NHL Rumor Mill – January 14, 2022

by | Jan 14, 2022 | Rumors | 30 comments

Could terminating Evander Kane’s contract enable the Sharks to re-sign Tomas Hertl? If not, could the Rangers be interested in him? Does Kane have a new contract with the Oilers? Check out the latest in today’s NHL rumor mill.

WILL THE SHARKS SIGN OR TRADE HERTL?

TSN: Pierre LeBrun speculated the Sharks might have sufficient salary-cap space from terminating Evander Kane’s contract to re-sign pending free agent Tomas Hertl depending on the outcome of the NHLPA’s grievance filed on Kane’s behalf. He expects they’ll revisit their contract discussions from last summer and perhaps make an offer to Hertl.

San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl (NHL Images).

If the two sides fail to reach an agreement on an extension, LeBrun believes Hertl could become the biggest name in the trade market if the Sharks make him available before the March trade deadline. The 28-year-old center carries a three-team trade list. LeBrun believes the New York Rangers are a team to keep an eye on as he thinks they have Hertl on their list of trade targets.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hertl will undoubtedly draw lots of interest if the Sharks put him on the trade block. I don’t doubt the Rangers would be at the head of the pack. They’re jockeying for first place in the Eastern Conference and carry plenty of cap space and promising prospects to make a competitive bid.

However, the Sharks could be reluctant to move Hertl if they’re still in the playoff chase. They’re currently clinging to the final wildcard berth in the Western Conference. It’s been three years since they last appeared in the playoffs and ownership could be keen to tap into that postseason revenue.

HAS EVANDER KANE ALREADY SIGNED WITH THE OILERS?

EDMONTON JOURNAL: David Staples cited TSN’s Shawn Simpson yesterday tweeting it sounds like Evander Kane has already signed a one-year, prorated contract worth $1.5 million with the Oilers.

Kane is under investigation by the NHL for potentially violating AHL COVID protocols. It was one of the reasons cited by the San Jose Sharks for terminating his contract last Sunday. Simpson said Kane technically needs to be under contract before any suspension should kick in.

The other issue the Oilers run into. You won’t register the contract now, and then find out he’s suspended the rest of the year, “ wrote Simpson. “That would be money and cap space that is totally wasted. Curious how long the league investigation will take?”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Simpson’s colleagues Darren Dreger, Pierre LeBrun and Chris Johnston made no mention of this during last night’s “Insider Trading” segment. We’ll have to wait and see how this plays out.

Johnston said Kane could technically sign with another NHL team today but he believes Kane’s going to wait out of respect for the teams interested in signing him who want to see await the outcome of the league’s investigation.







30 Comments

  1. I thought I was for Kane coming to Bruins but I do not believe he would be a good fit They have more pressing needs of 2nd line ctr and a top 4 l d man
    They have been playing up to their potential since the new year and I do not expect that to stop any time soon unless more injuries/covid take hold

    • Mrbruin4, I;ve said numerous times i take Kane on Boston and hope to land him.

      I’ve changed my mind. Kane would have to play 3rd line LW/ He isn’t bumping Marchand, Hall and Pastrnak have good chemistry.

      Nice option for 3rd line lw but not happening and Debrusk would have to be moved.

      They need a 2nd line C and a LD with grit

    • Won’t comment on Kane, I have enough times.
      B’s getting it going, and the new 2nd line is contributing. Pasta and Hall have chemistry, but so does Haula with those guys. 6 pts in last 6 games. Smart player.
      Not sure it will last with those 3, but keep rolling them out and find out.

      Just maybe we have something already in house?

      • It’s OK Ray; he won’t be a Bruin; he’ll be an Oiler.

  2. I still find it revolting that any team is rushing to sign Kane. One moment its all about teamwork and team culture and team accountability. But that goes out the window under this case. You can only have it one way, and the Kane way has proven to be a one way to dysfunction end.

    Also, if SJ has to trade Hertl, I hope they get a prize package in return, that franchise needs it.

    Also Lyle, these are not posting to the Rumors page….

    • If you’re referring to your comments, redmonsters, they’re here. I’ve had no trouble seeing or responding to them. Cheers!

      • Hello Lyle,
        Sorry, what I meant is that your Rumor articles are not posting to your rumor page – https://www.spectorshockey.net/rumors/. The last article posted there is 1/11/22. Currently the rumors article can be found on your Homepage.

      • Sounds like a caching issue with your browser. It’s showing up fine on my browsers (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge).

