NHL Rumors: New York Islanders, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets

Welcome to another edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The NHL Draft is history, and every team has high hopes for the prospects they added. Now, with free agency moves mostly done, rumors are still around. Clubs are always working to improve their rosters for next season. In this Wednesday edition of NHL Rumors, we will take a look at the New York Islanders, Chicago Blackhawks, and Columbus Blue Jackets.

New York Islanders – Nazem Kadri

Rumor: Per – Chris Wassel – nhlrumors.com. Nazem Kadri and the New York Islanders, yet again?

Yes, puck heads, the New York Islanders who desperately need offence are in the NHL rumors again trying to add Nazem Kadri to their roster. Kadri is certainly taking his time in where he wants to play next. That proposed $8 million salary may have some teams swallowing hard to digest. Yet, a team like the New York Islanders, who have $11.2 million in cap space certainly comes to mind. Kadri turns 32 on October 6th, so time is wasting for him to finally get a contract. He wants to stay in Colorado. But that seems next to impossible since they only possess $3.9 million in cap space. They must consider that guy named Nathan MacKinnon who certainly deserves a big bump in salary before the upcoming season gets here.

The one dilemma that new head coach Lane Lambert would have if he can acquire Kadri, is who plays alongside him? A possible solution could be to have Kadri stay as a center while Mathew Barzal could shift to Kadri’s wing. That leaves plenty of options as Barzal can still make many plays on the wing. Take Johnny Gaudreau for example. Even if Barzal is just more of a natural center, the possible offensive pluses of having both Kadri and Barzal seem very attractive.

Time is running low and where Kadri will land? Almost every other player including Jesse Puljujarvi has signed a contract. The other question is, will Kadri get that $8 million contract for multiple years. We should soon find out.

Chicago Blackhawks – Patrick Kane

Rumor: Per – Patrick K. Flowers – bleachernation.com. A reader posed this question to Arthur Staple of the Athletic: “Come trade deadline, who goes to Chicago for Kane: Kravtsov or Kakko packaged with the first-round pick?“

Staple’s reply was: “It may not even cost that much if Kane only wants to be a Ranger. Could be just one young forward plus a young defenseman, then maybe a pick to a third team to eat some cap space.“

If Kaapo Kakko came to Chicago, here’s what Blackhawks fans could see.

Throwback to Kaapo Kakko pulling out the moves for this tally. 🕺 pic.twitter.com/0EnBLvQduA

— NHL (@NHL) July 25, 2022

The real icing on the cake for GM Kyle Davidson in Chicago is to add a first-round draft pick in next year’s loaded draft. He already has two first-rounders after acquiring one from the Brandon Hagel deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Staple contends that the Rangers could get away with flipping two former high draft picks with upside to the Blackhawks and a pick to a third team to reduce Kane’s cap hit. It may all boil down to how much Kane really wants to go to the New York Rangers.

Let’s face it, with the Blackhawks going through a lengthy and painful rebuild, does Kane want to stay for that? After all, he would be reunited with Artemi Panarin and that may be motivation enough to tell Davidson he’s ready to go to the Big Apple.

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Columbus Blue Jackets – Who should Patrik Laine and Johnny Gaudreau line up with?

Rumor: Per – Ed Francis – 1stohiobattery.com. It’s arguably the biggest question left to answer for the Columbus Blue Jackets between now and October.

It certainly isn’t a bad problem to have. Sorta like who would you rather have handled the puck… Patrik Laine or Johnny Gaudreau? Francis lists six possibilities to enhance the line down the middle.

1. Boone Jenner – He collected 23 goals, and 21 assists in 59 games before he went down with a back injury. He knows how to win faceoffs and with Laine and Gaudreau on his wings, that’s not a bad thing.
2. Kent Johnson – Not a likely candidate since he’s just 19 years old and has spent most of his time on the wing. He needs more development.
3. Gustav Nyquist – Thought to be a possible trade candidate after Gaudreau’s arrival, the Blue Jackets sent Oliver Bjorkstrand to the Seattle Kraken instead. He doesn’t need to shoot, so he would fit in well with two high-scoring wings.
4. Jack Roslovic – He tallied 12 goals and seven assists in his last 23 games of the season and could be a perfect fit. Just think what he could do with linemates like Gaudreau and Laine. If he plays on that line, his goal of becoming a top-line center may blossom. He will need to work on increasing his faceoff skills and get back on defence more, but there’s potential there for sure.
5. Cole Sillinger – This young player (19) shows some real scoring abilities, so why not place him with two other scoring machines? His 16 goals and 15 assists in 79 games may show he’s ready to really explode.
6. Alexandre Texier –  He too suffered an injury that slowed him down last season. His natural position is center, so he could fit in well. He only has 123 NHL games under his belt, so perhaps he’s not ready.

Again, there are some possibilities with so many players to choose from. When training camp begins there will be plenty of time to see if the chemistry is there to play alongside Gaudreau and Laine.

That about does it for this edition of NHL rumors. Be sure to catch our next article, and thanks for reading!

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