ESPN: Greg Wyshynski and Emily Kaplan spoke last week about what NHL players might be on the move.
(Video posted before Penguins GM Jim Rutherford resigned)
** NHLRumors.com transcription
Chaplain:
“Now there’s one player on a Canadian team that I could see in motion and that’s Travis Dermott. He’s on the Toronto Maple Leafs. They got a traffic jam on D. He’s got a very cheap contract and when I’m looking for a place to land for him I’ll circle the Pittsburgh Penguins. We know GM Jim Rutherford loves to make moves. He loves doing them earlier than anyone and they have already lost two defenders in Matheson and Riikola. So this is a step that I could see.
I would see another team in the Columbus Blue Jackets again. You have two very good goalkeepers who GM Jarmo Kekalainen knows are luxury and they are Elvis Merzlikins and Joonas Korpisalo. Their contracts both run in two years. I would be surprised if both were on the team by then. Any team that loses a goalkeeper to injury is not satisfied with their goal performance. I know the first call they’ll make is Jarmo. “
Wyshynski:
“Yes, they have another good perspective in the system, and you must also be wondering about the drama of the Seattle expansion when you have to have such goalkeepers on your squad.
For me, I see teams that may not be on the hunt in the playoffs when all is said and done. I look to my beloved New Jersey Devils. You play hard, but not very well. You have three players who will achieve an unrestricted free story that I have in mind.
One, winger Kyle Palmieri, who I think has a lot of value in the trading market. He is 29 years old and has a no-trade clause for eight teams in his contract. Winger Nikita Gusev also has a no-trade clause for eight teams, he is 28, an explosive offensive winger. And then an old dog in the middle, Travis Zajac. The 35 year old has an absolute no-move, so he can be a party pooper when it comes to trades, but just the type you would like to add to the three dots on your mid-depth chart. An incredibly good player at his advanced age.
And also the Arizona Coyotes are a team that I think will be a team that wants to move assets because they want to collect as many draft picks as possible for the new general manager. Defender Alex Goligoski, 35 years old, eight-team no-trade clause. Name has been on the merchant market for a while, one that is definitely worth seeing, and then Niklas Hjalmarsson, the same deal. He is 33 years old and is entering the final year of his contract. It has a full no-move clause so it’s a little harder to deal with there. “
