Things in Ottawa are a disaster. And that’s putting it politely. By now you’ve likely heard about the cyberbullying fiasco involving Mike Hoffman and his fiancee — they have both denied these allegations — and how he was traded twice on Tuesday morning.
While a lot of the attention is on Hoffman and what forced him out of Ottawa, the real question is now what’s next for the Senators? Based on rumors around the league, it sounds like a full rebuild is on the horizon in Canada’s capital city, and Erik Karlsson could be on the move next.
Ottawa will remain a hot spot this week. I believe Dorion is listening to interest on Karlsson and Zack Smith as a rebuild hits full stride.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) June 19, 2018
The @Senators are not finished dealing their star players in this full rebuild. They are pushing to trade Erik Karlsson and Zach Smith within the next week. #TradeTalk
— Kathryn Tappen (@KathrynTappen) June 19, 2018
Of course, it’s no secret the Golden Knights are interested in Karlsson. General manager George McPhee nearly acquired the 28-year-old Swedish defenseman at the trade deadline in February, but things fell apart in the final minutes because the Knights were reportedly unwilling to include prospect Cody Glass in any potential deal.
According to TSN’s Frank Seravalli, though, the two sides have recently revisited trade discussions about Karlsson, and things have “heated up.”
The team to watch continues to be the Vegas Golden Knights, the team that went down to the wire with the Ottawa Senators at 2:45 p.m. before the 3 o’clock trade deadline back in February, nearly pulling off a blockbuster deal to bring the two-time Norris Trophy winner to the Stanley Cup Finalist Golden Knights. It seems like those two sides have revisited those talks. They’ve heated up. To be sure, Pierre Dorion’s phone is ringing.
What that package might include, and if Erik Karlsson is willing to sign a long-term extension with a team like the Vegas Golden Knights, remains to be seen. But, for now, while people continue to talk about Hoffman, the attention is shifting solely to Erik Karlsson.
Seravalli also mentioned how a lot of teams believe Karlsson could be moved this week as the NHL Awards wrap up in Vegas on Wednesday night. Considering how things have gone recently in Ottawa, it feels like every team in the NHL is approaching the Sens in regard to Karlsson.
With the NHL Awards and NHL Draft taking place this week, we’ll certainly hear a lot more about Karlsson and where he could potentially land. By the sounds of it so far, though, Vegas remains very much in the thick of things.
Buckle up, Knights fans. This is going to be one interesting week.