NHL Bold Predictions: 5 Players Potentially on the Move Before 2016-17 Season Begins
In this mid-summer edition of our NHL bold predictions, the focus will be five players who could potentially be traded prior to the 2016-17 season.
Expendable options continue to emerge for a number of reasons (i.e. teams pressed up against the cap, making adjustments in advance of expansion, or simply have too much depth at a certain position).
We already saw the Chicago Blackhawks trim salary by trading Andrew Shaw to Montreal.
The Canadiens also got involved in the biggest deal of the summer trading P.K. Subban to Nashville in exchange for Shea Weber. Another major trade broke within that same hour with Edmonton shipping star LW Taylor Hall to New Jersey for RHD Adam Larsson.
Other deals have occurred, but there are still a few significant pieces that could be on the move.
NHL Bold Predictions: 5 Players Potentially on the Move
D Cam Fowler, Anaheim Ducks
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The writing was on the wall for Fowler the moment Anaheim inked Sami Vatanen to a long-term deal.
Cam sits second on the defensive depth chart behind LHD behind Hampus Lindholm, and could be replaced by top prospect Shea Theodore.
You have to wonder if GM Bob Murray hopes to find a deal for Fowler prior to re-signing Hampus Lindholm and Rickard Rakell.
At this point, the Ducks have a little over $9 million dollars to spend on both players. If they find a way to trim salary in a Cam Fowler trade, it opens up the opportunity to lock down both Lindholm/Rakell to long-term deals. If Anaheim however absorbs more salary in a Fowler deal, then we’re potentially talking about Rakell on a cheaper bridge deal.
C Ryan Spooner, Boston Bruins
Free agent addition David Backes opens up a few options for GM Don Sweeney. They could continue to feature Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and Ryan Spooner up the middle with Backes sliding to the wing (where he often played in St.Louis). Backes seemed to suggest at the time of the signing that the intention is for him to play center though, which opens up the possibility of sliding Ryan Spooner to the wing.
Based on Spooner’s 49 point breakout season in 2015-16, the Bruins could sell high on the 24-year-old center. They already have some difficult decisions to make with their forwards in expansion as is, so why not make things a little easier by adding to a position of weakness (such as left-handed defense)?
C Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Edmonton Oilers
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Edmonton struck gold when Finnish prospect Jesse Puljujarvi fell to 4th at the NHL Draft. It also opened up further options for moving forwards to address defensive needs.
GM Peter Chiarelli already made one big move acquiring Adam Larsson, but the Oilers still need another right-handed defender for their second pairing.
RNH now sits third on the depth chart up the middle after the emergence of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
With players such as Anton Lander and Mark Letestu on the roster, Nugent-Hopkins is the Oilers most expandable trade piece. He also carries more value on the open market opposed to say Nail Yakupov.
D Jonas Brodin/or Marco Scandella, Minnesota Wild
There is a limited chance Minnesota enters the 2016-17 season with their current defensive group. They have five top four defenders, but only can save three in expansion.
The Wild also have Mike Reilly and Gustav Olofsson scratching at the door for their NHL opportunity.
Given that Jared Spurgeon and Mathew Dumba rank 1-2 in terms of RHD, that leaves one of Jonas Brodin or Marco Scandella as trade bait sitting 2-3 behind Ryan Suter on the left side.
G Ondrej Pavelec/or Michael Hutchinson, Winnipeg Jets
Difficult to imagine Winnipeg feeling comfortable forcing Connor Hellebuyck to another year in the AHL, but they may not have a choice. Why would another team give up a valuable asset to acquire backup Michael Hutchinson with risk of losing him in expansion?
That leaves Ondrej Pavelec who has one year remaining on his deal. He carries a cap hit of $3.9 million dollars, but is set to earn $4.75 million in actual salary in 2016-17.
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So unless the Jets are willing to retain part or the full 50 percent of his contract, there’s a chance Hellebuyck could spend next season down in Manitoba. This is far from ideal though; it not only hurts Connor Hellebuyck who is proven NHL ready, but it also stunts the development of number four Eric Comrie (another very promising prospect between the pipes).