What’s happening around the NHL when it comes to trade rumors and speculation? We’ve got news on Tyler Seguin, Evander Kane, Ian Cole, and a number of pieces from the Ottawa Senators.
Tyler Seguin Not in Dallas Come 2019?
In a recent mailbag segment, Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News was asked if Dallas Stars forward Tyler Seguin has shown enough with the Stars this season to be given a contract extension when his current contract expires at the end of the 2018-19 season. Heika responded with a very clear maybe, all dependant on where the Stars are in the standings before the trade deadline. There is still time for them to fight for a wildcard spot but they could also just as quickly fall out of the race.
Heika made it clear this was a question less likely to be answered this season and more likely on the table for next as the team determines if he’s earned the big pay raise he’ll likely expect when his contract is set to renew. Heika believes if Seguin doesn’t maintain his current pace, it could be a real option to move the scoring center.
A 70-point player over the course of four consecutive seasons, Seguin is considered a value at a $5.75 cap hit per season. He’s got 29 points in 34 games this season and should he keep that pace, it would add another 70-point campaign to his resume. At the very least, Seguin will be looking for a long-term extension with a minimum of $8-$9 million per season.
It won’t be for a lack of money if the Stars do move on from Seguin this summer or next season. The club should have plenty of room to add Seguin at those numbers should they choose to keep the star center. With Jason Spezza’s contract coming off the books in the same summer, that will free up $7.5 million per season for the organization.
The biggest question mark is how Seguin performs in the postseason since he hasn’t often been healthy enough to post any measurable numbers.
Related: Rumors Rundown: Seguin Could Be Traded, Tavares’ Options
Penguins Looking for Help
The Pittsburgh Penguins are rumored to be looking for help at center and Sonny Sachdeva of SportsNet has listed a handful of teams as potential trade partners. Where the Penguins are looking for the most help is at the third-line center position where they didn’t successfully replace Nick Bonino who left this past summer.
The Penguins are looking to use Ian Cole as a trade chip and rumors were that the Penguins might look at shipping out Cole for a player like Cody Eakin out of Vegas. There was also speculation that Tyler Bozak out of Toronto was high on the Penguins radar. Both players would help the Penguins third-line center issues immediately. Sachdeva mentions that Derick Brassard would be an option out of Ottawa but his $5 million cap hit could be a sticking point.
The Colorado Avalanche had interest in Ian Cole and Sachdeva believes the trade piece there could be a player like Carl Soderberg. The Avs and Senators may be the two teams more likely to make a move since their respective seasons are pretty much out of reach. Both the Leafs and Golden Knights would be hesitant to disrupt their current success without good cause.
Most of the issues are still issues because Riley Sheahan hasn’t brought the offense like the Penguins were hoping he could when they trade for him.
Related: Should Penguins Ice 7 Defenders?
Flames Looking for a Top-Six Forward
Elliotte Friedman was on Sportsnet 960 and said that he believes the Flames are looking for a winger. Friedman says the challenge for the Flames is that they moved a number of draft picks to pick up players like Travis Hamonic and that could make adding another prominent forward difficult.
For example, if the Buffalo Sabres were looking to move Evander Kane, they would want some key draft pieces in return.
Senators Cleaning House
Elliotte Friedman also believes the Ottawa Senators are getting a ton of calls and have been asked about Mike Hoffman, Cody Ceci, and Matt Duchene. Friedman doesn’t believe the team is interested in trading Erik Karlsson and/or Mark Stone right now.
“I do. I think they’ve taken a lot of calls,” said Friedman. “They’ve had questions about Hoffman. They’ve had questions about Ceci. They’ve had questions about Duchene. They’ve had questions about a lot of their guys. I don’t think they’re trading Karlsson right now, and I don’t think they’re trading Stone. But after that, I think they would listen on a lot.”
Elliotte Friedman – Edmonton’s 630 CHED
