Ahead of this week's NHL Draft and the opening of free agency on Saturday, TSN.ca keeps you up to date with all the latest rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.
Maple Leafs Watch
New Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving is keeping busy in Nashville ahead of tomorrow's first round at the NHL Draft.
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger shared Tuesday that the Maple Leafs are circling around forwards Alex Kerfoot and David Kampf with the opening of the unrestricted market looming.
Dreger notes that the 28-year-old Kampf appears to be more of a focus for the Maple Leafs.
Kampf played in 82 games for the Maple Leafs last season, scoring seven goals and adding 20 assists for a career-high 27 points. Kampf was also one of the Maple Leafs' most consistent players in the faceoff dot, winning 51.5 per cent of his attempts.
Toronto is circling around forwards Alex Kerfoot and David Kampf. Obviously, time is running out before the UFA market opens. Kampf appears to be more of a focus for the Leafs at this point.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 27, 2023
Kerfoot, 28, skated in his second 82-game season in a row for the Maple Leafs in 2022-23, scoring 10 goals and adding 22 assists. The Vancouver, B.C., native was acquired by the Maple Leafs along with Tyson Barrie and a sixth-round pick for a package deal that included Nazem Kardi.
TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun said Monday Treliving is expected to meet with William Nylander's agent, Lewis Gross, this week to discuss a possible extension for the winger.
Nylander is eligible for an extension on July 1 as he enters the final year of his contract, and a modified no-trade clause will also kick in at that time. LeBrun adds that teams have reached out to the Maple Leafs regarding Nylander's availability via trade, and the team is keeping their options open to decide whether they can afford to re-sign the 27-year-old, or if they will be forced to trade him.
Nylander had a career-high 40 goals and 87 points in 82 games this season, adding four goals and 10 points in 11 playoff games.
Also eligible for an extension on Saturday is Maple Leafs star centre Auston Matthews. TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger said Monday Treliving was believed to have already met with Matthews' agent, Judd Moldaver, in Nashville.
Dreger adds that the expectation remains that Matthews will sign an extension with Toronto, but it may not be in place by July 1.
Matthews, 25, has played his entire seven-season career in Toronto and registered 40 goals and 85 points in 74 games this season. The 2021-22 Hart Trophy winner added five goals and 11 points in 11 playoff games.
After a very active trade deadline, the Maple Leafs have just three selections at this week's draft - in the first, fifth and sixth rounds. The Maple Leafs sit at No. 28 with the Boston Bruins' first-round pick and TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston reports the Maple Leafs are open to dealing that selection either for a player on the trade market, or to accumulate more picks in the draft.
Latest on Dubois, Jets
The Pierre-Luc Dubois sweepstakes appear to have heated up with the Montreal Canadiens re-engaging in talks with the Winnipeg Jets after the Los Angeles Kings emerged as a potential trade partner.
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reports the Canadiens and Jets initially broke off talks because Montreal was unwilling to give up current promising roster players and Winnipeg is not interested in entering into a rebuild with future assets.
While talks are back on, Dreger believes the Kings are still the most likely landing spot for Dubois.
The Jets are expected to be one of the most active teams in the trade market this week, as Dreger added Monday things have started to "percolate" on trades involving goaltender Connor Hellebuyck and forward Mark Scheifele.
Winnipeg is also expected to cut ties with former captain Blake Wheeler this week, either via trade or a buyout before the window closes on Friday.
Wheeler has one year remaining on his contract at a cap hit of $8.25 million. A buyout would clear $5.5 million in cap space for the Jets in the upcoming season, while leaving a cap charge of $2.75 million for the 2024-25 season.
"The bottom line is the buyout window closes next Friday and the decision has to be made by then. Wheeler will not be playing for the Jets next year," LeBrun said last week on Insider Trading.
The veteran forward had 16 goals and 55 points in 72 games with the Jets this past season. He added two goals and six points as the Jets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Vegas Golden Knights.
Hall Leaves, Bertuzzi Stays?
The Boston Bruins traded winger Taylor Hall to the Chicago Blackhawks Monday, clearing his $6 million cap hit from the books for the next two seasons.
TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston reports that space could quickly be filled as the Bruins are turning their attention to re-signing pending unrestricted free agent Tyler Bertuzzi, who is reportedly looking for a salary of roughly $6 million on his next deal.
After clearing some much-needed cap space, it would not be a surprise to see the #bruins take a run at re-signing pending UFA Tyler Bertuzzi before he hits the open market.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 26, 2023
Bertuzzi split the 2022-23 season between the Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins and posted eight goals and 22 assists in 50 games between the two teams. He added five goals and 10 points in seven playoff games.
The Sudbury, Ont., native was acquired by the Bruins on March 2 in exchange for a 2024 first-round pick (top-10 protected) and a fourth-round pick in 2025.
The 28-year-old is coming off a two-year, $9.5 million deal he signed with Detroit in 2021. The contract carried an average annual value of $4.75 million.
Hall, 31, had 16 goals and 36 points in 61 games with the Bruins this past season, adding five goals and eight points in seven playoff games.
