NHL Rumor Mill – January 13, 2021

by | Jan 13, 2021 | Rumors | 62 comments

With the regular season opening today, check out the latest on Pierre-Luc Dubois and Keith Yandle in today’s NHL rumor mill.

BLUE JACKETS GETTING CALLS ABOUT DUBOIS

SPORTSNET: In his latest “31 Thoughts” column, Elliotte Friedman reports several sources claim interested teams are “not screwing around” when it comes to Pierre-Luc Dubois. The 22-year-old center requested a trade despite recently signing a two-year contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Interest is reportedly growing in Columbus Blue Jackets center Pierre-Luc Dubois (NHL Images).

Friedman said the Montreal Canadiens and Winnipeg Jets are among the pursuers but there are other clubs in the chase who haven’t received as much attention. Friedman wonders if the Jackets will move quickly to trade Dubois.

TSN: Darren Dreger reports there’s been some speculation linking Dubois to Jets winger Patrik Laine. “That makes a lot of sense, but there’s nothing close there,” said Dreger.

THE ATHLETIC: In a recent mailbag segment, Arpon Basu was asked if the Canadiens would or should make a player for Dubois. He feels it would cost the Habs one of their two promising young centers (Nick Suzuki or Jesperi Kotkaniemi) and there’s no guarantee Dubois will be more successful over the long run than either of those two. If Habs general manager Marc Bergevin could find a way to acquire Dubois without parting with Suzuki or Kotkaniemi it would be a no-brainer.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Recent speculation also has the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks, Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators and New York Rangers as possible or suggested suitors for Dubois. Whether they’re actually pursuing him is another matter.

Dubois-for-Laine addresses the Jets’ outstanding need for a reliable young second-line center. That proposed swap would help the low-scoring Jackets but creates a big hole at center for them.

If the Canadiens land Dubois without parting with Suzuki or Kotkaniemi they’d be set for years at center, salary cap permitting. Maybe Bergevin bundles pending UFA Philip Danault with a top prospect like Cole Caulfield and a couple of his 11 picks between rounds 2 and 5 of the 2021 NHL draft, though that would require a commitment from Danault to sign a contract extension with the Jackets. However, the Canadiens would have to include another salaried player to create room for Dubois’ $5 million AAV. 

That’s just spitballing on my part. Suzuki or Kotkaniemi would have to be part of the return and I doubt Bergevin wants to give up either guy.

YANDLE OUT OF FAVOR WITH THE PANTHERS?

TSN: Frank Seravalli reports Keith Yandle has fallen out of favor with the Florida Panthers. They’ve informed the 34-year-old defensemen he no longer fits into their plans for this season. His no-movement clause (NMC), however, prevents them from demoting him to their taxi squad. It’s believed they plan to make him a healthy scratch for their season-opener, which would end his Ironman streak of 866 games.

SPORTSNET: Elliotte Friedman reports Yandle’s NMC gives him ultimate control over this situation. However, it’s difficult to move salary right now. Friedman said he’d heard the Panthers had some talks with the New York Islanders, with the Panthers taking back some salary, but a deal didn’t happen.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Yandle yesterday said he hadn’t been approached by the Panthers about waiving his NMC. Maybe GM Bill Zito is trying to force the rearguard into seeking a trade or accepting a demotion to the taxi squad.

PuckPedia shows Yandle is signed through 2022-23 with an annual average value of $6.3 million. If he’s willing to accept a trade, the Panthers will have to do a dollar-for-dollar swap or absorb a healthy chunk of his cap hit to make the deal work. Even then, his age and the remaining term on his contract could be sticking points.







62 Comments

  1. Wow, talk about last minute. Was Florida trying to move him in off season? Don’t remember any trade rumors involving him. Boston would be 1st team I think of.

    • Yandle is 34yrs old and 3yrs left at over $6m he is not a fit for any team.

      • Caper, is yandle worth it to the Bruins if they say take back Moore and retain half the salary?

        45 points in a shortened season, hometown boy with a left shot?

        I figure he has at least a year or 2 left in him and would rather him then Moore.

