Schedule

Following up on a report yesterday that the Calgary Flames were “blindsided” by rumors of forward Sam Bennett’s discontent with his current situation, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported during this evening’s edition of “Insider Trading” that the club is in no rush to trade the young forward. Of course, Bennett has not formally requested a trade anyhow and the Flames are not feeling any pressure to rush into a move. Instead, Dreger states that this is a matter of “if” rather than “when” as it pertains to a Bennett deal. Calgary will only trade Bennett, the 2014 fourth overall pick, if they can find a perfect fit. Otherwise, they expect to retain the forward. Dreger notes than many within the organization still feel that Bennett can be an impact player and would rather work through the issues of his role on the team rather than move him, especially at discount price. One way or another, the time is coming for the Flames to make a decision on Bennett; if he is not traded this season then the team will need to fully commit by protecting him in the upcoming Expansion Draft. If not, they risk a strong chance of losing him for nothing to the soon-to-be division rival Seattle Kraken.

• While he may have cleared waivers on Monday, and amidst some ugly rumors at that, there is no shortage of interest in New York Rangers defenseman Tony DeAngelo. While he may not play for the Rangers ever again, per the team’s own pronouncement, he most certainly will continue to play in the NHL. Dreger reports that there is “a ton of interest” in DeAngelo on the trade market. He feels that a resolution to his fall out with the Rangers is imminent, expecting a trade within the next few days. DeAngelo’s ability, especially in the offensive aspects of the game, are clear, but some felt that his clearance on the waiver wire might have indicated that teams were hesitant to take on the alleged behavioral issues. Instead, it seems teams were more inclined to DeAngelo clear waivers to gain that extra layer of flexibility, as well as to gain the possibility of receiving additional trade capital or possibly some retained salary in a trade with the Rangers.
• Most NHL teams prepared for an unusually dense schedule this season by ensuring that they had a concrete goalie tandem and in many cases additional depth in net. However, for those with remaining concerns or those who have been impacted by injury, the need for multiple options at net minder is about to become even more crucial. Dreger reports that with the growing frequency of COVID-related postponements across the league, the NHL is going to have little option but to hand a number of teams very difficult make-up schedules toward the latter half of the season. Specifically, Dreger notes that there is a real chance that teams will face five games in a seven night span, perhaps even on several occasions. A capable No. 2 and a reliable No. 3 in case of injury will be absolutely necessary with no starter being able to handle such a heavy workload. With few options remaining on the free agent market, trade talks will likely heat up for those contending teams who need the wins more than others with goalies to spare.