Welcome to another edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The NHL training camps have begun and players will be evaluated. Now, with free agency moves mostly done, rumors are still around. Clubs are always working to improve their rosters for next season. Some teams are having difficulty creating enough cap space to make moves. Others are experiencing severe injuries to star players. The new 2022-23 season will begin on October 7th, and trade rumors/signings are still prevalent. In this Wednesday’s edition of NHL Rumors, we will take a look at the Ottawa Senators, Minnesota Wild, and the New Jersey Devils.
Ottawa Senators – Alex DeBrincat
Rumor: Per – Ethan Hetu – prohockeyrumors.com. Here’s the latest on Alex DeBrincat’s future in Ottawa.
As reported by Ian Mendes of the Athletic, DeBrincat “isn’t ready” to sign a long-term deal in Ottawa at this point, although he did say that he’s “open” to the possibility of it. Per DeBrincat, “I think we’re just going to start by playing it out and see how it works,” said DeBrincat during a media session on September 7. “I’m obviously open to anything. I’m excited to play with these guys. I think both sides want to see how it works. And I know they’ve got a lot of goal scorers, so we’ll see how that works.”
DeBrincat will become an unrestricted free agent next summer and could take a $9 million qualifying offer which would take him to free agency. No doubt he is thinking about it, and would love to be the Sens highest-paid player going forward. In order to accomplish that he will need to exceed the contracts of Brady Tkachuk ($8.21M), and Thomas Chabot ($8M). If he has a good season, he may demand a $9-10 million eight-year max deal… and he may get that. He’s that good. He tallied 41 goals and 32 assists last season while participating in all 82 games.
DeBrincat is a multi-talented player and if he is instrumental in getting the Sens to the postseason for the first time since 2017, look for him to be rewarded.
Minnesota Wild – Matt Dumba
Rumor: Per –Michael Russo – theathletic.com. Wild lifer Matt Dumba enters another season potentially on the trading block.
It becomes more evident as time elapses that Dumba’s $6 million cap hit will squeeze the team into trading him. They have $12.7 million of dead cap space that increases to $14.7 million over the next two seasons. Long-term (make that EXTRA long-term) deals for Zach Parise (13 years, $98M), and Ryan Suter back in 2012 have come back to bite the Wild in the wallet.
Dumba has been putting up with trade rumors most of his Wild career. He also realizes that the team has a wealth of defense prospects just waiting for their chance in the NHL. He told Russo, “If I worried about that, I’d probably be in a shell hiding somewhere,” Dumba said. “I’ve heard about the numbers. I’ve heard about the cap space. Every year of my career, I’ve been on the (trading) block.”
Dumba was very dissatisfied with the Wild’s performance in the playoffs last season. After taking a 2-1 lead against the St. Louis Blues, they barely showed up in the next three games and bowed out. It seems that Dumba’s time to move on may be upon him. Stay connected to Full Press Hockey’s NHL rumors to get all the details.
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New Jersey Devils – Damon Severson
Rumor: Per – thefourthperiod.com. Severson, Devils haven’t started contract talks.
The Devils are overpopulated on the right side of the blueline with Dougie Hamilton, John Marino and Simon Nemec. We all know that Nemec, the second-overall pick in the draft, will get his time. So, where does that leave Severson? The 28-year-old is in the final year of his six-year $25 million deal and could be on the outside looking in for a roster spot next season.
Damon Severson says contract talks haven’t begun. He’s in the final year of his 6-year deal. #NJDevils
— James Nichols (@JamesNicholsNYI) September 25, 2022
While Severson’s performance last season is nothing to dismiss with 11 goals and 35 assists in 80 games, the competition for a spot has intensified. Once the regular season begins, more will be known about his future in New Jersey. Will Nemec transition to the North American game enough to displace Severson? If contract talks fail, there will be teams lined up to offer Severson a spot in their lineup. For now, all he can do is continue his stellar play and hope things work out for him.
That concludes this edition of NHL rumors. Be sure to catch our next article, and thanks for reading!
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