      • Well I completely understand your point N4L and agree in part to what you are saying, i was simply asking the question to Caper if it would be worth it to him in that scenario because Caper is one of the guys I enjoy reading comment on here and hes a bruins guy and I wanted to see if he thought yandle could or would fit in on the Bruins.

        While Yandle did have 45 points last year there would start to be concerns of his age, production ect.. as well.

        I don’t think any team would take Yandle at 6 mill

    • Bruins seem to be content to run the new guys on D but I would entertain Yandle if I was Boston for Moore and a 7th with approx 1/2 Yandle salary retained. His NMC would void on the trade and Bruins could expose him in the expansion draft to protect their younger D if they desired

  2. Considering ThePanthers claimed Noah Julssen off waivers from the Canadiens the other day; it’s obvious they are heading in a different direction defensively, whether it be age, mobility, philosophy or a cap move; they’ve declared Yandle persona non grata. His NTC allows him to control his fate but if they scratch him non stop it will hurt his already low trade value. Both sides need to work together to find him a new home.

    The Habs could certainly use Dubois not just for skill but another French Canadian in the line up makes the fans and the MTL press happier. I don’t see Bergie sending Suzuki, Kotkaniemi or Danault as part of the deal. Not after all the work he did getting center positions filled which just two seasons ago was the biggest area lacking for The Habs. He has several draft picks, Caufiled could be dangled and maybe a prospect in the system like McNiven who has slid behind Cayden Primeau on the depth charts. Bergie would want more than just Dubois for the price though and he s a crafty negotiator when trading.

    • Columbus will want a good center for Dubois, so one of the 3 would have to go. From the Habs perspective, getting Dubois without giving up one of them would create a logjam at center. Also, remember that salary would have to go back to Columbus. The Habs are teetering at the cap’s edge as it is.

    • If the Habs aren’t going to be sending one of their three centres to Columbus, why add another???
      It would be Danault a developing guy and picks…

      • Agree on the C part Bill.
        And will MTL give Danault what he thinks he can get on the open market at the end of the year?
        If both the young C’s develop as they think they will, then I don’t think they do.
        CLB can pursue Danault as a UFA and trade PLD for whatever they deem is the best package regardless of position. Opens up way more teams to deal with and options for their lineup. I think Danault is a high quality 2C, although I have no idea where he would like to play location wise.
        Sounds like Dubois will be a pro and this shouldn’t be a distraction.

    • Well then Andy, no Dubois to the Habs. Not without one or both of those two players heading the other way

    • Getting back more than Dubois for Caufield and MacNiven ???
      Not sending EITHER Kk, Suzuki or Daneault, for Dubois ??? With all due respect, none of this makes any sense.

  3. Regarding Pierre-Luc Dubois … in order to get something, you have to be willing to give up something. I feel sorry for Columbus, nobody wants to play there.

    Yandle is worthless.

    • Not to mention Yandle has played in every game in every season since 2009/10. Due to a trade the 2013/14 season Yandle played in 84 games that season. So the guy is durable and is currently on one heck of an ironman streak.

  4. How well are Montreal set at centre? In this fan’s opinion fairly well.

    Suzuki reminds me the guy just named captain of the Bruins in terms of his sense of positioning and combining this with modestly above average offensive skills.

    If Danault wants 5 to 6 million I am not sure what fair value that is. But he is French Canadian and he is a very good 3 rd line centre that can provide special team service. How hard are they to get? I don’t know.

    IMO Kotkaniemi is one of the most over rated players in the league. He is weak on the puck and has never hit anyone hard unless they had their back to him. He does not have near the puck sense of Suzuki nor the responsibility in his own end as Danault.

    How hard is it to get a French Canadian potential first line centre. Talk about that most over used phrase of the last few years….A GENERATIONAL TALENT. It would be at least that in terms of French Canadian players. I would make the big move for him if were Montreal GM

    You don’t get near to Dubois for Danault ++++. And adding undersized forwards won’t cut it for a team with Colombus’s theory of play. It would need to be KK and a big add. Maybe the new Russian D man with Colombus throwing a high pick.

    I don’t want Montreal to win another game ever unless it helps the Leafs. Childhood residue bias. But I do see them as the most improved team in the league and with a real chance of winning the Canadian division.

