Dubas on Pietrangelo and their blue line
Lance Hornby: Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas on said he’s spoken with the agent for UFA defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.
“We have flexibility, it’s just how much of a splash we want to make (trades).”
Dubas adds they need to be careful due to the flat cap for the next few years.
Kristen Shilton: Dubas adds: “We have talked to Don Meehan, but I have not talked to Alex at this point. They know where we stand and what our interest is and what our limitations are.”
Chris Johnston: Dubas said they exploring their options to improve their blue line in both the trade and free agent markets.
Canucks looking for defensemen
Satiar Shah: Even if the Vancouver Canucks are able to re-sign defenseman Chris Tanev, they’ll be focusing on improving their defense. They’ll be looking for a veteran defenseman but they don’t have a lot of salary room for one.
Simon won’t be back
Pens Inside Scoop: Pittsburgh Penguins GM Jim Rutherford said they won’t be able to re-sign forward Dominik Simon: “We still had some interest in him and he still had some interest in us. He was in the mix, but having Rodrigues and Jankowski, who are more comfortable at center, made more sense for the flexibility for the coach.”
Hurricanes GM on free agency
Michael Smith: Carolina Hurricanes GM Don Waddell:
“We’re staying in touch with a lot of guys. We don’t have a lot of cap space, that’s number one. I’ve said all along, if we can find a way to upgrade our team by not using all of our cap space, we’ve got to look at that.
We’re talking with some teams about different needs. Whether anything gets done or not today, I don’t look at it like this is the only day you’re going to do deals. There are going to be lots of players that don’t get signed today, and that’s going to continue into the weekend. I think the trade market this year will be bigger than it’s been in the past.”
