NHL Rumor Mill – February 18, 2023
Which teams could be destinations for Flyers winger James van Riemsdyk? What next for the Wild and Blues before the trade deadline? Could the Capitals move Dmitry Orlov? Find out in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
FOUR CLUBS LINKED TO JAMES VAN RIEMSDYK
PHILLY HOCKEY NOW: Sam Carchidi cited Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reporting Flyers winger James van Riemsdyk has drawn interest from the Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Winnipeg Jets and Vegas Golden Knights.
Philadelphia Flyers winger James van Riemsdyk (NHL Images).
Carchidi noted that van Riemsdyk lives in Minnesota during the offseason so the Wild seems like a good fit. He speculates the Flyers could get a second-round pick in return. He’s in the final season of a five-year deal with an average annual value of $7 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Giana Han believes the Flyers will probably have to retain part of van Riemsdyk’s cap hit to facilitate a trade. They also believe he could fetch a second-round pick or perhaps a combination of lower picks. Olivia Reiner believes the return for van Riemsdyk will depend on how much of his cap hit the Flyers are willing to retain.
As for the Wild, they have the cap space to acquire van Riemsdyk. Whether they will or not remains to be determined.
LATEST ON THE WILD
TWINCITIES.COM: Dane Mizutani noted that Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin weaponized his salary-cap space by brokering the three-team trade that sent Ryan O’Reilly from the St. Louis Blues to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Blues retain half of O’Reilly’s $7.5 million cap hit with the Wild and Leafs splitting the other half. In return, the Wild received a 2025 fourth-round pick.
It’s unclear if Guerin intends to use his remaining cap space to acquire a big name or continue being a third-party broker for other clubs. Mizutani believes that will become clearer over the next two weeks with the March 3 trade deadline approaching.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Cap Friendly indicates the Wild still has over $12 million in projected trade deadline cap space. Guerin’s decision could be based on his club’s performance over the next two weeks as they continue to jockey for a wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
BLUES IVAN BARBASHEV LINKED TO THE BRUINS
BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: Joe Haggerty recently cited St. Louis Blues insider Andy Strickland reporting the Boston Bruins are among the clubs interested in Ivan Barbashev. The 27-year-old winger is due to become an unrestricted free agent in July. He wants to play for a postseason contender and isn’t interested in signing a contract extension before the March trade deadline.
Haggerty said the Bruins appear more interested in landing a defenseman before the trade deadline. However, he doesn’t dismiss the possibility of them adding a forward even with sidelined winger Jake DeBrusk due to return soon to the lineup.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Cap Friendly shows the Bruins have $3.25 million in trade deadline cap space but that’s going to vanish once DeBrusk returns to action. They’ll have to get creative to find a way to free up sufficient cap room to acquire Barbashev ($2.25 million cap hit) or a defenseman.
CAPITALS ARE NOT CLOSE TO RE-SIGNING ORLOV
WASHINGTON HOCKEY NOW: Sammi Silber cited The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reporting the Capitals have had contract extension discussions with Dmitry Orlov. The 31-year-old defenseman is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
LeBrun reported the two sides aren’t close to reaching an agreement on a new contract but Orlov’s name hasn’t come up in trade talks. He believes the Capitals intend to be buyers at the trade deadline.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Orlov won’t be going anywhere with the Capitals jockeying for a wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference.
If the Flyers hold back half JVR’s salary the return should be a 2nd or 3rd round pick.
Dont give me no crap about abbrev his name, everyone calls him JVR.
If Flyers hold on to JVR till deadline of March 3rd, Contract is Pro-Rated The cap hit will be roughly$1, 702 ,702
Leafs pulled off a good trade, O’reilly and accari should help them alot, if the defense and goaltending hold up lookout.
Barbashev caphit today is $1.58 and everyday until the deadline that amount will be lower.
No issue trading for him, however still need Boston to add a d with grit
The Wild also traded to Toronto the rights to Josh Pillar, their unsigned 2021 draft pick.
Yeah, I wouldn’t get too excited about this guy – a late 4th round pick who appears to be one of those who’s out with an injury more than he’s in.
A first and a third this year. In a deep draft. Plus a second and third down the road is a lot of draft capital for only this year’s playoffs. Granted ROR pedigree speaks for itself. There has to be a plan for next year and some idea of what he wants to sign. Acciari helps on the 3/4 and cheap
The rule must max retention of 50% per team per player.
I’m waiting for all the Leaf haters to comment on how we over paid on the trade for ROR
ODO, I don’t anyone will question ROR’s cost. They may question why Dubas spent that many assets to acquire a third center rather than a goalie or a shutdown defenseman ?
Now for the final piece, Dubas needs to convince Zito that Gudas for Holl + Nic Robertson is worth it, even though the Panthers are on the cusp and would probably rather have Gudas.