Pavel Kubina appears to have played his final game for the Tampa Bay Lightning.
General manager Steve Yzerman says the NHL team has decided to keep the veteran defenceman off the ice until a trade can be completed.
Kubina holds a limited no-trade clause and has been asked for a list of teams he’s willing to go to.
"I’m not going to say, ‘hey, the sale is on,'” Yzerman said to reporters on Thursday. “We’re not going to just give guys away. If we come across a deal that brings in someone in return who makes us a better organization, we’re going to do that. But we’re not just going to unload guys for the sake of unloading them."
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Yzerman told reporters that no deal is imminent, but that Kubina will be held off the ice as a precaution.
“We’re making our decisions on a player-by-player basis,” said Yzerman. “We see a potential opportunity to improve our club. In regards to Pavel, and as far as any other players or any other opportunity, there’s the broader strategy of wanting to be a better team in the future, so we’ll look at any opportunity to become that.”
The 34-year-old is earning US$3.5 million in the final year of a contract he signed with Tampa Bay prior to last season — a deal that returned him to the organization where he won a Stanley Cup in 2004. He has strong ties to the community, making any transaction a difficult one for Yzerman to make.
Kubina has three goals and 11 points in 52 games this season.
With files from the Canadian Press