    I would trade for Dubois now and give significant add to KK to get it done. It is a chance that does not come often. Look how much the Habs were willing to give for him in his draft year.

    Do it before KK flops IMO there is more than a 50% chance of that. The Colombus GM is Finnish which may contribute to a blind eye.

    • good analysis, id give them the entire finnish line if they want, not caufield, kk +++ aok.

    • This season will say a lot about Suzuki and KK, but, OBD, I don’t think you have been watching KK closely recently. In the play in he was body checking when the opportunity presented itself, and this was a result of putting on some weight. He is just 20 now.

      Would the Habs trade KK for Dubois? Tough call, IMO, and the cap means the cost of acquiring Dubois is whatever Columbus will settle for, plus another roster player traded or buried.

      So the true cost of acquiring Dubois is beyond his trade value — unless Columbus really is willing to settle for prospects and picks in addition to one of the Habs’ current centers.

  5. Yesterday I predicted 5 players to be claimed via the waiver wire, in the end it was 4:

    Rudoffs Balcers(f) claimed by SJ from Ott
    Anton Forsberg(g) claimed by Car from Edm
    Eric Comrie (g) claimed by NJ from Wpg
    Luca Sbisa(D) claimed by Nash from WPG

    Interesting all from Canadian teams, 2 from Winnipeg.

    2 goalies for the taxi squad; Balcers was an orginal Sharks draft pick and i guess they wanted him back

  6. TRADE EKBLAD – It appears management in Florida are aware of the need to give some D a severe boot in the arse (Matheson, Yandle, Pysyk). Unfortunately they won’t do the same to Ekblad who I think is king *ussy on D in Florida. I think he cried after Domi (5-10) punched him (6-4) in the face.

    FLAMES TRADE FOR DUBOIS – give up Monahan and Pelletier if you have to.

    • Ever been in a real fight Arnie?
      I dare say if Domi suckered you square in the beak you wouldn’t have kicked his ass.
      Domi is the *ussy for that chicken s**t move.

      • Yes, many times. And he wasn’t suckered, we all seen it coming. He was busy looking to the ref to save him. He made an instagram post after too, him snuggling his dog with a black eye or something. He’s no leader.

      • Scrums like that happen multiple times every game and guys don’t drop a mitt and punch a guy square in the face. Almost never happens, hence it got the attention it did.
        He wasn’t expecting it and he didn’t see it coming. Dirty play.
        If you think he is a *ussy Arnie, wait outside the rink a challenge him to a scrap.

  7. Greetings All…Happy New Year. As a long time CBus resident and CBJ fan I can tell you there is a combination of shock, depression, and anger at the Dubois situation. You typically only get 1C by drafting and developing. Jarmo achieved it only to be presented w/ a situation that has the familiar Panarin feel of the “I like you CBJ….but love the bright lights of the bigger stage” situation yet again. Not to mention Fox Sports Ohio has been dropped from all the main streaming services due a dispute w/ Sinclair so many fans are starting the season this week without access unless they reacquire cable. Fans are pretty raw. My 2 cents on the trade prospects. Jarmo is very savvy in these deals and is equally willing to act quickly or wait to yield a strong return. What I am most interested to see is if he is pursuing a singular Joey-Jones type deal or package of assets that then get flipped in subsequent deals to bolster the C and F scoring. I know fanbases always hope they are going get player like Dubois for pennies on the dollar but in this situation I do expect Jarmo to get a significant return.

    • It’s tough to win that trade too when you are not rebuilding. Anyone with a C of equal value is not willing to trade theirs. So I suppose the only way he gets close to equal value is by trading for a winger. Or buying green bananas at C, but they are not rebuilding. I’d say he gets a decent C in return and a scoring winger to try and level things out for him. That’s why I am hoping Monahan+ might be enough to get it done.

    • There is another way, Deacon, and that is for Columbus to say goodbye to Torts. He deserves credit for having the Jackets overachieve the past couple of seasons.

      But his in your face, old school coaching style has worn out everywhere he has been – remember he was let go by the Rangers because he “lost the room,” then was bounced by the Canucks after making a mess with Luongo and then throwing a nutty during intermission against Calgary.

