The NHL Rumour mill is the gift that keeps on giving. This holiday season, let Last Word On Hockey keep you up to date on all the latest NHL Rumours from across the league. Tuesday’s edition features the New York Rangers, Montreal Canadiens, and Calgary Flames.
NHL Rumours
New York Rangers
Rumour: Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post reports that the Rangers have an important decision to make regarding Alexandar Georgiev ahead of the February 24th trade deadline.
A chat with Jeff Gorton, who is happy with #NYR start, but has a lot of “difficult decisions” in the next few months — including the situation in net. https://t.co/kVJNPeYeA7
— Brett Cyrgalis (@BrettCyrgalis) December 10, 2019
Analysis: It’s hard to envision Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton wanting a gem like Georgiev to slip through the crease, but with his 60th NHL game creeping up, it’s a possibility.
The glaringly obvious fact here is that after that magic number 60, Georgiev cannot be sent down to the AHL without clearing waivers. However, the Rangers net is looking a little crowded these days. So, sending him to the AHL isn’t going to increase his trade value. Especially not when he’s the obvious hot hand right now.
Georgiev boasts an impressive .926 save percentage for the season so far. Moving him opens the space for Igor Shesterkin, and would fetch New York a nice return. It’s common knowledge that the Toronto Maple Leafs have their sights set on a dependable backup netminder. The two teams could come to some sort of terms before February 24th.
Montreal Canadiens
Rumour: Elliotte Friedman wrote in his 31 Thoughts that the Canadiens considered Alec Martinez before he was injured. He also says the Shayne Gostisbehere NHL Rumours were false.
Analysis: It was heavily speculated that the Canadiens had their eyes on the Los Angeles Kings defenceman Martinez. He plays a simple style of hockey, and his veteran presence can add some stability to a younger lockerroom. Martinez isn’t going to garner a ton of goals, but he can still chip in now and again.
Realistically, the Kings aren’t going to get a massive return on him. And whatever they could’ve expected to get probably went down since the club moved him to the Injured Reserve in late November.
Gostisbehere is having a down season. Again, it sounded like a case of the Habs looking for cheap defence to help jumpstart their struggling blueline. However, Friedman confidently stated the rumours of Ghost heading to Montreal were false. Either way, he’s probably heading somewhere soon.
Calgary Flames
Rumour: Elliotte Friedman also stated in his 31 Thoughts article that teams were lowballing the Flames looking to steal away Sam Bennett.
Analysis: Well, it’s refreshing to talk about something related to hockey and the Flames at the same time. Calgary has been the center of quite the controversy lately. Unfortunately for the team, that hasn’t been the only low point of their season.
Friedman mentions that multiple teams were shooting over pocket-change offers for Bennett. He names the Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators and even the Canadiens. Most likely, the aforementioned offenders were trying to snipe him away from the Flames during their seven-game losing streak.
Before he was moved to the IR with an upper-body injury, Bennett wasn’t exactly lighting up the lamp. He has just five points in 20 games and was averaging 13:12 of ice time a night. Another case of an injured player who might have just lost a bit more value as February creeps up.
DALLAS, TEXAS – MARCH 05: Alexandar Georgiev #40 of the New York Rangers blocks a shot on goal against Roope Hintz #24 of the Dallas Stars as Brady Skjei #76 of the New York Rangers defends in the third period at American Airlines Center on March 05, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
