On the St. Louis Blues …
Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: The Blues have a hole in their lineup – they lack a true No. 1 center and haven’t had much production down the middle lately. GM Doug Armstrong has tried to fill the hole Paul Stastny and Jori Lehtera. David Backes left in free agency and Vladimir Sobotka has remained in the KHL. Stastny is more of a No. 2 center but paid like a No. 1.
Maybe Armstrong could deal from their depth, blueline and/or wing, to land a centerman.
If they are lucky, maybe in a few years 6-foot-5 2016 draft pick Tage Thompson develops into a top center.
On the New York Rangers …
Larry Brooks of the NY Post: The Rangers have been using Dan Girardi as a top pair defenseman, and their long-term solution likely lies with trading a youngish top line forward and something else for a youngish right handed defenseman with top pairing potential. Another option for a top pairing Dman would be signing pending UFA Kevin Shattenkirk to a seven-year contract for around $6.5 million per season.
On the Boston Bruins …
Chris Nichols of FanRag Sports: Darren Dreger on NBCSN on the speculation that Bruins coach Claude Julien could be on the hot seat.
“I wouldn’t take it very serious in the moment,” said TSN NHL Insider Darren Dreger. “This is social media, and when you’re in a slow time coming out of a roster freeze, this is the type of stuff that is almost like sport when you look at certain organizations. And we know historically the volatility of the Boston Bruins, from ownership down, how hands-on they can be with Cam Neely hovering about.
“And you’re right. We have speculated, I would say on an annual basis – multiple times in fact over the course of the years in-season – that Claude Julien could be on the hot seat. But sources in Boston tell me that’s not the case unless something changes from above. That’s possible, but that’s unlikely.”
