Tag Archives: Los Angeles Kings

Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

(1/30/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumors: “Talk around Edmonton is to keep an eye on…”

January 30, 2021 Beer League Hero

BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring Jack Eichel (BUF), Anze Kopitar (LA), Bobby Ryan (TOR), Ryan Getzlaf (ANH), and more!

The Oilers have a bit of a mind-bender brewing on the right side of their defense and a couple of big contracts set to expire there with some high-end prospects almost ready to take over. What is Ken Holland set to do?

TSN’s Frank Seravalli says that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins might not be in the Oilers’ plans going forward. Read all about it right here.

Craig Button absolutely tore the Oilers a new a$$hole on TSN 1260 recently. Click this link and read what he said!

TSN1260’s Jason Gregor is pissed! Check out this rant on the Oilers here!

BLH has some ideas for the Oilers lineup card. Check those out here!

Click the pic and find the NHL94 player from your team!

NHL Rumors and Speculation

Jonathan Davis (NHL Radio Network): Recently suggested the Los Angeles Kings could move star center Anze Kopitar but they’d need to find a team to that would take him and his big salary on.

BLH’s Thoughts: Word is that the Rangers are big game hunting for a center. Jack Eichel has been the latest name to be linked there, but if they struck out on him, would they see what GM Rob Blake would be asking for Kopitar? Personally, I reckon Kopitar will stay in LA. His contract is extremely obese and he’s hitting his mid-30s now, plus I am not convinced the Kings would eat 50% of his deal in order to move him. They look like a team who might want to speed up the rebuild here a tad with all the prospects they’ve accrued over the last few seasons.

Sean Gentile (The Athletic): Wonders if Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin could end up jumping ship and taking over the Pittsburgh Penguins where he’d work for best-friend Mario Lemieux.
- “He’s one of Lemieux’s best friends. Don’t underestimate that, despite the fact that he has one year left on his deal with the Canadiens.”

BLH’s Thoughts: Bergevin could be a wanted man very soon if this season turns out to be a massive success for the Habs. After so many so-so years with him in charge and a lot of speculation with regards to the safety of his position with the Canadiens, it appears things are turning around. I believe I read that he has one year left on his contract, so this could be an executive to keep an eye on. Could he be someone Hockey Canada is looking at with the Winter Olympics on the horizon?

James Mirtle (The Athletic): Suggests if the Toronto Maple Leafs were to make a trade that it might come close to the trade deadline and there are a few candidates emerging early on.
- “Someone like Bobby Ryan, who doesn’t make a lot and is off to a strong start in Detroit, will probably be one of the players available at that point, as the Red Wings fall out of the playoff race.”
- “Some other depth options could include players such as Cedric Paquette, Derrick Brassard and Matt Nieto, if we’re looking at teams that are likely to be sellers.”

BLH’s Thoughts: As I said yesterday, I’d support a Bobby Ryan-to-Edmonton trade deadline move, but after a day of thinking about it, I do wonder if Ken Holland would want to deal with Steve Yzerman again. He kinda got burnt in the Athanasiou and Green deals.

Dan Kingerski (Pittsburgh Hockey Now): Says that the Pittsburgh Penguins mega-stars are off-limits.
- “Crosby is off limits unless he says otherwise. Malkin has been placed all but off-limits unless he says otherwise. And Letang is mostly off-limits, for now.”

BLH’s Thoughts: I’d have to agree here, but of course there’s a part of me that would be curious to see Crosby in a Habs uniform or Malkin playing alongside Kaprizov in Minnesota or Panarin in New York. As an Oilers fan, I’ve always liked Kris Letang…

Eric Stephens (The Athletic): In a mailbag post was asked if the Anaheim Ducks would move some of their bigger name players. This is what he said,
- “I’ve written before that the option should be considered, especially if they head toward another losing season. At some point, he has to make the call of whether he feels he can win with those players.”

BLH’s Thoughts: If the Ducks aren’t going to be contending for a playoff spot anytime soon and they’re not moving these assets, they’re wasting some prime opportunities in my opinion. Talk around Edmonton is to keep an eye on Ryan Getzlaf… If the Oilers and Ducks could get creative, you have to wonder if Edmonton could bring Getzlaf back to Alberta for a run. I suppose that would be predicated upon the Oilers ability to actually win some games though…

Craig Morgan (Arizona Coyotes Insider): Reports that the Coyotes could have interest in St. Louis Blues defender Vince Dunn given Arizona’s new GM was the AGM of the Blues before getting the job in the desert. There’s one problem though, the Coyotes have a glut of left-handed d-men and are in need of a righty and would need to move out a defender in order to fit Dunn in.

