NHL Rumor Mill – December 19, 2024
The holiday roster freeze goes into effect at midnight. In today’s NHL Rumor Mill. We look at the latest on the Rangers and Sabres plus four defensemen who could get traded this season.
WHAT NEXT FOR THE RANGERS AND SABRES?
RG.ORG: Marco D’Amico reports NHL executives are wondering what the New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres will do to save their sputtering seasons.
Less than two weeks after trading Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks, the Rangers shipped unhappy winger Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Sabres continue their free-fall in the standings with an 11-game losing skid (0-8-3).
One executive claimed he and his peers are scouting both clubs, waiting to see what happens before the holiday roster freeze (Dec. 20-27) and into the trade deadline. Another executive believes there could be a flurry of activity after the freeze is lifted and before the calendar flips to January.
D’Amico suggests the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in February could also motivate teams to consider making deals early in the new year.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: There’s been more trade activity involving noteworthy NHL players this month compared to recent Decembers. The Rangers’ collapse is a factor. It’s worth noting the Nashville Predators have been very busy in the trade market over the past month.
New York Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren (NHL Images)
What’s also interesting is the movement of players who aren’t eligible to become unrestricted free agents at season’s end. Trouba and Cam Fowler both have a year left on their contracts. The anticipated rise of the cap next season to $92.4 million (and possibly higher) likely factored into those trades.
NEW YORK POST: Mollie Walker doesn’t expect Will Borgen and Matt Rempe shouldn’t be seen as saviors for the Rangers. Nevertheless, she believes it’s a start toward reshaping a lineup “whose deficiencies have long been masked, and are now getting majorly exposed.”
Borgen was acquired in the Kakko trade while Rempe was recalled from their AHL affiliate in Hartford.
Walker also reports there’s no indication the Rangers are contemplating a change behind the bench or in the front office.
NHL.COM: Dan Rosen believes the Rangers must work on solidifying their defense rather than add forwards.
Rosen expects Ryan Lindgren is playing his final season with the Rangers. He acknowledged the 26-year-old defenseman has been a safety net for top blueliner Adam Fox. However, he “has a lot of miles, bumps and bruises on him. He’s not mobile. He’s not quick.”
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Lindgren is slated to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. General manager Chris Drury could peddle Lindgren at the March 7 trade deadline if the Rangers are out of playoff contention by then. The money he might’ve spent on Lindgren could go toward adding a physical forward who also skates well.
A LOOK AT FOUR BLUELINE TRADE CANDIDATES
THE HOCKEY NEWS: Adam Proteau recently looked at four NHL defensemen most likely to be traded at some point by or before the NHL trade deadline.
Rasmus Andersson of the Calgary Flames, Mike Matheson of the Montreal Canadiens, and Mario Ferraro of the San Jose Sharks each have one year remaining on their contracts. Ivan Provorov of the Columbus Blue Jackets is UFA-eligible next July.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Proteau explains why each defenseman could hit the trade block. The following are my two cents on each.
The Flames want to keep Andersson and he could be willing to stay. It’ll come down to term and money. Proteau considers Matheson the least likely to be moved. Nevertheless, we can’t dismiss the possibility if someone pitches the rebuilding Canadiens an offer too good to refuse.
Ferraro regularly surfaced in the rumor mill in 2023-24 but not so much this season. The rebuilding Sharks aren’t in any hurry to move him and he’s given no indication he’d welcome a trade.
Provorov seems the most likely to move but that’s not a certainty. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported Tuesday that he and his family love Columbus and he’s open to staying. As with Andersson, money and term will be the determining factors.
Sabres aren’t going to do anything other than trade upcoming UFA’s…Adams is now going for a top 3 pick in the draft.
Adams has had almost 5 yrs to shape this team into a playoff team and hasn’t done to good a job of it…results show that.
It’s time Pegula sells the team, players don’t want to come here bc of no palm trees and taxes, it’s about a totally dysfunctional organization that hasn’t made one step in the right direction since Pegula has owned the team.
I should add do you think players like ROR, Eichel, Reinhart or Montour if asked by other players are going to give this organization a thumbs up?
Len,
if GM Kevin Adams finished 3rd bottom,
Yes 100% he is going to get a Very Very Good young forward Player…
Hopefully NOT an other d/man…⁉️
They really need Scoring up front Or they Could do a big Trade for a scorer……..
I would be thinking Long & Hard about that….🤔
they do need to shake up the team and fix the d
and get a Really good back up tender and add some Good and Older forwards via trades……❓
@williew
If they get a top 3 pick there’s no way they trade that pick, Adams loves his 1st rounders. Remember he had 3 in the 22 draft and took 3 exact players. He could have used 1 to trade and improve the top 6 and he didn’t.
