- Joe McDonald of ESPN Boston: The Bruins would prefer to have Torey Krug and Reilly Smith sign one-year deals and then earn multi-year deals after this season. McDonald thinks the Bruins need to make the moves quickly and find a way to get Krug and Smith signed and playing. Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, his son Charlie and team president, Cam Neely have said that Krug and Smith should understand the Bruins budget situation and to deal with according. Jeremy Jacobs has said they haven’t proved themselves enough to get a big contract. Charlie Jacobs has said they should sign a bridge deal until the Bruins are able to give them a big pay raise.
McDonald notes they could move Johnny Boychuk and his $3.36 million, with the Islanders a potential good landing spot. Loui Eriksson could be interesting option with his $4.25 million cap hit for the next two-years. He has a history of concussions and they do have some depth upfront, even for the first line.
- Stephen Whyno CP: Josh Gorges rejected a trade to the Maple Leafs this past offseason, and told Leafs president Brendan Shanahan directly the reasons.
“I just said, ‘I’m a heart-and-soul player. It’s the only reason I can be good at this level is I have to play and commit with my heart,'” Gorges said in an interview with The Canadian Press on Wednesday after practice at First Niagara Centre. “And after playing against them for that many years of being our No. 1 rival, I just didn’t think it would’ve been fair to them. I wouldn’t have been the same player that they would’ve expected me to be.
“Over time I would’ve got there. But I just didn’t think I could commit my heart to playing the right way.”
Shanahan understood Gorges feeling on the situation.
“What he said to me was, ‘That’s why we’re trying to make a trade for you is you have that character where you give yourself to one team,'” Gorges recalled. “He even said to me, ‘If you would’ve been a guy that said, ‘Oh yeah, sure I’ll go to Toronto,’ like that, then you’re obviously not the player that I thought you were. The fact that you have that built in you is why we like you as a player.'”
- Derek Van Diest of the Edmonton Sun: The Oilers second line center options involves four players: Mark Arcobello, Leon Draisaitl, Anton Lander and Bogdan Yakimov. Arcobello may have the inside track.
- Andrew Gross: Rangers coach Alain Vigneault is trying rookie Kevin Hayes at center, but will also have him at right wing to ease his transition to the pros.
- Hope Smoke: Nick Kypreos: “There’s pressure for him still only 23 years old. It’s not young, but young still” … “That doesn’t mean that they’re not a crossroads with him off the ice. They shopped him .” … “St.Louis had tremendous interest in Kadri prior to UFA and going in the direction of Stastny.” … “There was the Berglund-Kadri talk and that didn’t happen, but they continue to look at options and whether or not it’s in their best interest to trade him or keep him” … “The start of camp hasn’t hurt his value. He’s showed that maybe in an off year he can still score 50 points…”