- Craig Custance of ESPN: Kings goalie Jonathan Bernier will likely find himself in a different uniform next season.
“Everybody is high on Bernier,” said an NHL scout. “There’s no question he’s been brought along nicely by L.A. I think there’s a number of teams in the NHL that need a goaltender that covet Bernier.”
Bernier is set to earn $1.25 million next year and will be a RFA. Tampa Bay is the favorite to land Bernier. Yzerman is looking for young goalie to lead the team, and they have 2 1st round picks in this years draft. The Blue Jackets are another option, though they may be looking someone with a bit more of a track record. Roberto Luongo would be an intriguing option, but would he want to play there, especially if Rick Nash is traded? The Maple Leafs are a long shot. Bernier is not a Francois Allaire butterfly goalie. Plus the Leafs may be looking for a veteran goalie, such as Tomas Vokoun.
- Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun: Garrioch lists 5 Senators that could be traded this offseason: 1. Nick Foligno – he’s a RFA and will get a qualifying offer, but he likely won’t sign it. 2. Sergei Gonchar – the 35 year old will make $5.5 million next year with a no-movement clause. 3. Robin Lehner – he could challenge Ben Bishop for the backup position if not moved. They weren’t that thrilled with the way he developed last year. 4. Zack Smith – could be moved due to the depth at center, especially if they are able to bring back Chris Kelly. 5. Bobby Butler – moving Butler and his $1.2 million contract may be a miracle. He only scored 6 goals in 56 games last year. If they could get a late round pick for him, they should take it. Buying him out and living with a $200,000 cap hit for the next 2 years could be an option.
- Josh Rimer via twitter: Rimer has been told by a very solid source that the Canadiens still haven’t decided on who will be their next head coach. They are still talking to candidates. It could still be a couple weeks before they decide. Bob Hartley is a finalist with 2 or 3 others.
- Calgary Sun: RDS’s Vincent Damphousse said that Bob Hartley has had a 2nd interview with the Flames. There have been reports that the Hartley was to be named the Canadiens new head coach. There may also been some issues with his current coaching contract according to Darrent Dreger:
“It’s my understanding that there’s some complications with his contract over (in Europe),” Dreger told TSN Radio 990. “It’s a multi-year contract and the people in Zurich aren’t about to rip it up and say ‘Good luck.’ ”
- David Chere via twitter: Devils lines at practice yesterday: Parise-Zajac-Zubrus; Ponikarovsky-Henrique-Kovalchuk; Elias-Josefson-Clarkson; Carter-Gionta-Bernier.
- Dmitry Chesnokov via twitter: The KHL announced they will play 2 regular season games in Brooklyn next year. A list of teams that could play are Dynamo, CSKA, Avangard, Salavat Yulaev and SKA.
- Adam Jahns via twitter: Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman said they have talked with Patrick Kane about the Madison incident and said they were disappointed.