BLH provides you with the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation featuring Jack Eichel (BUF), Bobby Ryan (DET), Pekka Rinne (NSH), and more!
TSN1260’s Jason Gregor is pissed! Check out this rant on the Oilers here!
BLH has some ideas for the Oilers lineup card. Check those out here!
NEW: Keith Jones and Patrick Sharp think the Calgary Flames have a better chance at the playoffs this year than the Oilers. Read about that here.
Is Leon Draisaitl’s excellent two-way presence just a mirage? One Edmonton pundit says they may very well be, BLH says not so fast. Read about it here.
NHL Rumors and Speculation
Sportsnet: Looking at rental options from teams who are at the bottom of the standings, SN’s Luke Fox listed some of the pending unrestricted free-agents:
- Buffalo Sabres – Taylor Hall, Eric Staal, Brandon Montour, Jake McCabe, Matt Irwin, Tobias Reider, Riley Sheahan, Carter Hutton, Linus Ullmark
- Detroit Red Wings – Darren Helm, Valtteri Filppula, Luke Glendening, Bobby Ryan, Sam Gagner, Marc Staal, Patrik Nemeth, Jon Merrill, Jonathan Bernier
- Nashville Predators – Mikael Granlund, Erik Haula, Pekka Rinne, Brad Richardson, Luca Sbisa
- Ottawa Senators – Derek Stepan, Ryan Dzingel, Erik Gudbranson, Mike Reilly, Braydon Coburn, Artem Anisimov, Matthew Peca
BLH’s Thoughts: There are a few names that could intrigue Oilers fans in there. For myself, depending on how serious Ken Holland wants to get and the acquisition cost, I would love to see him go out and add some depth at centre. Eric Staal, Erik Haula, and Luke Glendening would be interesting rentals. I wonder if there’d be an appetite to bring in another goalie as insurance and in addition to those, selfishly, Bobby Ryan I really dig. Unlikely any of this happens unless the quarantine rules become relaxed.
Toronto Sun: Michael Traikos reckons if Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel goes the same route Patrick Laine and Pierre-Luc Dubois did this year and demand a trade that it could put the Sabres in a spot of bother but it might speed up a trade.
- “How long before he does what Patrik Laine and Pierre-Luc Dubois both did and tells his agent that he wants to be traded to a team that knows how to build around a superstar? And how long before GM Kevyn Adams decides to roll the dice and see what he can fetch for a 24-year-old who is in the prime of his career?”
BLH’s Thoughts: I see that Buffalo is scratching $9M winger Jeff Skinner and that begs the question, would you move Jack Eichel if it meant you could get rid of Skinner too? That’s $19M in salary if I’m not mistaken and a lot of money to rebuild the club around defenceman Rasmus Dahlin. For example, if Buffalo moved him for prospects and futures, they could re-sign Taylor Hall, bring in Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and shore up the netminding if they wanted.
Maybe it’s just me, but I’d rather have someone with more experience handling this situation that their current GM. I feel like if they trade Eichel for a handful of prospects and picks, they’re just heading back into a perpetual rebuild and that club deserves better.
I’d want a top-6 center back in return in any deal for him. Preferably one still in his 20s. Sasha Barkov comes to mind. If New York wanted him, Zibanejad would be the starter there. Los Angeles is another team that is rumored to be in the running and they’ve got a plethora of really nice kids coming through their system like Quinton Byfield and Alex Turcotte which is exactly where I’d start when it comes to negotiations with the Kings even though I’d be hesitant to accept unproven(at the NHL) players.
Give us a follow on the socials!
- Youtube: Beer League Heroes Channel
- Twitter: @beerleagueheroe
- Instagram: @beerleagueheroes
- Facebook: Beer League Heroes