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

(1/19/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumors: “The Talk is Boston, Islanders, maybe a three-way trade”

January 19, 2021 Beer League Hero

BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring the likes of Keith Yandle (FLA), Taylor Hall (BUF), Marc-Andre Fleury (VGK), Evgeni Kuznetsov (WAS), and more!

TSN’s Frank Seravalli says that Ryan Nugent-Hopkins might not be in the Oilers’ plans going forward. Read all about it right here.

NHL Rumors and Speculation

Jimmy Murphy (Florida Hockey Now): Recently pondered upon the idea that the reason Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito wanted to get Keith Yandle to waive his no-movement clause was to set up for a deal to acquire Pierre-Luc Dubois and the scribe was told by a source that was the reason behind the Barkov rumors.
- Murphy was also told by an NHL scout that the Buffalo Sabres should go out and acquire Vegas Golden Knights veteran netminder Marc-Andre Fleury now that they’re ready to move him.
Mark Chambers/Mike Kiszla (Denver Post): Say that the Avs might have to move d-men Ian Cole or Sam Girard to make room for emerging NHLers Bowen Byram and Connor Timmins.
- “Some folks will cringe, but Girard, 22, is probably the most tradable of the bunch, because he began a seven-year, $35 million extension this season and losing his $5 million cap hit would give the team money to make a move at forward or goaltending.”
Frank Seravalli (TSN): Is of the belief that the Edmonton Oilers will make a trade for a goalie this season.
- He also thinks that 37yr old Chicago Blackhawks d-man Duncan Keith will seek a trade after this year when he’ll be on the final year of his contract.
- Seravalli also said that if Winnipeg can’t get a deal done with the Blue Jackets for Pierre-Luc Dubois, then the Carolina Hurricanes will be Laine’s new home. The Jets are said to be interested in defenseman Brett Pesce and forward Vincent Trocheck.
Tarik El-Bashir (The Athletic): Is curious about whether the Washington Capitals may trade center Evgeni Kuznetsov.
- “If the Caps were to ever entertain shipping him out, they’d have to be getting a top-six center in return. Or they’d have to be darn sure a prospect like McMichael is ready to step in immediately and produce 20 goals and 50 assists,”
Scott Burnside (The Athletic): Has made predictions on the futures of four players, Taylor Hall, Jonathan Quick, Pierre-Luc Dubois, and Patrik Laine.
- “Hall has a no-move clause but surely he’d be open to moving to a Stanley Cup contender if the Sabres continue their playoff drought, which is currently the longest in the NHL… Wouldn’t it be interesting if Hall ended up back in Canada with either Calgary or Montreal?”
- “The Kings will be better because Todd McLellan is that kind of coach. But better is not necessarily good and that means GM Rob Blake will be in a position to find Jonathan Quick should be on the move before the deadline.”
- “Lots of teams have and will kick the tires on Laine, who will be a restricted free agent at the end of the season and has been a bit prickly on where he views his NHL future. As noted below, Winnipeg is going to be better than people think and GM Kevin Cheveldayoff will be focused on one thing: getting the Jets into the postseason. Like Kekalainen, Cheveldayoff will only move the 22-year-old Laine if it’s a knock your socks off kind of deal that isn’t about futures.”
- “I see almost zero chance GM Jarmo Kekalainen makes a move to unload Dubois unless it’s a deal that brings in an age-appropriate, commensurate talent, and that’s more likely to happen at the draft.”
Nick Kypreos: Says Florida Panthers d-man Keith Yandle prevented a 3-way trade from going down over the weekend,
- “The Talk is Boston, Islanders, maybe a three-way trade, maybe Yandle ending up with the Boston Bruins. I’m sure the Panthers would have to eat some money on that but it didn’t come to fruition. It appears he stood his ground.”

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

(1/14/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Quick Hits: “The Oilers have made it clear they have no plans to…”

January 14, 2021 Beer League Hero

BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring Jonathan Quick, Keith Yandle, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Jack Studnicka, and more!

