Will the Maple Leafs seek goaltending help?
Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: The Toronto Maple Leafs have three weeks to decide on whether goaltender Jack Campbell can re-find his game or to go find someone on the trade market.
The Chicago Blackhawks and Marc-Andre Fleury will also soon need to decide which direction they are going.
Teams potentially looking for a goaltender could include are the Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals and Colorado Avalanche.
Petr Mrazek isn’t good enough to take over the No. 1 role. Fleury’s $7 million cap hit would give the Leafs trouble but if Jake Muzzin was LTIR’d for the remainder of the season, it would go a long way in helping.
Rangers Georgiev most likely goaltender to be dealt at the deadline?
TSN: Chris Johnston on New York Rangers goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, who is the highest trade goaltender on TSN’s trade bait board, and who may be the most likely goaltender to get traded at the deadline.
“Well, given that we don’t see a lot of goaltenders moved in general Gino, we have to tie him to Fleury, and the issue with Fleury you alluded to, is cap hit of $7 million. Something that a lot of contenders would have trouble taking on even if they were to get teams to retain salary.
Where Georgiev is different is that he’s not a pure rental. He’ll be a restricted free agent after the season and you might say, ‘why are the Rangers even thinking of moving him?’ But, Igor Shesterkink, his goaltender partner, is probably in the Hart Trophy conversation right now for New York. He’s been fantastic.
And the Rangers themselves will have trouble, I believe, keeping Georgiev beyond this season. Signing him to his qualifying offer and having enough money to go around the rest of the roster. So they are in a position where they can at least seek to see if they can get something for him on the marketplace. Get ahead of them rather than potentially lose for nothing.
Obviously, they are in an add mode themselves upfront because they want to be buyers at the deadline.”