NHL Rumors: Tarasenko not talking about trade request; Leafs spoke with Rielly; Canucks working with Pettersson and Hughes
Anthony Scultore
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Right smack in the middle of all the Jack Eichel trade and neck surgery drama, another star dropped a trade request.
St. Louis Blues forward, Vladimir Tarasenko asked to be moved this offseason. The 29 year-old was not happy with the way the organization dealt with his shoulder injury and subsequent surgeries.
Unfortunately for him, there was no real trade market and he’s now at camp.
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Vladimir Tarasenko: “I don’t see the reason to discuss it”
Before camp started, Blues GM Doug Armstrong weighed in on Vlad. “I guess my (hope) is that he’ll be playing so good that he won’t want to be traded,” he said. “And we won’t want to trade him.
Tarasenko has come to camp in phenomenal shape and is ready to move on.
“My mindset is good. Happy to be with the guys,” Tarasenko said. “It’s been a weird summer, but it’s going to stay between us – between me and (GM)Doug. I’m here to work. As long as I play here, I will work 100%. I’m 100% healthy.”
“It’s all behind us. I don’t see the reason to discuss it now,” he continued. “Camp starts, you know, and I don’t want to be a distraction in the room. Like I said, I’m here to work. I’m healthy and I’m happy to play hockey again.”
Tarasenko is one of the game’s better offensive players. He scored a career high 40 goals back in 2015-16 and has 442 points in his nine seasons.
Canucks closing in on new deals for RFAs?
Now that both Kirill Kaprizov and Rasmus Dahlin have signed their deals, both the Canucks and the agents for Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes continue to meet.
Darren Dreger noted on the latest Insider Trading that those deals are comparables for the two sides to work with. He states that for Hughes it is more about term than it is about money. “There’s a fair bit of work to get done,” he said.
Pettersson, 22, registered 21 points in 26 games after an early slump where he scored only 2 points in his first 8 contests. Hughes, 21, scored 41 points in 56 games last season. Both players are the cornerstone pieces to the Canucks future.
Leafs spoke with Morgan Rielly about contract this summer
Rielly, 27, scored 35 points in 55 games last season. For his career, all with Toronto, he’s amassed 305 points in 572 contests. He logs top pair minutes and helps QB the power play. Which is why it’s pretty stunning that he could hit UFA status next year.
“There have already been some preliminary talks over the summer but they kept pretty quiet,” Pierre LeBrun said on Insider Trading. “Nothing really concrete.”
According to LeBrun, the two sides are expected to begin discussion again during training camp. However; expectations need to be level set after this summer’s big deal for players like Seth Jones and Dougie Hamilton.
Leafs fans should buckle up because this could take awhile if it gets done at all.
