NHL Rumors: Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, Detroit Red Wings

Welcome to the Wednesday edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The Stanley Cup Final is history and the Colorado Avalanche have won the Lord Stanley’s Cup. Meanwhile, other clubs are always working to improve their rosters for next season. In this edition of NHL Rumors, we will take a look at the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, and the Detroit Red Wings.

Montreal Canadiens – Pierre-Luc Dubois

Rumor: Per – Murat Ates – theathletic.com. Recent reports suggest PLD is planning to hit the open market as soon as he can, and he may have already narrowed his desired locations to just Montreal.

Dubois scored 28 goals, 60 points while with the Winnipeg Jets after being traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets in the Patrik Laine deal. While the Canadiens already have players like Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, a linemate like Dubois would create quite the firepower.

So, it seems the trend of late (see John Tavares) is for NHL players to want to play closer to home. Well, Dubois grew up just an hour away from Bell Centre. Even though the Habs struggled this past season, they did acquire the first overall pick. That means Shane Wright could join Dubois, Caufield, and Suzuki to have a formidable future for a team looking to regain their lost credibility.

New Jersey Devils – Meet Goaltending Needs

Rumor: Per – Larry Brooks – nypost.com. There is a fair amount of chatter from multiple industry sources that the Devils will be in on impending Toronto free agent goaltender Jack Campbell if he hits the open market on July 13.

The Devils are intensely in need of a starting goalie. Enter Jack Campbell. If the Toronto Maple Leafs can’t extend Campbell and meet his contract demands of $5 million, the New Jersey club is set to swoop in and attempt to acquire his rights.

With $25.3 million in cap space, they can easily afford to sign Campbell to a multi-year deal. He could help turn around a Devil’s team back to playoff contention.

If Campbell can’t be retained, they could always go after Alexandar Georgiev if he isn’t re-signed by the New York Rangers. There could even be a scenario where the Devils move Mackenzie Blackwood and sign both Campbell as the starter and Georgiev as the backup. Now that would be a strong goaltending tandem.

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Detroit Red Wings – Free Agents to Sign

Rumor: Per – Evan Mead – octopusthrower.com. The Detroit Red Wings are a younger team which means that there are going to be a lot of mistakes made in the next couple of years. That’s why Mead feels they need to hit the free agency market.

It definitely makes sense to go after some high-priced free agents. Especially so, if you have $35.7 million in cap space. The Wings have made some steps in getting back to a competitive team again and adding some high-powered free agents can’t hurt.

Here’s who they may target:

• Valeri Nichushkin – He had 25 goals, and 27 assists in 62 games with a +/- of +21 to show his ice presence. Mead suggests two options to sign him.

          Option A: 5yrs/$20M ($4M AAV)

          Option B: 3yrs/$15M ($6M AAV)

• Kevin Fiala – He tallied 33 goals and 52 assists with a +/- of +23. He would add some dynamic scoring to the Wings offence. With that said, he would also demand a large contract. Whether general manager Steve Yzerman wants to pay him that or not, will be his decision.

           Option A: 5yrs/$35M ($7M AAV)

           Option B: 4yrs/$32M ($8M AAV)

• Filip Forsberg – Now here is the cream of the crop in the free agency market. Many teams would love to have him, but few can afford his asking price. He well deserves a huge contract after scoring 42 goals, and 42 assists this past season. He would be a great player to take the Wings back to a playoff-contending team.

          Option A: 4yrs/$40M ($10M AAV)

That concludes this edition of NHL rumors. Be sure to check out our Sunday rumors article!

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