Welcome to another edition of NHL Rumours! The buzz surrounding the league is growing more and more and the trade deadline is around the corner. Teams are beginning to shift their focus and re-evaluate where they stand as a club. Today’s Rumours focus on the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
NHL Rumours
Vancouver Canucks
Rumour: Elliote Friedman on The Jeff Marek Show discusses Lindholm and the Canucks
What a time it has been in the Pacific Division. The Edmonton Oilers have roared back and are knocking on the door for the division. However, the biggest team to discuss is the Vancouver Canucks, who sit at the top of the division. What Rick Tocchet is doing with this team is nothing short of amazing and the big players are showing up big time.
The Canucks have already made one big splash trade, acquiring Nikita Zadorov from the Calgary Flames. Friedman mentions that the Canucks are not done and could come calling Craig Conroy again. He links centre Elias Lindholm to the Canucks.
With them doing one deal already, the level of comfort is already there. Conroy is going to be busy, as he has a plethora of pending free agents that will be high trade targets. Lindholm is a strong two-way presence on the ice and would thrive in the high-octane offence of the Canucks. Friedman suggests that this is the year the Canucks go all-in.
It has been quite some time since the Canucks have made noise in the Western Conference. Quinn Hughes is playing like a Norris Trophy winner. Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller are driving the engine up front. This team has tremendous depth and adding a player like Lindholm can take them further.
Nothing is concrete but it would be a big splash trade that would set the hockey world on fire.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Rumour: Elliote Friedman on 32 Thoughts Podcast discusses the state of the Maple Leafs
The next set of NHL Rumours keeps us in Canada. What a year it has been for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The free agent signings they made have not netted the biggest results. John Klingberg is out for the season, Tyler Bertuzzi has not looked like the dominant force he was with the Boston Bruins. Ilya Samsonov has spent time with the Toronto Marlies. Also, the Maple Leafs are barely holding on to third place in the Atlantic Division. What’s worse is the quotes that came out of head coach Sheldon Keefe’s mouth. Toronto has lost half of the games they’ve played this season and Keefe went on to say,
“Forty-two games in, I still have a lot of questions, quite honestly, about who is going to go out and you can say for certain is going to get the job done for us.”
Those are not good things coming from the head coach. Granted they are getting a great season out of Auston Matthews and William Nylander but is it enough?
Friedman suggests that the team is thinking big picture and not just this year. He has a good point. The Maple Leafs have issues with goaltending and need another defenceman. However, they are limited financially and have no salary cap and parting with draft picks in an all-in approach does not make sense but isn’t out of the question either.
The Maple Leafs are a good team but you begin to wonder if the front office sees that this team can win the Stanley Cup the way it’s constructed. With Matthews and Nylander locked in for the long haul, the team can take a new approach to retooling the roster built around them.
Main Photo: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY
