In today’s NHL rumors rundown, Matt Dumba talks the possiblity of being traded by the Minnesota Wild. Meanwhile, Alex DeBrincat says he’s not ready to sign a long-term deal in Ottawa.
There is an update on where things are at between the Vancouver Canucks and Bo Horvat, while fans and media in Calgary are trying to dissect comments made by Darryl Sutter towards Matthew Tkachuk.
Dumba Knows He Could Be Traded
In a recent article by The Athletic’s Michael Russo, Wild defenseman Matt Dumba spoke about his future with the team, especially as a pending free agent at the end of the season. Like many teams, the Wild are in a bit of a cap situation and trading Dumba might be one of the quicker solutions.
Dumba made it clear he wants to stay and is hoping things work out, even if he’s well aware of the cap situation and what the might mean for him. Wild GM Bill Guerin reiterated the organization’s difficult financial position, which he said “makes it hard to do certain things.” Adding to the speculation, Guerin also mentioned that the Wild had not begun to engage Dumba on extension talks yet.
Guerin said:
It’s not something I think we really need to be distracted with right now. Matt’s a big boy. I am, too. We both know our situation, but I think the most important thing is Matt has a clear head going into this year and just plays with no stress. I can’t say that we’re going to start talking or get a deal done.
source – ‘Wild lifer Matt Dumba enters another season potentially on the trading block’ – Michael Russo – The Athletic – 09/24/2022
DeBrincat Not Ready to Sign Long-Term Deal with Senators
Ian Mendes of The Athletic is reporting that newly-acquired forward Alex DeBrincat “isn’t ready” to sign a long-term deal in Ottawa at this point. He did say he was open to the possibility of an extension, but it’s too soon to be making that decision.
DeBrincat will be eligible to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2024 and that puts some pressure on the Senators to lock him into a long-term deal right away. He’s due a qualifying offer of $9 million, which if he signs it opens the door to him leaving a year later. Clearly, the Senators would prefer that doesn’t happen.
Mendes quotes DeBrincat who said:
“I’m obviously open to anything. I’m excited to play with these guys. I think both sides want to see how it works. And I know they’ve got a lot of goal scorers, so we’ll see how that works.”
source – ‘Senators training camp: One pressing question for every player’ – Ian Mendes – The Athletic – 09/21/2022
Talks With Bo Horvat Have Gone Quiet
TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that contract talks between the Vancouver Canucks and captain Bo Horvat have been quiet of late. While their conversations date back several months, there’s nothing new to report and no ground has been made, which could be considered problematic, even if there’s still lots of time to get something figured out.
Related: Flames’ Sutter Takes Massive Shot at Matthew Tkachuk
The Canucks have maintained it is their priority to get an extension done but LeBrun adds that if Horvat is not signed by the March 3 trade deadline, there’s a possibility he could be traded. Thomas Drance of the Donnie & Dhali show said, “I would be surprised if Horvat has any interest in talking in-season, but I’d also be surprised if there was any sort of declaration from Morris (Horvat’s agent).”
Did Sutter Trash Matthew Tkachuk?
There’s a lot of talk in Calgary about Darryl Sutter’s apparent shot at Matthew Tkachuk during a press conference the other day. He was asked if there were similarities between Thackuk and Tyler Toffoli and he responded, “No.” He added, “One guy’s won Stanley Cups, been a big part of long playoff runs.”
Fans and media took that as a shot at Thackuk, but some are also wondering if this is just media spin. Our own THW contributor Colton Pankiw didn’t think so and wrote, “This, no matter how it’s framed, was a clear shot at Tkachuk, and should give fans a pretty good idea of his thoughts towards a player who many believed would be the Flames’ future captain.”
There was a point last season where Tkachuk was in hot water with this teammates after he flipped a puck at Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Jake Muzzin and then flipped out when Muzzin responded. There were questions about Tkachuk’s leadership and certainly questions about whether he would show up in big games, something that was questioned again when he disappeared in the playoff series against Edmonton following Game 1.
Jim Parsons is a senior THW freelance writer, part-time journalist and audio/video host who lives, eats, sleeps and breathes NHL news and rumors, while also writing features on the Edmonton Oilers. He’s been a trusted source for five-plus years at The Hockey Writers, but more than that, he’s on a mission to keep readers up to date with the latest NHL rumors and trade talk. Jim is a daily must for readers who want to be “in the know.”
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