Should the Buffalo Sabres pursue Nikolaj Ehlers further? Will the Montreal Canadiens trade a goaltender? Lyle Richardson gathers the latest NHL trade speculation.
Nikolaj Ehlers and Owen PowerThe Buffalo Sabres were expected to add a top-six forward this summer to bolster their offense after dropping from averaging 3.57 goals per game in 2022-23 to 2.98 last season.
Veteran winger Jason Zucker signed a one-year, $5-million contract on July 1. However, Sabres followers are hoping for a more substantial addition.
On Sept. 11, a reader asked The Athletic's Matthew Fairburn if it was still possible for the Sabres to make a big trade for a top-six winger. They possess almost $7 million in cap space and a deep prospect pool to draw on for trade bait.
Fairburn thinks it could happen but probably not until later in the season, possibly by the March 7 trade deadline. He suggested Winnipeg Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers as an option, citing the uncertainty over his future in Winnipeg as a pending UFA next July.
The Sabres could be in on Ehlers if they're still in the playoff hunt by March. However, they won't be the only club interested in the 28-year-old Danish winger if he's available, assuming the Jets are out of the post-season chase leading up to the trade deadline.
Turning to the Montreal Canadiens, TVA Sports hockey analyst Eric Fichaud predicted Cayden Primeau won't finish the season with the Habs.
Primeau, 25, enters this season backing up starter Samuel Montembeault. He's in the final season of his three-year contract and is coming off a solid 2023-24 performance with an 8-9-4 record, a 2.99 goals-against average and a save percentage of .910.
Fichaud believes the Canadiens need an older veteran to back up Montembault this season. However, they had that option in Jake Allen last season but decided to retain the promising Primeau while shipping Allen to New Jersey at last season's trade deadline.
Speaking of the Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang laughed off a recent rumor claiming he requested a trade to the Habs.
“People were talking about that? They weren't talking to me,” he said.
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