Scouting the Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins
Stu Cowan: Scouts listed to attend last night’s Canadiens-Bruins game: Vegas Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks, New Jersey Devils, Arizona Coyotes, and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Wait and see still for Ho-Sang
Brian Compton: New York Islanders GM Lou Lamoriello when asked if forward Josh Ho-Sang would eventually play for Bridgeport (AHL) if they can’t find a trade partner: “We’ll just have to wait and see.”
Hurricanes could move a Dman for a forward
TSN: Pierre LeBrun says the Carolina Hurricanes don’t want to lose a defenseman on waivers, but they do have a surplus and could look to move one for help up front.
“They’re trying to acquire a top-nine forward at some point and they’re willing to move one of either two defencemen: Haydn Fleury or Trevor van Riemsdyk. They’re both restricted free agents on July 1. For the right price, I think that Carolina would listen and move one of them.”
Sabres could move a Dman for a forward
TSN: The Buffalo Sabres will also have a surplus of defenseman when Zach Bogosian and Marco Scandella return from injury according to Darren Dreger.
“GM Jason Botterill is starting to shop and he would like to add a couple of forwards. In a perfect world, a top-six forward, and he’d like to add a bottom-six forward as well.”
Rebuilding around Dought and Kopitar
Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic: The LA Kings plan is to rebuild their roster around the 29-year old Drew Doughty and 32-year old Anze Kopitar.
Doughty admits he wasn’t thinking rebuild when he signed his eight-year contract extension.
“Obviously when I was re-signing we didn’t ever think we’d do this rebuild,” Doughty said Monday after practice. “We’re not too happy we have to do it. But it’s the way things have come. We have full faith in Blakey, and full faith in all the players in this room. We’re going to get back to where we were one day, just we can’t rush it. We need to trust the process. We have to play with the cards we’ve been dealt here.”
Kopitar is in the fourth year of his eight-year deal and isn’t looking to play anywhere else.
“Yeah I certainly don’t want to go anywhere,” said Kopitar, who is in the fourth season of an eight-year, $80-million deal. “I’ve been in L.A. 14 years now and I can call it my home. Unless somebody tells me I got to go anywhere, I certainly would like to stay here. In saying that we got to make sure we build a team that’s competitive. I think we’re trending in the right direction.”