On the Washington Capitals …
- Andy Strickland: Justin Peters, playing with Hershey in the AHL, has been given permission to seek a trade.
On the Columbus Blue Jackets …
- Andy Strickland: Defenseman Jan Hejda had been on a tryout with Lake Erie in the AHL. He could sign within a NHL team in a few days.
On the Winnipeg Jets …
- Chris Nichols of Today’s Slapshot: Bob McKenzie on TSN 1040 on the Jets pending free agents – Dustin Byfuglien and Jacob Trouba.
“The prevailing sentiment amongst a lot of teams out there is they don’t see how Winnipeg could keep both Byfuglien and Trouba. Because (Winnipeg is in) a much more favorable negotiating position, with him as a restricted free agent and a young defenseman. I think Byfuglien is going to be that much more expensive, and is that much older, and you’ve going to have to give him big term to keep him around.
“The feeling is that at some point, Byfuglien is going to become available. And all the more reason why he would is if the Winnipeg Jets continue to languish at the bottom of the division and not in the playoff picture.
“If they were in the playoff picture, Kevin Cheveldayoff may have to take a page out of the Garth Snow playbook, where Garth Snow believes – as he does with Kyle Okposo – if you’re a playoff team, or close to it, and you’ve got a guy who’s going to be an unrestricted free agent, you don’t trade him at the deadline for future assets. You keep him in your lineup. You make the best run you possibly can during the season. You make your best run at signing him in the offseason. If he walks, you take his cap space and you spend it somewhere else. That’s the return on your trade.”
