NHL Rumor Mill – January 29, 2024
Which players could the Rangers target as a possible replacement for Filip Chytil? What’s the latest on Vladimir Tarasenko? Will the Predators be busy in the trade market? Find out in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS FOR CHYTIL
NEW YORK POST: Before Sunday’s news that Filip Chytil is out for the rest of the season with a suspected concussion, Larry Brooks wondered which players the Rangers might target as a possible replacement for the sidelined center.
The Rangers need a third-line center behind Mika Zibanejad and Vincent Trocheck. Brooks believes they will operate with the cap space freed up by placing Chytil and his $4.4 million cap hit on long-term injury reserve.
Brooks listed the Anaheim Ducks’ Adam Henrique and Montreal Canadiens’ Sean Monahan as the most prominent trade candidates. The 33-year-old Henrique carries a $5.85 million cap hit that the Ducks would have to retain half, likely driving up their asking price. Monahan, 29, has a $1.985 million cap hit.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Elliotte Friedman touched on this during his Saturday Headlines segment on Hockey Night in Canada. He felt a trade sending Monahan to the Rangers wouldn’t be easy. He said there’s no love lost between the front offices of the two clubs as former Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton is now the Canadiens executive VP of hockey operations.
Ottawa Senators winger Vladimir Tarasenko (NHL Images).
Monahan is younger and carries a much more affordable cap hit but he does have a recent history of injuries. The Canadiens could seek a first-round pick in return for Monahan while the Ducks could seek the same for Henrique.
LATEST ON TARASENKO
OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reported on Friday that Senators GM Steve Staios must determine what’s next for Vladimir Tarasenko. The 32-year-old right wing is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
On Wednesday, Staios told reporters that he hadn’t approached Tarasenko about waiving his no-trade clause. Nevertheless, both sides understand the reality of the situation.
The Senators GM said the winger has made a good impression with the Sens and hinted at re-signing him. However, Garrioch pointed out that the Senators need more assets (draft picks or prospects) and Tarasenko could fetch some of those in a trade.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Garrioch also indicated that there were scouts from Washington, Detroit, St. Louis and Arizona at Thursday’s game against the Boston Bruins. They may have been there to look at Tarasenko and other Ottawa players but it’s worth noting that the Capitals, Red Wings and Coyotes will play the Senators within the next four weeks.
Tarasenko will certainly draw attention over the next month as the trade deadline approaches. He won a Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019 and has a proven record in postseason play with 44 goals and 64 points in 97 contests. The veteran winger has 32 points in 43 games with the Senators this season.
PREDATORS COULD BE ACTIVE BEFORE THE TRADE DEADLINE
NASHVILLE HOCKEY NOW: Michael Gallagher recently reported Predators GM Barry Trotz spent time phoning different general managers during the club’s recent road trip. He said that he’d be ready to do something but the others couldn’t because of limited salary-cap space.
Trotz believes his team will be able to do “a couple of things” at the March 8 trade deadline. Gallagher noted he’s been trying to move defenseman Tyson Barrie but hasn’t been able to make the dollars work yet because the interested parties lack cap room.
Predators backup goalie Kevin Lankinen has drawn interest but he’ll fetch a draft pick or two rather than a player who can help the Predators now. There were rumblings earlier this season that blueliner Dante Fabbro was available but those have since died away
Trotz hasn’t made up his mind if he’ll be a buyer or seller but suggested his club’s performance in the coming weeks would determine his decision.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Barrie is the most likely to be moved given his public trade request, which didn’t sit well with Trotz. However, I don’t think he’ll fetch much more than Lankinen.
I thought it was strange that the Preds started Lankinen against the Oilers on Saturday. Especially after Saros was coming off a win against the Wild the Thursday before. Maybe they are showcasing him?
The Rangers should not overpay for a 3rd line center however the need is huge.
Monahan with his injury history does not give me confidence in the playoffs and he is not a 3rd line center type with half his points coming on the powerplay
The Rangers 4th line has been brutal of late and giving up goals to the other teams 4th line.
@williew
Trocheck is having a very good season as the 2nd line center.
The Rangers need a decent 3rd liner for this season(and find a prospect center asap).
Lindholm is ideal but not the need or the price tag for the situation.
.
Re; Filip Chytil the NYR 2nd line Centre
Now he is out for the rest of the season,the NYR
Will need a centre Much Sooner than Later…❓
3 Top targets to be 2nd line centre are replacement for the side-lined NYR center.
Target’s
#1Elias Lindholm Flames $4.8M,
Cost could be –A first pick, A Top Prospect, A young Roster player…❓
#2 Sean Monahan Hab’s $2.M, Cost
I think A young player like local boy Alexis Lafrenière, to the re-building Habs ❓
if it drags on…….
