NHL Rumors: Flyers, Senators, Maple Leafs, Wild, Jets

In today’s NHL rumors rundown, with news the Philadelphia Flyers have signed Rasmus Ristolainen to a long-term extension, what does that mean for Travis Sanheim? Where are the Ottawa Senators at with Nick Paul? Is anything closer to getting done? The Toronto Maple Leafs are losing Jack Campbell for a couple of weeks. Does that change their motivationg to look at a goaltender? Plus, there are updates on the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets.

Is Sanheim Being Traded Now That Ristolainen Is Staying?

Because the Flyers signed Ristolainen to a five-year, $5.1 million per season extension, there’s talk about what this means now for Sanheim. Darren Dreger of TSN writes, ”Some wondering if Risto extension opens the door to a Travis Sanheim trade either before the deadline or in the offseason. He would be pretty high on a few team’s target lists. Left shot, $4.675 cap hit through next season.”

Travis Sanheim Philadelphia Flyers
Travis Sanheim, Philadelphia Flyers (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

Charlie O’Connor of The Athletic notes that he’s not at all convinced that a Ristolainen re-signing means Sanheim is on his way out. He thinks it would be very dumb to get rid of the guy who is the primary reason Ristolainen’s raw results this “year aren’t truly awful.” Considering that Ristolainen said when asked about playing with Sanheim that “he’s the type of player I could play with the rest of my career as a D pair.”, it would be hard to imagine the Flyers got this deal done with Ristolainen if there was any inkling Sanheim could be leaving right after the deal was signed.

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Still with the Flyers, when it comes to the Claude Giroux trade watch, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff notes, “The Flyers are working with Giroux’s representation, Pat Brisson of CAA Sports, to help find a spot to chase Lord Stanley this season. Colorado has reportedly been interested; St. Louis is trying to convince him to waive to play there.”

Things Between Senators and Nick Paul Have Gone Quiet

Seravalli also notes that there has been little-to-no progress made when it comes to talks between the Ottawa Senators and Nick Paul. He writes, “Their last offer made in January was not well received at three years, $6 million ($2 million per).”

Nick Paul Ottawa Senators
Nick Paul. Ottawa Senators (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

The NHL insider adds that Ottawa would like to keep Paul because they value what he brings but they’re not close on what Paul’s reps believe is his market value. There is a belief the Senators might trade the player if they can’t come to an agreement in the next week. Ottawa does not want to let him leave with no return and moving him before the deadline guarantees they fetch some kind of assets.

Campbell Out Two Weeks for Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jack Campbell will be out a minimum of two weeks with a rib injury, the team announced Thursday. As a result, the organization has recalled goaltender Erik Källgren from the Toronto Marlies (AHL) on an emergency basis.

Related: Maple Leafs Face a Dilemma with Alex Kerfoot

The Maple Leafs were already a team that some insiders believed would be looking at the goaltending market to see if there was a way to upgrade. Seravalli asked in a recent article, “Will GM Kyle Dubas be willing to bet this roster on the goaltending rounding into form in time for the Stanley Cup playoffs?” He responded that it would be a gamble, given Toronto’s playoff scoring woes. With Campbell injured, it will be intriguing to see if this motivates the Maple Leafs to look even harder at a potential trade.

McBain Expected to Test Free Agency

Jeff Marek reports that Jack McBain will go to free agency this summer. As a result, it is expected the Wild will pursue a trade and are looking for a second-rounder. There is some belief that the Winnipeg Jets might be a team to watch here, as Jack’s father, Andrew, played the first six seasons of his own 608-game NHL career there.

Friedman points out, however, that the Jets do not have a second-rounder this year, or next. Yet. In other Jets’ news, Elliotte Friedman believes the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche are believed to be among the teams interested in Jets pending UFA forward Andrew Copp.