- Sarah McLellan of the Arizona Republic: Changes could continue for the Arizona Coyotes as they look to improve from a 0-5-1 preseason.
“Am I satisfied where we’re at? Absolutely not,” General Manager Don Maloney said. “We have a lot of work to do to be a competitive team, but we’ll look at waivers, trades, recalls. … We think we have lots of different options, but by no means are we sitting here staying, ‘This is great. It’s time to put our feet up.’
- David Staples of the Edmonton Journal: A Russian report is saying the Avangard Omsk is trying to bring back Nikita Nikitin, and that negotiations have started. Omsk would need to work with the Russian Federation to obtain a transfer card for Nikitin. It is possible that Omsk would have to pay for all/part of Nikitin’s salary, but the Oilers would still have the $4.5 million cap hit. Jason Gregor noted that the Oilers might not agree with that scenario.
“Source tells me #Oilers plan on having Nikitin in AHL. Have no plans right now to loan to KHL… Keep in mind #Oilers would have to AGREE to loan Nikitin. AHL already has two injuries. Might want him to go there. He can’t just leave… If Nikitin is loaned he counts against cap and on 50 man contract. Those are facts. He can’t sign with a team unless terminated.”
- Chuck Gormley of CSN Mid Atlantic: The Capitals currently have about $600,000 in salary cap space, and it could jump to about $1.1 million if they send Stanislav Galiev to the AHL when Nicklas Backstrom returns.
“We have some flexibility,” MacLellan said. “We’ll see what we have and we can address a more certain need in the future.”
- CSNNE: Malcolm Subban in the biggest trade chip for the Bruins and a team still looking for a franchise goalie could come calling. He could be included in a package for a veteran top-four defenseman, something the Bruins desperately need.