A mix of a player and pick’s to the highest bidder’s But the Habs dont need more prospects they have a ton….
#3 #3 Adam Henrique Ducks $5.8M
A young player like a winger Kaapo Kakko,
Ducks retaine 50% of Henrique Salary……..❓
Thought’s…..
Trade Laf to the Ducks for Zegras
I figure you must be trolling. You think Monahan if worth Lafraniere. You think Adam Henrique is worth Kappo Kakko. Even if Monahan and Henrique counted as zero in cap space the teams would have to significantly add. Calgary gave a 1st round pick for Montreal to take Monahan and Adam Henrique has been available the last couple of years and nobody has touched him. Montreal and Anaheim would have to significantly add.
I don’t think the Rangers will trade Lafreniere for Monahan either, WTH.
But the suggestion that Monahan isn’ t worth a good return is to ignore (1) the reason the Flames moved him: they were desperate to create cap space to sign Khadr (2) his play with the Habs. Why do you think most of the Habs fans who post here want Hughes to keep him?
In fact there is a strong argument to say Monahan would have even more points were he playing with a team with better players. Montreal has been icing half an NHL team for the past two years, and Monahan continues to put up points and make other players better.
He’s not the messiah. But he will improve any team that adds him, and the Habs will not have to “add” to move him.
You also have to factor into the trade the Rangers need and what they are willing to pay to fill that need. Sometimes comparing a player’s value to another players value ina. Vacuum ant enough.
If Montreal wants to play hardball with the rangers the rangers will need to pay the ask or look elsewhere. What if there is no elsewhere or everyone plays hardball?
If the Rangers give up Laf for injury prone rental Monahan and/or give up Kakko for 33 yr old rental Henrique then Drury should be fired instantly.
I know GMs get crazy at the deadline, but I would not give up a 1st for Monahan and Henrique (at that salary) is barely worth a 3rd rounder; maybe 2nd if Ana retains 1/2 salary.
Monahan will probably land a 1st from someone, just hope it’s not the Rangers.
the only version of any of these could be Kakko for Zegras..but wasnt Zegras playing more wing than center?
Re NYR & Centre’s
Guys,
Both these Teams The Hab’s & Duck’s
They Really Don’t Need more pick’s… as they both have Lot’s pick’s in the draft and lots of Young Propects on both farms 👍
if they have an oppertunity to get a younger roster player 22 or 23 yrs old from the NYR like a
Alexis Lafrenière
Or
Kaapo Kakko
they should both try for that First…there are only so many centre’s out there avalable, maybe be the ducks/Habs send a 3rd pick out with there centre’s to the NYR to get a better return…..
All in the art of negotiations 🤔
The NYR are going to have to get a good 2nd line centre from somewhere❓.. If they want to make noise in the playoffs, Demand is High, the longer it gos the Price & Pressure go’s up
➡️ 2nd in the EAST NYR @63pts,
➡️ 8th in the EAST Wings @ 57pts
The Last game before the Break, Sen’s & Wing’s Jan 31st. may come down to 4 point difference
I think NYR pull the trigger sooner that later To fix this problem…🤔
@ williew, In a comment above you mentioned the Rangers need a 2C. That is Trocheck who is almost a point per game player. They aren’t trading Laf or Kakko to get a rental 3C.
Also, Rangers had Tarasenko last year and it didn’t pan out.
What I think Rangers really need is a RW who can distribute the puck on the top line (so Zib can shoot more) plus a well rounded defensively responsible 3C (Henrique could fit that role, but not at his salary and not at the expense of a key roster player).
No way Monahan is worth LAF when he is finally playing good. Fair value would be a late first for Monahan and a 4th
Same for Henrique, they wont sell low on Kacko but maybe a 4th isnt necessary
Montreal has a surplus of young D they can add to the trade along with a draft pick
Lafrenière for Monahan, prospect Luke Tuch & a conditional ’25 pick.
Conditional on, if the Rangers win the ’24 or ’25 SC with Monahan in the lineup, there is no pick.
If Monahan signs with the Rangers &/or the Rangers make the ’24 SC finals it becomes Montreal 5th rder.
If the Rangers do not sign Monahan & fail to make the ’24 Sc finals, then it becomes the Habs 2nd rder.
Hey foleyd7
Re; Vincent Trocheck & NYR Need Now
VT has been playing Both positions on the top line RW with Mika Zibanejad at centre when Zibanejad is 2nd line centre
They could do with Both A top 6 RW & 2nd line centre like
RW Vladimir Tarasenko, ottawa would retain 50% & Centre Sean Monahan would be up grades over what they have at pressent
They have the picks and prospects to do it ⁉️
Chytil was experimental 2nd line center , a total of 10 games. Trocheck was last years 2nd line center and he’s more than okay right back there. Arguably their best player most nights.