      I doubt that will happen as Columbus would have to spend $$ for another head coach during zero revenue this season. But one has to wonder: who is more valuable, a coach or a star center?

    • I don’t get it personally deacon. I went to osu for three years. Columbus is a nice medium sized town. Great arena. I even spent a preseason as a beer here guy for the jackets. I do wonder how much is torts vs the city itself.

      Although cluck u closed. That took some of the appeal away.

      • Tortarella said today that Dubois didn’t explain his reasons for wanting to leave. So far we’re going off of what E. Friedman has told us, don’t pin it on the coach, he just wants a bigger market. Now I’m not so sure. Maybe it’s both.

  8. Too bad Yandle’s iron man comes to an end this way. Kessel is second and might be next.
    Gary Unger with the Leafs ended as a healthy scratch some 800 games in.

  9. I am a Hab fan and would love to land PLD. I would move KK but not Suzuki . Danault +++ in a heartbeat but can not see CBJ doing that . I will be surprised if the trade happens at all until the off season . Way more teams will get involved than.

    • I tend to agree with everything you posted. I’d trade Danault for Dubois, but that likely wouldn’t be enough. No way I trade Caufield. He’s the most talented natural goal scorer in their system. All the centers in the world can’t do much without finishers. I’d be willing to possibly make KK part of the deal but wouldn’t trade Suzuki. If they do trade KK or Danault, someone else has to go. Tatar? Drouin? Armia? In any event, I agree that the trade won’t happen till the offseason. Teams will have more cap space then. And there’s something else to consider. If he’s traded to a Canadian team, there’s the quarantine issue. With this year’s compressed schedule, that could mean 6 or 7 games without Dubois and whomever they trade for him. That could cost games and a playoff spot.

    • Interesting that Hab fans wouldn’t trade Suzuki for Dubois.
      This Bruin fan would if he was the MTL GM.
      I would think CLB would ask for an add on.
      Dubois in last years playoffs, when the going got tough, was a physically dominant player against what were supposed to be more highly skilled players.
      Seems to be exactly what MTL needs, and I would think Julien is drooling over the thought of having him. As are more than a few teams.
      Put some talent around him and you have an all star for a decade IMO.

  10. Cap realities dictate that PLD will not be traded to Montreal as at least 5 million has to go the other way.

    The Habs have Danault plus one of Armia or Lehkonen to match dollars and value.

    The salary structure of these two teams fits and so does the coaching style. Torts would love these players.

    Danault is a Bergeron Lite and the Habs best face off man, PLD’s biggest weakness.

    I definitely wouldn’t add a prospect and make it a 3 for 1.

    I like PLD but not that much

    • OMG you mentioned Bergeron and Danault in the same sentence as a remote comparable???!!!. A first ballot underpaid 1C hall of fame and an overpaid dime a dozen 3C. You are a fool.

      • Who was it again comparing a guy with zero nhl games (also failed to secure a roster spot) to Bobby Orr and Alex Pietrangelo? Now you know how the rest of us feel whenever you post .
        I’ll continue to keep your posts fresh so we can all enjoy a good laugh as the real hockey begins . We all know who the fool is , even your fellow leaf followers

      • Craig, you dont post often but when you do its inane

        You are: The Least Interesting Man In The World.

        Stay angry my friend

      • Danualt is a high end 2C today, and if he had quality wingers could be a 1C.
        Even if you just go with point totals.
        37th in scoring for C’s and +18 on a minus team.
        Almost all his points are even strength and he spends way more time on the PK than the PP.
        Skates good and is 6’1″ 200 lbs.
        Excellent defensive player and gets more d zone starts than o zone.
        Ya, dime a dozen 3C.
        If MTL doesn’t offer him 6x$6M, he is fool not to test the market. BOS could sure use him next year. Tough financial times for teams, but somebody will buck up if he is healthy this off season.

  11. So MTL won’t trade one of their 3 3rd line centres for a 2nd line centre in PLD? The reality is CLB won’t downgrade.

    Yandle is perfectly positioned to ride out his contract sittingbin the press box until FLA buys him out and he retires.

