Rumor season is alive and well as we head towards the NHL Entry Draft and free agency. While fans salivate at the possibilities, and reporters fight for any scrap of information, here are some of the rumors that are floating around the league right now:
- In an offseason that will be spent trying to find a number one (not to mention two, three, and four) defenceman, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal hears that the Oilers are interested, at least somewhat, in Buffalo Sabres blueliner Zach Bogosian and have been since last season. While it doesn’t seem likely that the former third overall pick would be on the move to Edmonton due to his no-movement clause, Buffalo may try to get him to waive it in order to move his contract.
- Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com hears that the Boston Bruins have interest in Florida defenceman Dmitry Kulikov and have at least been kicking the tires on a possible trade. The 25-year old has just one year remaining on his contract at $4.3MM before he would become a (much sought after) UFA. The Panthers have a lot of young players that they need to get signed over the next year and a half, with Aaron Ekblad, Jonathan Huberdeau, Reilly Smith and Alex Petrovic all restricted free agents after next season.
- After rumors swirled this week about the Colorado Avalanche’s interest in Jets’ defenceman Jacob Trouba, Mike Chambers of the Denver Post asked GM Joe Sakic about it: “There’s a lot of speculation out there. All I can tell you is we’ve had conversations with different teams and we want to try to improve our crop.”. Trouba is sure to be sought after by many teams if the Jets do indeed make him available this summer. The 22-year old is a former ninth overall pick, is an RFA for the first time this summer and has performed well in his three NHL seasons.