So NY is more in the market for a 3rd line center than a 2nd.
Lindholm is a bit much, Monahan probably a better fit.
I don’t see Laffrienere or Kakko being traded for Monohan or Henrique. It cutes one issue and creates another.
Ny needs secondary scoring. Plugging someone other than Goodrow / Bonino into that role is a great start. But it isn’t coming at the expense of Jones, Laffrienere, Kakko, Othman or Perault .
I’d even overpay in picks, but certainly not any of their top end prospects.
If any on the above mentioned players are moved, or will be for a true top 6 scoring RW with term. Not a 3rd line center / rental.
Hey CO
Maybe its Scoring Winger UFA Vladimir Tarasenko going back to NYR ….❓
he has 32 pts in 42 games this year, he is going to get a 1st or a 2nd pick, if its 50% salary is retained deal it will be a 1st pick to Ottawa as he is one of the top scores avalable at present ….🤔
That would boster the scoring along with a Centre like Monahan
What about Laughton from Philly?
Frost would be better!
Lindholm, 29 y/o, 9G 23A $4.85 million
Kadri, 33y/o 16G-23A $7 million
Monahan, 29y/o 13G-22A $1.985 million
All 3 played 49 games.
As I mentioned the other day I think Monahan has more value to the Habs than on a contender but his numbers are pretty good.
As far as health, perhaps the last surgery and the actual downtime to recuperate did the trick because he’s driving play wherever he is in the lineup.
Main centers available at this TDL:
Sean Monahan (49GP, 35P, 18:27TOI, $1.985M, 29 years)
Adam Henrique (48GP, 32P, 17.14TOI, $5.825M, 33 years)
Elias Lindholm (49GP, 32P, 20:44TOI, $4.85M, 29 years)
At last year TDL:
Ryan O’Reilly (54GP, 18P, 16:32TOI, $7.5M, 32 years)
At last year TDL, Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari were exchanged for the following:
The Blues received prospects Mikhail Abramov and Adam Gaudette, Toronto’s first-round pick in 2023, Ottawa’s third-round pick in 2023 and Toronto’s second-round pick in 2024. St. Louis also eaten 50 per cent of O’Reilly’s remaining salary.
The Wild retained 25 per cent of O’Reilly’s total salary as an intermediary in the trade. In exchange, the Maple Leafs sent Minnesota their own fourth-round pick in 2025 and received prospect Josh Pillar.
So basicallyToronto exchanged O’Reilly for a 1st, a 2nd, a 3rd and a 4th.
We can easily say that the 3 centers available at this TDL worth at least what O’reilly did cost to the Leafs. O’reilly did have less points, a lower TOI and a higher salary than the ones available this year which are also 200ft players. IMO, all the three available this year should provide a better return than O’Reilly.
You mean the Ryan O’reilly who was the playoff mvp for St Louis when they won the cup. You think Monahan or Henrique are in the same class. YIKES. Like I said Henrique has been on the trading block the last couple of years and nobody was touching him at that salary. He could get traded this year because he’s going to be a Ufa and Anaheim can retain half. Calgary a 1st to get rid of Monahan. His stats will disappear on a playoff team. He’s getting first line power play time on Monteal and over 18 minutes a game. That gets significantly reduced on a contender. Not even close to the same comparison or even remotely comparable players.
I will take 1 Sean Monahan, please. I’ve coveted this player since the Flames drafted him. The man is a gem. The player is excellent.
We don’t have the 1st to swap for him, but we do have some later picks and decent prospects to send back.
WTH, that was 4 years after he won the cup and he had 19 pts in 40 games when traded to Toronto.
Flyers have two players I’d like to see the Bruins get … Nick Seeler stay at home tough Dman with size to defend the front of net in the D zone and Nicolas Deslauriers for reasons we all know to protect the top Bruins players
Actually premier he had 11 points in 13 games as a leaf as a leaf in regular season and 9 points in 11 playoff games. No comparison whatsoever.
The production after TDL cannot be used for comparison, who can predict the future?
At TDL he was having a worst season than the 3 ones available this year.
What about a Pius Suter and Kuzmenko for Lafrenière swap? There’s your 3c and a scoring winger.
How about a good old fashioned blockbuster?
To NYR
Kuzmenko, Suter, Zadorov, D prospect Elias Petterson aka DPetey
To Van
Lafreniere, Braden Schneider, Goodrow
10.85 salary to NYR
11.23 salary to Van
Laf and Schneider are easily the best players in this trade!!!
LOL, NO!
Monahan for Lafreniere is a pipe dream. But MTL might be able to pry away Kaapo Kakko and their 1st for Monahan. Kick in a depth d like Kovacevic maybe.