In today’s NHL rumors rundown, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that the Toronto Maple Leafs might prefer to re-sign Mitch Marner versus trading the forward. Meanwhile, the Vancouver Canucks are looking to add speed to their lineup on forward and defense. Who are they targeting? Finally, despite a rocky start to the season, Connor Brown has really come on strong in the playoffs for the Edmonton Oilers. Would they be open to re-signing him?
Maple Leafs Might Prefer to Extend Mitch Marner
Darren Dreger was a guest on First Up on TSN and said, “And are we so sure Toronto doesn’t want to extend Mitch? I’m not. I think Treliving would rather extend [Marner] than trade. But they’re not having those discussions yet either. It’s still early, it’s very premature across the board.”
Marner’s preference is to play out the remaining year on his current contract and Dreger said that doesn’t mean Marner will leave at the end of that season. It’s a risk for the Maple Leafs to let that deal run its course, but if Toronto wants to hang onto Marner, the team has been in this situation before. They waited last season on William Nylander and ultimately got that deal done.
Dreger admits there could still be a scenario where a trade is likely. He explained:
“Now, if Brad Treliving has a conversation with a club or clubs, and there’s a potential trade scenario that develops from those conversations, yeah, he could take that to the Marner camp. And the Marner camp could say, ‘Yep, alright, you obviously don’t want me, so I’m okay with that. And by the way, there’s a big extension that comes with it? Okay, yeah, fine.”
Canucks Want to Add Speed This Offseason
“I think we need to add some speed, GM Patrick Allvin noted when asked about what the priority for the Canucks would be this summer. Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal of The Athletic think this could be a tell as to the type of forwards the organization targets.
Related: Canadiens News & Rumours: Lindstrom, Picks at 5th, Too Much Defense & More
Among the names they mention are Chandler Stephenson of the Golden Knights, Kasperi Kapanen of the Blues, Ryan Lomberg of the Panthers, Ben Myers of the Ducks, Kiefer Sherwood of the Predators, and Connor Brown of the Edmonton Oilers. They also note that the Canucks may target speed on defense, looking at names like Oliver Kylington, Sean Walker, and Haydn Fleury.
When it comes to Connor Brown, the scribes write:
Brown was an offensive flop in the regular season, tallying just four goals and 12 points in 71 games. He’s bounced back in the playoffs, though, and there are signs he’s finally shaken the rust off from his ACL injury. He’s gained back his elite speed — NHL Edge data shows his top speed and speed bursts above 20 miles per hour are up significantly compared to the regular season, he’s driving elite results on the penalty kill and he’s even chipping in with secondary offence.
source – ‘Canucks free-agent targets: 9 UFAs who could add speed to the Vancouver lineup’ – Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal – The Athletic – 06/17/2024
Oilers Thinking About a Connor Brown Extension?
The way Brown has come on during the playoffs, there is some speculation the Oilers would like to bring him back again next season, if they can get him to agree to a lower-cost, no-bonus deal. He struggled early in the season and it took some time to find his game after recovering from an injury that slowed his transition back into the NHL. He’s found his legs now and is one of the Oilers’ better depth defensive forwards.
If teams like the Canucks are looking at him, he may have a difficult decision to make. He’s considered one of the most upbeat players in the Oilers locker room and one has to wonder if another season with top-tier offensive players would maximize his value for next summer versus trying to land a small bump in pay this offseason.
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