He then trades Savoie picked 8th OA for a 3rd line center, that’s not disrespect to McLeod as much as it is putting shade on Adams. I think 8th OA had more value at the draft than 2 yrs later. My main point is Adams is always a step or three behind.
BTW if he were to take Schaefer in that spot he should be fired right after the draft is over.
The Sabres will need to make a move. Either Kevyn Adams can make the one trade to address a position of need (scoring top six forward, top four defenseman), or he can be fired by the Sabres. He should revisit “What Not to Do / How to Fail as an NHL General Manager” discourtesy of Darcy Regier.
Reinhhart, Eichel and Montour should thank the Sabres for sending them where they all had the opportunity to win a cup. So, yes they should give it a thumbs up. Does anyone remember when the Rigas family owned it or Golisano and the concern was the team moving out? Pegula is a good owner, but does need to peel off a few dollars to build the management team as the league has moved past the abilities of the current group.
Have to say the Sabre’s slide is a wow. It’s hard to lose that many games in a row with that much talent, and even harder to miss the playoffs 13 years in a row, and skating to 14. It’s a record for a reason. Why do good players thrive elsewhere and why do good players not want to go there? Why did Ruff thrive there prior but lose 11 in a row now and be in last place?
Went looking around for local content after reading your posts. Seems like your both have valid points.
Pegula has kept the team there, has the developed the area around the rink. Being super wealthy, and good at the Oil biz and making money outside of hockey doesn’t make you a good hockey owner though.
They don’t have a team president and Adams reports to Pegula? Not great. Opposite of what you want.
Is the scouting staff really working remotely and not travelling to games? Can a BUF fan confirm that? If true, that is a big WTF. Tripping over dollars picking up pennies.
The Bills are doing well, but that organization is well stocked with people who have deep experience in the NFL and in all the roles that other teams have. I get it, the NFL is way more profitable so easy to invest in quality people.
I get it, he wants to be the guy to fix the Sabres and is involved in the hockey ops, but not sure that is great idea. In fact does it ever really work?
I dunno, maybe Pegula is the problem. Something is wrong there and it started right after he bought the team. People that have thrived elsewhere fail there. Not sure what else you can point at to find the problem, when it runs this deep for this long.
Hire a seasoned, respected team president and get out of the way would be the next thing I try if I was him. Katz in EDM finally got his nose out of Oiler biz when they were near the end of the decade of darkness and brought in experienced, respected hockey guys. Holland deserves a ton of credit here in Edmonton and Katz let him do his job with a buffer between the 2.
Gotta feel bad for Sabre fans.
Ray, they still have a few to lose before they pass their club record of 8 – set just 3 seasons back, and pass San Jose’s 17 game skid last season
https://champsorchumps.us/records/longest-nhl-losing-streaks
club record of 18 …
Ya I was talking about the 13 seasons of missing the playoffs George. You almost have to try and be bad to accomplish that when you’re drafting that high for that long.
When a gamer like Ryan O Reilly says he has lost his love for the game multiple times this season, while playing in Buffalo, then a little over a year later hoists the Stanley Cup and Playoff MVP award, that should have been pretty strong sign there were organizational issues in Buffalo. He got roasted by many when he said it, of course.
We can’t know what is going on there from the outside, but sooner or later you have to consider this is an organizational problem, which usually means it sits at the top.
Gotcha. Actually, I was responding to “wow. It’s hard to lose that many games in a row with that much talent … ” figuring you were referring to their current, ongoing winless streak.
“Is the scouting staff really working remotely and not travelling to games? Can a BUF fan confirm that?“
No. That is very old news. The Sabres have invested in scouting – for instance poaching a highly regarded Swedish scout from the Red Wings.
Objectively, the Sabres have done a good job of drafting, and that’s a reflection on the scout staff. They have stuck close (too close IMHO) to BPA philosophy in the early rounds. That’s why we’ve seen a lot of sub-6’ F’s in the first. But, they were (probably) the best prospects on the board. And, they’ve been willing to use these to round out areas of need. The McLeod trade is looking much better today than it did in July.
But, if you look at the mid and late rounds, the Sabres have a well-balanced pipeline including big RHD. Late picks usually require 4-5 years, if they ever do develop into NHL’ers. It’s a fact to say that it’s too early to judge KA’s draft record. But I’d bet that a lot of teams cast an envious eye on the org. pipeline.
Thanks for the insight Dan S.
Since the Sabres are in the news again, I read an article in Daily Faceoff that suggested the Sabres might be playing a lot of their young prospects in the NHL too soon. And ya, they mention not having enough vets around to mentor and insulate them.
The basic gist was that they haven’t got enough of the warts off their game when they get to the NHL, inevitably struggle and make it tough on the coaches who are paid to win games. They lose confidence, and never really develop to what they could be. Rinse repeat.
He sited a bunch of examples. Not sure how accurate that is, but as an Edmonton native it was exactly what was happening here until Holland was hired.
