Countdown to TradeCentre: Could Perron fit in Edmonton?

The NHL's March 8 Trade Deadline is approaching, and teams are making decisions on whether to buy or sell, and on which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Check out today's trade rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.

A suitor for Perron?

If the Edmonton Oilers elect to pursue more help at forward ahead of the trade deadline, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal suggests a familiar face could be an option.

Matheson notes that general manager Ken Holland has "long liked" Detroit Red Wings winger David Perron, who played with the Oilers from 2013 to 2015. 

Perron is a pending unrestricted free agent, carrying a cap hit of $4.75 million and Matheson believes Detroit would have to retain half of that to complete a deal.

The 35-year-old has 10 goals and 39 points in 45 games with the Red Wings this season, his second with the team. He had 24 goals and 56 points in 82 games last year.

A veteran 1,100 NHL games, Perron won the Stanley Cup as a member of the St. Louis Blues in 2019 and has appeared in 104 playoff games over his 17-year career.

According to CapFriendly, the Oilers are projected to have $2.37 million in cap space at the trade deadline. Edmonton currently sits third in the Pacific Division, seven points back of the Vegas Golden Knights with four games in hand. 
 

Eyes on Ottawa

Goaltender Anton Forsberg is ready to make his return from long-term injured reserve, leaving the Ottawa Senators with a roster decision to make, Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reports.

Forsberg, who last played on Jan. 11, carries a cap hit of $2.75 million, of which the Senators are currently using $1.71 million in LTIR relief. 

The Senators can send down emergency recall Kevin Mandolese to help clear $775,000, but will be forced to put a player on waivers or make a trade to clear the additional space, according to Garrioch.

UPDATE: The Senators waived forward Zack MacEwen to help clear space for Forsberg on Monday. 

Of the 22 players on Ottawa's current roster, only injured defenceman Jake Sanderson (who carries a cap hit of $925,000 this season) and forward Ridly Greig ($863,333) are waiver exempt. 

Pending unrestricted free agent Vladimir Tarasenko is currently the highest-ranked Senator on the TSN Trade Bait board, checking in at No. 5. The winger has 14 goals and 34 points with Ottawa this season after signing a one-year, $5 million deal with a full no-trade clause in the off-season.

Defenceman Jacob Chychrun, who was Ottawa's prize deadline acquisition last year, is listed at No. 12 on the list, while off-season addition Dominik Kubalik, also a pending UFA, checks in at No. 27. 

The Senators enter play Monday sitting second-last in the Eastern Conference, 16 points back of the Detroit Red Wings for the final playoff spots. Winners of three straight, the Senators will play three games this week against other teams outside the playoff picture as they hope to re-enter the conversation down the stretch.

“It’s got to be game-by-game, especially with the situation that we’re in right now,” veteran Claude Giroux said after Saturday's win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. “Last year, we went to Chicago, we were playing some good hockey and we were kind of coming back into a playoff spot, and we lost that game. We weren’t very good and we came out flat.

“That’s something where it doesn’t matter who you play, any team can beat any team. We’ve got to go one game at time, enjoy this win right now but we’ve got to move on.”

Leafs lose Rielly

The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to be without top defenceman Morgan Rielly for their upcoming stretch of games after he was offered an in-person hearing for his cross-check on Ottawa Senators forward Ridly Greig.

Rielly will attend his hearing in New York on Tuesday and could be suspended for more than five games after being offered the in-person appearance.

The 29-year-old has seven goals and 43 points in 50 games this season while leading Toronto in average ice time at 24:21. TJ Brodie is second on the team in average ice time, well behind Rielly at 21:44 per game. 

TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston joined SC with Jay Onrait on Sunday to break down to the looming suspension and its impact on Toronto.