  12. Laine under Tortorella would be hilarious

    • That would be interesting Brock. From the outside seem like oil and water.
      Rumors have that Laine has turned the corner with regards to playing within the system. We’ll see.
      Maybe a guy like Torts makes him a better player?

      • Laine would certainly become more dominating, as he’d be going back to play in Finland after 1 year under Torts

  13. No Yandle five years ago yes,right now he’s just a retread like so many other pickups the bruins have had over the year.

  14. Was just looking on Capfreindly re VGKs

    They waived Holden but brought up Petera (G) ????

    So … If Cap Friendly is accurate… they have 21 players… 13 F, 5 D, 3 G …. and are $574 K over… so not Cap compliant

    Today the season opens for the NHL but Knights first game is tomorrow

    Does anybody know if they have to be Cap compliant today (NHL season start) or tomorrow (their season start)?

    Going with 3 Gs and only 5 D?????

    The obvious move is Patera down and Hague up…. still at 21… only saves an extra 8 K … but they would then play tomorrow night with 6 D not 5…. however would still be 566 K over (not compliant)???

    If I remember right… non Cap compliant means forfeiture of all games played until compliant; fines (@ least $1M if memory serves); and loss of pick(s)

    Every other team is either under now ; or will be through LTIR usage or by dropping down an ELC (or two) to taxi squad , just for opening of season

    MacCrimmon must do something post haste

    • There’s still time, Pengy. Everyone thought TB was in bad shape as well. Turns out Brisbois snuck under the cap by a mere $334.00. Now that’s cap management at it’s finest. Leafs, Vegas and others will be in the same position or real close by the end of day.

      I’m very happy to have been wrong. I didn’t think the league would pull it off, but here we are.
      Here’s hoping to see a Bruins(4w)vs Habs(3w)finals.

      • Hi ShoreOrrPark

        I too didn’t think BrisBoise could do it w/o moving Johnson

        However that was when I was unaware that Kuch was going to be LTIR for what now looks like, the better part (if not all) of the regular season

        Since my post I now see CapFriendly has Patera listed as SOIR (Season Opening Injured Eserve)

        Per CapFreindly on SOIR:

        “ If a player who is on a two-way contract becomes disabled during training-camp or who reports to training-camp disabled as the result of a hockey related injury incurred during the off-season, they can be placed on season-opening injured reserve, to possibly obtain cap relief.”

        So … it appears that MacCrimmon either new the fine print or got that suggestion from staff

        So as at now on CapFriendly they are at 13 F, 5D, 2 G (20 players) …. and showing Cap space as 225 K; with Patera showing as $0

        I’m guessing that might be their “formal “ season start… and Cap compliant; then tomorrow Patera down and Hague up

        After that and between games I’m assuming Hague and Glass will be sent down to Taxi squad to save Cap

        Still very tight …. and basically little/no Cap room for TDL trade

        Game On !!

  15. Re PLD to Habs

    Odds heavily stacked against this possibility before TDL (and if in year… some time will be lost by a trade of players across the border due to quarantine)….

    Habs can’t handle trade Cap wise right now as at least two players off roster most go over to accommodate the $5 M coming in…. all three of Danault; Koka ; Suzuki (and reality insists that one would need to go over in the trade) have much less Cap hit than PLD

    IMHO Habs should NOT go for an offer that has Suzuki going to CLB… even if they perceive PLD to have a better future (this is subjective and no one actually knows)… the future perceived gain in flipping PLD for Suzuki; can’t be much at all and runs the risk of a downturn in the expected performance of PLD

    IMHO Clb should not do a deal that includes Danault unless an acceptable extension is already in place… have firm talks of an extension begun???

    So basically IMHO the only deal that has a remote possibility is with Koka plus a Roster player (to make Cap work) plus something else

    Habs won’t be sending D …. so it basically comes down to Koka and Tatar plus

    Is Jarmo going to bite on Koka + Tatar … and if so what is the add?

