Dylan Larkin’s trade list is getting longer, but Montreal still isn’t on it.
The Red Wings forward has gone from three teams to six to now ten, and the latest group still leaves out the Canadiens. His list now includes the Panthers, Wild, Golden Knights, Stars, Caps, Hurricanes, Mammoth, Lightning, Devils and Avalanche. Canadiens fans apparently made their pitch when Detroit came to town, but it didn’t move the needle.
Marco D’Amico noted that if Larkin eventually winds up in Montreal only because he was backed into a corner, that wouldn’t sit well with fans. The feeling in Montreal is simple enough: they want a player who genuinely wants to be there.
Elsewhere, Mike Babcock kept his cool after the Oilers were hammered 7-2 by the Maple Leafs. He said Toronto played “harder, longer, faster” and was better in every area.
Babcock also said that effort like that on a Saturday night in your own building should be automatic, and he didn’t point fingers at anyone individually. His message was that the entire team wasn’t good enough.
Even after that loss, he didn’t light into the group. Babcock said he’d rather sleep on it than react in the moment.
That matters because Edmonton had been rolling at 8-1-1, making this one a rare rough night. Now the focus shifts to how they come out of their day off Sunday and respond Monday.
And then there’s the Connor Hellebuyck saga, where Carolina went big and still came up short.
The Hurricanes explored some unusual ways to land him, including trying to acquire forwards from other teams and flip them to Winnipeg. The Jets, though, were after immediate help up front, and they wanted a young core piece such as Stankoven or Jarvis. Carolina wasn’t willing to pay that kind of price, even after what was described as months of what they believed was a fair offer.
In the end, the Devils got the deal done. Jeff Marek called their earlier Remi Poirier waiver claim “one of the great bluffs we’ve seen in the NHL.” Sunny Mehta said the talks picked up in the final couple of days, and he even had to tell Hellebuyck not to just hop in his car and drive over.
In Other News...
Oilers Suddenly Face A Goaltending Question They Cant Ignore
A quiet stretch around the Oilers crease turned into a more serious personnel issue after Edmonton placed Devon Levi on injured reserve and brought up Matt Tomkins on emergency depth. Levis injury has not been disclosed, and the move means the Oilers will have to manage at least the next week without him while sorting out the ripple effect behind the scenes.
For a team that already has enough to monitor on the injury front around the league, this is the kind of goaltending twist that demands attention immediately. Edmonton now has to lean on its current options while Levi recovers, and the timing adds another layer of uncertainty as other clubs continue to get healthier or reshuffle their own lineups. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Just Sent Trent Frederic A Message He Cant Ignore
Trent Frederic found himself on the outside looking in against the Carolina Hurricanes, a reminder that the Oilers are not interested in simply carrying passengers through the bottom six. Coach Mike Babcock said he wants more from that group in terms of hard work and consistent physical engagement, with a premium on puck battles and pressure below the topsix level.
Frederic has already been told the message is bigger than one night, and he said he understands what is being asked of him as he tries to win his way back into the lineup. The balancing act for Edmonton is familiar at this point: the team needs energy and edge from its depth forwards, but it also needs those shifts to turn into something more than isolated moments of toughness. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Secondary Scoring Problem Could Push Them Toward A Familiar Fix
The Oilers keep running into the same issue when the scoring dries up behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, and a recent loss to the Maple Leafs put that imbalance back in sharp focus. Edmonton has the elite finishers that make it dangerous every night, but when opponents can lean hard on those two, the rest of the forward group has to chip in more than it has lately.
One possible answer sits in free agency, where Vladimir Tarasenko remains available as a proven scoring winger who could help without forcing the club into a trade market. For Edmonton, that matters because adding offense this way would spare the front office from parting with draft picks or prospects, while still addressing a need that has become too obvious to ignore. [Read more 🡒]