      • Hi Redmonsters…I sometimes get that but just re-fresh the cache …. clean out the web history dust…. And then all is good

    • Signing Kane to 1.5 million is hardly rushing to get him. He is a solid hockey player that lays both ends of the ice hard . As a person he seems quite the (need a replacement word for) D!ck.

      Teams like the oilers who are desperate for a solution are not in the wrong to sign this guy and try and beat some sense into him. If it doesn’t work he rides pine and sits as a healthy scratch. Little financial cost.

      Short term low money it could very well prove beneficial to both.

      Can old dogs learn new tricks?

    • I agree Red. I hope the Kane situation works out in the Sharks favor. Re-uping Hertl and acquiring another solid winger might amp them up. They are fun to watch now for sure!

  3. To me Kane is the type of player the Bruins need but just not him …wouldn’t mind a L Crouse type either….#2 center & a LD would make this team legit but don’t see that happening because of the cap space and the players they have possibly to trade won’t bring back much ….

  4. Kane is toxic and no team should sign him. He needs to play somewhere else, maybe the KHL…

    • Logan Mailloux is a saint compared to this guy.

  5. Re Kane

    The $1.5 M contract… if that is what it is…. Is low risk. $1.08 M can be buried …. The Cap exposure is then just $420 K

    Cash wise… after escrow the pro-rated $1.5 M (if all in Sal)…. Is about $625 K. These owners have franchises valued in the $700M – $1B range…. $625 K is chump change

    Low risk…. Hi potential upside

    Remember… Kane absolutely MUST be on pristine behaviour for the balance of the year under this new contract or he won’t get a new contract from anybody come summer

    Also…. This latest “incident” is being investigated. It seems there are many media posts that are questioning Sharks challenge on this and that he just may not only have had permission to fly and cross the border but had verbal OK not to return to AHL club until 6/1/22 which he did

    Too many “speculating” on this right now

    Have to wait and see what the outcome of the investigation is

  6. I heard Simmer’s comments live. All he said was “after hearing the interview with McDavid, it sounded like a contract was already signed between the Oilers and Kane”.

    as usual media runs with everything….gone are the days of fact checking

    • Not all media Dark G.
      The hockey rumor stuff, is what it is, hence the term rumor.

    • Here is the link to Shawn Simpson’s tweet.
      https://twitter.com/TSNSimmer/status/1481621914590269442
      Here he actually said “Sounds like Kane is already signed by Edmonton for 1.5 million pro rated. Technically he needs to be under contract before any suspension kicks in.”
      That is a fact.

  7. No mention of Kane facing possible legal action. NHL has no control of that.

  8. Contender top 9? not sure
    Kane-McDavid-RNH
    Hyman-Draisaitl-PJ
    Foegele-McLeod-Yamamoto/Kassian

    • Or Yamamoto stays in the top 6 and RNH is moved to the third line centre. Then by adding a top 6 winger the Oilers get their third-line centre.

  9. So. If pens lost both goalies in a game to injury… does hextall suit up?

    • If you see him twerking in a private booth, you’ll know he’s practicing for that occasiion.

    • If you see him twerking in a private booth, you’ll know that he’s practicing for that occasion.

  10. In one way, Kane should not be offered a contract.
    BUT
    From a team perspective there just isnt much risk in signing him to a low one year deal. If it doesnt work, just bury him in the minors, and thats it.
    HOWEVER
    If I were Kane, why would I sign with the Oilers? Now, I dont know if anyone else would take him, but If I was Kan my list of prefered destinations would be
    1/ Florida
    2/ Tampa
    3/ Carolina
    4/ Avs
    5/ Vegas
    Oilers would be way down the list, and that means way down, like choice 16. So 15 other teams I would rather go to.

    • Why would Kane want to sign with the Oilers? Two names, McDavid and Draisaitl. Two of the best players in the NHL today and right now numbers 1 and 2 on the points list.

      • True, but goalies are crap, the D are average at best and bottom six can’t score. My point is, if I was Kane and were to sign a cheap one year contract, I would sign with the team best equipped to win the cup, and on that list the Oilers are way down.

  11. Wasn’t the Kane violation something to do with going to Canada? How long could it possibly take to investigate? Aren’t there records for border crossings? Watched SJ vs NYR game from last night. Hertl definately an upgrade from Strome. Just can’t see if SJ gets rid of Kane contract how they don’t sign him.

  12. Fans jump all over Kane but GMs want him for the right money obviously.

    Shanahan slept with teammates wife.
    Chelios slept with his GM’s wife
    Eddie Belfour history of meltdowns

    • habs signed a guy who was a puke