Have you read this hilarious Joe Thornton story about the time he was chirping Connor McDavid from the bench and he made everyone within earshot burst out laughing? Do it now!

Have you ever seen the video of the time Doug Risebrough sucker-punched Marty McSorley and then had his ass handed to him? You have to check it out here.

Did Connor McDavid have a hand in bringing Jesse Puljujarvi back to Edmonton? Read about it here.

The Oilers have a bit of a mind-bender brewing on the right side of their defence and a couple of big contracts set to expire there with some high-end prospects almost ready to take over. What is Ken Holland set to do?

NHL Rumors and Speculation

Joe Haggerty (Boston Hockey Now): Says if the Boston Bruins want to get in on Pierre-Luc Dubois, they might have to part with some of their best prospects and even then, that might ont be enough,
- “(Jack) Studnicka and Urho Vaakanainen are their highest-valued assets close to the NHL, and former first round pick and current University of Michigan center Johnny Beecher is years away from contributing in an impactful way. For a team like Columbus and their most prized young player, they are going to be asking for a whole lot more than that for the impactful, young Dubois.”

BLH’s Thoughts: From those that I’ve talked to in the business, the feeling is that the Blue Jackets will look to make a similar deal to the one they made to get Seth Jones that had them send no.1 center (at the time) Ryan Johansen to Nashville.

Now, I don’t know if they’ll honor Dubois’ wish to be traded to a bigger market. Former AGM Bill Zito is in Florida now and they’ve got some real decisions to make with regards to Sasha Barkov, Aaron Ekblad, and Jonathan Huberdeau. I wonder if they might be an option?

Aaron Portzline (The Athletic): Is reporting that 33yr old Columbus Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno would like to re-sign with the club but will have to take a cut in pay to do so,
- “The sense is that Foligno may take a bit of a hometown discount to stay with the Blue Jackets. But, like any player, he won’t accept an offer that’s deemed too far below market value.”

BLH’s Thoughts: Man, what I wouldn’t give to have a guy like Foligno on the Oilers, especially after what we witnessed last night versus Vancouver. This club still doesn’t have that grizzled veteran leader who will put his balls on the line but can still play the game and I feel like they desperately need one. Be that Foligno or a guy like Dustin Brown (LA), for example.

Frank Seravalli (TSN): Is of the belief that the Edmonton Oilers won’t be offering more than $7M to long-time Edmonton Oiler Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on a new deal this off-season and he predicts GM Ken Holland will go out and land a goaltender this season,
- “The Oilers have made it clear they have no plans to go north of $7 million per year on a long-term extension.”
- “We believe GM Ken Holland sniffed around for one last deadline – and didn’t land his man in free agency, opting to bring back Mike Smith with Mikko Koskinen. There will be options available as teams jockey for Expansion Draft positioning.”

BLH’s Thoughts: Nice, atta go way out on a limb, Frank. It’s not like these two things haven’t been out on the grapevine for months… I thought these were supposed to be BOLD predictions…

Matt Larking (SI.com/The Hockey News): Larkin suggests the Boston Bruins as a potential fit for Florida Panthers d-man, Keith Yandle. The New York Islanders could be another but they lack sufficient cap space to find room for Yandle.

BLH’s Thoughts: Is Yandle done? He makes way too much money for what he brings to the ice these days. Even at half of his salary, that’s still a big ticket today.

Scott Burnside (The Athletic): Says that he thinks the LA Kings will move Jonathan Quick this year,
- “The 34-year-old doesn’t possess trade protection so he can be moved at the Kings’ desire. And while he carries a $5.8 million cap hit through 2022-23, the Kings would presumably eat some of that thus making Quick an acceptable risk for an interested team like St. Louis, Colorado, Washington, Dallas or Carolina.”

BLH’s Thoughts: I would add Edmonton to the list of interested teams, for what it’s worth…

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

(1/12/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Quick Hits: “They could make a good deal here when they decide to do it.”

January 12, 2021 Beer League Hero

BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring Pierre-Luc Dubois, Oliver Kylington, Devin Shore, Jason Demers, Tyson Barrie, and more!

Have you read this hilarious Joe Thornton story about the time he was chirping Connor McDavid from the bench and he made everyone within earshot burst out laughing? Do it now!