    All above leads me to strongly believe that PLD will not be coming to Habs (if at all) pre TDL; and more than likely if he does come it will be after the season

  16. PLD isn’t going to MTL for a potential 3rd C, obviously MTL fans feel their top two c project to be better then PLD.

    At this present moment MTL doesn’t have a C as good as PLD.

    The other point of interest is, that it comes across that some folks feel PLD is fully develop, his projection is still on the rise and his plateau is still an unknown.

    If Hab fans are correct and both their top C end up better then PLD, i dare say Montreal will be set for years and will be extremely tough to play against.

  17. How about as core pieces to a trade:

    Winnipeg moving Laine to Montreal
    Suzuki to Wpg, a pick and some salary
    Wpg flips Suzuki with Roslovic to Columbus for Dubois

    Montreal adds offense and another Fin
    Wpg gets an excellent #2 C and a pick
    Columbus gets good value for Dubois with promising young center and hometown Roslovic who looks to be a good middle 6 player.

    • People forget that Columbus traded for Domi to be a 2c and he was behind Danault on the Hab depth chart.

      The 3way of Wpg, Mtl and Columbus can’t work though Mtl would love Laine, there is no cap room.

      Neither Suzuki or KK make enough to be involved in this type of trade

    • Come on people, seriously!

      MTL has absolutely no talent to offer in a trade for PLD let alone Laine.

      And it is Seth Jones straight up or Werenski + minimum unprotected 1st or its no deal for Laine with CLB, so stop suggesting a steaming bag for an elite player.

      • Wow that’s some non-linear thinking right there folks.

        You would have to be an absolute moron to trade a legit number 1 Dman just entering his prime for a one-dimensional winger, albeit good at scoring goals, when he’s not on a 40 game goalless drought.

        Put the crack pipe down and walk away, seriously!

  18. According to NESM.COM ….this is the Bruins roster until Pasta gets back and no trade for a LD

    Bergeron-Marchand-Studnicka
    DeBrusk-Krejci-Kase
    Ritchie-Coyle-Smith
    Bjork-Kuraly-Wagner
    Frederic

    Lauzon-McAvoy
    Grzelcyk-Carlo
    Zboril-Miller
    Moore
    Clifton

    Rask
    Halak

    Looks good but could use a PP -LD

    • That’s interesting and makes sense Joe.
      I would have predicted Grzelcyk with McAvoy and Lauzon with Carlo though.
      B’s played with 4 forwards on the 1st PP and might again? Grzelcyk?
      Krug or Pasta usually carried it in for the zone entry on the PP, so that will be interesting.
      Good to see Zboril getting a shot, we’ll see how he does.

    • Zboril can wire it from the point so maybe he fits on the PP, but likely 2nd unit.

    • That lineup will be lucky to make the playoffs! Kase is a dud Ritchie couldn’t score on a team from the retirement complex!

      • I remember Don Cherry saying how dumb Leafs were to take Nylander over Ritchie because Lefs needed toughness. That is the same out of touch argument a bunch of you said about Leafs taking the Russian winger when there was a big tough Cdn D man they should take. Meanwhile they later picked a puck moving Finn D in the 3rd round that outplayed all the first round ringers like Sanderson et al. Lol.

        ALWAYS DRAFT FOR THE HIGH CEILING HOME RUN. The rest are mainly iinterchangable slugs who should be signed based on willingness to be paid at or around league minimum.

    • Joe, sound about right. Here hoping Zboril will belong.

      • Pasta back probably drops DeBrusk down to the 3rd line which could be strong ….

  19. So was Marleau, but it was because he didn’t engage physically. Being on an Ironman streak in the NHL is not a badge of honor but one of periphery and softness.

    • Idiot.
      Can’t wait for the pick to drop on what will be the holyest crapshoot of a season. Let the craziness begin.

  20. This is going to be a crazy year lots of underlying conditions popping up every day ….

  21. Bruins will not make the playoffs! Look for Sweeney to sign a retread.

  22. North division, should be interesting with 4 teams scrambling for slots 2-4. Leafs will run away with division and MTL and OTT are sad sacks in 6th & 7th.

    My guess is EDM misses due to goaltending and lack of depth .

  23. DFS time and getting feet wet tonight … anyone else play ?

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

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