding his health too.
- Winnipeg Jets forward Bryan Little is unsure if he’ll play in the NHL again. Little acknowledged the possibility his NHL career is over has “constantly been in the back of my head.” He adds: “There’s going to be some decisions that are going to have to be made about what’s next. I’m not really thinking about it until I know for certain. Until then, I’m going to keep preparing myself to be ready. That’s my plan.”
This is only a portion of the rumors available. Head to The Scoring Touch and read the rest now!
