Insider Trading: Signings, trades and more as free agency approaches

As trades and signings continue to flow in ahead of Free Agent Frenzy on July 1st, TSN Hockey Insiders Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger have the latest on Toronto RFA Matthew Knies, UFA Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett re-upping in Florida, teams checking in on Jordan Kyrou and more.

Reaction to decentralized draft

GINO REDA: They are the Insiders, Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun, and Darren Dreger.

Well gentlemen, one year, just 12 months after the most celebrated draft in NHL history, to what happened in LA just 12 months later. We won’t soon forget about this for a very long time for vastly different reasons.

Could this be a one-and-done format, C.J.?

CHRIS JOHNSTON: Well, the early returns certainly weren’t positive. Look, the NHL said they would go back to the teams after staging this first version of the decentralized draft to gauge where they’re at, to see if they want to make that change.

Based on, what I’ll call an unofficial poll, lots of complaints on this night from teams, some agents as well that I heard from. So, not likely to go back, and look, one of the problems is people like being face-to-face. 

In fact, Don Waddell, the Columbus Blue Jackets GM, mentioned to his reporters the reason that he didn’t feel that there were as many trades on this night is that there’s just fewer of those conversations that you’re bumping into guys because not one trade was made involving a player during the first round.

DARREN DREGER: You know, as I get older I get less ornery, at least that’s my mandate moving forward. But I would say that it will go back to normal moving forward and this one-off of a decentralized draft is going to be exactly that.

But let’s put the onus on the NHL clubs. The 32 teams that have voted in this process, and the vote was 26-to-six to try the decentralization. So, the NHL could be applauded for trying something new.

But if you vote again, I’m going guess that it’ll be 32-0 to go back to the old style.

Panthers ink Bennett to deal as free agency inches closer for Marchand, Ekblad

REDA: Dregs, we want you back in your old self, we don’t want you to become less ornery. We like ornery Dregs.

Alright, as he was accepting the Stanley Cup, Bill Zito said right away that he wanted to be able to sign all three of his big pending UFAs. No.1, Sam Bennett, is now done.

PIERRE LeBRUN: He got the No. 1 guy on his list. Sam Bennett, eight years, $8 million a year. The Conn Smythe trophy winner and that was so important for the Florida Panthers, really the guy that stirs the drink for the Florida Panthers. They could not live without him.

He left money on the table. Sam Bennett would have made, I believe, $10 million a year on the open market on Tuesday, but he didn’t want to leave. He made that clear all along.

Now the focus is on Brad Marchand. The Panthers have made an offer to Brad Marchand. They had a big presentation for him, now it’s sitting in Brad Marchand’s camp. It’s up to him and his agent to have a response to the Panthers in the coming days.

It might be hard for him to leave Florida, but if he does - and I think it’s more likely that he signs - the Toronto Maple Leafs among the suitors that would love to make Brad Marchand an offer quickly.

Aaron Ekblad? I think it’s more likely he goes to market.

Canadiens swing sign-and-trade for Dobson

REDA: Alright, there was a huge deal on draft day, that well, we found out about long before the draft happened, and that of course was Noah Dobson going to the Montreal Canadiens.

Huge victory for the Habs. How did it all come together?

JOHNSTON: Well, it really starts with Noah Dobson's negotiation with the New York Islanders, his team. He was trying to get a deal done there and when they weren’t able to find a contract that made sense, the Islanders shifted to moving him, for a couple of reasons.

He only had one year of team control left and so it didn’t make sense to do something short, walk him right to UFA, and the Canadiens stepped up big time to make this deal happen, and it wasn’t easy.

First, you had to make sure you were able to give him the contract he wanted, in this case he gets an eight-year extension at $9.5 million, and then they paid the price that ended up being two first-round picks, the 16th and 17th picks in Friday’s draft, and Emil Heineman. 

We should mention, the Islanders tried to use those picks to move up in the draft. Really wanted, maybe, to get to James Hagens, a local product for them. Weren’t able to do so, but it was always comfortable for them in making the trade that they would select prospects, which they did.

Habs not done adding?

LeBRUN: And Montreal hopes not to be done, you know. They’d like to, as we know, add to their top six upfront. It’s been hard to find a No. 2 centre but they’re opening that to, perhaps, a winger.

Jordan Kyrou is a player that Montreal is among several teams that have shown interest in him. He’s got a long term deal, six more years, over $8 million a year. 

What teams aren’t quite sure about is how series Doug Armstrong in St. Louis is about trading Jordan Kyrou. His no-move kicks in July 1.

Remember that St. Louis talked to teams about Brayden Schenn before the trade deadline, ended up not moving him. Some people maybe think he’s got that fishing line out and he’s just trying to see what the market is for Kyrou. 

That doesn’t mean he’s going to move him.

Flames' Andersson, Sabres' Byram generating trade interest

REDA: Trade bait out there right now, if you’re looking for a couple of blue liners, you have a pretty good idea of where to look right now.

DREGER: There are teams that are looking for defence. Maybe the Noah Dobson trade will kind of get that percolating on Day 2 of the draft, but the way, will probably go about 16 hours based on what we saw in in Round 1 on Friday night.

But I’m looking at Rasmus Andersson of the Calgary Flames and Bowen Byram of the Buffalo Sabres. Neither team is feeling a tremendous amount of pressure to sell these products off.

In Rasmus Andersson, yeah, there’s a ton of interest. I think of the Vegas Golden Knights, I think of the Los Angeles Kings, a lot of teams, Toronto may be included.

I might include Bowen Byram on the same list of the teams that are looking for an upgrade on the defence.

But in Andersson’s case of the Calgary Flames, again, they’re willing to be patient. Unless the right package, which predominantly is future driven, is handed to Craig Conroy - and there are offers, but they have to improve - then there is no sense of urgency, at least around the Calgary Flames.

With Tavares signed, Maple Leafs turn focus to pending RFA Knies

REDA: Brad Treliving just had a lot of success. He got John Tavares signed well before he went to UFA and he got him on a team-friendly contract, so now he can get onto priority No. 2, which right now has become No. 1.

JOHNSTON: You’re not getting a team-friendly contract with Matthew Knies, who you’re alluding to here, because this is a player moving on to his second contract coming out of the entry level systems and he is the big priority for the Leafs.

It does seem like there’s at least been some slow progress here between the Leafs and Knies’ camp. They seem to be focused on a five-year term, which I think might offer the solution here to solving this quandary.

For me, it’s all about timing. If Knies gets to Tuesday, to July 1, he is eligible to sign an offer sheet. While the Leafs are not necessarily afraid of that outcome, it would give him a bit more leverage in talks.

So we’ll see if they’re able to get him signed before Tuesday. I think that’s something the team would like to do, still a couple of days to get that business done.

Still no extension for Giroux with the Senators

LeBRUN: Down the highway from Toronto to Ottawa, still not an extension in place for Claude Giroux.

A lot of frustration in that negotiation. I checked again here on Friday night, status quo is what I was told. No progress.

Listen, this guy is not trying to break the bank, and the debate right now between the two sides is over the structure of the bonuses and how much bonus money there is.

They’re talking about a one-year deal. Claude Giroux does not want to leave Ottawa, he absolutely wants to re-sign with the Senators, but it’s been a difficult negotiation.

We have a few more days, we’ll see where it goes.

REDA: A few more days, it sounds like they’re going to be very, very busy days.

They are the Insiders, Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun, and Darren Dreger.