Now that we’ve actually had an NHL trade (and for right-shooting defenders too), the rumours around Nikita Zaitsev will heat up. While it is true that Zaitsev will be cash-salary cheaper for one season after his July 1 signing bonus is paid, it’s a lot harder to trade a player after everyone has made their draft-day trades and signed their free agents than it is to do it now. So, teams who want to make a move may not wait.
Derren Dreger started things off yesterday with this tweet:
Trade discussions will heat up in the days leading up to next weeks draft.