A look at the offseason goalie market after Jacob Markstrom and Darcy Kuemper were traded yesterday plus updates on Leon Draisaitl, Jake Guentzel, Jake DeBrusk and Patrik Laine in today’s NHL Rumor Mill.
WHAT DOES THE GOALIE MARKET LOOK LIKE WITHOUT MARKSTROM AND KUEMPER?
BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: Andrew Fantucchio believes all eyes are on Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark with Jacob Markstrom and Darcy Kuemper off the trade market. Markstrom was traded to the New Jersey Devils while Kuemper was shipped to the Los Angeles Kings.
Finding a market for Ullmark could become difficult with the Devils and Kings no longer interested. The Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators remain, with the Hurricanes listening to offers for winger Martin Necas. The Senators are said to be willing to move their 2024 first-round pick and defenseman Jakob Chychrun.
Ullmark has a 16-team no-trade list that becomes a 15-team list on July 1. He has a year remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $5 million.
TORONTO STAR: Nick Kypreos believes Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving must get moving to find a suitable starting netminder now that Markstrom is no longer available.
This year’s free-agent market is a weak one for goaltenders. The Leafs can’t take chances on career backups like Anthony Stolarz or Laurent Brossoit.
Ullmark and Jusse Saros of the Nashville Predators are among the goalies drawing interest in the trade market. Both have a year left on their contracts with cap hits of $5 million.
TORONTO SUN: Terry Koshan doesn’t see the Bruins trading Ullmark to a playoff rival like the Leafs. Instead, he believes they could send him to the Senators.

Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark (NHL Images).
Koshan also doesn’t buy into the scenario of the Leafs trading Mitch Marner to Nashville for Saros. He pointed out that Marner intends to play the final year of his contract with Toronto. New Leafs head coach Craig Berube welcomes the opportunity to work with the 27-year-old winger.
OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports league sources claim the Senators have circled back to Ullmark after failing to land Markstrom. Those sources also said the talks between the two clubs have intensified.
The Senators were interested in Ullmark before the March trade deadline. However, they couldn’t get a deal in place with the Bruins at that time. The Bruins aren’t interested in taking on Joonas Korpisalo in return because they can’t afford the remaining four years of his contract. However, they might be willing to take Anton Forsberg and his $2.75 million cap hit for 2024-25.
A league executive suggested to Garrioch that it could cost the Senators their 2024 first-round pick and defenseman Jakob Chychrun to get Ullmark from the Bruins. That depends on whether the Senators are on his no-trade list.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Senators are better positioned to bid for Ullmark than the Maple Leafs. Treliving might have to shift his attention to Saros, but Predators GM Barry Trotz is reportedly discussing a contract extension with the 29-year-old netminder.
Speaking of the Senators, The Hockey News’ Steve Warne cited TSN’s Travis Yost reporting the Senators and Philadelphia Flyers have the framework of a trade in place. He thinks it might not be finalized until closer to the draft, scheduled for June 28-29 in Las Vegas.
Yost provided no specifics regarding the deal and how big it might be. Chychrun could be part of that if Ottawa is shopping him. It won’t involve a goaltender as the Flyers have none to spare that would interest the Senators. Maybe the Senators are trying to flog Korpisalo to the Flyers to make room for Ullmark. Stay tuned…
THE ATHLETIC: Aaron Portzline reports Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell said he has no intention of trading or buying out Elvis Merzlikins.
Merzlikins raised headlines in January when he said he requested a trade only to have his agent claim his client misspoke. By the end of the season, it was assumed he’d played his final game with the Blue Jackets.
Waddell took over as Blue Jackets GM last month. He wants to give Merlizkins another chance to establish himself as their starting goaltender.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Merzlikins’ unhappiness stemmed from being relegated to third-stringer for several weeks in December and early January. Waddell’s firing of head coach Pascal Vincent could provide Merzlikins with additional motivation.
UPDATES ON LEON DRAISAITL, JAKE GUENTZEL AND JAKE DEBRUSK
TORONTO STAR: Nick Kypreos reports hearing no meaningful contract talks have taken place and no numbers have been exchanged between the Edmonton Oilers and Leon Draisaitl. Those negotiations could begin following the Stanley Cup Final.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Any earlier discussions between the two camps were preliminary, likely gauging both sides’ willingness to talk about an extension. That should be expected considering the Oilers are still in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Chicago Blackhawks could attempt to sign Jake Guentzel as an unrestricted free agent on July 1. They want to alleviate the pressure off Connor Bedard and appear the most willing to meet Guentzel’s anticipated asking price of $63 million. They can also offer him an opportunity to play closer to his home in Minnesota.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: That anticipated asking price breaks down to $9 million annually on a seven-year deal. Playing alongside the promising Bedard could also be tempting for Guentzel.
Kypreos claims there’s word the Maple Leafs could be interested in Jake DeBrusk.
SPORTSNET: Elliotte Friedman said he’s been told by a few people that the Seattle Kraken could have Patrik Laine on their radar.
Laine’s camp recently met with Blue Jackets management where they mutually agreed to look into a trade. Friedman cited the Kraken’s need to add more scoring and believes they can afford to take on the winger’s contract.
Laine has two years left on his deal with an annual average value of $8.7 million.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Kraken have a projected cap space of $22.5 million. They’ve got 16 active roster players under contract with restricted free agents Matty Beniers and Eeli Tolvanen to re-sign. There’s room to add Laine depending on the cost of Beniers and Tolvanen.
They could garner more cap space if they bought out goaltender Philipp Grubauer. However, Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times indicated Kraken GM Ron Francis isn’t planning any buyouts at this point.