NHL Rumours: Devils Shopping Markstrom, Nurse to Penguins & Bourque Offer Sheet – The Hockey Writers – NHL Rumors

In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we start off with a report suggesting New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom could be traded this offseason. Next, we look at Darnell Nurse, and a possible trade heating up between the Edmonton Oilers and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Finally, we look at the Dallas Stars and their difficult cap situation, and how Mavrik Bourque could end up getting offer-sheeted.

Devils Make Markstrom Available, Gauging Market Interest

Whether it be the Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Utah Mammoth, or a number of other teams, there is certainly a market for goaltenders right now.

Assuming the Panthers can’t get a deal done with Sergei Bobrovsky, he will be the top free agent goaltender, with Frederik Andersen being the only other starter-calibre goalie. Behind them, there are a lot of fringe starters and backup goalies. If a goalie is available for trade, there will be plenty of calls.

ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reported that the Devils are starting to take calls on Markstrom, indicating that the new management regime is looking to make some big changes to the roster.

Newly hired general manager Sunny Mehta doesn’t have the attachment to the players that Tom Fitzgerald would have, and can look at the situation more objectively.

Markstrom is under contract for two more seasons with a cap hit of $6 million. He is a 36-year-old who has proven he can be one of the top goalies in the league, but his best days might be behind him.

Over his last four seasons, Markstrom has posted two objectively bad seasons and two decent ones. Not much went well for the Devils last season, however, his -13.1 goals saved above expected rating had him ranked 88th among 98 goalies to play last season.

Over the course of his career, Markstrom has had a lot of inconsistencies with his year-over-year play. While last season isn’t a strong selling pitch, he could still have some good play left in the tank, and some teams, especially the ones listed above, could have interest.

Penguins On Nurse’s Short List, Dubas Has Greyhounds Connection

We all know that Kyle Dubas loves to bring in his former Soo Greyhounds players, and with Nurse requesting a trade out of Edmonton, it could be a great opportunity to do that again, while bringing in a defenseman who can help the group and wouldn’t have a huge acquisition price.

While Nurse may not have lived up to the $9.25 million price tag, it would be hard to see him getting less than $6 million on the open market. Is he overpaid? Yes, but it isn’t as egregious as some other contracts around the league.

Nurse still brings some good hockey. He can play a physical game, he has about as much playoff experience as a player can have through 12 seasons.

Nurse will give lots of hits and blocks, but isn’t limited to a shut-down role. He can move the puck and skate well, too. There are a lot of things to like about Nurse, but his time in Edmonton has come to an end.

Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now reports, “There is an unverified report that the Penguins are on his short list of teams.”

Nobody can seem to agree on what the acquisition cost is going to end up being for Nurse. There is a chance the Oilers have to attach an asset to move on from him, while some teams could be moving assets to bring him in.

The Penguins have been working on getting younger and taking chances on players in less-than-favourable situations. While this doesn’t perfectly fit the Penguins’ mantra, with them making the playoffs this season, it could shift their perception a bit and look to get Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang one more Stanley Cup.

Stars See Bourque as Big Part of Future, Offer Sheet Possible

As the wave of youth coming into the Stars’ lineup continues to develop, Bourque has cemented himself as a part of the team. This past year, in his second NHL season, Bourque posted 20 goals and 41 points while being great defensively in a third-line role.

He is certainly the kind of centre that a team would love to bring in, but players like him aren’t often available for trade.

Luckily for 31 other teams, they don’t need to worry about trading for him.

Elliotte Friedman spoke on The FAN Hockey Show and stated, “I’ve heard Dallas has made it very clear that they see Bourque as a big part of their future.”

The Stars have just $10 million in cap space right now, and that is without a deal for Bourque or Jason Robertson. They currently only have 11 forwards signed, though they have seven defensemen and both their goalies.

If a team were to offer close to $7.1 million on a short-term deal, it would put the Stars in a very difficult position. They don’t have the space for that kind of deal as things stand right now, and would only receive a first and third-round pick for him. That is stomachable, but not ideal.

It would be a tight offseason for them already, plus the need to extend Robertson, who will command more than the $10 million in space they currently have. A team could really put the Stars in a tough spot this year.