In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the Tampa Bay Lightning need to make a decision in regards to their goaltending. How will they replace Andrei Vasilevskiy? Meanwhile, there are still teams looking at Matt Grzelcyk of the Boston Bruins. Will the Montreal Canadiens trade a forward? The Edmonton Oilers announced the departure of Steve Staios who goes to Ottawa. Finally, did the Vancouver Canucks pull a trade off the table with San Jose?
Lightning May Try to Replace Vasilevskiy
According to Pierre LeBrun, the Tampa Bay Lightning will look at a number of options after learning goaltender Andre Vasilevskiy will miss the first 8-10 weeks of the season.
He writes: “Everything is on the table as far whether Tampa goes looking for goalie help, but cap management from Day 1 of the season limits what they can do to some degree, especially since Vasilevskiy will be back.” He adds, “So the balance here is whether to add a goalie but also have as strong a roster as possible under the cap for the rest of the season once No. 88 is back.”
The most obvious options via free agency are Jaroslav Halak and former Lightning backup Brian Elliott. There are options to put the netminder on LTIR and spend big on a replacement, but the cap crunch comes when Vasilevskiy is cleared to return.
Could the Canadiens Try to Trade a Forward?
As per a report by The Fourth Period, the Montreal Canadiens find themselves with a surplus of forwards, boasting 14 of them, and that doesn’t even account for the sidelined Christian Dvorak. This surplus raises intriguing questions about roster management.
David Pagnotta, discussing on TSN 690 radio, pondered whether the Canadiens might explore trades, contingent on how they structure their forward lines. Notably, Joel Armia, with a two-year contract at $3.4 million, has consistently swirled in trade rumors since the previous season. The question is: can they locate a team in need of a skilled third-line winger?
Teams Still Interested in Matt Grzelcyk
In his inaugural NHL preseason match, Boston Bruins’ rookie defenseman Mason Lohrei showcased his potential, contributing an assist on the team’s sole goal during a 4-1 defeat against the Sabres. He logged an impressive 29 minutes and 1 second of playtime, which included powerplay and penalty kill minutes.
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Boston Hockey Now points out that Lohrei’s standout performance raises intriguing questions for the Bruins. If the 21-year-old continues to impress, might the team contemplate delving into the NHL trade market once more before the season commences? The focus of such a move could be 29-year-old defenseman Matt Grzelcyk, entering the final season of his four-year, $14.7 million contract, carrying a $3.6 million salary cap hit.
Canucks Want to Save Tyler Myers Trade for Themselves
There was talk this summer that the Canucks and Sharks had a tentative deal in place that would send Tyler Myers to San Jose for Kevin Labanc. Ultimately, that trade never materialized. When asked on the Sekeres and Price podcast why the trade never happened, Frank Seravalli responded that the Canucks want to be competitive and having Myers to start the season was better than not having him. And, if they do end up trading Myers down the line, Seravalli added, “The Canucks are like wait a second, we could just have that for ourselves if we don’t have the season we want.”
The Canucks have publicly said a couple of times now that they have no intention of trading Myers.
Steve Staios Leaves the Oilers
In a rumor that surfaced weeks ago, the Edmonton Oilers confirmed on Friday that Steve Staios has resigned from his position with the Edmonton Oilers and will take a job with the Ottawa Senators as the new President of Hockey Operations.
The Oilers had been denying Staios’ exit despite reports that he was closely being linked to new owner Michael Andlauer. This appears to be a move Edmonton had seen coming as Staios wasn’t listed on any of their team executive lists for the upcoming season.
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