In today’s NHL rumors rundown, there was a trade in the NHL on Wednesday. The Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks made a deal. There is still a lot of chatter in Vancouver, where the Canucks are holding onto hope they don’t have to make major changes.
The Toronto Maple Leafs officially placed Jake Muzzin on LTIR and Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin has commented on his team’s poor start.
Canadiens Trade for Nicolas Beaudin
The Chicago Blackhawks and Montreal Canadiens have completed another trade (previously involved in the Kirby Dach deal) and former first-round pick Nicolas Beaudin, has been dealt to Montreal in exchange for Cameron Hillis. As Blackhawks reporter Ben Pope writes, “This is entirely about giving Beaudin, who had been barely getting playing time even in Rockford dating back to last season, a fresh start in his home province. The former 1st-rounder never panned out.”
Hillis will report to AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. He made his NHL debut in Montreal last season but is still very much a prospect in the works.
Are Canucks Working on the Demko Timeline?
Harman Dayal of The Athletic writes that the Vancouver Canucks have a lot of work to do and some major changes could be in order after an abysmal start to the 2022-23 season. For now, the Canucks are being patient, but it’s not clear how long that patience will last. Dayal argues that one thing the team is likely looking at is their chances to win a Stanley Cup in the window that is Thatcher Demko‘s current contract.
Dayal writes:
One of the biggest questions management needs to ask themselves is whether they believe the club can realistically win a Stanley Cup within the next four years, before Demko’s sweetheart $5 million cap hit contract expires. That’s win a Stanley Cup during this Demko contract — not make the playoffs, not make the postseason and win a round or two.
source – ‘What’s next for Canucks after nightmare start? Trade, coaching change, rebuild?’ – Harman Dayal – The Athletic – 10/24/2022
Related: NHL Rumors: Canadiens, Canucks, Ducks, Maple Leafs
This wasn’t the scribe hinting that the Canucks would be trading Demko, only that they need to take advantage of the fact he’s arguably underpaid considering the elite-level goaltender he is. The Canucks have only so much time to add the right pieces around him before his contract skyrockets.
Jake Muzzin Moved to LTIR
The Toronto Maple Leafs have officially moved defenseman Jake Muzzin to LTIR, retroactive to October 18, according to CapFriendly. Based on the retroactive date, the soonest Muzzin would be eligible to return to the Leafs’ lineup is now November 11.
This is not going to open the door for the Leafs to go out and make a trade unless there s more information available to the GM than the team has revealed. The move adds $5,625,000 to Toronto’s LTI Salary pool. If Dubas does make a big trade for a blueliner with that cap space, it’s safe to assume he would know Muzzin isn’t coming back.
Wild Don’t Intend to Make Early Panic Trade
During a recent interview with The Athletic’s Michael Russo, Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin commented on his club’s slow start. Citing those remarks to report on the situation, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun added that Guerin had said, “We’re not going to trade our way out of this,” making sure the players know it’s on them to improve.
LeBrun adds that in talking to Geurin, the GM said the team needs to find its identity. He cited, “it’s easy to dig a hole that you can’t come out of. It’s important for us to start playing our best hockey now.”
