Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman unveiled that the Anaheim Ducks were working on a trade with their longest-tenured player, defenseman Cam Fowler, just before the 2024-25 preseason. Despite the rumor, and a few team’s obvious need for a top-four defenseman, Fowler still finds himself a member of the Ducks’ organization.
According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, that’s not for a lack of trying. In last week’s rendition of ’The Latest’, Pagnotta said, “He wants to go to a contender, just like John Gibson, the goaltender there as well. They’re kind of over this little rebuild situation that they’re in. But because of that extra year, that value is propped up a little bit. He’s not an expiring deal. This isn’t a rental situation. So those conversations will continue as the season progresses.”
He went on to note that Fowler may be interested in waiving his four-team no-trade clause to help facilitate a deal and Anaheim would retain some salary on their end. Few contending teams could absorb Fowler’s $6.5MM cap hit for this season and next but the Winnipeg Jets, Los Angeles Kings, and Utah Hockey Club all strike as clear choices that could use a veteran presence in their top-four.
Other Pacific notes:
- The Vegas Golden Knights were dealt a blow a few days ago after captain Mark Stone went down with a lower-body injury. Thankfully there won’t be any long-term concern for Stone as Elliotte Friedman reported the injury isn’t considered serious. Stone hasn’t participated in a full season since the 2020-21 campaign. Still, the Golden Knights will want to get him as close as possible this year with Stone scoring six goals and 21 points already in only 13 games.
- According to beat reporter Max Miller, San Jose Sharks defenseman Jake Walman will miss his fourth straight game due to an upper-body injury. The Sharks have weathered the storm without Walman with two wins in their last three games but the injury is a major buzzkill for a defenseman who recorded seven points in four games before the injury.
- Philipp Grubauer still isn’t ready for the Seattle Kraken meaning the team had to get a second goaltender on the roster. For the second time in less than a week, the team announced they had recalled netminder Ales Stezka from their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, on an emergency basis. Stezka has a 2-5-0 record with the Firebirds this season with a .894 SV% but has yet to debut with the Kraken.
- It became apparent rather quickly that Vancouver Canucks’ forward Brock Boeser would miss some time after being on the receiving end of a hit from Los Angeles Kings forward Tanner Jeannot which warranted a three-game suspension. Offering an update this afternoon, Vancouver’s play-by-play announcer, Brendan Batchelor, shared that Boeser is only expected to miss the next few days. This means that Boeser will likely miss Vancouver’s game tomorrow night against the Calgary Flames but could return for Thursday’s action against the New York Islanders.
- Unfortunately, the Canucks won’t be able to replace Boeser with Dakota Joshua as Batchelor also shared he isn’t expected to return tomorrow. There’s no indication that Joshua suffered a setback in his recovery from testicular cancer. Still, the team is likely doing its due diligence to be sure that Joshua is fully healthy and ready for game speed.