The playoffs are in full swing, with some teams already being eliminated. Still, there are NHL rumours to be discussed. How the eliminated teams can improve for next season, and how can teams make themselves better for the 2022-23 season. Today we will be looking at NHL rumours surrounding the Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins, and Philadelphia Flyers.
NHL Rumours
Montreal Canadiens
Rumour: According to Marc Antoine Godin of The Athletic, the Montreal Canadiens are very open to trading defenceman Jeff Petry, however, they won’t give him away for free.
Analysis: The Canadiens just finished 32nd in the league and were awarded the first overall draft pick. They are getting into a rebuild and a 34-year-old defenceman doesn’t fit their timeline anymore. His contract takes him to the age of 37. Teams will likely be more willing to trade for Petry after seeing his promising second half of the season under Martin St. Louis. However, it still is an expensive contract. At $6.25 million per season, not many competitive teams will be able to take on the entire contract by themselves. Salary retention will need to be on the table for most teams to discuss taking Petry. However, if Montreal is willing to retain part of the contract, it will likely increase the return they get.
If they are willing to retain money, they can try and leverage more prospects in return to help contribute to a rebuild. If they don’t get the right offer, though, there’s no harm in holding onto Jeff Petry and hoping he continues to thrive under new head coach Martin St. Louis. There is no rush in moving Petry if they don’t feel the right offer is there. But moving his entire salary seems unlikely at this point.
Boston Bruins
Rumour: According to Nick Goss of NBC Sports, Don Sweeney and David Pastrnak will begin discussing an extension at the earliest possible date for the Bruins winger.
Analysis: David Pastrnak is entering the final season of his six-year contract. He is set to get a large raise, should he want it. Pastrnak is a dynamic, goal-scoring winger that could fetch a heavy amount on the open market. However, he has indicated in the past that he doesn’t play hockey for the money. Don Sweeney also mentioned that Pastrnak has never indicated he wants to play anywhere else. If both these things are true, then the contract extension should be straightforward for both sides once July 1st, 2022 rolls around.
However, things could also be dependent on what Patrice Bergeron decides to do in regards to playing another season. David Pastrnak is a player that will want to win, and if Bergeron decides to retire, that could really set back the Bruins organization. It could indicate the beginning of a retooling, as the Bruins don’t have any real options to replace Bergeron as the number one centre. If Pastrnak feels the team is moving in the wrong direction, he could want to compete in a new city. General manager Don Sweeney seems very confident there will be a deal done, though.
Philadelphia Flyers
Rumour: According to Andy Strickland, the Philadelphia Flyers could link up with John Tortorella.
Keep hearing chatter of John Tortorella and the Philadelphia Flyers linking up. Thoughts? #Letsgoflyers
— Andy Strickland (@andystrickland) May 23, 2022
Analysis: The Flyers had a bad year for the second season straight and decided to not bring back Mike Yeo. This leaves them with a vacancy for the head coach position. John Tortorella has taken the year off from the NHL after not electing to return to the Columbus Blue Jackets at the end of the 2020-21 season. John Tortorella has historically been a controversial coach in the NHL. However, he has seen some degrees of success with different teams. He won the Stanley Cup in 2004, made it to the conference finals in 2012, and coached Columbus to win one of the biggest upsets in recent playoff history.
The Philadelphia Flyers have said that they are not going to go through a rebuild, but rather a retool. If this is really the direction the Flyers want to go, they need to see some results quickly. John Tortorella’s style of coaching has historically seen him get the best out of less ‘skilled’ rosters. He sets out for his teams to win games by grinding down the opposition. It would be an interesting move for the Flyers to make, and one that they’d need to pay off should they decide not to rebuild.
That’s all for today’s NHL Rumours!
Main image:
Embed from Getty Images
