In today’s Rumor Rundown we look at where Rick Nash might wind up, whether or not Tyson Barrie will remain in Colorado and how Brandon Saad’s disappointing season means he might be considered a salary dump by the Chicago Blackhawks.
Rick Nash
Immediately following the news that Rick Nash was asked to and submitted his trade list of teams he’d be willing to accept a move to, hockey insiders were attempting to guess which destination would make the most sense. Dan Rosen of NHL.com suggested the top three teams are the Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators, and San Jose Sharks. Adam Vingan of the Tennessean believes Nash “does check off a lot of boxes for what the Predators may be looking for” and Jim Matheson wonders if Nash has the Toronto Maple Leafs on his list.
TSN’s Dave Poulin also thinks the Toronto Maple Leafs should be a team on his list as he was born in Ontario, he knows the city and realizes they are an up and coming team.
One team to also watch for are the St. Louis Blues who have two young centers that might interest the Rangers. The Blues may look to a player like Nash to replace some of the offense lost when Robby Fabbri went down with an injury.
The Nashville Predators and GM David Poile have already declared publicly they are going for it all this year but the re-signing of Mike Fisher may play a role in their desire to also land Nash.
Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet has noted this could be a situation where the trade list isn’t as important as it is for other players. Any team could ask permission to speak with and try to convince Nash to consider them a worthy destination and it would be temporary as there is a good chance Nash might come back to the Rangers in the offseason. Most signs are pointing to this being a very temporary situation.
Related: NHL Trade Rumors: Green, McDonagh, Pacioretty
Tyson Barrie Staying Put
The Colorado Avalanche were rumored to be toying with a Tyson Barrie trade but Friedman points out that the prospects the Avs do have on the blue line aren’t ready for the NHL yet. He believes Barrie won’t be going anywhere at this year’s deadline. TSN’s Bob McKenzie had made links earlier between the Leafs and Barrie and the return was rumored to be Mitch Marner.
Brandon Saad a Disappointment?
According to Friedman the Chicago Blackhawks could potentially look to give Brandon Saad a chance at a fresh start in another city. He speculates Saad may be looking for a new home too and the Hawks are looking for cap relief.
This would be considered a serious loss for the Hawks who traded Artemi Panarin for Saad and Saad has wound up on the fourth line in Chicago and has been awful in terms of his production for the team.
It would be interesting to see if the Blue Jackets would consider reacquiring his services. Would Boone Jenner somehow fit into this scenario?
Related: NHL Trade Rumors: Tavares, Voynov, Rangers Selling
Penguins Quiet or Active?
Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette believes it is possible that the Penguins have a quiet trade deadline. The NHL world is aware they are looking for a third-line center and fourth-line center but there is also some speculation that because everyone knows the Penguins need these pieces there is some hesitancy to trade with them.
The one player Mackey is convinced the Penguins will go for is Matt Cullen. This is a player the organization is familiar with, he knows the team and the city and it would give the Pen some flexibility at center and on the wing.
Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now reports that the Los Angeles Kings have been scouting the Penguins for the past two weeks and the Penguins scouted the Kings AHL team on Friday. There could be something brewing between these two organizations.
