In today’s NHL rumors rundown, Elliotte Friedman offered updates on a few teams, including the New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators. Meanwhile, the Florida Panthers would like to sign Eric Staal but don’t have the room and the Toronto Maple Leafs need to make a decision on Wayne Simmonds after the forward cleared waivers.
Finally, the Boston Bruins are both waiting on David Pastrnak, and are ready to move on from Nick Foligno and Mike Reilly.
Rangers Favorite for Patrick Kane
Like it or not, speculation surrounding Patrick Kane’s future in Chicago will continue until he’s traded or re-signed. Friedman weighed in on what he’s heard lately and noted during his 32 Thoughts podcast: “I do believe that is, until proven otherwise, I think the Rangers are the most likely destination although there are a lot of variables there”.
While any contender would need to juggle a few things to add Kane, the Rangers have some cap space and the prospects in which to make a deal. So too, the link between Kane and Artemi Panarin is obvious. Friedman is now the second connected insider that has the Rangers listed as the most likely landing spot. Frank Seravalli said the same during his bold predictions piece for Daily Faceoff.
Senators Need a Defenseman
Friedman also talked about the Ottawa Senators and said that he still believes the team is going to add a defenceman. They’ve been linked to Jakob Chychrun but that ship may have passed unless the Arizona Coyotes drop their ask. Now, it’s up to the Senators to potentially make another plan and Friedman notes that he believes they’ve talked internally about it “and my expectation is they’re still going to do it”.
Panthers Can’t Get Eric Staal Signed
According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period and The NHL Network, the Florida Panthers would like to sign veteran center Eric Staal but don’t have the cap space to do so. He writes, “As of right now, the Florida Panthers will need to create cap space in order to sign Staal, who attended camp on a PTO. Whether they can or not is TBD – sounded like he did enough to earn a contract. Uncertain if Staal sticks around Sunrise until his future becomes clearer.”
What’s Next for Wayne Simmonds?
Luke Fox of Sportsnet examined the next logical steps for the Toronto Maple Leafs and forward Wayne Simmonds after he cleared waivers on Monday. He could start the season in the AHL, but as Fox points out, now that he’s cleared waivers, he’s more valuable to other teams in a trade. As reported earlier this week, the Maple Leafs aren’t concerned about the return, they just want to do right by the player.
Related: 3 Things We Learned From the Maple Leafs’ Preseason
Fox noted that talk of Simmonds heading back to the Philadelphia Flyers is out there and Fox adds that the Ottawa Senators have shown some interest, according to Nick Kypreos.
Bruins Waiting for Pastrnak to Get Comfortable
Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub reports that the Boston Bruins and GM Don Sweeney are prepared to offer a very lucrative contract extension to forward David Pastrnak but that they are really just waiting for Pastrnak to feel comfortable committing long term. He quoted Sweeney who said, “Well, both sides have been open about continuing our talks.”
Sweeney believes the two sides will remain open to talking and noted:
“… up until this point we’ve been communicating regularly and when he feels comfortable, hopefully we finalize a deal. There isn’t any timeline on that, but we’re going to have to communicate almost every day to tell you the honest truth, and see if we can find the finish line.”
Speculation is that the Bruins are open to an eight-year deal at $9.5 million per season.
In other Bruins news, Mike Stephens of The Hockey News suggested the team could actively try to move forwards Nick Foligno and defenseman Mike Reilly who each cleared waivers. Again, the Flyers are being linked to the trade discussions and there is a belief they could be interested in Foligno, who has a history with new head coach John Tortorella. The Flyers are understandably looking for a strong locker room and a veteran leader.