Ryan Suter could be on the Boston Bruins’ radar?
Fluto Shinzawa of The Athletic: The Boston Bruins need a left-shooting defenseman. Ryan Suter fits that bill. He can be had for cheap since the defenseman was bought out. This seems too easy. Right?
Again, Suter can shoot the puck a good deal and get it on the net. Boston could use that. He is 36 but again, Boston has a defensive core that can shield him a bit better than most teams. Let’s be honest.
If Boston does not choose Suter, then the prices of an Alec Martinez or Jamie Oleksiak drop, and that could be the even more palatable secondary plan.
Does Vancouver do a side deal with the Seattle Kraken?
Thomas Drance of The Athletic: Would Jim Benning consider this as a possibility? Benning has been in regular contact with Ron Francis, the Seattle Kraken General Manager.
“We’ve talked about lots of different things,” Benning said. “He’s had some ideas for me and I’ve countered with some ideas for him. Nothing specific, I can’t detail what we’ve talked about, but we’ve talked a lot about different scenarios.”
Again, there is the protect a player, salary shed, Godfather side deal, and goaltender side deal scenarios. All have their pros and cons. For Benning, a Braden Holtby side deal may present the highest upside if it can be done.
Minnesota saving more money does not help Kaprizov and Fiala
Sarah McLellan of the Star Tribune: The Minnesota Wild has a plan in place and just because they bought out Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, it does not mean extra dollars for other contracts.
There are open talks with Kevin Fiala and Kirill Kaprizov. It is just that…talk.
A leadership void has come as well. It will be intriguing to see who fills that. Joel Eriksson Ek will be on that shortlist along with Matt Dumba, Jonas Brodin, and Marcus Foligno. Minnesota does not seem concerned but they are willing to spend more wisely even with their short-term cap windfall.