The Carolina Hurricanes may look for depth down the middle
TSN: The Carolina Hurricanes made one huge move already, but they may not be finished improving their roster according to Chris Johnston.
They lost depth at center after trading Jack Drury, so that’s one area they may look for an upgrade. The Hurricanes might be okay with their goaltending situation now that Frederik Andersen is back.
“Now with Andersen back healthy, there’s a feeling that the team is headed in the right direction. Unless there’s an injury or a surprise player available around the league, I think Carolina is fine with what they have in net moving forward.”
NHL Rumors: The Carolina Hurricanes Must Know What Mikko Rantanen Wants
Teams won’t be reacting quickly with to the Hurricanes recent addition
TSN: The Florida Panthers are going to stick with their plan and are not going to make any knee-jerk reactions to the Hurricanes trading of Mikko Rantanen according to Pierre LeBrun.
“I got similar answers from Chris Patrick in Washington, Tom Fitzgerald in New Jersey, and Julien Brisebois, who was more succinct and just said “No”, when I asked him that.”
The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to look for help at center and maybe a third pairing defenseman. The Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning would like to improve on the blue line. The New Jersey Devils wouldn’t mind a centerman and the Washington Capitals would like a top-nine winger.
NHL Rumors: It Doesn’t Look Like the Situation Will Get Any Better for the Vancouver Canucks
The Pittsburgh Penguins continue to think retool
Dan Rosen of NHL.com: If a team comes to the Pittsburgh Penguins with a too good to be true offer, they have to consider it. There doesn’t appear to be anything imminent, especially with Sidney Crosby. He signed a two-year extension and said he plans to honor it.
The trade value for injured Evgeni Malkin or Kris Letang can’t be high. The Penguins are looking to retool and not rebuild.
There will be teams interested in defensemen Marcus Pettersson and Matt Grzelcyk. Richard Rakell has three years left at $5 million and is having a good season playing with Crosby. Michael Bunting at $4.5 million through next season could interest someone looking for middle-six with term.
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