NHL Rumor Mill – December 1, 2025
Check out the latest on the Islanders and Senators in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
THE LATEST ISLANDERS SPECULATION
NEW YORK POST: Ethan Sears recently listed several factors that could play into the Islanders’ approach to the March 6 trade deadline.
Their current record suggests they’re more of a playoff contender than originally thought when the season began. They could also have over $12 million in usable salary-cap dollars if or when Alexander Romanov and Semyon Varlamov join Pierre Engvall on long-term injury reserve.
New York Islanders captain Anders Lee (NHL Images).
Meanwhile, veteran forwards Anders Lee and Jean-Gabriel Pageau are on expiring contracts, which could make them valuable trade chips if the Isles become sellers. However, it’s difficult to imagine general manager Mathieu Darche trading either player if his club continues playing the way it has.
Improving their defense corps should be the Islanders’ priority. They miss the sidelined Romanov on the left side, and they never fully replaced the departed Noah Dobson on the right. Sears considered Rasmus Andersson of the Calgary Flames as an obvious fit. Filip Hronek of the Vancouver Canucks could be another, but he’s reportedly not among the players the Canucks would consider moving.
The Isles could use another scorer and some physicality among their bottom-six forwards.
Following Kyle Palmieri’s season-ending knee injury, Sears suggested Darche shouldn’t make any hasty decisions that might sacrifice future first-round picks or top prospects to replace the sidelined winger or bolster their defense.
THE PROVINCE: Ben Kuzma reports Palmieri’s injury has put the Islanders among the rumored suitors for Canucks winger Kiefer Sherwood. The 30-year-old winger is enjoying a career-best performance thus far. Canucks management is wary that he’ll regress, but is also buoyed by the possibility that he’ll return a first-round pick, and possibly more, in the trade market.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kuzma observed that the Islanders may not wish to mortgage their future in pursuit of Sherwood, but he believes they’d have to at least part with a first-rounder to land the feisty winger. That would also apply to any other significant player (Andersson, Hronek) that they could be monitoring in the trade market.
UPDATE ON THE SENATORS
THE ATHLETIC’s Julian McKenzie cited a report by TSN’s Darren Dreger on Friday in which Dreger claimed that Ottawa Senators GM Steve Staios would like to add a forward or a defenseman to his roster. However, he doesn’t think that Staios is going to be “a big game hunter” in the trade market.
Dreger also dismissed the possibility of promising defenseman Carter Yakemchuk becoming a trade chip. “Not going to happen.”
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Staios wants to improve his roster, but not at the expense of his top prospect. Yakemchuk is projected to fill the role of a top-pairing, right-shot defenseman.
OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports league sources told him that there is “virtually no chance” that the Senators will find a trade partner for Alex Formenton’s rights. The 26-year-old winger is a restricted free agent, and the deadline for him to sign a new NHL contract is 5 pm ET on Dec. 1.
The Senators have tried to trade Formenton’s rights for months, seeking a draft pick in return. If he’s not traded and signed by Monday’s deadline, he’ll be ineligible to play in the NHL this season.
Wouldn’t other teams fear a regression by Sherwood? Who would give up a 1st now and not have that bargaining power at deadline when better players become available. This is a guy that didn’t play regularly in NHL until his age 28 season when he scored 10 goals. Vancouver should’ve shopped Petey before trading JT. Pretty much nothing to show for that trade as Chytil was a huge risk.
Teams should only trade a 1st rounder if they could convince Sherwood to sign a new extension, as part of the trade
You mean they’d fear a regression from Sherwood, like they feared a regression from Tanner Jeannot? Julien Briseboise only gave up 5 draft picks for a guy who has had one good season.
Don’t underestimate the stupidity of NHL GMs trying to win a Cup
Good Post
Marcus Pettersson is a result of that trade, a good 2nd pair D.
Given how Miller and Pettersson have played this season they traded the right guy
Not saying JT is better. I think Petey would have gotten a much better haul and maybe Canucks as a team would be doing better and not be in rumors. Giving up the 1st you got for JT for Marcus P isn’t a win imo. Pitt drafted Kindell who has played 21 games as an 18 yo and looks prettt good.
I realize that Staios and Formenton’s Toronto-based agent Darren Ferris of Quartex Mgt agreed some time ago that, if acquitted. the best thing would be a “change of scenery” for the LW. But efforts to do so have failed – even for a mid to low pick. And the Senators, who own his RFA rights to July 1, 2027, can’t just release him – thereby making him a UFA – without specific League approval.
Right now, he’s signed to the Christmas break with Ambri-Piotta of the Swiss League where, in 20gp, he has 5g 4a 9 pts.
For the kid’s sake, and with Hart set to return to the NHL with Vegas after conditioning in the minors without “incident” (read “adverse reaction from the public”) and, technically, having done nothing in that infamous episode, why not re-sign him to a 2-way deal and let him do his own stint in the AHL with Belleville, and see how things go from there?
If he demonstrates there that he can be a contributor in the NHL, and Staios remains uninterested in “fusing” him back in the Ottawa line-up. perhaps some team will offer up that mid to low pick.
That’ s what I would have done George. I also would have put Tkachuk back in the line up on the fourth line for the past two games – allowing him to get back up to speed, not disrupting the team chemistry that has formed in his absence AND causing matchup issues for the other team as the fourth line becomes another 2nd/3rd line for people to contend with. But I’m not an NHL coach. What do I know?? Sure. Put him back on the 2nd line, disrupt everything and watch the team play like steamy dog poop in St. Louis and Dallas.
So Sherwood had a “career year” last season. Formenton had similar stats in his only full season at age 22. I would much rather him for a late rd pick before giving up a 1st for Sherwood. That said, I would add Sherwood for a more reasonable price. A B prospect and a 2nd or 3rd.
I wonder if GM S are looking at Morgan Geekie and comparing Sherwood to him.Similar career path although Geekie was younger when he arrived in Boston.Just a hunch.
There are only a few NHL teams where Forementon’s “baggage* could be forgotten…and that would be because of less media covering those teams in general.
He had trouble sticking ecen before the charges were laid…and certainly has been away from the NHL game a while now.
Likely Europe means a paycheck of some kind…KHL might give him better competition to prove he is worth a chance next year.
He is a real longshot, despite the aquital.
No doubt re the longshot Doktordave. And if he’s t ruly interested to see if he has it after such a long time away, that won’t come playing in the Swiss League.
The KHL is better competition, but there it becomes more like “out of sight out of mind.” If he can show in the visible-every-day AHL that he still has top-level talent and can contribute in some way at the NHL level – even as an effective pk type – he stands a better chance.
Re Tkachuk, Dark G … couldn’t agree more. I was uneasy about his much-publicized return in St. Louis and how the team might react with suddenly having the top 2 lines affected insofar as developed cohesion was concerned. Combined with the attitude “Brady’s back … everything’s rosy now …”
We certainly saw the effect – particularly in the 3rd period in St. Louis when they suddenly abandoned the fierce fore-checking that had them leading after 2 and resort to the hoary old “katy-bar-the-door-let them come-to-us” approach. Which invariably fails every time – especially when implemented at the START of the frikken 3rd period.
In the Dallas game their shortcomings on the pk stood out like a boil on he end of the nose. Horrible. But even then, they were no match for the Stars.
Can NYI get Marchessault from NSH on the cheap? Put him on the right of Barzal and Drouin on the left?
They can fit him and worry about cap space in the off season
Think Barzal speed and style fit marchessault style. Like how he played in Vegas.
Fills the rw void left by Kyle