- TSN: Pierre LeBrun said that the Maple Leafs and Jets talked to the Kings about Mike Richards. Bob McKenzie mentioned the Flames as another team.
Darren Dreger said that trade talk involving Cody Franson is picking up. The Stars might be interested in some help on the blueline from the Leafs. Talk on Franson picked up ‘mid-to-late last week.’ The Ducks are another team that could be interested in Franson. Leafs would be looking for a roster player in his early 20s. If they can’t get that from a team, they could look for multiple picks, including a first rounder.Going the rental route may make the most sense for the Jets. They could be looking for depth forwards.
- Scott Cullen of TSN: A look at some trade destinations for Mike Richards and what might be options going back to the Kings.
Richards (with the Kings retaining salary) to the Flames for Mason Raymond and Matt Stajan. The Flames could also add David Jones to the mix.Richards to the Hurricanes for Alex Semin.
Richards (with the Kings retaining half his salary) to the Oilers for a late-round draft pick.
Richards to the Flyers for Vincent Lecavalier or Andrew MacDonald.
Richards to the Maple Leafs for David Clarkson.
Richards to the Jets for Ondrej Pavelec and Grant Clitsome.
- Jonas Siegel of TSN: Maple Leafs Jonathan Bernier is a pending RFA and could be due for a big, long-term raise. There have been no talks between the two sides.
“If they come up to my agent and they want to start talking I’m sure we’ll ,” Bernier told TSN.ca.
Bernier is on two-year deal with a cap hit of $2.9 million cap hit. Last year Semyon Varlamov had comparable career numbers to Bernier, and he signed a five year deal with a cap hit of $5.9 million. The Leafs will also have to deal with cap issues heading into next season and having free agents in Nazem Kadri (RFA) and Cody Franson (UFA) to potentially deal with.
“It’s easy to let it creep in a little bit,” Bernier says. ” to me it’s really one year at a time, one day at a time. I really want to make a big difference for this team and that’s really what I focus on. I want to make the playoffs and then we’ll talk in the summer and then we’ll see what’s the plan.”