Have you ever seen the video of the time Doug Risebrough sucker-punched Marty McSorley and then had his ass handed to him? You have to check it out here.

Did Connor McDavid have a hand in bringing Jesse Puljujarvi back to Edmonton? Read about it here.

NHL Rumors and Speculation

John Hoven (Mayor’s Manor): The Los Angeles Kings held five players out of Saturday’s scrimmages as a precaution including Gabe Vilardi, Cal Petersen, Kurtis MacDermid, Sean Walker, and Matt Villalta.
Frank Seravalli (TSN): Gary Bettman said recently it would be cheaper for the NHL to shut down and not play, but the Owners are okay with losing money to play because they know how important it is for the fans.
Allan Walsh (Octagon Hockey): In reply to Bettman’s statement said this,
- “This is a deliberate and intentionally misleading statement. He conveniently omits that under CBA extension, the owners will be made whole for last year and this season over time per 50/50 split. Yeah, they’re doing it for the players and fans.”

McGuire on TSN690 in Montreal names MTL, OTT, LA, ANA and WPG as teams that have assets to make a Dubois trade with CBJ.

— NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) January 11, 2021

David Pagnotta (The Fourth Period): According to Bill Daly, the San Jose Sharks are meeting with Santa Clara officials tomorrow to see if and when they can play in San Jose. They’ll be on the road until February 1st as things stand.
Jim Matheson (Post-Media): The Edmonton Oilers haven’t signed PTO forward Devin Shore, but probably will to a $700k deal because he can play all three forward positions. He’s been playing center during training camp.
Jimmy Murphy (Boston Hockey Now): Are the Bruins in on freshly waived Calgary Flames defenceman Oliver Kylington?
- “According to a well-placed source, the Bruins have liked Kylington going back to the 2015 Draft and recently inquired about his status in Calgary. There’s no guarantee the Bruins will jump on him but there was plenty of chatter Monday and Monday night linking the Bruins to Kylington.”
Corey Masisak (The Athletic): Reckons the New Jersey Devils could have some interest in a couple of goalies playing out in the desert.
- “Every team needs to carry three goaltenders, so trade options could be slim. There were reports that Las Vegas was looking to trade Marc-Andre Fleury in the offseason after signing Robin Lehner, but the Golden Knights would have had time to find a solid backup option by then. Arizona might be willing to promote Adin Hill and listen to trades for Antti Raanta, who has one year left on his contract with a $4.25 million cap hit.”
The Fourth Period: Is reporting that the Arizona Coyotes will try to move up to three defencemen from their current roster this season,
- “Jason Demers might not be the only player the Coyotes dangle this season, as defencemen Alex Goligoski, Jordan Oesterle and Niklas Hjalmarsson are also in the final year of their respective contracts.”

Lots of rumours of Podkolzin leaving SKA after he was a healthy scratch yesterday, sources tell me, as of right now, the plan is for him to stay with SKA for the remainder in the season. https://t.co/qST2J2FoKi

— Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) January 11, 2021

Herman Dayal (The Athletic): Has Edmonton Oilers defender Tyson Barrie ranked 7th in his top-ten bounce-back candidates for the 2020-21 NHL season,
- “Barrie probably won’t impress outside of the power play but his rough cameo in Toronto will ensure that expectations are calibrated accordingly. If the Oilers carefully deploy the 29-year-old as a sheltered second-pairing defenceman with PP quarterback utility, he should be able to rebound, at least as far as the counting stats are concerned.”
Mark Spector (Sportsnet): Is very optimistic going into 2020-21 with regards to the Edmonton Oilers’ chances,
- “Edmonton was the best Canadian team last season in both points (83) and winning percentage (.585), with a new head coach in Dave Tippett and new GM in Ken Holland. They’re not rushing prospects now like they have for years, and when you look at their lineup you’ll find NHL depth that has not been there for ages. This team is better than last year’s team, and last year’s team was pretty good. This team will make the playoffs in the North.”
Elliotte Friedman (Sportsnet): On the future of Pierre-Luc Dubois (CBJ),
- “I think Columbus starts the season with him but I heard that teams are not screwing around when it comes to this guy’s availability. I think some of the preliminary offers, I think they made Columbus aware that they could make a good deal here when they decide to do it.”

