Although the NHL is still in the off-season, rumour season is well underway.
Here are just a few of the rumours currently attracting attention on the Bettman circuit:
Alex Ovechkin wants to finish his career in Russia
Alex Ovechkin will be 39 at the start of next season. The Russian maverick, as good as he is, is nearing retirement, and it’s anyone’s guess when he’ll hang up his skates.
One suspects he has two seasons left in the NHL, his contract expiring at the end of the 2025-26 season. He wants to break Wayne Gretzky’s career goals record, and he’s only 42 short of it.
However, Ovechkin may well continue to play after 2025-26, since according to Vladimir Fedosov (a KHL coach quoted by AIF), Ovechkin will want to finish his career in the KHL.
Former assistant coach Vladimir Fedosov told AIF that Alex Ovechkin said he would finish his hockey playing career with Dynamo Moscow.
The Capitals captain has two years left on his NHL deal and is 42 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s record. More on No. 8:https://t.co/JqtZkMV2hD
– Washington Capitals on The Hockey News (@Capitals_THN) May 21, 2024
Fedosov notes that Ovechkin will want to play with Moscow Dynamo, with whom he played before arriving in the NHL. He played there during the lockout in 2012-13, too.
We’ll have to wait and see, but Fedosov isn’t worried that the Russian will be able to play until he’s 45. All that remains to be seen is whether the forward will be able to return to Russia, or whether he has alienated the government…
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Tyler Toffoli is being courted by two of his former teams
This summer, Tyler Toffoli will become a free agent. The contract he signed with the Habs prior to the 2020-21 season has now expired, a pact during which Toffoli was worth every penny of his $4.25 million annual salary.
And a contract during which he played for the Habs, the Flames, the Devils and the Jets.
We suspected the scorer would test the market this summer, but now TheFourthPeriod reports that two of Toffoli’s former teams would like to bring him back into the fold: the Kings and the Canucks.
Toffoli preparing to hit free agent market https://t.co/yVCQSozirD
– The Fourth Period (@TFP) May 24, 2024
These are the two teams Toffoli played for before arriving in Montreal. We don’t know what kind of contract he’s looking for, but there will be interest in a guy who can easily score 30 goals a season.
Will the Habs join Toffoli’s list of former teams interested in signing him, and if so, would he be interested in returning? We know he’s still representing the club today, after all…
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Jean-Gabriel Pageau may leave Long Island
After establishing himself as the Habs’ bête noire during his time in Ottawa, Jean-Gabriel Pageau has been doing a fine job with the Islanders for the past four years. He’s not a first-line center, but he plays good minutes and offers quality offensive production for a depth player.
That said, the Islanders seem intent on being active this summer. A draft pick deal with the Blackhawks yesterday intrigued many, and Lou Lamoriello could be busy this summer.
According to TheFourthPeriod, the Islanders tried to trade Pageau this season to free up payroll, and the market could be tested again this summer.
Do the Islanders have more up their sleeve? https://t.co/NblcKJG8gI
– The Fourth Period (@TFP) May 24, 2024
David Pagnotta, also for TheFourthPeriod, Anders Lee is another name who could leave Long Island. The latter has an annual salary of $7 million per year, while Pageau has a salary of $5 million per year.
Both guys will see their contracts expire at the end of the 2025-26 season.
Pagnotta also notes that the Islanders are interested in Nikolaj Ehlers, who could leave Winnipeg this summer. Pageau and/or Lee could help swing salaries (Ehlers has a $6M cap hit) and/or provide a replacement for Ehlers in the Jets line-up.
However, Pageau can submit a list of 16 teams to which he refuses to be traded, while Lee can have a list of 15 teams as of July 1.
We’ll keep you posted… but Patrick Roy’s team could be in for a bumpy ride this summer.
Breaking news
– We’ll be watching.
Keep an eye on the Devils… 😈 https://t.co/5h9hGYjuvK
– TVA Sports (@TVASports) May 25, 2024
– Pierre-Luc Dubois: his coach wants to help him out.
Hiller on Dubois: “I live here in LA during the summer, my understanding is PL is going to spend most of his (off-season) in LA. He and I will have plenty of discussions this summer; I know he’s not happy with his season. We’ll work together on it. Both our goal is for him to… https://t.co/23oIwktZvk
– David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 25, 2024
– Please note.
As I stated on @HelloHockeyShow a few moments ago, here is your 2024 Stanley Cup Final schedule:
Game 1 – June 8
Game 2 – June 10
Game 3 – June 13
Game 4 – June 15
Game 5* – June 18
Game 6* – June 21
Game 7* – June 24*if necessary
– David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 25, 2024
– On and on.
The fight goes on for the diminutive 5-foot-7 forward, who scored 51 goals by the age of 17… https://t. co/dbIDJ2DDVw
– TVA Sports (@TVASports) May 25, 2024
– A true captain.
He didn’t like seeing cameramen filming guys ripping it up, and he gave them the message. https://t.co/drM6LO8oCG
– Passion MLB (@passion_mlb) May 25, 2024
– Sad news.
Sad news in the golf world, Grayson Murray passed away at the age of 30 on Saturday. 🕊️ pic.twitter.com/7vrHGTObpC
– RDS (@RDSca) May 25, 2024