It’s NHL Draft weekend and rumours are flying in abundance.
Here’s a brief summary of the latest.
Oilers looking at Wild defencemen; Yakupov garnering interest
Things are heating up as the beginning of the draft approaches. The Oilers are reportedly involved in some discussions.
Calgary Flames chasing goalie
This rumour has been gaining steam for days now, and Sportsnet’s John Shannon fueled the fires Friday evening, providing a little insight into who might be in the crease in Calgary next season.
Jimmy Howard has three years remaining on his current contract with the Detroit Red Wings, with an AAV of just under $5.3 million.
“Petr Mrazek is our No. 1 guy as we head into training camp,” said Red Wings GM Ken Holland on Sportsnet’s 590 The Fan on Monday.
Ben Bishop has one year remaining on his contract, after which he will become a UFA. He currently makes $5.95 million against Tampa’s cap. His last two contracts have been for two years each.
The Calgary Sun’s Eric Francis reported Monday that Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury could be a target for the Flames.
Brian Elliott has also been rumoured to be heading out west.
Canucks face possible tampering charge
The Vancouver Canucks could be facing a tampering charge based on GM Jim Benning’s comments about Steven Stamkos and P.K. Subban made Thursday, according to Renaud Lavoie.
A Subban-to-Canucks trade is “nowhere near close,” Benning said on-air Thursday.
“It’s a long way from completing a deal like that,” Benning said. “There’s lots of teams that have reached out to them to find out what it would take to try to complete a deal of that magnitude. It’s a high price.”
Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin insisted Thursday that he’s not shopping Subban.
Benning also commented on his team’s potential interest in pending free agent Stamkos who is still under contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning until July 1.
“He’s going to have lots of interest from lots of teams throughout the league,” he said. “There will be teams that have more money to spend than we do, but we’re going to talk to him and see where it goes.”
Blue Jackets fielding ‘serious’ offers for third-overall pick
Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch that he has listened to at least 10 offers for their third-overall pick in Friday’s first round of the NHL Draft. He spoke of his willingness to potentially move the pick.
“If we pick at three, we’ll get a great player,” Kekalainen said. “If we move down, we’re going to take a player that we feel is going to be as good — or nearly as good — as we would have gotten at three.
“If we move down, it’s not that we’re going to settle for a much lesser of a player by doing it. We feel that the top of the draft is so good that, if we’re going to move back, we’re probably not going to move back very much.”
He continued by making clear to reporters that he will not trade out of the top 10.
“We’re getting some serious and real offers right now,” Kekalainen said. “We’re making sure we have them all lined up so that we can compare them and see what the best one is and whether it’s worth consideration.
“I’ve talked to every team in the top 10. We’ve got their interest in what they want to do. We have a pretty good idea for what everybody’s intentions are, what it might take and what they might offer if they want to move up to three.”
Panthers, Ekblad close to contract extension
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported Friday that the Florida Panthers and defenceman Aaron Ekblad are close to reaching a contract extension for the stud rear guard.
Friedman elaborated on that and more in Friday’s 30 Thoughts column.
