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...
Devils Fans Are Still Waiting For Hellebuyck To Address One Thing
Connor Hellebuycks arrival in New Jersey has already stirred plenty of attention, and not just because the Devils added a name that instantly changes the conversation around their crease. According to Elliotte Friedman, the Winnipeg Jets moved to trade him in part because they wanted to avoid a public mess, with concern that Hellebuyck might address the media after a required physical and turn an internal issue into a very public one.
Now the Devils are the ones waiting for the next chapter, because Hellebuyck is expected to debut soon and his first trip back to Winnipeg will carry its own weight. For New Jersey, the hockey part is obvious, but the larger storyline still hangs over the move: how he handles the inevitable questions, and whether the explanation for his exit ever becomes as important as his play. [Read more 🡒]
Devils Fans Finally Got Their First Look At A Stunning New Era
Connor Hellebuyck finally stepped onto the ice for his first practice with the Devils after arriving from Winnipeg in the multi-asset deal that immediately changed the look of New Jerseys roster. It was the sort of first glimpse fans had been waiting on since the trade, a chance to see how a major acquisition fits into a new locker room and a new structure.
Around the league, the ripple effects of the goalie market keep showing up in real time, with Logan Thompson and Jakob Chychrun leaving Capitals practice early because of injuries, including Thompsons lower-body issue. Elsewhere, Taylor Hall was back with the Hurricanes after his own lower-body injury, while newly signed Alexander Nikishin still had not rejoined Carolina after putting pen to paper on his one-year deal. [Read more 🡒]
Devils Just Saw How Fast Colorado Can Suddenly Look Vulnerable
Colorado rolled into a rough night in Nashville, and the kind of loss that gets attention around the league came with it. The Avalanche were beaten 6-2 by the Predators, with special teams becoming the most glaring issue as Nashville cashed in four times on seven power-play chances. For a team that has usually looked like a Cup threat even when it is not at its best, this was a reminder that the margin can shrink quickly when the details slip.
Scott Wedgewood did not give Colorado the steady presence it needed, and the defensive breakdowns around him only made the slide harder to stop. The bigger concern, though, is that the problems have not been isolated to one bad night. The effort has looked inconsistent, the defense has been leaky in recent losses, and the Avalanche will need a sharper sense of urgency if they want to get back on track before the season starts asking tougher questions. [Read more 🡒]