NHL Rumors: Canadiens, Flyers, Devils

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Welcome to the Sunday edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The Stanley Cup Playoffs are here and the action is hot and heavy. While all eyes will be on the teams playing for the Stanley Cup, the teams that did not make the playoffs will be focused on improving their team for next season. Plus, the teams in the playoffs have work to do once their season is over as well. In this edition of NHL Rumors, we will take a look at the Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, and the New Jersey Devils.

Montreal Canadiens – Shea Weber Contract

Rumor: Per – Darren Dreger – TSN hockey insider. Dreger claimed the Montreal Canadiens came close to shipping the contract of sidelined defenseman Shea Weber before the March trade deadline to the Arizona Coyotes.

The proposed deal fell through when Coyotes management grew impatient over the amount of time it took to sort out the insurance issues and opted instead to acquire Bryan Little’s contract from the Winnipeg Jets. Dreger feels it’s not a matter of if, but of when such a deal is consummated. If not by the Arizona Coyotes, then some other team needs to get to the salary cap floor, and don’t forget that the cap is rising by another $1 million for next season.

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The Coyotes have numerous (13) expiring contracts, most of which they don’t intend to renew. Weber’s $7.875 million cap hit could allow them to maintain a low actual payroll while still in a rebuild. General manager Bill Armstrong is a shrewd negotiator and you can expect him to look out for his club’s best interests.

To listen to Dreger’s comments on the topic, they start at the 6:24 mark of the linked podcast.

Philadelphia Flyers – Head Coach Candidates

Rumor: Per – Gustav Elvin – inquirer.com/flyers. Rick Tocchet, and John Tortorella are among the available coaching candidates Flyers could consider.

Philadelphia Flyers general manager Chuck Fletcher announced on Tuesday that head coach Mike Yeo would not be returning. A popular replacement could very well be Rick Tocchet. He last coached the Arizona Coyotes from 2017-21, collecting a 125-131-34 record, and leading Arizona to a playoff berth in 2020. Before that, he coached the Tampa Bay Lightning for two seasons (2008-10) and has an overall head coaching record of 178-200-60.

Tocchet is no stranger to using discipline and perhaps that would be just what the Flyers need to turn things around. He could most definitely help the floundering Flyers poor defence.

Another possibility could be John Tortorella. Never short on flair or controversy, Torts would be an interesting selection. He has accumulated 673 head coaching and has a .548 points percentage overall. If Fletcher is looking for a demanding coach who gets the most out of his players, Torts could be his choice.

Right now, it appears that Tocchet has the inside track to be the next Flyers head coach.

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New Jersey Devils – Trading Their First Round Pick

Rumor: Per – Kayla Douglas – thescore.com. New Jersey Devils general manager Tom Fitzgerald has made it clear his team’s first-round selection could be in play.

The New Jersey Devils have multiple needs. Goaltending seems to stand out, with the team possessing the 29th spot in goals allowed. Another scenario could be offering the first-rounder for an established veteran player like J.T. Miller. It may take the first overall pick to pull that one-off. Still, the Devils have an 8.5 percent chance of winning the lottery draft.

There are no guarantees that Miller will be on the trade block. Nevertheless, you get the idea of the type of player it could take to pry that first-rounder away from the Devils, especially if they win the draft lottery. Fitzgerald would probably prefer someone with more than a year of term remaining on their contract.

Without a doubt, it may be time for the Devils to get a player who can carry their young roster out of their funk. Miller could just be that guy.

A more pressing issue will be to fill their net with a goalie to keep them in games. This franchise needs an upgrade between the pipes to have a fighting chance of becoming a playoff contender next season. It’s up to Fitzgerald to address that issue, be it shipping out Mackenzie Blackwood or putting him in a backup role to an established starter.

That concludes this segment of NHL rumors. Be sure to catch our next article!