- The Hockey Central @ Noon panel discusses who the Maple Leafs should consider trading before the trade deadline.Gord Stellick thinks they should keep Leo Komarov and James van Riemsdyk. John Shannon wonders if they should trade Komarov as his trade value is high. Stellick doesn’t think they’d get a first round pick for him, and it may not be worth trading him for a second round pick.
- AJ Jakubec (TSN 1200 radio host): Source saying that a Robby Fabbri (STL) for Jonathan Drouin (TB) is a serious possibility.
- Luke Fox: Kings GM Dean Lombardi on an Anze Kopitar contract extension: “This is something that eventually is going to get done.”
- Darren Dreger of TSN: The NHL’s executive committee is planning a “special” meeting in New York with expansion the primary item on the agenda. The meeting will happen before the end of the month. They will go over info compiled from Las Vegas and Quebec City. Don’t expect a formal decision.Even though they don’t have lot of salary cap space, the Penguins are putting together a shopping list leading up to the trade deadline. GM Jim Rutherford would like to add a top-four defenseman and a depth forward.
- Tom Gulitti of The Record: Devils GM Ray Shero anticipating that question if they are looking for more scoring.
“They’re talking about making the nets bigger. Everybody’s looking for goal scoring,” he responded. “They’re not talking about making the nets bigger because there’s too much goal scoring. Everybody’s looking for that.”
Shero won’t talk about specific players, but they likely inquired about Ryan Johansen. Can bet that Shero already knew about Jonathan Drouin’s availability before Drouin’s agent went public. Drouin would fit into the Devils long-term plans. Shero isn’t really interested in a rental trade would cost them future pieces.
“With any manager, you always want to try to make your team better and give them that extra if you can and I don’t think we’re any different,” Shero said. “But, it is one of those things. You never say never to anything between here and Feb. 29, but I can look back on the Kyle Palmieri thing and in the summertime, you trade two draft picks for Kyle Palmieri. I’m not trading two draft picks for a rental that might leave in July. (The Palmieri trade) fit into what we were looking to do, the type of player we wanted to have. But, in terms of trying to add to our team or if there’s a hockey trade, absolutely, you want to try to help the hockey team both long term and if it’s shorter term that made sense then you never want to say never at all.
“These guys are doing a good job, so you don’t want to say never to anything. It just has to make sense for us for the short term and long term and trying to balance that. I haven’t come across that, yet.”