TSN’s Hockey Insiders on Toronto dealing with Chris Tanev’s injury, the Habs keeping tabs on the Dylan Larkin situation, the latest on Simon Edvinsson, the NYR’s goalie options, and the tough start by the Flyers.
James Duthie: Your insiders, Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun, and Darren Dreger. The only blemish on a massive early-season win for the Leafs in Colorado on Saturday was watching their best defenceman, Chris Tanev, leave after not much contact, which perhaps makes it even more concerning.
He’s 36 years old, CJ, and only played 11 games last year. How worrisome is this to the Leafs and their fans?
Chris Johnston: Well, certainly there’s concern given what Tanev means to the team, what he’s been through, and the way he left that game. But I would caution anyone against jumping to too many conclusions at this point.
The Leafs remain on the road and have been so since Tanev suffered that injury on Saturday in Denver, and they just feel they need a little bit more time here to do due diligence, to run some more tests, and get a feel for exactly what’s going on with Chris Tanev. Remember, part of his lengthy absence last year was a spinal cord issue that took a little bit of time for the Leafs to get their hands on to understand what that injury was.
Not saying it’s a repeat of that or the concussion from last season, but I do think there is a little bit of optimism on the Tanev front, but they just don’t yet have all the information they need to give an accurate picture of how long he’ll be out.
Duthie: We heard the Habs fans chanting, “We want Larkin,” with Dylan and the Wings in town. I guess the question is, Pierre, is there any chance all that love could change his mind and open the door to the Habs getting him?
Pierre LeBrun: Yeah, I mean, isn’t that the question after what we saw Saturday night, James? And I can tell you that I checked on this day to see if there was perhaps a little change of heart from Dylan Larkin as far as adding a new team to his list, i.e. Montreal. No, his list has not changed despite the love-in from Saturday night. It is at 10 teams, which has expanded from the beginning, but does not include Montreal at this point.
But I will tell you this. Obviously, the Canadiens have tried to swing big, right? They tried to swing a big trade for Matthew Knies last March at the deadline. We know how hard they tried on Marchenko from Columbus. They would be ready to engage with the Red Wings if Dylan Larkin had a change of heart. But the Habs can also be patient here. I mean, they got Michael Hage coming at the end of the year. This is not a desperate situation where they have to make that home run trade. They know they can still grow internally.
Here’s the thing. Would Larkin change his mind over time? What if he’s still a Red Wing in three months? What if his level of frustration grows? Maybe he has a change of heart. We’ll see.
Johnston: Meanwhile, there is a bit of a change with Simon Edvinsson, the unsigned defenceman of the Red Wings, and that’s the fact that he has left Sweden and is making his way back to North America.
He’d been back in Gothenburg skating since the end of training camp, and the reason for the move right now, he wants to work for a trainer back in North America that he feels comfortable with. It obviously gets him closer to the NHL, both in proximity and, he hopes, in terms of his game shape. Not necessarily a sign that there’s been a breakthrough on the contract front, but the fact he is coming back this way does symbolize some good things. Edvinsson has to sign a deal by Dec. 1 in order to be able to play this season.
Duthie: Hard to think of a more devastating season-ending injury to a team individually than Igor Shesterkin to the Rangers, especially after the start they got off to. So now what, Dregs?
Darren Dreger: They do not replace a goaltender of the magnitude of Igor Shesterkin. So yes, there’s been conversation with the Winnipeg Jets and the possibility of Connor Hellebuyck, but right now there’s no sense of urgency, and the Rangers flat-out don’t wanna pay the hefty price for Connor Hellebuyck.
But they are making calls around the league, especially with the experienced goaltenders around the National Hockey League, and especially with those who have limited term.
But again, they’re not panicking in this situation. Dylan Garand will get a great opportunity here to run with the ball. They’ve got Joonas Korpisalo, who’s still a few weeks away from being able to return. So if this strong start goes off the rails in the near future, maybe the appetite for that urgency changes for Chris Drury and the Rangers.
Duthie: Well, you mentioned panic and urgency. You have to wonder when it comes to Philadelphia off to just an awful 0-5-2 start. And Pierre, whenever that happens, the GM of the team becomes suddenly very popular, doesn’t he?
LeBrun: Yeah, Danny Briere, the GM of the Flyers, my understanding is his phone is getting all kinds of love from other GMs around the league, but not the kind of attention you wanna get.
There is no easy fix here. There is no blockbuster trade that the Flyers are gonna pull off to get themselves out of this brutal start. I know some fans are chanting, “Fire Rick Tocchet.” That’s not even a thought for Flyers management right now. The answer lies within. This is a collective letdown from the start of the year. There’s a belief inside that management group that this is a group of young players who, after getting a taste of success last year, maybe took a lot for granted here entering this year. It’s a wake-up call. They gotta fix it themselves.
Duthie: Goal differential, a league-worst minus-20 heading into play on Tuesday.