On the Detroit Red Wings …
- Brendan Savage of MLive: The Red Wings won’t be looking to trade away too many top prospects. They don’t have a lot of salary cap room. It’s unlikely that they could move Jimmy Howard and his $5.3 million cap hit.
- Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press: The Red Wings will be looking to add, but it may not be easy due to their cap situation. GM Ken Holland last week: “if we do anything, from a cap standpoint, to bring in the type of player that would have a real impact, we would have to move somebody out.”The Red Wings had been interest in Dustin Byfuglien before the Jets re-signed him. For the Red Wings to land Andrew Ladd, they’d need to clear about $4.4 million in salary, as well as giving up a high draft pick and a prospect.
Holland has said that if he is able to make move, it would be for someone significant, and that he’s not trading Jimmy Howard.
“We don’t need depth,” Holland said. “We’re a deeper team than we were a year ago, and part of that is because we put people on waivers and they cleared, so now we have flexibility to move them in and out. So I’m not looking to acquire depth.
“If there is a player out there we think can come in and be a top-nine forward or a top-four defenseman, at a price we’re prepared to pay, and at the same time, I have to consider next season’s team and next season’s salary cap.”
On the Florida Panthers …
- Harvey Fialkov: Panthers GM Dale Tallon said that he’s looking to add a two pieces to the team to help put them over the top.
- Harvey Fialkov: Tallon has repeatedly said that he won’t be mortgaging the future for a “band-aid.”
- George Richards: Barry Jackson is saying that the Panthers have started contract extension talks with pending RFAs Brandon Pirri and Vincent Trocheck.