Will it’s a quiet offseason, or could teams actually make moves?
Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period joined Steve Kouleas and Anthony Stewart on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio Power Play segment and was asked about if there might be more trades this offseason, given the skinny free agent market.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Anthony Stwewart: “What are your thoughts on the upcoming free agent frenzy? Right, obviously, the cap goes up significantly. UFA is a bit bit thin in comparison with big names, and other years, there’s a number of RFAs which are going to be potential. So we’re going to see more trades on the draft leading as much as free agent frenzy. And so, is that, July 1st, going to be grab your popcorn day or take a nap and wake me up when it’s over?”
Dave Pagnotta: “Stewie. I hope it’s the grab your popcorn one, because last 12 months was, we thought. We were getting all excited when that Noah Dobson trade happened, after which that was it. We had nothing until the beginning of the season. I believe it’ll be different.
There’s different senses of urgency from quite a lot of different teams. Some that wish to compete straight away, which are willing to make daring moves, don’t have options in free agency. They must go the trade route, and others that you already know are willing to maneuver out pieces, gain some young assets, and make the most of the undeniable fact that it is that this goes to be a really shallow pool.
We all know Charlie Coyle stayed in Columbus on a six-year deal. There’s chatter. I did the entire Buffalo-Montreal series. There’s chatter that perhaps there’s a pathway to a deal there with Alex Tuch and the Sabres to stay around. He’s the primary, as of now, prize free agent, ready for July 1, but some people can be a bit bit surprised immediately if he leaves.
There goes your prize piece, and also you’re other potential assets, and that will force some teams that should want to pursue a man like Alex Tuch in July, that will have forced them to revert to the trade market. And that’s where we may hear more names just like the (Jordan) Kyrou’s and (Alexis) Lafreniere’s and others that will pop up.
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Like, there was a number of those that thought that Owen Tippett can be in play this summer. Well, based on his injury within the playoffs, how long is that recovery time? And does that affect trade discussions with Philadelphia? Do they veer in a special direction for that club? What happens with goaltending?
Teams are inquisitive about Connor Hellebuyck. Like, things are starting to begin to percolate a bit bit more, guys. The silly season, Kooli, might get a little bit of a head start due to where things are at with the free agent market. However it’s still, still early, but things are beginning to slowly type of gain a bit little bit of steam.”
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