On the Washington Capitals …
Chuck Gormley of CSN Mid Atlantic: Alex Ovechkin has five years left on his deal with the Capitals, and will be 35 years old when it expires. He has said a couple times in the past that he’d like to return to play in Russian someday.
On the Dallas Stars …
Mike Heika: (answering questions) Valeri Nichushkin hasn’t signed his qualifying offer, but that is just standard operating procedure. He’s likely to be looking for a raise. The Stars retain his rights. There is always a chance they could move him, but they really like him.
On the offseason trade market …
Kevin Allen of USA Today: Some teams that are expected to be active in the trade market this offseason.
Anahem Ducks – The Ducks have just under $10 million in cap space and need to improve their offense. They still need to re-sign Hampus Lindholm and Rickard Rakell. Once they sign Lindholm, they could trade Cam Fowler for some scoring help.
Boston Bruins – have been rumored to be looking for a defenseman.
Colorado Avalanche – Tyson Barrie has been in the rumor mill, and he could be a good fit with the Oilers or Bruins.
Detroit Red Wings – they still need to re-sign Petr Mrazek and Danny Dekeyser, but they can use the LTIR relief from Johan Franzen if need be. They could wait until training camp to add a veteran defenseman.
Edmonton Oilers – they could still use another defenseman and have some forward depth they could use in a trade.
Minnesota Wild – they are thought to still be looking to make some changes. Several teams would be interested in Matt Dumba if they decide to trade him.
New York Rangers – they have about $12.4 million in cap space and four RFAs to sign. Trading Rick Nash could give them added flexibility, but it’s not easy to move $7.8 million for two more years. They could look to move Marc Staal or Kevin Klein.
St. Louis Blues – they’ve lost David Backes and Troy Brouwer to free agency and added David Perron. They could use Kevin Shattenkirk to improve up front.
