{"id":95120,"date":"2020-12-23T08:30:39","date_gmt":"2020-12-23T13:30:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=95120"},"modified":"2020-12-23T07:54:05","modified_gmt":"2020-12-23T12:54:05","slug":"nhl-rumours-canadiens-flames-red-wings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2020\/12\/23\/nhl-rumours-canadiens-flames-red-wings\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Rumours: Montreal Canadiens, Calgary Flames, Detroit Red Wings"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to another edition of NHL Rumours from the crew at Last Word on Hockey. We’re gearing up for the start of the 2020-21 season which is set to get underway on January 13th. With that, rumours are coming in hot and heavy from around the NHL with teams trying to finalize their rosters before the start of the season. Today, we will look at rumours surrounding the Montreal Canadiens<\/a>, Calgary Flames<\/a> and Detroit Red Wings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

All NHL Rumours come from their original source and are subject to change.<\/em><\/p>\n

NHL Rumours<\/h2>\n

Montreal Canadiens<\/h3>\n

Rumour: On the most recent 31 Thoughts Podcast<\/a>, Elliotte Friedman states that he is hearing that Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin<\/a> might not be finished making moves.<\/p>\n

Analysis: This is a rather surprising rumour considering all the work Marc Bergevin has already put into improving his roster this offseason. He has already upgraded all three positions bringing in backup goaltender Jake Allen<\/a>, defenceman Joel Edmundson<\/a> as well as prospect Alexander Romanov<\/strong><\/a> as well Josh Anderson<\/a> and Tyler Toffoli<\/a> upfront. However, no roster is ever perfect. There is always room to improve. But with such little cap space, any move Bergevin makes will need to be very creative.<\/p>\n

If we were to guess where Bergevin would be looking to improve it would be on the defensive end. In particular, a puck-moving, left-shot defenceman. It’s something that has been a need for a while. It’s something I myself have also spoken of many times in rumours articles as well as a piece specifically<\/a> on the Habs targetting Vince Dunn<\/a> (which is still a possibility).<\/p>\n

Despite the addition of Joel Edmundson, the left side is still the weakest position on the Canadiens roster. They don’t have that true, top-pairing puck-mover that is so desperately needed in today’s game. Romanov certainly has the tools to develop into that in the future, however, it’s a large ask for him to jump into that role right away.<\/p>\n

Two intriguing names would be Vince Dunn and Noah Hanifin<\/a>. Dunn is a restricted free agent at the moment and the St. Louis Blues<\/a> are currently tight against the cap. Even with Alex Steen<\/a> retiring the Blues still have cap restraints. Dunn is certainly someone the Habs could look at.<\/p>\n

As for Hanifin, his name has come up in rumours lately. He’s currently locked up for another four years at $4.95 million per season and fits exactly what the Habs are looking for. It would be a very complex trade with a lot of moving parts for the Habs to be cap compliant. However, it’s definitely something that they could look into.<\/p>\n

Calgary Flames<\/h3>\n

Rumour: On The Big Show on Sportsnet 960, the crew spoke about the chances of the Flames trading Noah Hanifin.<\/p>\n

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Noah Hanifin\u2019s name has surfaced in trade talk in recent days. Should the #Flames<\/a> consider going down that run? We discussed on our Daily Roundtable. https:\/\/t.co\/13tZGl41zC<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Sportsnet 960 (@Sportsnet960) December 23, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n