In today’s NHL rumors rundown, are the Boston Bruins a team to watch when it comes to the Patrick Kane sweepstakes? Meanwhile, where do the Arizona Coyotes sit when it comes to potentially trading Jakob Chychrun?
The Los Angeles Kings have extra defensemen; will they trade one? Finally, are the Colorado Avalanche still expected to be an active team ahead of this season’s NHL Trade Deadline?
Mixed Thoughts on If Bruins Need Patrick Kane
Joe Haggerty of Boston Hockey Now discussed rumors linking Patrick Kane to the Bruins. They’ve been a team linked to Kane since they got off to a hot start this season. The question becomes if they need a winger and if paying a steep price for Kane — who is on pace for his lowest goal-scoring season in years — is the right choice. He says it might make sense with Boston’s other options being AJ Greer, Trent Frederic, Craig Smith, and Pavel Zacha.
Jimmy Murphy of Boston Hockey Now also weighed in on the chatter and wrote:
A common theme around plenty of Boston Bruins fans right now is ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ and that’s understandable considering the first half of the season that the Bruins have had. …I’m of the belief that if the price is right, it can only make a really good team even better.
Status of Coyotes’ Situation with Jakob Chychrun
Michael Russo of The Athletic posted comments from Coyotes’ GM Bill Armstrong in a recent article and when asked where things were at with Jakob Chychrun and a possible trade, Armstrong responded, “Yeah, we’re in a good space. I think we made a lot of progress in the summer with Jakob, and we had a lot of meetings and a lot of meetings and got a lot of things ironed out.”
He added:
He’s expressed that he wants to go to a Stanley Cup winner. We said we would look at that (and we would) try and help him out. And if the assets on the other side were there, we would definitely make the trade. That hasn’t come of yet. Doesn’t mean it won’t come. He’s been a really, really good player for us. And he’s dug into the fact.
source – ‘Coyotes GM Bill Armstrong on state of Arizona’s rebuild, Jakob Chychrun’s future, more’ – Michael Russo – The Athletic – 12/28/2022
He said he was going to be patient with any deal and said there are a lot of things that go into making a trade. “Whether it’s at the players that are there now or the picks, how high are those picks? So the deals are complicated, but in saying that, we’ve been open to it.” He added that the team has looked at trade options every single day. He also noted that Chychrun isn’t moping about having not been traded yet. “He’s bought into everything. And it’s been great on that end.”
Will Kings Move a Defenseman?
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic looked at some of the early-season predictions and revisited if he was right or wrong. When it comes to the Los Angeles Kings, he predicted that they might trade a defenseman, but they wouldn’t do it early in the year. He believes the Kings are still on track to trade someone.
He wrote:
The Kings remain loaded with right-shot defensemen, and it’s still possible they move one by March 3 depending on their needs as they battle for a playoff spot. I chatted with Kings GM Rob Blake on Dec. 7 ahead of their game the next day in Toronto, asking him about his depth of right-shot D, and essentially what he said at the time was that with junior-aged Brandt Clarke headed to the world juniors and Spence still able to develop in the AHL, they can bide their time and manage their excess right-shot D depth. But I suspect they will start to listen on that depth closer to March 3.
source – ‘LeBrun: What I got right (and wrong) in my preseason 10 burning questions’ – Pieree LeBrun – The Athletic – 12/26/2022
Avalanche Still Expected to be Active Ahead of Deadline
LeBrun also notes that the Avalanche will be aggressive ahead of March 3. He says, whether that’s looking for a center or a winger, they might be in on both Bo Horvat and/or Ryan O’Reilly. He writes, “if the Avs can’t afford those rental prices, maybe it’s a forward one rung below. Regardless, they are 100 percent dialed in on adding closer to March 3.”
