Welcome to NHL Rumours. Each day, we take a look at the latest going on around the league. This week has been insane with the draft. However, today, NHL Free Agency is here! There are still plenty of NHL Rumours leading up to that though. Today, we are going to look at NHL Rumours from the Buffalo Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues.
NHL Rumours
Buffalo Sabres
Rumour: Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston has reported that even though he wasn’t qualified, Dominik Kahun and the Buffalo Sabres are still talking about a deal.
Dominik Kahun continues to negotiate with the #sabres after not being tendered a qualifying offer. Still unclear if he’ll test the open market tomorrow.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) October 8, 2020
Analysis: Johnston mentions that it is unclear if he’ll test the market today. Now, he might take a look if he has made it this far, but this report should give optomisim to Buffalo fans. Both sides clearly want to see if some kind of deal can be done which should make Buffalo a frontrunner regardless of what happens.
Kahun is a very solid forward. He’s not a first-line guy by any means, but he is a solid middle-six who can slide up and down the lineup as needed. Buffalo has a ton of empty spaces upfront right now and will sure to be one of the busiest teams today. However, too many good players is never an issue, so getting someone like Kahun under contract is a good call. It could be that the issue is the term. Kahun only got to play six games with the Sabres. However, in those six games, he had two goals and two assists for four points.
He has only played two full seasons in the NHL, so giving a long-term deal probably wouldn’t be the smartest thing. However, at a reasonable price, any team would be smart to take a 2-3 year bet on him. Kahun has shown some solid upside that in general should be considered a low enough risk to take a gamble here. Whether it be Buffalo, or someone else.
Chicago Blackhawks
Rumour: It sounds as if Malcolm Subban and the Chicago Blackhawks have a deal in place that will sign him. He was also not qualified and is set to be an Unrestricted Free Agent today. This comes from TSN’s Pierre Lebrun and The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta.
I believe there’s already an agreement in principle between Chicago and Subban. https://t.co/lKK9ovY2yO
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) October 9, 2020
Analysis: Another case of not getting qualified but going back to the team anyways. Let’s hope this isn’t completely outdated by the time it publishes! Either way, the Blackhawks announced today they won’t be signing Corey Crawford, so Subban will likely be in the NHL next season. Whether the Hawks go out and sign someone will be the question. They also have Collin Delia, who many have been intrigued by for years. It’s quite possible they just run with those two.
Subban has struggled to find his footing in the NHL. He’s put up slightly below-average numbers as a backup so far in his career. This deal certainly won’t be breaking the bank for the Hawks to get it done, but there is still some upside there. The Blackhawks also may be looking to retool again this year. If it wasn’t for the expanded playoff format, they would have missed the playoffs by a pretty wide margin. Unless they get significant impacts from a few of their young guys, there’s not much of a reason to assume there will be a drastic improvement.
Still, look for Subban to try and find his game this year. If he gets the potential to start a bit more, maybe he will warm up a bit? A deal between the two sides certainly makes enough sense.
St. Louis Blues
Rumour: What will very likely be our last update on this situation in NHL Rumours, Alex Pietrangelo is testing free agency today. He and the Blues are still in discussions, so don’t count them out. However, he will look at all options according to NHL.com’s Lou Korac.
Update on Alex Pietrangelo: Don’t expect a last minute deal here in which he could get an eighth year with the #stlblues. He plans to go to free agency and evaluate all situations, including what the Blues have to offer.
— Lou Korac (@lkorac10) October 9, 2020
Analysis: This isn’t too surprising. It doesn’t make much sense for a player to take it all the way down to three or four hours before he can technically hear everyone’s pitch just to decide to re-sign. If he would have signed last night before midnight, he could have still received the extra eighth year from St. Louis. However, given that the two sides still seem to be a bit away on actual money, that probably wasn’t a huge factor.
There will be lots of potential suitors when he gets to noon today. The Jackets are clearing tons of space, so add another name into the mix. The big thing with Pietrangelo is the length of any contract. He’s already 30, and will be 31 when the new season is starting up. So signing him to a six or seven-year deal could be extremely risky by the end. However, teams will want the benefit now and that’s very fair. He is currently a top-five defenceman in the league, or very close to it. Currently, a guy who is in the Norris mix each year, he also has a Stanley Cup to boast about. It will be very fascinating to see where he lands.
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