Lafreniere’s camp looking at Europe as a possible option for next season
TSN: There are many unanswerable questions for 2020 NHL draft picks. There is no draft date and nobody knows when the seasons for the NHL, CHL, and AHL will start.
The agent for Alexis Lafreniere is looking at all options according to Bob McKenzie.
“But one thing I can tell you – Emilie Castonguay for Alexis Lafreniere is looking at all the options on the table and that will include seeing if the European club teams are up and operating in September and October.”
Non-playoff teams allowed to make trades with each other
TSN: The seven teams who are not in the playoffs are allowed to make trades with each other at any time according to Pierre LeBrun.
“Now, normally, teams entering the off-season like this, they want to wait closer to the draft when you have all 31 teams at play as a potential trading partner to really maximize the market. But, as a matter of fact, if for whatever reason there’s a fit among the seven teams, they can go ahead and make trades with each other.”
Senators not interested in long-term free agents
Mike Morreale of NHL.com: Ottawa Senators GM Pierre Dorion said that they are not interested in adding any unrestricted free agents on long-term deals.
“Last year, we added veterans we felt helped the growth of our younger players and the growth of our team,” Dorion said. “It’s something that we could look at in the short term (prior to the 2020-21 season), but as far as adding any UFAs for the long term, or for multiple years, that’s probably not something we’re going to look at.”
Dorion added potentially signing a short-term free agent could depend on where they land in the draft lottery. The better the picks, the lower odds they sign someone.
“If you’re going to pick Nos. 1-2, it’s different than picking Nos. 5-6,” Dorion said. “The players going 1-2 probably have a higher chance of playing in the NHL next year. At the same time, we know we’re going to take two good players with our first two picks.”
Dorion didn’t say if he’s had any contract talks with their pending free agents. UFAs include Ron Hainsey, Mark Borowiecki and Craig Anderson. RFAs include Anthony Duclair, Chris Tierney and Connor Brown.