The problems with the Buffalo roster are, not enough veterans to help the kids and among all the offensive promise, not enough players that knows how to play D. Should have gone after a guy like Pesce this summer
Agreed. The Sabres need more vet. leadership. But that’s easier said than done in an era where many vets have contracts blocking trades to lousy teams. (I believe Pesce was one. And, Necas effectively blocked a trade this summer.)
“Proteau considers Matheson the least likely to be moved. Nevertheless, we can’t dismiss the possibility if someone pitches the rebuilding Canadiens an offer too good to refuse.”
Is there a GM who would turn down a trade offer too good to refuse? The answer is in the phrase. And who would make such an offer, given a too good to refuse offer would, logically, be one sided?
It’s bewildering to me why, except to fill content, so called pundits push the Habs trading Matheson or Savard. One of Montreal’s issues is too many young D, the very reason they traded for Carrier. So the Habs make a trade to upgrade in experience and then will turn around and trade one of their most experienced D sometime later?
Excellent points Lj
I think Habs need to keep Matheson. Good D-man, good mentor for the young guys.
And thanks to the Pens for trading him.
I agree with you , then you remind me of another (of way too many ) Pens trade blunders.
Ouch, kicking a guy when he’s down
The NHL looks to have a soft talent problem! By that I mean there are very few second line,top 6 forwards that are any Good! The league is filled with all kinds of bottom 6 players that do nothing offensively and don’t get scored on! Toronto is having a great year and they are looking for a second line center!The same is true of middle pair defensemen! League has some good top pairs,but most have to many third pair guys!That s why the D in this article haven t been moved yet!
So I guess expansion is inevitable, right?
This is 100% correct. Winnipeg is 1st in the league, had a historic start to the season, and Vladislav Namestnikov is the second line center. I really like Namestnikov and respect what he’s done for the Jets, but he’s one roster move away from being on the 4th line.
Re; NYR
What going to save there season if… they want to make the playoffs❓
#1,
They need a New Experienced Head coach…….🤔
Who do you think the top 5 are…❓
1/ Joel Quiennville and
2/
3/
4/
5/
Are you sure you’re not Quenneville’s agent williew? 🙂
With several teams experiencing death spirals, I seriously doubt any will add significantly to their already unwanted media attention by bringing in someone who’s toxic in the extreme for his muted reaction to one of the most disgusting episodes ever connected to a professional sports franchise.
And you can be absolutely certain that the NY media won’t cut him any slack if he ever turned up in charge of the Rangers.
Like Boston, both the Rangers and Buffalo, if there’s a move there despite the owner’s assurances, will look inward for an :”interim” replacement.
Please stop with the Q to NY suggestions.
At this point it makes no sense to name a new head coach from the outside!Bostons interim coach has been an assistant for them the last 10 years!
And by the way, I’m not talking about just the NY sports media … that would be ALL over the news media as well. Why invite that sort of negative attention when you’re already getting more than enough through you’re poor play?
Makes absolutely NO sense – regardless of how good a coach Quenneville may have been in the past. He’s burned his bridges. To the ground.
True that George.
I would be worried about the how the players would respond as well.
I thought Johnny Z was the guy who was promoting Q? Maybe not.
Lots of good coaches out there.
Hey George,
Joel Quiennville is one of the best out there not Employed, A lot of Coaches that can get them the Expectations in NY, as they are Very hight…..🤔
George & all ….
Who would be on you list of Top 5 Candidates to Coach NYR….??
At least on an interim basis, Grant Potulny, currently head coach in Hartford, who ran a pretty good program at the U. of North Dakota.
Willie, if they’re stuck on a guy with lots of experience go with Todd Mcclelland. Proven record.
With less NHL experience and a good record Woodcroft.
I like Georges idea as well.
You don’t have to have a guy with a bunch of NHL experience, look at what Knoblach has done in Edmonton in his first NHL gig. He had a good rep, Holland knew about him, liked him, hired him. He’s calm under fire, smart, knows the game and great with the players, they respect him.
There has to be more guys like that out there coaching in the AHL.
I don’t know Drury, but from the outside looking in, seems like a total dick. Or he is doing Dolan’s dirty work for the paycheck, I dunno. That crap has to have an impact in the room.
WTF
Tyler Johnson being terminated???????
Why not? He’s played 9 games and has produced 2 assists. And his diminutive frame at C gets him bounced around like a ping-pong ball. He was a p.t.o. with nothing to lose to give him a good look … they gave him that and clearly have decided that he’s never going to be a difference-maker. Anywhere. Better off giving one of your better prospects that ice time at the NHL level.
My post meant how not why
I get the why
He has an NHL contract. How can they unilaterally terminate a contract?
If this was allowed, many underperforming contracts would be canceled.
Was he in breach?
That’s what I was getting at.