In today’s Rumor Rundown we focus on a few players who aren’t new to the rumor wire but speculation continues to swirl around them. There may be developments on all four players as Matt Duchene, Kyle Turris, Andreas Athanasiou and Alex Galchenyuk become more likely trade pieces than players who stay where they are.
Predators and Duchene
It seems like the drama regarding Colorado Avalanche center is a never-ending game of guessing and waiting. The drama continues, but some news has landed that potentially the Nashville Predators have made a bigger offer for Duchene and one the Avs might finally consider.
There isn’t detail about what exactly the offer includes, but Chris Nichols of FanRag Sports, is reporting that Pierre McGuire was on TSN 1200 and explained:
“I spoke to a management team three days ago, and they definitely want to be a player. I know they’ve already made an offer on Duchene. I just don’t know what the offer is, but they said it was substantial so I believe them. But they’re trying to figure it out because it looks like it would have to involve another team.”
McGuire is not usually an insider known for breaking trade rumors, so take this news as either fairly substantial because it’s coming from a source that doesn’t often break this sort of thing, or as news to brush off, because, well, he typically doesn’t break this sort of thing.
If there is a third team involved, one has to assume that third team would be providing the Avs with the defensemen they’ve been holding out for. Nashville has already gone on record as unwilling to part with any of their blueline corps.
Related: Rumor Rundown: Closer Look at Teams in on Duchene
Where Does That Leave Kyle Turris?
After speculation spread the Senators and Turris might be headed for a breakup, things calmed a bit and news was that the two sides were working on a deal that wasn’t as long-term but still beneficial to both sides. There is a chance negotiations fall apart in that respect and McGuire was asked if he believed Kyle Turris could be a backup plan for the Nashville Predators. He responded:
“They’re definitely prioritizing getting another center to play right behind Ryan Johansen because of the retirement of Mike Fisher. So the answer is yeah, I wouldn’t be surprised. So again, that’ll be an interesting place to watch.”
Right now, what all this means, is the Nashville Predators seem to be in the middle of some discussions about getting another center. Ideally, Duchene is their guy. If the asking price is still too steep coming out of Colorado, they might look to the Senators and Turris but there isn’t much in the way of concrete proof this is an option the Preds are considering.
Related: Rumor Rundown: Red Wings, Flyers, Predators, Leafs
Other Notes
Andreas Athanasiou
The feet-dragging that’s happening between the Detroit Red Wings and Andreas Athanasiou could lead to a trade. Ken Campbell of the Hockey News believes things have gotten far too ugly for this to work out well.
Despite Athanasiou’s unwillingness to budge, the Red Wings aren’t shopping him. That’s because teams like the Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, and the Los Angeles Kings are calling, thus Detroit finds themselves with little choice but to listen.
There is a deadline here of December 1, 2017 to get a deal done so Athanasiou can play in the NHL this season.
Alex Galchenyuk
In an update from yesterday’s Rumor Rundown, Galchenyuk is considered a moveable piece out of Montreal but TSN’s Pierre LeBrun has stated the Canadiens are not just willing gift the player away. The New Jersey Devil’s had expressed interest but the offer was so low general manager Marc Bergevin backed off trade talks.
