Recent updates on Jason Robertson, Morgan Rielly, Nazem Kadri, Erik Karlsson and more in the Sunday NHL Rumor Roundup.
SPORTSNET: Nick Kypreos recently released his updated offseason trade board.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Some of this is a rehash of previously reported rumors by Kypreos. However, it’s been a slow weekend for rumors, so I’m including them as a recap.
The big question regarding Jason Robertson is whether the Dallas Stars are willing to sign him to a long-term extension. The 25-year-old left winger is among the Stars’ top scorers and is a restricted free agent next summer.
Dallas Stars winger Jason Robertson (NHL Images).
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Stars have Robertson and defenseman Thomas Harley as RFA-eligible with arbitration rights next summer. However, they have over $27 million in cap space with 15 active roster players under contract, so there’s room to re-sign both to expensive new contracts if they choose.
Robertson was mentioned in trade rumors after the Stars were eliminated from the Western Conference Final for the third straight year. However, it doesn’t appear as though there was any serious effort on their part to move him. That could change if they fail to stage a Cup run next spring.
Three members of the Pittsburgh Penguins (Bryan Rust, Rickard Rakell and Erik Karlsson) are on the list. It doesn’t include Sidney Crosby but Kypreos suggests keeping a close eye on the Penguins captain.
Kypreos claimed there’s “a ton of interest” in Rust. The 33-year-old wing has three years remaining on his contract with an AAV of $5.125 million and lacks no-trade protection.
Rakell also has three years left on his contract with an AAV of $5 million, but carries an eight-team no-trade list. He could interest teams that are still seeking top-six scoring depth.
Karlsson is now owed a total of $11.5 million in actual salary over the final two years of his contract. If the Penguins retained part of their $10 million share of his $11.5 million cap hit, the 34-year-old defenseman could become an appealing trade target.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Recent reports out of Pittsburgh claim Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas isn’t shopping Rust and Rakell but is willing to listen to offers. There has been little indication that he’s willing to retain any part of Karlsson’s salary; he’ll have to if he intends to move the aging blueliner at some point.
As for Crosby, he’s in the first season of the two-year extension he signed last fall. All the speculation about him leaving the Penguins isn’t originating from Pittsburgh. Indeed, the local media is constantly reminding everyone that Crosby wants to stay put.
That could change, of course, but until it does, there’s nothing to see here.
Calgary Flames center Nazem Kadri was added to the list. Given how thin the depth is for centers and his performance last season, the 34-year-old’s stock has never been higher.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kypreos claimed that Kadri was willing to waive his no-movement clause for Toronto and Montreal. Previous reports indicate Kadri hasn’t requested a trade and the Flames aren’t willing to move their top center and leading scorer. If they were, the Maple Leafs lack the trade assets to acquire him, and the Canadiens aren’t giving up assets for a center who turns 35 in October with an AAV of $7 million through 2028-29.
Speaking of the Flames, Kypreos believes Rasmus Andersson will most likely be playing on a new team by the March trade deadline. The 28-year-old defenseman is UFA-eligible next July and there’s no indication he’ll sign an extension before then.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: He’ll definitely be moved if the Flames are out of playoff contention by the trade deadline.
Kypreos wondered if Morgan Rielly might waive his no-movement clause for a fresh start elsewhere. The 31-year-old Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman has five years remaining on his contract with an AAV of $7.5 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: I’m guessing Rielly has no intention of waiving his NMC.
Speaking of the Maple Leafs, Kypreos adding Brandon Carlo to the list. While it’s hard to believe the Leafs could trade the recently acquired defenseman, a lack of sufficient trade assets to acquire a scoring forward could make Carlo expendable.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kypreos published this list before the Leafs acquired checking-line forward Dakota Joshua. He won’t address that need for a scoring winger, which suggests they’re shoring up depth elsewhere in the lineup instead. That would mean the current makeup of their top-six forwards is what we’ll likely see to start the season in October.
According to Kypreos, the Jordan Kyrou trade rumors won’t go away. St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong would like to make more changes to his roster, and he could move the 27-year-old winger for a big return. Kyrou is signed through 2030-31 with an AAV of $8.l25 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Kyrou rumors died away on July 1, when his full no-trade clause kicked in.
New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton recently surfaced in the rumor mill. The 32-year-old carries a $9 million AAV for the next three seasons with a 10-team no-trade list. Kypreos wondered if they might move Hamilton for a return that brings back a solid contributor. He thinks we could get a clearer picture once the Devils re-sign blueliner Luke Hughes.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: We can’t rule anything out, especially with a dozen teams carrying over $10 million in cap space this summer. That doesn’t mean Hamilton is certain to be traded, but it could make it easier if one of the teams not on his no-trade list is interested in him.
The contract standoff between the Minnesota Wild and Marco Rossi has made the latter the subject of trade conjecture. Wild GM Bill Guerin said he’ll match any offer sheet for the 23-year-old center. Kypreos believes there could be clarity on this once the Wild sign superstar Kirill Kaprizov to an extension.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Kypreos suggests Guerin could be unwilling to part with Rossi until he knows for certain how much it’ll cost to keep Kaprizov in Minnesota. Meanwhile, the Wild GM recently insisted that his club wants to retain Rossi.
The Colorado Avalanche must sort out Martin Necas’ future. The 26-year-old forward is a year away from UFA status and could seek around $10 million annually.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Avalanche have over $26 million in cap space for 2026-27 with 15 active roster players under contract. There’s plenty of room to re-sign Necas, but they must ensure they have sufficient long-term cap room to re-sign Cale Makar to the hefty raise that he’ll seek when his contract expires in 2027.
Jonathan Marchessault could become a trade candidate if the Nashville Predators decide to shed one of their expensive long-term contracts.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Predators GM Barry Trotz shot down speculation that Marchessault was unhappy in Nashville and would welcome a trade. He’s got a full no-movement clause. Trotz said he wanted to allow his veteran core to rebound from last season’s poor performance.
The Florida Panthers must shed salary to become cap-compliant if Matthew Tkachuk doesn’t start the season on long-term injury reserve. Winger Evan Rodrigues could become a cost-cutting trade candidate.
Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Lightning could attempt to create some salary cap space by peddling defenseman Ryan McDonagh.
Kypreos wonders if the Seattle Kraken’s addition of left-side defenseman Ryan Lindgren could make blueliner Jamie Oleksiak available.
