On the Pittsburgh Penguins …
Matt Larkin of The Hockey News: Evgeni Malkin has a history of injuries and is out again. Last year they had Nick Bonino to move up in the lineup to fill in when needed. This year they have Riley Sheahan, who doesn’t bring enough offense to fill the role. They are going to try out Jake Guentzel, who has one NHL game played at center.
Penguins GM Jim Rutherford should start looking for more realistic No. 3 center, someone to produce the offense that Bonino had brought. believes that Toronto Maple Leafs pending UFA Tyler Bozak would be the perfect fit.
On the Montreal Canadiens …
Answering twitter questions
Eric Engels: There is no desire for the Canadiens to trade Carey Price.
Eric Engels: The Canadiens are trying to protect Victor Mete. He’ll likely be heading back to Junior soon.
Eric Engels: Not convinced the Canadiens will make a big move before Christmas. Think that January 15th will be a key date – five to six weeks from the trade deadline.
Eric Engles: The Canadiens biggest needs are a top center and a defenseman with upside to play with Shea Weber.
On the Vancouver Canucks …
Chris Nichols of FanRag Sports: Elliotte Friedman on Sportsnet 650 talking about the Vancouver Canucks and their pending UFA defenseman Erik Gudbranson.
“No. 2, I think there would be a lot of interest in Gudbranson if he’s healthy. I know that you guys are down on him right now. I think there’s a lot of people out there that look at him and say in the playoffs, when the game really changes – and the game does change a lot – if you get him into a structured system and he knows what his responsibilities are, he can help you.
“I think a lot of it comes down to what does Vancouver want. Vancouver gave up a lot to get him, so are they going to want a lot to give him up. I don’t think that the price is going to be incredibly high, simply because he’s an unrestricted free agent. And I think probably that’s the biggest question right now, is if he’s healthy what do the Canucks want.”