Welcome to another edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! Teams are always looking to improve, and the excitement of another NHL season is upon us. With the March 8th trade deadline approaching, the rumors are hot and heavy!
In this Wednesday edition of NHL Rumors, we’ll examine the Montreal Canadiens, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Los Angeles Kings.
NHL rumors in this edition include:
Of five possible destinations, where will Jake Allen land? Would Matt Dumba solve the Lightning’s need for a right-shot defenseman? Who could be the next permanent head coach for the Kings?
Montreal Canadiens – Jake Allen
Rumor: Per – Matt Larkin – dailyfaceoff.com. With a logjam in net, it appears that Jake Allen will be dealt… but where?
Sam Montembeault isn’t going anywhere; he’s extended for the next three seasons at a $3.15 million AAV. That leaves youngster Cayden Primeau and grizzled veteran backup Jake Allen. Allen definitely holds more trade value with his 412 NHL appearances between the pipes, including 391 starts. The cost? $3.85 million through the 2024-25 season. There seems to be quite a few teams needing a goaltender. Here’s the list of where Allen could be headed before the trade deadline on March 8th.
- Colorado Avalanche – Overworked Alexandar Georgiev needs some relief, and Allen could easily provide that. If the Avs could ask the Habs to retain 50 percent of Allen’s cap hit ($1.925M), there could be a fit for both teams.
- Edmonton Oilers – The Oilers are running on all cylinders but could still use a better backup than Calvin Pickard. Not that Stuart Skinner is faltering… at all. Since Kris Knoblauch took over as head coach, Skinner has a 21-4-0 mark with a .925 SV%.
- Carolina Hurricanes – Having the third-worst save percentage in the NHL will not work when the postseason starts. If Allen isn’t the answer in Carolina, perhaps they should try to acquire Juuse Saros instead.
- New Jersey Devils – The Devils have been hunting for an answer in net most of the season. Allen could fill the gap, but what about going forward? As a future contender, they may want to go after Saros as well.
- Los Angeles Kings – They fired their head coach, Todd McLellan and it may be time to see what can be done to have a better shot at winning with a new goalie. Cam Talbot and David Rittich may not be ideal.
Tampa Bay Lightning – Matt Dumba
Rumor: Per – Michael DeRosa – nhltraderumors.me. Matt Dumba is expected to be on the Lightning’s radar as the trade deadline approaches.
The Lightning needs some grit and experience on their bottom pairing, and bringing in an experienced defenseman like Dumba could make sense for them. He hasn’t exactly fit in very well in Arizona and only signed a one-year $3.9 million deal. If the Coyotes decide to move him, they will likely be forced to retain some of his salary. And we all know that the Lightning are experts at grabbing an experienced player at a bargain price.
Dumba has struggled with just two goals, three assists, and a less-than-attractive +/- of -10. He is currently injured and placed on injured reserve on January 22nd. When he returns, it will be interesting to see if the Lightning offer the Coyotes a deal to move him before the deadline. He could fit well into the Tampa Bay blueline and add some grit as an extra benefit.
The Coyotes are transitioning from their rebuild but could always add to their treasure chest of prospects and picks to augment the rebuild.
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Los Angeles Kings – Head coach replacement
Rumor: Per – Austin Stanovich – thehockeynews.com. With Jim Hiller being cast as an interim head coach, who will get the permanent job?
- Craig Berube – He is a no-nonsense, get-results type of head coach and could work for the Kings. He’s won a Cup and could revitalize the slumping Kings. He has to be considered as a top candidate.
- Bruce Boudreau – He has shown he can win games during the regular season but not so much in the postseason. Then, there’s his age (70), and that could be a factor. He may be a remote possibility.
- Dean Evason – He was fired after a poor Minnesota Wild record of 5-10-4 start to the 2023-24 campaign. In his corner is the fact that he transformed the Wild into a high-powered team even with limited cap space.
- Todd Nelson – He was once an interim coach with the Edmonton Oilers, going 17-25-9. He would be a non-NHL option since he currently coaches the AHL Hershey Bears. He may be a risk, but he has been very successful in the AHL.
That concludes this edition of NHL rumors. Be sure to catch our next article, and thanks for reading!