In today’s NHL rumors rundown, it looks as though the Jason Spezza experiment is over in Toronto, there are thoughts from players inside the Los Angeles Kings organization about their rebuild, Robby Fabbri was traded but it shouldn’t be a surprise and more.
Maple Leafs to Waive Jason Spezza
There are a few media members, such as TSN’s Shawn Simpson calling for a speculated end to Jason Spezza’s era in Toronto and with the Maple Leafs. With Zach Hyman set to return from injury, it appears the Maple Leafs are set to waive Spezza.
After taking a hometown discount to join the team, Spezza didn’t ideally fit on the team’s fourth line. Should the Maple Leafs waive him, there were plenty of interested teams in the offseason that might be interested at his low price-point.
One rumored club is the Ottawa Senators. Ottawa tried hard to land him during the summer and GM Pierre Dorion has been public about his desire to add a forward. The Ottawa Sun’s Don Brennan sees Spezza as an ideal fit as both a mentor and a player who can contribute throughout the lineup.
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Doughty’s Thoughts in Kings Rebuild
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic wrote about the Los Angeles Kings plan to rebuild their roster and who the veterans they plan to build around — Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar — feel about that process.
Doughty isn’t exactly in love with the idea and admits it wasn’t part of his thought-process when he signed his long-term extension. “Obviously when I was re-signing we didn’t ever think we’d do this rebuild,” Doughty said Monday after practice. He added:
“We’re not too happy we have to do it. But it’s the way things have come. We have full faith in Blakey, and full faith in all the players in this room. We’re going to get back to where we were one day, just we can’t rush it. We need to trust the process. We have to play with the cards we’ve been dealt here.”
source – ‘LeBrun: Committed Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar remain key to rebuilding Kings’ plans’ – Piere LeBrun – The Athletic – 11/04/2019
While Doughty seems to have reluctantly accepted the fate of the organization, there might be some concern he’ll want to stick around if the rebuild takes a few wrong turns. Anze Kopitar, on the other hand, isn’t going anywhere.
“Unless somebody tells me I got to go anywhere, I certainly would like to stay here,” he said.
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Something Brewing in The East
Stu Cowan reports that there were a number of scouts listed to attend last night’s Montreal Canadiens versus Boston Bruins game. Among them, the Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks, New Jersey Devils, Arizona Coyotes, and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Who exactly were they watching?
Fabbri Had Asked for a Trade
It was reported later on Wednesday evening that the St. Louis Blues had traded forward Robby Fabbri to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for forward Jacob de la Rose.
Some are seeing this move as a bit of a shock but Blues general manager Doug Armstrong told Jim Thomas of the Post Dispatch that Fabbri requested to be traded from St. Louis this past summer.
“I asked him to be patient, and then he and I talked before this last road trip and we said if things don’t change I’ll certainly look to see what I can do. … Our team was playing good and he wasn’t getting on (the ice). So I tried to help him out and we were able to find a good situation with Detroit. It took a little while to get it done but I’m really happy for Robby because it gives him a great opportunity.”
source – ‘Blues trade Fabbri to Detroit, obtain forward Jacob de la Rose’ Jim Thomas – St. Louis Today – 11/07/2019
Fabbri could bounce back and play well for the Red Wings who could certainly use the help.
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Oilers Waive Jurco
Tomas Jurco has been placed on waivers by the Edmonton Oilers, most likely so the Oilers can activate returning forward Josh Archibald.
The Oilers aren’t done making moves as they will need to find a spot for Noakim Nygard on roster. Jurco will probably clear waivers as he’s been largely ineffective for Edmonton so far this season. Expect a bit of a shakeup in Edmonton anyways as the team hasn’t played well over the past few games.
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