Rumours swirl around Brayden Schenn, Vladimir Tarasenko, Andre Burakovsky and more in today's NHL Rumour Report update.
- Andre Burakovsky's time in Washington could be running out with rumblings this week suggesting the Caps could be listening on the talented but inconsistent winger. Burakovsky has struggled to solidify his spot on the roster, and teams have begun to kick tires. The Canucks are rumoured to be one of the teams with interest.
- The rumblings surrounding Vladimir Tarasenko have grown loud over the past week even as the Blues have started putting together a few wins. Rumours suggest the Carolina Hurricanes have explored the possibility of acquiring the talented if enigmatic winger. The Hurricanes have let it be known that they are willing to part with one of their quality defensemen - Brett Pesce, Justin Faulk and perhaps Jacob Slavin, in return for a scoring forward. Teams have also expressed interest in pending UFA winger Michael Ferland, who appears to be pricing himself out of town. The list of suitors interested in Vladimir Tarasenko, who has four years left at a reasonable $7.5 million per, is likely to grow as we approach the trade deadline.
- Carolina may not be patient enough to wait until then, as rumours grow that they may be looking at other targets such as the Leafs' Kasperi Kapanen.
- Some players never seem to stay out of the rumour mill. This one is weird, admittedly: the Vegas Golden Knights reportedly are interested in Blues centerman Brayden Schenn, who has already been traded twice in his career. It does make sense from two perspectives - Kelly McCrimmon if familiar with Schenn, and the Blues have pretty much told the league that they'll listen on all of their players. So I guess it's no surprise to hear rumours around key guys like Schenn, Vladimir Tarasenko, Alex Pietrangelo and the like.
- Some rumblings out there that Viktor Antipin, Mikhail Grigorenko and Nikita Nesterov are hoping to return to the NHL at some point. All three struggled to hold spots in the NHL and have since returned to the KHL.
- A few teams kicked tires on Patrik Berglund before the Sabres ultimately terminated his contract, which means he won't be out of work for long. There's a bit of mystery around why Berglund failed to report to the team - but he didn't seem to be a fit with the Sabres anyways.