NHL Rumors: Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets

Welcome to another edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The 2022-23 regular season is over and players as well as front offices will be evaluated. Now, with the season completed, the focus shifts toward deals that may go down this summer. What about free agency? Clubs are always working to improve their rosters for next season. Teams who were eliminated from the postseason need to assess what happened and make adjustments. Some teams are having difficulty creating enough cap space to make moves. Others are experiencing severe injuries to star players. Trades/signings are all but over for now, while teams are competing in the playoffs. In this Sunday edition of NHL Rumors, we will look at the Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers, and the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Toronto Maple Leafs – Daniel Vladar

Rumor: Per – James Wilson – nhltraderumors.me. NHL insider predicts Vladar will be the starting goalie for the Leafs next season. 

Sometimes the connection between a general manager and a player makes it easier to swing a deal. Just look at Shane Doan‘s familiarity with Brad Treliving, the new GM of the Toronto club. That also holds true about Treliving’s connection with Vladar.

"A few weeks ago, I said not only is Brad Treliving going to be the GM of the #Leafs, but I predict Dan Vladar will be the starting goalie on opening night."
— @EricFrancis was a guest on @TheHockeyVerse https://t.co/p8w0si1wyx pic.twitter.com/GqRt4rAMqr

— Michael Traikos (@Michael_Traikos) June 2, 2023

The Calgary Flames, now led by Craig Conroy, face a goaltending dilemma with Jacob Markstrom‘s contract and the emergence of prospect Dustin Wolf. That makes Vladar the odd-man out. Of course, the Leafs have a similar problem in between the pipes. They have both Ilya Samsonov and Joseph Woll. They also need to determine what to do about Matt Murray. A trade or possible buyout may be in the books, especially considering that the Leafs need all the cap space they can accumulate if they wish to re-sign both Auston Matthews and William Nylander who will be unrestricted free agents after this next season.

Vladar the 25-year-old, over his three-year career, holds a 2.89 GAA, .897 SV%, and two shutouts with a 29-14-8 record across 55 games played. He possesses some real upside if he can get into a better defensive system. It seems both clubs need to evaluate their goaltending needs and move forward. Treliving has a record of moving quickly to improve his team’s roster. So, will Vladar be a Leaf soon? We will need to wait and see.

The possibility of Vladar joining the Maple Leafs was discussed on the The HockeyVerse with Michael Traikos & Johnny Legend at the 31:26 mark.

Philadelphia Flyers – Anthony DeAngelo

Rumor: Per – Dave Littman – nhltraderumors.me. It’s happening again… DeAngelo is on the trade block. NHL rumors seem to follow him around.

One thing is certain when two personalities like John Tortorella and Tony DeAngelo clash, it’s going to be messy. DeAngelo found that out last season when his head coach benched him for the last five games. He called the benching “ridiculous” and now the Flyers are apparently looking “aggressively” at what the feisty D-man’s trade market might hold. DeAngelo wants to remain a Flyer, but that may not be his decision. He will be an UFA after the 2023-24 season holding a $5 million contract.

Newly appointed GM, Daniel Briere is not wasting any time trying to improve his defense, among other things.

Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) went on The Jeff Marek Show and reported that the #Flyers are exploring the Tony DeAngelo market:

“I think they are aggressive on that front about trying to see what the market is for him.”

(HT @NHL_Watcher) pic.twitter.com/zu40Iyu3iQ

— Flyers Nation (@FlyersNation) June 8, 2023

Flyers Insider Anthony DiMarco recently echoed those thoughts. “I’ve heard that the Flyers will explore ways to move DeAngelo and may be willing to retain money on the final year of his contract ($5 million AAV) to help facilitate a deal.” So, it appears that if Briere receives a good return, DeAngelo may be on the move once again. He is a skilled offensive blueliner who added 42 points this last season, but his defense leaves a lot to be desired. That along with his tattered relationship with Tortorella can only mean he needs to start packing soon.

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Columbus Blue Jackets – Dmitry Orlov

Rumor: Per – Michael DeRosa – nhltraderumors.me. The Blue Jackets are beefing up their defense by already adding Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson, can they also acquire Orlov?

GM Jarmo Kekalainen is being super aggressive attempting to stop the bleeding on the Blue Jackets blueline. He may not be done, as he can still be looking to add some pieces if things work out.

Friedman on 32TP says CBJ called the Devils asking about Damon Severson, they were out looking for D with term eventually they ended up with Provorov. Also there were rumours out there connecting them to Orlov, Jarmo is being aggressive in his pursuit of defencemen.

— NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) June 7, 2023

The Boston Bruins would love to keep Orlov on their roster, but they have limited cap space set at about $5 million and must decide which free agents to re-sign. Among them would be Patrice Bergeron, Tyler Bertuzzi, David Krejci, and Jeremy Swayman. The Blue Jackets after acquiring both Provorov ($4.725M) and Severson ($6.25M), have decreased their cap space to just $5.8 million. Orlov’s contract was set at $5.1 million, so something needs to happen to make some cap space for him. He will undoubtedly be wanting a raise since he collected 17 points in 23 games while in Boston.

The way Jarmo has been wheeling and dealing, anything could happen. One thing is certain though, even if he can’t acquire Orlov, his blueline will be extremely improved next season. With Zach Werenski back from injury and now with the addition of Provorov and Severson, the Columbus club could be markedly improved. Add in young Adam Boqvist and the dismal past season experienced by Blue Jacket fans may be a thing of the past.

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