On the Washington Capitals and Florida Panthers …
- Joe Pack of Sportsnet: Elliotte Friedman said that teams are calling the Capitals about forward Marcus Johansson. The Capitals may be waiting it out to see if Andre Burakovsky can fully take on a top-six role before they would consider moving Johansson.
- Panthers could get some interest in Brandon Pirri from a team looking for scoring, but the Panthers could also use some scoring and may not want to make that type of deal.
On the St. Louis Blues, Anaheim Ducks, Winnipeg Jets and Columbus Blue Jackets …
- Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet: (from last week that I missed) Blues GM Doug Armstrong says he can say he scouting for Team Canada as he watches games. He watched five games in New York. The Blues have been scouting heavily lately, but continue to insist that they want to see their full team together before making a move. Patrik Berglund and Jaden Schwartz should be back by the All-Star game.
- The Ducks have some issues with John Gibson’s ability to stay healthy. They may not risk trading either Fredrik Andersen or Anton Khudobin just yet.
- Talk is the Jets and Jacob Trouba’s camp have mutually agreed to hold off contract extension talks for the pending RFA. The Jets might be looking for a deal that buys up some UFA years.
- The Blue Jackets have moved Ryan Johansen to the wing. Any team that trades for him would likely want him at center.
Scouting the Wild and Sharks …
- Kevin Kurz: Notable names who were scouting the Wild-Sharks game last night: Dave Taylor (Blues director of player development ) and Dave Baseggio (Ducks assistant GM).
On Mike Johnston …
- Damien Cox: The WHL Vancouver Giants may have already contacted recently fired Penguins coach Mike Johnston about possibly taking over as the teams GM. Some issues the WHL Giants have when trying to bring in management is the sky-high housing cost. Johnston already owns a house there.