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NHL Rumours: Vegas Golden Knights, Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers

NHL Rumours

It’s Day Three of NHL free agency, but we still have plenty of NHL rumours for you. Taylor Hall and Alex Pietrangelo are still unsigned as of this point, but there is still plenty of chatter about the duo. We’ve got rumours on the Vegas Golden Knights, Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers.

All NHL rumours come from the original source and are subject to change.

NHL Rumours

Vegas Golden Knights

Rumour: Darren Dreger and Pierre LeBrun discussed on Insider Trading that the Golden Knights are the front-runners for the St. Louis Blues defenceman Alex Pietrangelo.

Analysis: The Blues have seemingly moved on with the signing of Torey Krug from Boston. Pietrangelo and his family traveled to Vegas to have a visit on Saturday. In-person free agent visits have been very limited because of the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The Golden Knights have plenty of advantages to lure the Blues captain to the team. Nevada has no state sales tax and it’s a warmer city. Vegas instantly becomes a favourite if they can land Pietrangelo. Their defence of Alec Martinez, Shea Theodore and Nate Schmidt instantly becomes one of the top blueline groups in the league.

The Knights would have to clear out some salary because they currently have just over $1.8 million in cap space according to CapFriendly. A trade of Marc-Andre Fleury likely happens to shed at least some of the $7 million that he currently makes.

Boston Bruins

Rumour: David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period says the Bruins made a short-term pitch to Hall on Friday.

Analysis: Hall is focused on winning and he’s foregoing money and a long-term contract to do so. The former Hart Trophy winner only has two Stanley Cup playoff appearances and has played on some bad teams.

Boston gets a bonafide star if they can land the former top pick of the 2010 NHL Draft. He gives the team scoring depth on a club that relies heavily on The Perfection Line. Hall’s signing gives the team more scoring options other than David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron. Boston had $12 million in cap space, but needs to figure out what to do with restricted free agents like Jake Debrusk and Matt Grzelcyk.

However, there are plenty of other teams that want to get Hall. He’s the top forward in this free agent period, but he won’t be rushed into a decision. He’ll sign for a team that he feels is in the best position to win.

Edmonton Oilers

Rumour: TSN’s Frank Seravalli says that Tyson Barrie turned down more money to play with the Oilers. Seravalli adds that one offer was $6 million per season.

Analysis: Barrie is trying to reset himself after disappointing a 2019-20 season with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He’s betting on himself to have the type of year he had when he was with the Colorado Avalanche. The Victoria, British Columbia native took a $3.75 million deal with Edmonton.

One would think Barrie missed out on a solid payday in a market that’s in flux. However, he’ll likely quarterback a power play with MVPs Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. His offensive numbers should go up helming a unit with such potent scorers.

Barrie did struggle on the defensive end last season with the Leafs and most mistakes are amplified while in Toronto. However, the lure of getting point totals back up to respectable levels may have been too great of a lure. The right-handed defenceman is sacrificing short-term financial pain for long-term gain. Many NHLers are taking a hit now, but hope the new TV deal will make it all worthwhile.

Dan Mount, Editor

Dan Mount, Editor

Longtime sportswriter for the Watertown Daily Times. I have covered minor league and NCAA hockey in women's Division I and men's Division III. Also produce the nationally-syndicated Spadora on Sports radio show.

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