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(1/9/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Roundup PM Edition: “It will make a strong offer for Dubois.”

January 9, 2021 Beer League Hero

BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nick Suzuki, Jimmy Howard, Kirby Dach, Sean Monahan, and more!

Are the Oilers tough enough for the 2020-21 NHL season? A former NHL GM says NO!

Have you read this hilarious Joe Thornton story about the time he was chirping Connor McDavid from the bench and he made everyone within earshot burst out laughing? Do it now!

Have you ever seen the video of the time Doug Risebrough sucker-punched Marty McSorley and then had his ass handed to him? You have to check it out here.

Did Connor McDavid have a hand in bringing Jesse Puljujarvi back to Edmonton? Read about it here.

NHL Rumors and Speculation

Harman Dayal (The Athletic): Has posted his top-ten candidates to breakout in 2020-21 and it includes such names as Nick Suzuki (MTL), Cal Peteresen (LA), Matt Grzelyck (BOS), and Chandler Stephenson (VGK).
Corey Pronman (The Athletic): Published his 2020-21 list of the best players under the age of 23. Here are where he had the Edmonton Oilers who were eligible,
- Jesse Puljujarvi (80th)
- Philip Broberg (85th)
- Kailer Yamamoto (111th)
- Evan Bouchard (117th)
- Rafa Lavoie (134th)
Scott Wheeler (The Athletic): Has some interesting names in his top-20 Calder Trophy candidates for 2020-21,
- Gabe Vilardi (LA) – 7th
- Bowen Byram (COL) – 13th
- Evan Bouchard (EDM) – 18th
Pierre LeBrun (The Athletic): Has seven potential landing spots for Pierre-Luc Dubois that could make sense,
- Anaheim – “They’ve got young assets throughout the organization, more than most teams, and Dubois’ age fits perfectly with where Anaheim is headed.”
- Calgary – “This could be an appealing trade partner for Columbus if a Dubois deal is more about getting players back who can help the Jackets now. Is there something here around Dubois and Monahan?”
- New York Rangers – “Eventually, I’m guessing next summer, the Rangers are going to get around to finding another top-6 centre for their talented lineup.”
- Los Angeles – “If Columbus will want a young centre back in a package then the Kings are better suited to build that package than many other teams.”
- Chicago – “if I’m the Jackets, the conversation must start with Kirby Dach and that might be tough for Chicago to contemplate given his place in the Hawks’ rebuilding plans.”
- Winnipeg – “You’d have to know if you’re Columbus that Laine would want to sign there long-term and ditto for Dubois in Winnipeg.”
- Montreal – “GM Marc Bergevin has a track record of keeping tabs on situations like this. So you can bet he will do just that.”
Don Brennan (Ottawa Sun): Reckons the Senators should aggresively pursue PL Dubois,
- “If Ottawa is serious about its rebuild, it will make a strong offer for Dubois. Something Kekalainen can’t refuse. Among its prospects, Ottawa has some good young defencemen. Would Jake Sanderson (fifth overall in 2020) or Jacob Bernard-Docker (26th overall in 2018) be enough to acquire the third pick of the 2016 entry draft?”
Jim Parsons (NHL Trade Talk): Commenting on a report regarding the New York Rangers dealing out some of their prospects to bring in a high-end talent, he said this,
- “With so much talk surrounding names like Patrik Laine and Pierre-Luc Dubois, there’s chatter these are two names the team might be looking at.”
Anthony Scultore (Daily Goal Horn): Says with the retirement of goaltender Corey Crawford, the New Jersey Devils are looking at former Detroit Red Wing Jimmy Howard.

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Tag Archives: Los Angeles Kings

(1/30/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumors: “Talk around Edmonton is to keep an eye on…”

NHL Rumors and Speculation

(1/19/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumors: “The Talk is Boston, Islanders, maybe a three-way trade”

NHL Rumors and Speculation

(1/14/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Quick Hits: “The Oilers have made it clear they have no plans to…”

NHL Rumors and Speculation

(1/12/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Quick Hits: “They could make a good deal here when they decide to do it.”

NHL Rumors and Speculation

(1/9/2021) – BLH’s NHL Rumor Roundup PM Edition: “It will make a strong offer for Dubois.”

NHL Rumors and Speculation

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